Published by Brian Walton
Each Wednesday, The Cardinal Nation’s Brian Walton is joined by analyst Kyle Reis for a discussion of St. Louis Cardinals news, with a focus on player development and the minor leagues.
Listen on Apple Podcasts41 min
In a special episode recorded just after the August 3 trade deadline, Brian and Kyle break down the deals that brought four prospects into the St. Louis Cardinals organization – outfielders Alexander Frias and Josiah Ragsdale from Milwaukee plus pitchers Daniel Eagen and Sandro Santana from Arizona – where they fit into the organization and onto our Top 50 prospect list. Kyle closes with a rant about not addressing the catching position backlog.
49 min
In the final episode prior to the August 3 trade deadline, Brian and Kyle start with the idea and timing of trading Ivan Herrera and Lars Nootbaar, bullpen turnover and potential rotation changes. They focus on hitters in the system including Jack Gurevitch, Tai Peete, Colton Ledbetter, Chase Davis, Joshua Baez and more!
49 min
Before getting into how and where they ranked the St. Louis Cardinals 2026 draft picks in the TCN Top 50, Brian and Kyle cover players in the news including Clarke, Nuñez, Sparks, Driessen, Mautz, Cijntje, Mathews, Dobbins, Hence and more.
1 hr 25 min
In this special double-length edition, Brian and Kyle are joinedby Kareem Haq of Cardinals Prospects and Birds on the Farm podcast. The sole subject is a very important one - how the St. Louis Cardinals fared in the 2026 MLB Draft. They begin with an overall view of the team’s strategies, player selection and financials as well as how outsiders viewed the draft. Then, every one of the 23 draft picks is discussed in detail from scouting and metrics perspectives.
43 min
Brian and Kyle cover players in the news of the week across the St. Louis Cardinals system including the Futures Game, Home Run Derby, All-Star Game. JJ’s contract, Pitchers/Players of the Week/Month, Gastelum’s debut,pitching injury rehabs and player transactions.
48 min
Brian and Kyle open with the All-Star Game, Futures Game and the odd draft schedule this coming weekend. Players covered include Gastelum, Mautz, Rodriguez, Doyle, Hjerpe, Molina, Rincon, Nuñez and Mathews plus hitters Peña and Cho. They close with their final preview of the Cardinals 2026 draft plans.
47 min
Brian and Kyle open with hot Palm Beach hitters Brayden Smith and Ryan Weingartner. New Memphis pitcher Mason Molina is next along with speculation about other deadline deals potentially coming. Leadership changes with the Cardinals and Angels, now and perhaps ahead, are explored. They close with analysis of significant changes to player acquisition and development proposed in the CBA negotiations.
40 min
Brian and Kyle open with a discussion of recent promotionsof Michael Dattalo, Won-Bin Cho and Jesus Baez then discuss Lars Nootbaar and Joshua Baez. A review of key changes to The Cardinal Nation’s Top 50 Prospect List for June follows. Standouts moving up include Cooper Hjerpe, Braden Davis,Mason Molina, Jacob Odle, Xavier Cruz and many more.
49 min
Brian and Kyle are joined by Kareem Haq fromCardinalsProspects.com, They started with recent promotions including Dos Santos and Richardson and the return of Padilla. The Cardinals strategy for their early 2026 draft picks was a major focus, including high school vs college, hitters vs. pitchers, budget usage and development preplanning with scouting. Eligible names discussed include Burrell, Curiel, Gracia, Lebron and others.
47 min
Brian and Kyle cover recent roster moves by the St. LouisCardinals including Dobbins, Church and Scott and what we might expect at the trade deadline. Activations in the system include Hence, Hjerpe, Ortiz and Dutkanych. Exploding offense at Peoria, including Jesus Baez, Kross and McGee, wasdiscussed. TCN’s Pitcher of the Month Jacob Odle and several finalists were highlighted as were recent standouts Graham and Mathews.
44 min
Brian and Kyle discuss the recent roster moves by the St. Louis Cardinals and future possibilities including Blaze Jordan and Joshua Baez. TCN’s Player of the Month winner Won-Bin Cho and finalists were covered as were recent standouts Luis Gastelum. Braden Davis and Ryan Mitchell. Minor league transactions and injury updates on Ixan Henderson and Brandon Clarke were provided.
43 min
Brian and Kyle discuss his trip to Cincinnati and missingBrycen Mautz’ debut. Bryan Torres’ rise to MLB is celebrated. Injury updates for Tink Hence, Cooper Hjerpe and Tekoah Roby, promotions of Jacob Odle and Brian Holiday, and league Pitchers of the Week Braden Davis and Pete Hansen are among topics covered.
44 min
Brian and Kyle probe the real origin of “Tarps Off” and moveinto the Cardinals catching situation, current and future. The new top 30 from Baseball America is noted, including focus on Xavier Cruz. Also discussed are Florida Complex League players to watch, promotions of Van Dyke and Graham, thePeoria rotation, 2026 draft focus and outfielders Cho, Davis and Baez.
46 min
Brian and Kyle never get to The Cardinal Nation’s new Top 50 Prospect List as they cover recent news, starting with the promotions of Rainiel Rodriguez and Jack Gurevitch, the organization’s Pitcher and Players of the Month, three releases, Liam Doyle, Joshua Baez, Tanner Franklin and more.
47 min
Brian and Kyle discuss many players including Ryan Mitchell,Tink Hence, numerous April Pitcher and Player of the Month contenders including winners Ty Van Dyke and Tai Peete, Blaze Jordan and St. Louis roster dynamics, Tanner Franklin and more.
46 min
Brian and Kyle opened with news about Kyle’s (now former)assignment writing for Cardinals.com. Kyle highlighted top minor leaguers his followers are following. The two discussed St. Louis’ outfield and bench construction options going forward, specifically Bryan Torres, Cesar Prieto andmaybe even Blaze Jordan. Pitchers covered include Quinn Mathews, Liam Doyle and Tink Hence and three relievers promoted upward. They closed with a couple oflate-round 2025-drafted Class-A hitters impressing.
47 min
Brian and Kyle open with challenges with relief and defenseat several levels of the Cardinals minor league system. Players discussed include Chase Davis, Liam Doyle, Quinn Mathews, Ty Van Dyke, Jose Suarez and Tanner Franklin. Stuff+ was touched on, we previewed our upcoming new no. 1 prospect and debated what an accelerated rebuild might entail.
45 min
Brian and Kyle cover a lot of pitching ground, including Hunter Dobbins and the St. Louis rotation, Winquest, Hansen, Doyle, Franklin, Sparks, Van Dyke, Galle, Hence, Molina and more. Position players discussed include Crooks, Davis and Joshua Baez.
45 min
Brian and Kyle cover early season news across all levels of the St. Louis Cardinals system. Players highlighted include Crooks, Jordan, Hansen, Rincon, Cijntje, Franklin, Doyle, Lin, Ortiz, Galle, Brayden Smith and more.
42 min
Brian and Kyle open with an overview of Kyle’s new Monday column at cardinals.com. They cover standouts and opinions of players in the early action by Triple-A Memphis and St. Louis, pitching transactions, and potential roster standouts at Double-A Springfield, High-A Peoria and Low-A Palm Beach.