Troubles with limiting walks on Friday night led to the shortest outing of Cardinals prospect Quinn Mathews’ breakout 2024 season.
Mathews lasted 2 2/3 innings and was charged with four runs when he walked five batters and allowed one hit in Memphis’s 5-4 loss to Nashville. The 23-year-old left-hander threw 66 pitches in the start. Thirty-four of the 66 pitches Mathews threw came in the third inning when he walked four batters and struck out one. Mathews allowed two runs in the third inning with the first coming on a single by Francisco Mejia and the second on a walk to Tyler Black with the bases loaded.
Mathews struck out Wes Clarke on a slider for the inning’s second out and exited his outing with the bases loaded.
Andre Granillo relieved Mathews after the lefty’s lengthy inning. Granillo gave up two runs on a single that Brian Navarreto dropped into shallow center field. Granillo ended the inning with a groundout of Chris Roller in the at-bat that followed.
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The 2 2/3 innings of work from Mathews were his fewest in 25 starts this year. Friday's outing was Mathews' shortest since he completed 3 1/3 innings during his start on opening day for Class Low-A Palm Beach on April 5.Â
His five walks matched a season high. Mathews, a fourth-round pick from the 2023 MLB draft, walked five batters on April 5, a start that marked his minor league debut, and on Sept. 6 with Memphis.
Through three starts for Memphis, Mathews has allowed nine runs in 10 2/3 innings. He’s walked 13 batters and struck out 17. On the season, Mathews owns a 2.69 ERA and has totaled a minor league-leading 197 strikeouts across four levels of minor league baseball.
Rajcic caps Class AA regular season workload
Max Rajcic, the Cardinals 2023 minor league pitcher of the year, completed five innings, allowed one run, and struck out five batters in his final regular-season start for Class AA Springfield. Rajcic will finish his Class AA regular season with a 10-11 record, a 4.33 ERA, and 131 strikeouts in 131 innings.
The right-handed Cardinals prospect’s Friday start in Springfield’s 5-2 loss to San Antonio bookended a second half rebound during which he posted a 3.21 ERA across 11 dating back to July 4. Rajcic (pronounced like "magic") struck out 65 batters in 61 2/3 innings during that stretch. Before his July 4 start, Rajcic, 23, had a 5.32 ERA in 14 outings.
The outing sets Rajcic up as a candidate to make a postseason start for Springfield on Thursday in Game 2 of the Texas League Division Series vs. Arkansas.
Scott returns to Memphis lineup
Center fielder Victor Scott II returned to Memphis’s lineup for the first time since being optioned to the minors on Tuesday. Scott started in center field and batted leadoff for the Redbirds.
The 23-year-old prospect went hitless in four at-bats, drew a walk, and scored a run in the road loss.
Now that he is back in the minors, Scott is set to receive regular playing time in center field for the Cardinals’ Class AAA affiliate.