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DALLAS — The Cardinals’ chances of sneaking into the top six-pick realm in the upcoming MLB draft, let alone scoring the No. 1 pick overall, were so low that they did not send a representative to the afternoon selection, did not send someone who would spend a few hours locked in a room unable to communicate about the results with the outside world.

So, as the MLB Draft Lottery’s televised reveal began Tuesday night, the Cardinals watched with the rest of baseball as their fortune soared.

When they didn’t get No. 13, they knew their pick would be higher than in years.

The Cardinals leapfrogged eight spots, moving ahead of teams that had some of the strongest chances at the No. 1 pick, to win the fifth-overall selection in the July amateur draft. This will be the first time in club history that they’ve had back-to-back top 10 picks in consecutive drafts, and the No. 5 overall pick is the highest since they selected in that same spot in 1998. They took J.D. Drew, and he made his debut a few months later.

In the team’s suite after the lottery reveal, Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak grinned at their luck coming out of a winning season and picking higher than last year’s No. 7.

“We will certainly take advantage it,� he said.

He was asked if he might take a high schooler from Oklahoma, say one who had a father in the big leagues.

“He’ll probably be gone,� Mozeliak said.

True, Ethan Holliday, built like his dad Matt, likely will be.

But there is another.

***

Here is a way, way, way too early at who the Cardinals could select with the fifth pick, .

Tyler Bremner, RHP, UC-Santa Barbara

Straight out of central casting when it comes to the polished, projectible college pitchers the Cardinals have drafted in the past, from Michael Wacha to Michael McGreevy. Bremner is a lithe, athletic right-hander who generates a fastball between 94-96 mph consistently. Baseball America clocks his top velocity at 98 mph. He has a plunging changeup that will be one of the better single pitches available in the draft, and he also has that wipeout slider that teams and hitters chase. There is a concern with his limited appearances, so this spring season is big.

Baseball America says: “He pitched well with Team USA over the summer and owns a 31.1% strikeout rate and 6.4% walk rate in two seasons with UC Santa Barbara, but he hasn’t started more than eight games in a single season.�

Xavier Neyens, 3B, Mount Vernon (Washington) High

There’s a world where Neyens, who has committed to Oregon State, emerges by the end of the spring season as the top high school hitter available in the draft and rises up into the top five, top three, top … in the draft. Jeff Luhnow used to use the term “dream on� for the tools that a young player presented, and Neyens has oodles of tools to “dream on.� A left-handed hitter with the size, production, and arm strength that projects for third base. The comparisons to Austin Riley are inevitable and apt. A few months into spring and the appeal for the Cardinals will be just as clear.

Baseball America says: “Wow(s) scouts with his excellent bat speed and raw power that has a chance to become a 70-grade tool in the future. Neyens is a physical lefthanded hitter with a terrific 6-foot-4, 205-pound frame and tremendous batting eye. He’s a patient hitter who can wander into passive territory at times.�

Brendan Summerhill, OF, Arizona

Let’s start with the obvious tie to the Cardinals, just right off the bat: He was an All-Star for the Cape Cod League. The summer wood-bat league is a favorite spot for the Cardinals to evaluate talent, and they’ve pulled from it before when it comes to high selections. Summerhill has a classic, sweet left-handed swing. The prelude to a strong Cape Cod showing was leading Arizona in average (.324), OBP (.399), and extra-base hits (32). He had nearly as many walks (31) as he did strikeouts (36) and more walks (19) than strikeouts (16) in conference play. . Summerhill ranges from top 10 to top 30 in various prospect rankings entering the year (BA had him going 27th to Cleveland in the mock draft) – and that suggests that a strong spring with that swing and this profile will catapult him into the top-five conversation. Oh, and he may stay at center field.

Baseball America says: “Summerhill is a 6-foot-3, 205-pound outfielder and lefthanded hitter who makes a lot of contact with a clean lefthanded swing. He slashed .324/.399/.550 with eight home runs and 18 doubles with Arizona during the spring then played well in the Cape Cod League, where he ranked as the No. 5 prospect on the circuit and showed the speed and athleticism to stick in center field.�

Cam Cannarella, OF, Clemson

The ACC’s Freshman of the Year has an appealing blend of defensive upside and contact skills that fit well for center field and could emerge by the end of spring as one of the top high-average hitters in the college game. Scouting reports at ’s Pipeline and Baseball America laud Cannarella’s “bat-to-ball skills” and line-drive knack, giving off the same vibes as the Cardinals’ pick this past year, JJ Wetherholt. He’s got the speed for his position and more promise as a baserunner, though he did little of that with a shoulder injury this past spring.

Baseball America says: “He’s an excellent contact hitter who can use the entire field and has managed an 84% overall contact rate in his two seasons with Clemson. Cannarella is a hit-first lefthanded batter who might never have above-average power potential thanks to a smaller 6-foot, 180-pound frame, but he should be a lock to stick in center field and be a good defender there.�

Jamie Arnold, LHP, Florida State

Along with Bremner and Seth Hernandez, Arnold is one of the top three college pitchers going into the upcoming season. Baseball America picked him to go to the Cardinals in the mock draft posted immediately after the MLB Draft Lottery. As a sophomore, Arnold struck out 159 batters in 105 2/3 innings. He had five games where he struck out more than 11, and in May at Pittsburgh he struck out 17 in seven innings. (Florida State lost, 1-0.) 

Baseball America says: “He throws from a low three-quarters slot and creates plenty of arm-side run with a 93-95 mph fastball that has been up to 97. He’ll also mix in a trio of secondaries: a mid-80s sweeping slider, a low-80s curveball and a mid-80s changeup.�

Eli Willits, SS, Fort Cobb-Broxton High (Oklahoma)

Elsewhere in the state, power-packed prep standout Ethan Holliday will draw a lot of scouts and likely follow his brother, Jackson, as the first overall pick. Matt Holliday’s son as the frame of his father, potential for more power, and on and on. But scouts will also head to Oklahoma for another second-generation ballplayer: Reggie Willits’ son, Eli. A switch-hitter, Eli Willits reclassified for the upcoming draft and will be among the youngest players available, at 17. He’s an improving player with a high ceiling at a premium position.

Baseball America says: “In addition to his youth, he checks plenty of boxes as a switch-hitter with a loose and easy swing from both sides, strong contact skills and pitch recognition.�

Devin Taylor, OF, Indiana

Max Belyeu, OF, Texas

Another Cape Cod standout to watch. Taylor performed well there and has a well-rounded resume of tools and results, which puts him ahead of Max Belyeu when it comes to this list. Texas outfielder and Big 12 Player of the Year, Belyeu hit .222 with more strikeouts (21) than hits (12) in the Cape Cod League, and all of that might not matter at all if he has a breakout spring that vaults him from a top-40 prospect in the draft to a first-round candidate. Taylor, the first Hoosier to be an All-Big Ten Conference honor in his first two seasons he led the conference with 20 homers this past season. The position he plays (center? left?) this spring will be worth watching and how his offensive game advances – building upon bat speed and authority from the left side to a feel for the strike zone.

Baseball America says: “(Taylor is) a career .338/.441/.655 hitter with Indiana who homered 26 times in two seasons and has bat speed, plus raw power and a solid batting eye. He’s more of a fringy defender in the outfield, profiling as a left fielder.�

Jace LaViolette, OF, Texas A&M

There’s always the chance that one of the top college hitters entering the draft falls to the Cardinals – because that is what happened this past year at pick No. 7. It’s just unlikely. LaViolette begins 2025 as a challenger to go 1/1. He slugged .726 the past two seasons with 50 home runs and has the 6-foot-5, 230-pound size to project sustained and growing power as he advances toward the highest level. He can play center. He can launch homers. He can strike out. And he can be caught and surpassed by some of the other college hitters in his class. It’s just not likely He can probably count on being selected ahead of the Cardinals.

Baseball America says: “The top-ranked player in the 2025 class, LaViolette has a special blend of power, on-base ability, physicality, speed and defense that makes for a package of big-time upside.� 

Billy Carlson, SS/RHP, Corona (California) High

Kruz Schoolcraft, LHP/1B, Sunset High (Portland, Oregon)

This will sound familiar. An athletic shortstop with a flair for defense and a deft feel for the position, Carlson also throws 97 mph off the mound. Echoes of Masyn Winn, no? He and Schoolcraft are the two two-way standouts who could climb into the top third of the draft.

Raw power is Schoolcraft’s profile. Raw power off the mound. Raw power at the plate. His 6-foot-8, 225-pound frame projects to meet that power upside in either role, and as a left-hander who already throws in the mid-90s mph there’s going to be a real pull for teams to look at him as a starter.

Baseball America says on Schoolcraft: “Wowed scouts over the summer with a mid-90s fastball and strong feel for a low-80s changeup and low-80s slider. While his huge power upside makes him interesting as a hitter or two-way player, most scouts are drooling over his upside on the mound.�

Baseball America says on Carlson: “Most teams will likely prefer Carlson as a hitter and shortstop, where he has a solid approach with developing power—but a line-drive swing—to go with excellent hands, instincts, actions (in the field).�