St. Louis Cardinals v Cincinnati Reds | Jason Mowry/GettyImages

When a young prospect receives high-end comparisons to All-Stars like Fernando Tatis Jr. and Elly De La Cruz, it’s easy to turn heads.

That’s exactly the case with one of the St. Louis Cardinals’ latest international signees.

In mid-January of 2024, Major League Baseball’s international signing period began. On January 15th, the Cardinals signed 16-year-old shortstop Yairo Padilla out of the Dominican Republic for $760,000 of their $4.7 million budget. Padilla was ranked just outside of the top 50 by national outlets such as MLB Pipeline and Baseball America, but Baseball America also listed him as a potential breakout prospect who signed for less than $1 million.

Padilla is a switch-hitting shortstop who stands 6’2″ and weighs in around 175 lbs. Padilla attended Major League Baseball’s showcase in the Dominican Republic in 2022, and he took that opportunity to see what steps are required to make it to the big leagues.

Baseball America’s Geoff Pontes sat down with Derrick Goold on a recent episode of Best Podcast in Baseball to discuss all things Cardinals’ prospects. The two discussed everything ranging from the organization’s top prospect to where the Cardinals are headed from here. I would strongly recommend you give it a listen wherever you get your podcasts.

One thing that stuck out to me most about this interview was how high Pontes was on Padilla, now a 17-year-old. Pontes said that he has the chance to be as good as Fernando Tatis Jr. or Elly De La Cruz, and that isn’t praise that should be taken lightly.

“Padilla, to me, this can go a lot of different directions. It could go bad, right? And we could end up with a guy who is just a utility infielder who had a bunch of tools. If it goes good, this is like Fernando Tatis Jr. If this goes good, this is Elly De La Cruz.”

Geoff Pontes

Pontes went on to describe that the feedback he’s received from the Dominican Summer League and Cardinals’ scouts has directed him toward this end. He described the feedback as “loud” and that it’s a “really good sign” for the young player’s future.

Padilla played 35 games in the Dominican Summer League. He finished with a .287/.391/.404 slash line, one home run, five doubles, four triples, and 17 runs batted in. He had a 10.5% walk rate, and a 17.9% strikeout rate, both well above average for both the DSL and for players his age. The most admirable part of his stat line from last year would be his 22 stolen bases.

Pontes described Padilla’s speed as plus-plus with a strong arm and above-average power potential. His hit tool is already established, and above-average power would be a bonus for a player, especially if he stays at shortstop.

Padilla is still only 17 years old, so there’s plenty of time to wait and see how he pans out. Prospects at that age have so many paths they could take, and the chances of him being extremely good are equal to the chances of him failing.

The Cardinals have struggled on the international market of late, but Padilla’s early signs of potential could be the start of something new. Fans will have to be patient, but they could be witnessing the early stages of one of baseball’s future superstars.