Cardinals pitching prospect Liam Doyle, the No. 5 overall pick in the 2025 MLB Draft, took a huge tumble in Baseball America's adjusted prospect rankings following his slow start to the 2026 season with Double-A Springfield.
ST. LOUIS – Liam Doyle, the Cardinals prized first-round pick from the 2025 MLB Draft, is hardly the first young pitcher to struggle at the start of his professional career in the often-hitter friendly Texas League.
However, the hard-hit contact that Doyle has been a victim to early in the 2026 season has cost him dearly in Baseball America’s updated Top 100 prospects rankings.
Doyle, 21 and the No. 5 pick in 2025, fell from No. 31 in Baseball America’s April prospect rankings to No. 61 in updated rankings released this week. Doyle’s drop was the most precipitous in the updated rankings. Rays’ right-hander Brady Hopkins suffered a similar fate to Doyle, dropping from No. 35 to No. 55 in the updated rankings.
Cardinals’ power-hitting outfielder Joshua Baez, who hit well in Spring Training with the Cardinals and has mixed in some tape-measure homers with an elevated strikeout rate in Triple-A, also took a plunge in the rankings. Baez, 22, fell 15 spots – from No. 42 in April to No. 57 in the latest rankings release.
Rainiel Rodriguez, who is hoped to be the Cardinals’ next great hitter after flashing as a 19-year-old phenom in the Minor Leagues, rose two spots in the eyes of Baseball America. Rodriguez went from No. 33 in April to No. 31 after compiling a slash line of .307/.440/.557/.997 with four homers and 16 RBI in 24 games with High-A Peoria.
Cardinals’ rookie sensation JJ Wetherholt graduated from the prospect rankings following his strong start to the MLB season, as did Tigers’ standout rookie shortstop Kevin McGonigle.
Doyle has been hit hard so far
Doyle, a University of Tennessee product, has made five starts with Double-A Springfield this season and has gone 0-2 with a 7.31 ERA. In 16 innings of work, he struck out 18 batters and walked only seven, but foes have reached him for a .308 average and three homers.
Doyle surrendered 12 hits, seven earned runs and a homer over his first two outings, but he has shown progress as the season has gone along. Earlier this week, he allowed just two hits and one earned run over 4 1/3 innings of work in a road game at Northwest Arkansas. Also, he showed off his plus fastball with five strikeouts and just one walk.
Baez, who helped Double-A Springfield win a Texas League crown in 2025, has hit seven homers and driven in 20 runs for Triple-A Memphis. However, his swing-and-miss numbers have continued to rise, and he has 41 strikeouts compared to just nine walks.
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