Junior Fernandez

Fernandez is yet another high-upside arm in the St. Louis system, though he still needs time to refine his command. The 19-year-old righty from the Dominican Republic saw a dip in his strikeout rate in 2016, as well as a rise in free passes issued. Fernandez started the year at Low-A, where he posted a respectable 3.33 ERA in 78.1 innings. He notched a 63:34 K:BB over that span, limiting the damage from the high walk total. The additional baserunners caught up with Fernandez after a promotion to High-A, though, as he posted a bloated 5.36 ERA and subpar 25:20 K:BB in 43.2 innings. Fernandez does not have a huge frame but possesses a blazing fastball with movement. However, it appears he needs to hone his craft a bit more on the mound, including working on his secondary pitches. A return to High-A to begin the 2017 campaign is almost certainly in the cards (no pun intended).