Cardinals To Promote Leo Bernal

The Cardinals will call up catching prospect Leo Bernal from Triple-A on Tuesday prior to their game with the Dodgers, Francys Romero reports.  Bernal was already added to the 40-man roster last November in advance of the Rule 5 Draft, and he’ll take one of the two extra spots when the 26-man roster expands to 28 men on September 1.

It would seem like some kind of corresponding move will need to take place, however, as Bernal would be the fourth catcher on the St. Louis active roster.  Ivan Herrera is used more regularly as a DH, but Pedro Pages has handled the bulk of catching duties this season, and Jimmy Crooks also getting a good deal of playing time since being recalled from Triple-A Memphis at the end of May.

The Cardinals could just make Herrera a full-time DH in September and continue with a three-player split of the work behind the plate, though Crooks could also get sent down to Memphis since he hasn’t been hitting.  The 22-year-old Bernal has also gotten some action as a first baseman, so he could perhaps spell Alec Burleson on occasion in order to get him more at-bats.

However the playing time will slice out, Bernal’s bat has earned him his first look at the Major League level.  The 2021 international signing is hitting .279/.364/.469 with 16 homers over 431 plate appearances for Memphis, which marked his first exposure to Triple-A pitching.  The numbers indicate he has adjusted quite nicely, and he has an 11.8% walk rate and a 20% strikeout rate to go along with his counting stats.

MLB Pipeline ranked Bernal 98th on their preseason top-prospect list, though he has since dipped out of the top 100 and is now rated seventh just among Cardinals prospects.  Baseball America puts Bernal fifth in their ranking of the top 30 St. Louis minor leaguers.  Both evaluators are high on Bernal’s defense, as his framing and strong throwing arm outweigh some concerns over his blocking ability.  The switch-hitting Bernal is a better overall hitter from the right side in terms of power and contact, though as a left-handed hitter he makes more contact.

The identity of the Cardinals’ next true “catcher of the future” has been asked since Yadier Molina retired, and it is possible the answer is Rainiel Rodriguez, who is tearing up Double-A Pitching and could well receive a promotion to Triple-A once Bernal is in the Show.  Pages is an excellent defender who offers next to nothing as a hitter, while Herrera’s numbers have declined enough from 2025 that he is only an offensive plus as a catcher, not as a DH.  Bernal and Crooks are both noted prospects in their own right, but their future roles in St. Louis are up in the air since Rodriguez should be making his own MLB debut before 2027 is over.

The situation leaves the Cards with a nice problem to have, given how catching is such a thin position around the league.  St. Louis can use September as an audition for Bernal and Crooks, as the club evaluates who to keep for itself and who could possibly be dangled as trade chips this offseason.  Bernal or Crooks would open a lot of doors in trade talks, Herrera could be moved if the Cardinals are wary of his power dropoff, and Pages even has some limited trade value for teams looking for defensive help.