Central STL News

The St. Louis Cardinals have made several roster changes as they prepare to protect top Minor League prospects from the upcoming Rule 5 Draft in December.

On Thursday, the organization waived former starting center fielder Michael Siani and outrighted left-handed pitcher Zack Thompson, a previous first-round pick. The club also added infielder Bryan Torres to their 40-man roster, while left-handed pitcher Anthony Veneziano and Thompson were outrighted, making them eligible for Minor League free agency. Siani was claimed off waivers by the Atlanta Braves, and right-handed reliever Roddery Muñoz was claimed by the Cincinnati Reds.

The Cardinals face a deadline of 5 p.m. CT on November 18 to finalize which Minor Leaguers will be protected from selection in the Rule 5 Draft. According to MLB Pipeline rankings, catcher Leonardo Bernal (No. 4), outfielder Joshua Baez (No. 11), and left-handed pitcher Brycen Mautz (No. 21) are expected to be added to the roster after contributing significantly to Double-A Springfield’s Texas League championship.

Pitchers Pete Hansen, a third-round pick in 2022, and Max Rajcic, previously named Cardinals Minor League Pitcher of the Year, are also likely candidates for protection. However, decisions remain about Tekoah Roby (No. 8), Tink Hence (No. 12), Cooper Hjerpe (No. 13), and Sem Robberse (No. 28), all of whom dealt with arm or shoulder injuries that may affect their availability into next season.

Bryan Torres led all Minor Leaguers with a .441 on-base percentage during his time at Triple-A Memphis in 2025 and ranked eighth in batting average (.328) among all minor league players that year. He posted a .905 OPS across 104 games with Memphis.

Michael Siani appeared in 124 games for St. Louis during the 2024 season as the primary center fielder but lost that position during training camp to Victor Scott II, who became a Gold Glove finalist in 2025. In terms of defense, Siani finished fifth among MLB players with sixteen outs above average in '24 but batted only .228 over nearly three hundred at-bats that year and .235 over seventeen at-bats this past season.

Zack Thompson was selected nineteenth overall in the 2019 draft but did not pitch during the '25 season due to recurring pain in his left shoulder that required two shutdowns from throwing while he spent most of the year on the injured list. Over fifty-two career MLB games—twelve as starts—Thompson has a record of six wins and ten losses with an earned run average of 4.50.

Both Roddery Muñoz and Anthony Veneziano had short stints pitching out of St. Louis’ bullpen this year; Muñoz recorded an ERA of 8.18 over nine appearances while Veneziano finished with a 4.50 ERA after joining from Miami for two outings.