Cardinals catching prospect Leonardo Bernal put himself into the hit column for the first time in the Arizona Fall League with a three-hit game on Monday that included three singles. Two of the three singles from the switch-hitting Bernal came as a right-handed hitter against left-handed pitchers.
Bernal, 20, entered Monday hitless in his first six at-bats of the fall league for the Glendale Desert Dogs, the team he and other Cardinals prospects are assigned to. That hitless stretch extended to seven at-bats after he struck out, swinging, in the second inning of Glendale鈥檚 5-3 win over the Peoria Javelinas.
The 20-year-old secured his first hit of the AFL in the fourth inning on a line drive to right field against left-handed Marlins prospect Justin King. Bernal鈥檚 single to the opposite field off King scored fellow Cardinals prospect Nathan Church from second base after Church, a left-handed hitter, singled to left field off King to begin the inning and stole second base with one out in the frame.
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Bernal successfully stole third base later that inning on a double steal attempt during which Dodgers prospect Sean McLain stole second base after McLain walked to reach base.
Two innings later, while batting from the left side against right-handed Mariners prospect Jason Ruffcorn, Bernal grounded a ball that deflected off Braves first base prospect Drew Compton鈥檚 glove and went for a single.
While batting from the right side in the eighth inning, Bernal notched his third hit of the game on a single to center field on the first pitch he saw from left-handed Braves prospect Hayden Harris.
Bernal caught nine all nine innings of Glendale鈥檚 win. He did not throw out the lone base-stealing attempt against him.
Bernal was one of three Cardinals position player prospects in Monday鈥檚 game. All three had hits.聽
Cardinals infield prospect Thomas Saggese collected one hit in four at-bats and drew one walk as the Desert Dogs鈥 designated hitter. Saggese, 22, is four-for-14 (.286 average) and has a 1.015 on-base plus slugging percentage in four games.
Church, a 24-year-old outfield prospect who spent this past season with Class AA Springfield, went two-for-four with a walk in the win. Through four games, Church is four-for-13 (.308 average).
Left-hander Brycen Mautz, who the Cardinals took with their second-round pick in the 2022 MLB draft, threw 1 1/3 scoreless innings of relief. Mautz, 23, struck out three of the four batters he faced. The left-hander has allowed one run and struck out four in 2 1/3 innings of relief across two outings.聽