The St. Louis Cardinals have an abundance of pitching talent throughout their minor league system. Quinn Matthews has already reached the majors, while Liam Doyle continues to progress through the organization. Those two are just part of a deep group of arms in the Cardinals’ farm system, with even more pitching prospects expected to rise through the ranks over the next couple of seasons. Another potential option is St. Louis’ No. 12 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline, Tekoah Roby.
Roby has been sidelined for nearly the past year after undergoing Tommy John surgery in July 2025, but the Cardinals received encouraging news on August 7. Daniel Guerrero of the St. Louis Post Dispatch reported that Chaim Bloom said Roby is “getting closer and closer.” There is even a possibility that he could begin facing hitters within the next few days.
Tekoah Roby’s Injury Riddled Journey
The Cardinals acquired Roby from the Texas Rangers in 2023 as part of the trade that sent Jordan Montgomery to the eventual World Series champions. Texas selected Roby in the third round of the 2020 MLB Draft, and he eventually climbed as high as Triple-A with St. Louis before his injury. Shoulder problems have disrupted the young right-hander’s development since joining the Cardinals, limiting him to just 30 starts since the trade.
Roby’s arsenal features a fastball that sits in the mid-90s along with two well-developed breaking pitches, giving him an intriguing overall repertoire. The right-hander has made only six Triple-A starts, posting a 4.02 ERA with 30 strikeouts across 31.2 innings. St. Louis has several talented pitchers progressing on similar timelines toward the major leagues. Roby was once viewed as one of the organization’s top pitching options, but he will need to establish himself again when he returns.
If Roby can come back healthy next season, he could put himself in position to compete for a spot on the major league roster before the end of the year.
St. Louis Cardinals Silo Of Arms
The Cardinals have built up considerable pitching depth across the organization, ranging from the major league rotation down to the lowest levels of the minor leagues. Under Bloom, St. Louis’ farm system has undergone a significant transformation when it comes to pitching depth. Bloom has made seven trades as the team’s president of baseball operations, with five of those deals bringing back pitching prospects.
Pitchers make up 17 of the Cardinals’ top 30 prospects. Beyond Doyle, Roby and Matthews, St. Louis has a long list of young arms who could factor into the organization’s future. Brandon Clarke, Jurrangelo Cijntje, Yhoiker Fajardo, Tanner Franklin, and Cooper Hjerpe are all candidates to compete for major league innings in the coming years. Bloom has prioritized building the organization from the ground up in an effort to establish a sustainable pipeline of talent capable of producing competitive rosters year after year, and pitching has been a major part of that strategy.
The next few seasons could be particularly intriguing for the Cardinals. The organization already has young pitchers in its major league rotation who remain under team control for several more seasons, and that window could overlap with the arrival of its top pitching prospects. Bloom has created a steady pipeline of talent that could eventually force the Cardinals into some difficult decisions regarding their future roster.