MLB Suspends Andres Serrano For One Year

Major League Baseball has suspended Dominican pitcher Andres Serrano for one year after the league voided his contract with the St. Louis Cardinals due to unverified age and identification claims recently, as Ben Badler of Baseball America reports.

According to Badler, Serrano's disciplinary action from MLB should end on June 26, 2013, but the first date that he'll really be able to sign is July 2 given rules in the present collective bargaining agreement. Under the CBA, international players aren't eligible to sign during a "closed period" lasting from June 16 to July 1.

That could ultimately impact where the pitcher signs once he's no longer suspended. Unlike this year, when all teams were allotted a $2.9 million signing pool, the amount that's in each team's signing pool for next year will be determined by 2012 winning percentages.

For more on the St. Louis Cardinals, check out the Cardinals blog Viva El Birdos. Stay tuned to to SB Nation St. Louis for more breaking news and updates concerning all matters St. Louis sports.

MLB Voids Cardinals' Contract With RHP Andres Serrano Due To Age And ID Issues

Back in February, the St. Louis Cardinals signed 17-year-old pitcher Andres Serrano from the Dominican Republic to a $750,000 contract, but that deal was voided by Major League Baseball on July 23 due to unverified age and identification claims. Cardinals officials confirmed the news on Tuesday, according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, and that's apparently not the only issue the organization has recently encountered regarding its international signings:

The Cardinals agreed to terms with two international teens, outfielder Magneuris Sierra, 16, and righthanded pitcher Estarlin Arias, 18. Arias has a pending suspension because of a positive drug test that he started serving with the Cardinals on July 18. Sierra's deal is pending an investigation.

For more on the latest Cardinals signings, be sure to check out SB Nation St. Louis' dedicated storystream.

For more on the St. Louis Cardinals, check out the Cardinals blog Viva El Birdos. Stay tuned to to SB Nation St. Louis for more breaking news and updates concerning all matters St. Louis sports.

Cardinals Top Prospects 2012: Keith Law Ranks 3 St. Louis Players In Top 50

The Cardinals have a trio of young prospects in Keith Law's top 50 rankings, with a fourth just on the cusp of the select group.

St. Louis Cardinals Prospects: Keith Law Ranks Shelby Miller And Oscar Taveras Among Top 25 Prospects In Baseball

On Thursday, ESPN's Keith Law released a revised list of the top 25 prospects in Major League Baseball. The St. Louis Cardinals have two players on the list -- pitcher Shelby Miller, who checks in at No. 9, and outfielder Oscar Taveras, who is No. 21.

Here's what Law had to say about Shelby Miller:

One comment I've heard on Miller this season is that he might just be bored; he's been solid (outside of a bad outing Monday night in Tucson, another great hitters' park), but not spectacular, and his fastball is down about a full grade, sitting 90-93 mph.

And Taveras:

His swing is unorthodox -- you might even call it ugly -- but it works, well enough to see the bat profiling in an outfield corner, with an average high enough that the OBP is strong even if he draws only 40-50 walks a year.

For more on the St. Louis Cardinals, check out the Cardinals blog Viva El Birdos. Stay tuned to to SB Nation St. Louis for more breaking news and updates concerning all matters St. Louis sports.

2012 MLB Top Prospects: Cardinals Place 6 Prospects In Baseball America Top 100

The St. Louis Cardinals have placed six prospects in Baseball America's 2012 Top 100 Prospects in another impressive show from the young St. Louis hurlers and fielders. Top Cardinals prospect Shelby Miller earned another high ranking, snatching a No. 8 position in this year's list:

Miller pitched over 130 innings in the minors in 2011, earning a 2.77 ERA in time split between High-A and Double-A. The analysts at Baseball America anticipate Miller, who will 21 throughout the 2012 season, could reach the majors as soon as 2013.

Here is a quick look at the other top Cardinals prospects and their Baseball America ranking:

24) RHP Carlos Martinez
74) OF Oscar Taveras
88) 3B Zack Cox
93) 2B Kolten Wong
94) RHP Tyrell Jenkins

For more on the St. Louis Cardinals, check out the Cardinals blog Viva El Birdos. Stay tuned to to SB Nation St. Louis for more breaking news and updates concerning all matters St. Louis sports.

St. Louis Cardinals Top Prospects 2012: Shelby Miller Once Again Ranked Atop System

Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus has released his 2012 Top 101 Prospects, and, like most prospect lists this year, it's dominated by St. Louis Cardinals farmhands. There are five prospective Cardinals on the list, headlined by RHP Shelby Miller, who is the consensus top prospect in the team's system. Some prospect analysts rate Miller as the top RHP in the minors, but Goldstein has him behind three other right handed pitching prospects, though No. 10 overall is nothing to sneeze at.

MLB Prospects 2012: St. Louis Cardinals Sign Dominican RHP Andres Serrano

According to Ben Badler of Baseball America, the St. Louis Cardinals have signed 17-year-old pitcher Andres Serrano for $750,000. The deal marks the Cardinals' continued foray in Dominican Republic pitchers, as two of their top prospects -- RHP Carlos Martinez and RF Oscar Taveras -- also hail of Hispaniola's Spanish-speaking half. According to Badler, both Taveras and Martinez were also recruited out of the same region as the recently-signed Serrano.

The deal is pending the MLB's review of the player's age and identity -- a problem that has plagued many Latin American signings -- but should be finalized soon. The 2012 off-season has been somewhat unusual in many respects as the newest collective bargaining agreement will soon kick in penalties for excessive international signings, resulting in somewhat of a price war among certain teams and prospects to collect as much talent before the new rules take effect.

Badler reports Serrano's $750,000 is the most yet-spent on a Dominican Republic free agent (though that may technically change when Cuban-defector Yoenis Cespedes signs), but there have been four other Latin American free agents signed to deals of $800,000 or more this offseason.

For more on the St. Louis Cardinals, check out the Cardinals blog Viva El Birdos. Stay tuned to to SB Nation St. Louis for more breaking news and updates concerning all matters St. Louis sports.

St. Louis Cardinals Top Prospects 2012: Shelby Miller Headlines Impressive Cardinals System

Keith Law of ESPN.com has released his latest list of top 10 prospects by organization. For a rich St. Louis Cardinals minor league system, the majority of the top 10 are among the top 100 in all of baseball:

St. Louis Cardinals
1. Shelby Miller, RHP (5)
2. Carlos Martinez, RHP (22)
3. Oscar Taveras, RF (53)
4. Zack Cox, 3B (66)
5. Tyrell Jenkins, RHP (74)
6. Jordan Swagerty, RHP (92)
7. Trevor Rosenthal, RHP
8. Kolten Wong, 2B
9. Matt Adams, 1B
10. Joe Kelly, RHP

The former No. 19 draft pick, Shelby Miller, has been surging through the Cardinals' minor league system. He finished the 2011 season at Double-A, pitching in the Texas League -- a league in which the average pitcher was over three years older than Miller. In three minor league seasons, Miller has a 3.17 ERA through 247 innings.

Meanwhile, righty starter Carlos Martinez, whom MLB.com ranked the No. 30 prospect in the MLB, earns a No. 2 ranking within the Cardinals' system. Law also gave Martinez a No. 22 ranking on a national level to Martinez, who finished the season in High-A.

The combined excellence of the Cardinals minors has earned -- in Law's eyes -- their organization a No. 4 ranking among systems.

For more on the St. Louis Cardinals, check out the Cardinals blog Viva El Birdos. Stay tuned to to SB Nation St. Louis for more breaking news and updates concerning all matters St. Louis sports.

MLB Top Prospects 2012: Shelby Miller Best Of 6 Cardinals To Make Keith Law's Top 100

Keith Law of ESPN named the St. Louis Cardinals as the fourth-best best farm system in his 2012 organizational rankings on Wednesday, so it should come as no surprise that six prospects from the Cardinals have made Law's 2012 Top 100 list. The group is headlined by 21-year old RHP Shelby Miller at No. 5 overall, but 20-year old RHP Calos Martinez also cracks the top 25, coming in at No. 22. Position players like OF Oscar Taveras (No. 53) and 3B Zach Cox (No. 66) also make the list, while fellow pitchers Tyrell Jenkins (No. 74) and Jordan Swagerty (No. 92) round out the organization's representatives.

Law is particularly impressed with Miller, whom he moved up from the No. 9 spot last season to No. 5 in 2012. With a mid-90s fastball and a sharp wipeout pitch, Law calls Miller "the top right-handed pitcher in the minors, with the best combination of stuff, size, delivery and results" outside of Tampa Bay Rays super-prospect Matt Moore. Miller has recently experimented with adding a changeup to his repertoire and is fine-tuning his command with his fastball, but Law believes he is a potential number one starter for the Cardinals within the next two or three years.

Converted shortstop Carlos Martinez is touching 100 mph on the radar gun as a starter in A-ball, and Law believes his curveball and changeup give him "three weapons to remain the starter if he can make it harder for hitters to pick up the ball so early." Martinez is pegged with "top-of-the-rotation stuff," but still needs to iron out some mechanical issues before he can make an impact in the big leagues.

As for the rest, Taveras is considered "a potential middle-of-the-order bat with some defensive value in right," Cox is pegged as a potential above-average third baseman (but would be off the list if he moves to first) and the two remaining pitchers are considered quality players in the pen if they can't prove capable of handling starter's innings.

For more on the St. Louis Cardinals, check out the Cardinals blog Viva El Birdos. Stay tuned to to SB Nation St. Louis for more breaking news and updates concerning all matters St. Louis sports. For more on the Cardinals prospects and world of minor league baseball, drop by Minor League Ball with John Sickels.

MLB Prospects 2012: Keith Law Places St. Louis Cardinals As Fourth-Best Farm System In Baseball

Every year, ESPN's Keith Law reveals a variety of personal rankings of baseball's prospects, including a ranking of all 30 organizations in terms of farm system talent. He's particularly bullish about the St. Louis Cardinals in his 2012 organizational rankings, placing them as the fourth-best farm system in all of baseball.

St. Louis has traded numerous top prospects over the years to bolster the big league club, but a consistent flow of talent into the organization has allowed the Cardinals to build up some impressive prospect depth anyways. Law noted that the Cardinals are in an awfully good position even without Albert Pujols:

They've drafted very well in the past few years, which has to be heartening to Astros fans, as Houston just hired Jeff Luhnow, who oversaw the Cards' recent drafts, as GM. St. Louis also has done an excellent job of developing the players it's drafted. I really like how the Cards are set up to contend continuously during the next five years.

Even without Luhnow, the Cardinals still have the system in place to keep adding talent. And the Astros should be pretty darn happy to have such a talented guy in house. St. Louis' farm system is led by an impressive trio of pitchers, Shelby Miller, Carlos Martinez and Tyrell Jenkins. They also have some quality hitters, though, including second baseman Kolten Wong, outfielder Oscar Tavares and third baseman Zack Cox.

For more on the Cardinals prospects and world of minor league baseball, drop by Minor League Ball with John Sickels. Stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis for more Cardinals news and notes.

St. Louis Cardinals Prospects: Shelby MIller Rated Fifth-Best Prospect In Baseball By MLB.com

The St. Louis Cardinals' top prospect, pitcher Shelby Miller, has been rated as the fifth-best prospect in the entire sport on MLB.com's recently released Top 100 Prospect list. Compiled by resident prospect expert Jonathan Mayo, the list only includes two Cardinals prospects but they're both rated quite highly.

Miller, 21, is not far from being the best pitching prospect in the game. Only Tampa Bay's Matt Moore and Atlanta's Julio Teheran are ranked higher on Mayo's list. He's got the raw stuff and physical build that teams usually look for, as Mayo notes in his scouting report:

Miller began his pro career as more of a thrower than a pitcher, very much the prototypical Texas high-school flamethrower. In two years, he’s evolved into a much more complete pitcher. His fastball is still a plus pitch, and he commands it well. He’s learned to trust his other stuff more to go along with it, understanding his breaking ball and changeup can be effective weapons. Even when you can get strikeouts, pitching more efficiently and to contact can be a good thing. The gloves came off after Miller’s first full year and he responded by earning a promotion and dominating in Double-A. He’s built like a prototypical frontline starter should be, big and strong.

Basically, Miller has been an example of how developing a raw high school pitcher can go quite well, at least so far.

Between Miller and the Cardinals' other top prospect, pitcher Carlos Martinez (ranked No. 30), St. Louis has the makings of a potentially dominant young rotation. Both pitchers still need to make significant progress before they'll be ready to meet the kind of expectations that will be bestowed upon them, but the potential is there.

For more on the St. Louis Cardinals, check out the Cardinals blog Viva El Birdos. Stay tuned to to SB Nation St. Louis for more breaking news and updates concerning all matters St. Louis sports.

St. Louis Cardinals Prospects: RHP Carlos Martinez Ranked No. 30 Prospect In Baseball

The Cardinals have only two players among MLB.com's list of Top 100 prospects, but that does not make them any less impressive.