The St. Louis Cardinals added another arm to their system on Wednesday, signing former Boston Red Sox third-round pick Durbin Feltman to a minor league contract and sending him to Triple-A Memphis.
Feltman arrives after a stint in Indy Ball with the Kansas City Monarchs, where he put together a sharp run this season. In 13 appearances, the 29-year-old posted a 2.08 ERA, a 0.77 WHIP and five saves. The Cardinals also noted that he was recently named a West Division All-Star.
"We have signed RHP Durbin Feltman to a minor league contract and assigned him to Memphis (AAA)," the Cardinals announced. "The 29-year-old joins the organization after posting a 2.08 ERA, 0.77 WHIP and 5 Saves across 13 appearances with the American Association's Kansas City Monarchs this season, where he was recently named a West Division All-Star."
For St. Louis, the move fits a clear need.
The bullpen has been an area of concern, and the club just brought up Luis Gastelum before adding Feltman for more organizational depth. Cardinals president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom also has a connection to Feltman from their time together in the Red Sox organization.
Feltman was drafted by Boston in 2018, and at the time he carried plenty of buzz as a bullpen prospect. Some around the game believed he could move quickly and become one of the first players from that draft class to reach the majors.
Boston took him out of TCU after he turned in a 0.74 ERA in 18 appearances in 2018. He then opened his pro career with 22 appearances across Low-A, Class-A and High-A, finishing with a 1.93 ERA.
The climb got tougher in 2019, when he posted a 5.26 ERA in 43 Double-A games. The 2020 minor league season was wiped out by the COVID-19 pandemic, and Feltman bounced back in 2021 with a 2.96 ERA in 39 outings between Double-A and Triple-A. Even so, the call to the big leagues never came.
He spent 2022 and 2023 in the Red Sox and Athletics organizations without reaching the majors, then moved on to Indy Ball. Now he gets another shot in an organization that has him just one step away from the big leagues.
At 29, Feltman is the kind of low-cost bet teams make when they need pitching help and want upside without much risk. Minor league deals don’t carry much downside, and for a Cardinals club that has already had a long week - including a doubleheader - the extra depth matters.
If Feltman throws well enough in Memphis to earn a look in St. Louis, that would be a win in itself.
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