Cardinals' Prospect Shows Off Power, Speed in Fall League Victory

In one breathtaking moment on Friday in the Arizona Fall League, Tai Peete reminded again a couple of the reasons that the St. Louis Cardinals and scouts are so intrigued by the multi-skilled center fielder.

Peete, whose rare blend of speed and power made him the No. 17-ranked prospect in the Cardinals’ Minor League system, stayed on a slider from left-handed pitcher Luke Craig and laced it into the right field corner. Not only did Peete’s rocket drive in Yerlin Confidan and Vance Honeycutt that gave Peoria (Ariz.) a 4-0 lead, but the speedy Peete turned on the jets and motored around the bases. His speed was so impressive that Peete walked into third with an easy, breezy stand-up triple.

Cardinals’ prospects Sammy Hernandez and Peete both had extra-base hits as Peoria – which is made up of Minor League players from the Baltimore Orioles, Cincinnati Reds, Seattle Mariners, San Diego Padres and Cardinals – smashed Salt River (Arizona Diamondbacks, Washington Nationals, Minnesota Twins, Colorado Rockies and New York Yankees) 10-0 on Friday.

Peete, who was acquired by the Cardinals from the Mariners last February in the trade centered around All-Star outfielder Brendan Donovan, has shown why St. Louis was so eager to acquire him. Peete, 21, twice hit for the cycle early in the season at High-A Peoria. Then, after earning a promotion to Double-A Springfield, he slashed .319/.360/.489/.849 with five doubles, three home runs, 16 RBI and four stolen bases in 21 games. In the Texas League championship series, Peete helped the Cardinals jump to a 1-0 lead over Amarillo with a 5-for-5 game with a double, four RBI and a 421-foot homer that sailed over the wall and the grassy berm before landing in the parking lot.

Peete, who is expected to earn a Spring Training invite with the Cardinals in February, has carried his strong play over to the Arizona Fall League, an offseason platform that the Cardinals have used as a finishing school for prospects for years. He smashed a homer off the batter’s eye in his first AFL game, and later posted a three-hit, three-stolen base game. Earlier this week, he scored twice more, reached on a walk and drove in a run.

Through eight games as Peoria’s leadoff hitter, Peete is hitting .281 with an .847 OPS. He has a double, a triple, a homer and five RBI to go with his four stolen bases.

Hernandez, who took over the primary catching duties at High-A Peoria when top prospect Rainiel Rodriguez was promoted to Double-A Springfield, roped a double into left field to get Peoria’s four-run fourth started on Friday. In six games, Hernandez is 6 of 25 (.240) with a double, triple, three RBI and two stolen bases.