The St. Louis Cardinals are back on the clock with the 13th overall pick in Saturday afternoon’s Major League Baseball Draft, and that number carries a little history with it.
The last time St. Louis picked there was in 2008, when it took infielder Brett Wallace.
Wallace eventually became part of the trade that brought outfielder Matt Holiday to St. Louis, which at least gave that pick a meaningful second life.
Not every Cardinals first-rounder has been so useful. In fact, the club has had more than its share of misses at the top of the draft board. Looking only at first-round selections, here are seven Cardinals picks who never came close to becoming what the team hoped.
Ed Kurpiel was the first of the bunch, taken eighth overall in 1971. The Queens native never produced an OPS better than .836 in the minors, reached Triple-A in 1974 and even got a call to the majors that same year, but his Cardinals run didn’t last. He was traded to the Montreal Expos in 1974 and never got back to the big leagues.
Joe Edelen came next, going 12th overall in 1973 after being named Oklahoma’s player of the year. A true two-way player, he spent time at third base and on the mound, but pitching was where he showed more promise.
As a hitter, he finished with a .649 OPS in the minors. On the mound, he posted a 3.64 ERA as a minor leaguer.
The Cardinals never got much out of him, and he was eventually dealt to the Cincinnati Reds for Doug Bair.
Paul Coleman was one of the highest selections in Cardinals history when St. Louis took him sixth overall in 1989.
He climbed through the system from 1989 to 1992, but Double-A was as far as he got. In 346 minor-league games, he struck out 284 times and scored only 122 runs.
The sting gets worse when you remember the name that came next in the draft: Frank Thomas.
Chris Lambert arrived in 2004 as the 19th overall pick, a right-hander out of Boston College who stood six-foot one. He started his minor-league career well enough, but a 2006 injury changed everything.
Lambert never appeared in a major-league game for St. Louis and was later traded to the Tigers for Mike Maroth in 2007.
Zack Cox was another first-rounder who never found traction. The Dodgers had drafted him in the 20th round in 2008, but he chose Arkansas instead.
Two years later, the Cardinals took him 25th overall in 2010. He stalled at Double-A and was eventually traded to the Miami Marlins.
Nick Plummer, selected 23rd overall in 2015 out of Brother Rise High School in Michigan, battled injuries throughout his time as a prospect. He did put together a .894 OPS in 2021 across Double-A and Triple-A, but it wasn’t enough to change his path. He elected free agency after that season, signed with the Mets before 2022, made it to the majors with New York that year, and is now out of baseball entirely just days before turning 30.
Delvin Perez rounds out the list. The Cardinals grabbed the Puerto Rican infielder at No. 23 in 2016 after a PED suspension had pushed him down the board.
He came in with plenty of hype, but his bat never matched his glove. Perez left the organization after the 2022 season and has since landed in independent ball.
Now 27, he’s playing for the Milwaukee Milkmen in the American Association and owns a .753 OPS.
In Other News...
Cardinals Suddenly Face A Trade Deadline Call Fans Have Wanted
The Cardinals have quietly built one of the more interesting catching situations in the organization, with enough depth on the major league side and in the upper minors to make the position look more like a trade chip than a need. With Chaim Bloom now steering the front office, the club is at least open to the idea that a surplus behind the plate could help address a different area before the deadline, and that kind of roster math has become part of the conversation around St. Louis.
Ken Rosenthal reported that the Cardinals are weighing whether to move one of their catchers, while still protecting the top of the system and keeping the most prized names out of the discussion. The challenge is deciding how far to go from there, because a few of the available options have either reached the majors already or are close enough that another club could see real value in them, and the asking price could shape how aggressively St. Louis tries to act. [Read more 🡒]
Cardinals Face Huge Pressure With Two Day 1 Draft Fits In Play
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Cameron Flukey and Ace Reese have emerged as the names to know in that discussion, giving the Cardinals a pair of Day 1 directions that would address immediate organizational needs. The challenge is that draft boards rarely stay tidy for long, especially when a team is weighing upside against the economics of the pick, so St. Louis will have to be patient as the picture comes into focus. For now, the intrigue is less about certainty than about which path the Cardinals will trust when their turn arrives. [Read more 🡒]
Cardinals Just Made A Franchise Shaping JJ Wetherholt Commitment
The Cardinals have moved quickly to secure one of the most important young pieces in their lineup, agreeing to a long-term extension with rookie infielder JJ Wetherholt after a strong first season in St. Louis. It is the kind of deal that signals exactly how the organization views him: not just as a promising bat, but as a player worth building around while he is still early in his career.
For the front office, the timing matters as much as the talent. The extension buys out multiple years of Wetherholts free agency and keeps him in St. Louis well beyond his initial contract window, a clear bet that his value will only keep climbing from here. With the Cardinals already seeing real production from him, the move gives the club cost certainty and a centerpiece to plan around, even if the full financial shape of the agreement is still the part everyone will be talking about. [Read more 🡒]