Central STL News

Springfield, the Double-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals, secured its first Texas League championship since 2012 with a decisive 13-1 victory over Midland in the series finale. After facing elimination and trailing in the second game of the Championship Series, Springfield responded by outscoring their opponents 17-1 over the final 14 innings.

The team won four out of five postseason games, defeating both Tulsa and Midland by a combined score of 26-11. Leonardo Bernal contributed significantly to the comeback, driving in three runs during the final game after hitting an RBI triple earlier in Game 2. Dakota Harris added four RBIs, while Zach Levenson and Jon Jon Gazdar each collected four hits as part of Springfield's 19-hit effort.

Pitcher Brycen Mautz allowed just one run over six innings to earn his second postseason win. The bullpen trio of Austin Love, Hunter Hayes, and Zane Mills closed out the game with three scoreless innings.

This championship capped what was statistically Springfield’s best season on record. The team held at least a share of first place from May 30 through season’s end and set a club record with 88 regular-season wins—ranking third among all Minor League teams and second at Double-A level.

Springfield led the Texas League in earned run average (3.55), strikeouts (1,324), and opponent batting average (.227). Offensively, they ranked third in runs scored (678) and stolen bases (181), fourth in OPS (.714), and fourth in home runs (118).

Despite only having top prospect JJ Wetherholt for 62 games due to other commitments or injuries, Springfield featured eight Top 30 prospects on its active roster by season’s end—including first-round draft pick Liam Doyle.