A Memphis Redbirds franchise that has sent 12 players to the St. Louis Cardinals for their MLB debuts begins the International League championship series against Rochester (Nationals) tonight in Memphis. Jimmy Crooks, Chase Davis and Colton Ledbetter lead the Memphis offense.
With 12 rookies having already made their MLB debuts this season for the St. Louis Cardinals, an argument could be made that it has already been a highly successful 2026 for the Triple-A Memphis Redbirds.
Still, the Cardinals would love to see the Triple-A Redbirds thrive and continue building strong winning habits in their International League playoff series against Rochester. The best-of-three series between Memphis (83-67) and Rochester (90-58) begins tonight at AutoZone Stadium in downtown Memphis.
Since becoming the Redbirds and a Cardinals' affiliate, Memphis has won league titles in 2018, 2017, 2009 and 2000. To win a fifth, the Cardinals will have to upset a Rochester franchise that was dominant from start to finish in 2026.
Memphis is playing for the International League title by virtue of its first-half record of 47-28 and a dominant stretch where it outscored foes by 55 runs in the Western Division. Much of that stellar play came while Joshua Baez, Leo Bernal, Quinn Mathews and Luis Gastelum were thriving at the Triple-A level to earn themselves big-league promotions for their MLB debuts.
With much of their front-line firepower drained by the bevy of young players that got to the big leagues, the Redbirds limped to a 36-39 finish. However, they still outscored foes by 21 runs and positioned themselves for the upcoming playoffs.
As for Rochester, the Triple-A affiliate of the Washington Nationals, the Red Wings won the first half (45-28) and the second half (45-30) of the International League’s Eastern Division.
With Baez (34 homers and 90 RBI) and Bernal (16 homers and 77 RBI) off authoring stellar MLB debuts with the Cardinals, Memphis has built its offense around newcomer Colton Ledbetter, former first-round pick Chase Davis and experienced veterans Bligh Madris and Jimmy Crooks. Ledbetter, who was acquired from the Rays in the three-team trade centered around Brendan Donovan from last February, had hammered out 23 doubles and 13 homers while also driving in 55 runs and stealing 26 bases in a breakout season at Triple-A. Ledbetter, 24, was a second-round round pick by the Rays in 2023 and he’s started to flourish this season in Memphis.
Davis, the No. 21 pick of the 2023 MLB Draft by the Cardinals, has shown some late-season flourish after being limited to 50 games by injuries. Davis, 24, posted a .268 batting average and an .873 OPS in September with four doubles, three homers, three stolen bases and 18 RBI down the stretch.
Madris, 30, has used his past big-league experience to post an .823 OPS with 18 doubles, 16 homers and 61 RBI. Crooks, who made his MLB debut in 2025, spent nearly three months with the Cardinals at the big-league level, but he struggled with far too much swing and miss and was sent back to Triple-A on Aug. 31. In his 52 games at Memphis, Crooks had an impressive 1.006 OPS with 15 homers, seven doubles and far less swing-and-miss issues.
On the pitching side, Mason Molina and Jurrangelo Cijntje were promoted from Double-A Springfield and have bolstered a staff that saw Cooper Hjerpe, Brycen Mautz and Mathews graduate to the big leagues. Cijntje, 23 and one of the prized pieces acquired in the Donovan trade, has posted impressive strikeout numbers (62 in 52 2/3 innings), but the No. 12 prospect in the Cards system has gone just 2-5 with a 4.61 ERA. Molina, 23, is the No. 23-ranked prospect in the Cards system and he has gone 5-2 with a 4.45 ERA over 13 starts.
