Cardinals Option Harrison Bader to Triple-A

In the midst of a heated playoff race, there's no time to waste for player development in the major leagues. The St. Louis Cardinals are in a back and forth battle with the Chicago Cubs and Milwaukee Brewers for the NL Central crown, as their July hot streak has propelled them into a tie for the division lead with the Cubs.

In advance of a crucial series with Chicago, the Cardinals sent struggling youngster Harrison Bader to Triple-A.

The #STLCards have optioned Harrison Bader, who has started just six games since the All-Star break, to AAA Memphis. Source tells me it is for internal move(s), which will be announced tomorrow, not trade-related.
— Mark Saxon (@markasaxon) July 29, 2019

Bader came on the scene with a solid rookie season in 2018, batting .264 with 12 home runs and 15 stolen bases in 138 games. His performance was good enough to come in sixth in NL Rookie of the Year voting. Unfortunately, he's been unable to build on that this season.

Bader is unquestionably an electric talent, but that ability has yet to manifest itself into big league success this year for the center fielder. In 90 games this season, Harrison is below the Mendoza line, batting just .195 with 30 more strikeouts than hits.

While his defensive prowess makes up somewhat for his struggles at the plate, he hasn't done enough to stay in the show –– for now.

This year, per FanGraphs, Harrison Bader has been worth:

+10.4 fielding runs
-10.4 batting runs https://t.co/PKwS5xbCOr
— Andrew Simon (@AndrewSimonMLB) July 29, 2019

Although the Cardinals surely wish they could keep the speedster with the big league club, he's done nothing to prove he's ready to be an asset for the stretch run this season.

Hopefully, some time in Memphis will be just what the doctor ordered.