Monday, April 13

When your first name is “Blaze” and you play a pro sport, the pun-filled headlines write themselves. If things aren’t going well, it's easy to imagine the name would feel like a burden. However, when you perform as well as Blaze Jordan has to start the 2026 season, it's easy to bask in your fire-inspired glory.

For me, at least, it’s easy to forget that Jordan is just now starting his age-23 season. We’ve been watching and hearing about the phenom since his days as a 15-year-old power prodigy. Selected by the Red Sox in the third round of the COVID-shortened 2020 Draft -- a singular year that felt like it was years-long -- it feels important to keep in mind that Jordan would be the youngest member of St. Louis' 26-man roster if he were promoted now.

If Jordan, the Cards' No. 26 prospect, per MLB Pipeline, can keep performing the way he has, that’s exactly where he’ll be by season's end. 

Jordan’s offensive stats are the main draw for an article like this. But before we get lost in the numbers, I wanted to point out that Jordan has held his own at both third base and first base so far. In the past, questions have surrounded where he fits on the field long term. Entering play on Sunday, he's delivered an errorless defensive performance -- doing everything that he can to prove that he is a viable option at both corner-infield spots. Sustainable positional versatility just might be the most important rung Jordan can achieve as he climbs the ladder to the Major Leagues.

Jordan’s work at the plate through his 51 plate appearances has been nothing short of “loud.” He has already racked up three doubles and four home runs while driving in nine and slashing .354/.408/.667. His wRC+ of 180 ranked 12th in Triple-A (and fourth among players who have not made their Major League debut), while also being the seventh-best mark in the International League.

Most of the success that Jordan is having at the plate comes via an increase in his hard-hit rate, as well as his swing decisions. Looking solely at his Triple-A numbers, Jordan’s average exit velocity has increased from 86.1 mph in 153 batted-ball events in 2025 to 90.5 mph over 40 batted-ball events in 2026. At the same time, Jordan is swinging more frequently at in-zone pitches and also making more frequent contact with those pitches. He is swinging at 79.1% of pitches in the zone and making contact with those pitches 94.4% of the time in 2026 as compared to 75.5% and 88.9% at Memphis in 2025, respectively. Right now, things are going so well for Jordan that he’s not only crushing the ball over the fence, but he's also having some batted-ball luck.

Throughout his Minor League journey, Jordan has worked to find the balance between tapping into his prodigious power and allowing his underappreciated hit tool to take the driver’s seat. For the majority of his six seasons in the Minors, success in one area has generally come at the expense of the other.

As the 2026 season progresses, I’m going to be keeping a close eye on how he continues to tap into his power as compared to how his walk rate increases and his ground-ball rate decreases. If Jordan can increase his walk rate from 3.9% to somewhere between the Major League average of 7% to 9%, while decreasing his rather high ground-ball rate from 55% to something closer to the big league average of 42% to 44% -- and do so while continuing to tap into his power -- then we’ll know for sure that he’s taken the next step in his development. 

Triple-A Memphis (11-4): After a dominant first nine games of the season, Memphis had a back-and-forth series with Charlotte, which is ranked as MLB Pipeline’s sixth-best Minor League roster. Outfielder/second baseman Bryan Torres had a standout week, slashing .429/.550/.500 in 20 plate appearances, going into Sunday's action. Both Hunter Dobbins and Richard Fitts continued to impress, notching wins in their respective starts and throwing at least five innings. Catcher Jimmy Crooks and infielder César Prieto kept up their hot hitting, while outfielders Joshua Báez and Colton Ledbetter chipped in with their first career home runs at Triple-A.

Double-A Springfield (4-5): After winning the first game of the series vs. Tulsa, MLB Pipeline’s seventh-best roster in the Minors, Springfield couldn’t keep the momentum going. Southpaw Liam Doyle, the Cards' 2025 first-rounder, struggled in his season debut, allowing six runs (four earned) on eight hits while striking out three. Doyle is working on incorporating a sweeper and a curveball into his arsenal in his pursuit to be a five-pitch pitcher. Infielder Jon Jon Gazdar had a big week, slashing .333/.476/.600 with a three-run home run in 21 plate appearances heading into Sunday. It was a rough week for Springfield’s starting rotation, but a pair of long relievers stood out for their performances: Right-hander Darlin Saladin went three innings while allowing only two hits and striking out four; and 21-year-old RHP Nelfy Ynfante made his Double-A debut (after skipping the High-A level), throwing 4 1/3 hitless innings while striking out one and walking two.

High-A Peoria (3-6): Peoria had a back-and-forth week with South Bend, but nearly all of the highlights of the week came in Thursday’s 5-3 win. Righty Tanner Franklin continued to dominate at High-A, throwing three scoreless innings while allowing two hits, one walk and striking out seven. Franklin has struck out 16 of the 28 batters that he’s faced in 6 2/3 innings to start the season. Catcher Rainiel Rodriguez and infielder Jesús Baéz each hit solo home runs in the win. 

Single-A Palm Beach (7-2): Palm Beach dominated Bradenton this week, completing a six-game sweep. Each win was a team effort, with various players stepping up. Right-hander Ty Van Dyke shined in his start, throwing 5 2/3 scoreless innings while allowing three hits and striking out six. Right-hander Jack Martinez, whom the Cardinals acquired in the trade that sent Nolan Arenado to the Diamondbacks, started on Saturday and allowed one run on two hits over four innings, while walking one and striking out five.

On April 6, the Cardinals acquired 22-year-old righty Patrick Galle from the Red Sox as the player to be named in the Sonny Gray trade. Galle proceeded to strike out the side in the ninth inning on Thursday to earn the save in Palm Beach's 7-4 win. Galle’s fastball averaged 98.9 mph, topping out at 100.2 mph. 

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