Explosive Cardinals Prospect Reportedly Promoted; Could We See Him In St. Louis Soon?

The St. Louis Cardinals may be in last place in the National League Central but that doesn't mean the club doesn't have a bright future. 

St. Louis has two generational talents at the corners in the infield in Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt and there are plenty of other players to be excited about. Young phenom Jordan Walker made the jump to the big leagues this season and already has shown glimpses that he too could be a star one day in the not-so-distant future. 

The Cardinals have some other young and exciting talent on the roster right now, and there are some other players that should be with the club shortly, as well. One player Cardinals fans should be excited about is top pitching prospect Tink Hence and he reportedly is taking the next step in his development and was promoted to the Double-A Springfield Cardinals, according to The Athletic's Katie Woo. 

"Cardinals top pitching prospect Tink Hence has been promoted to Double-A Springfield, per a source," Woo said. "Hence, who was drafted in 2020, ranks No. 63 overall on The Athletic's Keith Law’s 2023 prospect rankings."

Hence certainly is an exciting prospect for St. Louis. The 20-year-old was drafted in the second round of the 2020 MLB June Amateur Draft and he has skyrocketed up the organization's farm system ever since. Hence has made 35 professional appearances so far -- including 28 starts -- and has compiled a 2.91 ERA while striking out 141 batters across 102 innings pitched. The 2023 campaign has been solid for Hence so far and he pitched to a 2.81 ERA in 11 starts for the High-A Peoria Chiefs. 

The 20-year-old likely is at least a year away from making his big league debut, but Cardinals fans definitely should be liking what they are seeing from him in the minors. St. Louis' biggest struggles have come from its starting rotation, but the club has Hence and No. 3 prospect Gordon Graceffo knocking on the big league door. Things may not be going great for the Cardinals right now, but the future is bright.