Thomas Saggese #43

Played prep baseball for Jake Savicki at Carlsbad (Calif.) High School his junior and senior High School his junior and senior year after transferring...The same high school has produced Orioles Brady Anderson and former Cardinals third baseman Troy Glaus...Became the second-highest draft pick out of Carlsbad behind Glaus (1994 second round, Padres) and Thomas Eshelman (2015 second round, Astros)...Named MVP of San Diego's Avacado West League as a junior in 2019, batting .422 (43-102), 10 HR, 26 RBI with a positive walk (17) to strikeout (14) ratio...Batted .440 with three home runs, nine RBI over seven games in the COVID-shortened season of 2020...Signed his letter of intent to play college baseball at Pepperdine University...Earned the 2022 True Ranger Award, established in 2019 as the player who represents the core values of the organization in a positive light on and off the field...Is good friends with Tekoah Roby, who was also traded with him to the Cardinals...Writes "MORE" on the tape of his left wrist before each game to honor his late mother, Wendi, who passed away from breast cancer in 2020, while he was a senior in high school. Stems from her replying "I love you more" when they would converse. Remarks that Wendi was his "Best Friend"...Signed by Steve Flores (Rangers)...Resides in Carlsbad, Calif.

2024

Played the majority of the season at Memphis (AAA), then had his contract selected in September, making his Major League debut vs. Cincinnati on Sept. 10...Played in 18 games for the Cardinals starting eight at second base, three at shortstop and two at third base...Played in 161 games between Memphis (125), St. Louis (18) and Glendale (18), receiving 662 plate appearances and playing 1,295.0 innings defensively...Recorded his first Major League hit vs. CIN (9/12) off Carson Spiers, a seventh inning single...Recorded his first MLB RBI in his next plate appearance with a single to score Lars Nootbaar in the eighth inning...His first home run was a game-tying eighth inning blast at TOR (9/13) off former Cardinal Génesis Cabrera at Rogers Centre...Became the second Cardinals player to hit his first MLB home run in Toronto, joining Randal Grichuk (6/7/14), and the eighth overall in Canada with the six previous players hitting their first home runs at Montreal...Batted .313 with his second straight 20+ homer season over 125 games for Memphis...2024 Cardinals Minor League Player of the Month in July, batting .349 (29-83) with four HR, 14 RBI and a .990 OPS...His second monthly award since joining the Cardinals...Ranked among Cardinals Minor League leaders in hits (121, sixth), home runs (20, T-2nd), RBI (67, fifth), runs (75, fourth), doubles (23, T-6th), extra-base hits (46, fourth), total bases (210, third), slugging (.438, fifth) and OPS (.751, fifth)...Was hit by pitch a team-leading 13 times (5th in the IL) for a second straight season...Played 18 games for Glendale in the 2024 Arizona Fall League and ranked second in batting with a .391 average (25-64), while tacking on two HR, 10 RBI, seven doubles, 16 runs scored and posted a positive walk/strikeout ratio (16:15)...Named to All-Arizona Fall League team at second base and was the Cardinals lone representative at the Arizona Fall Stars Games.

2023

Began the season as one of the youngest players (21) in the Texas League as the starting second baseman for Frisco (AA-Rangers)...2023 Texas League Most Valuable Player...2023 Texas League and Double-A Batting Champion (.318)...Baseball America Minor League All-Star Team and Double-A All-Star Team at Second Base...Also led the Texas League in hits (158), RBI (107) and extra-base hits (60)...Cardinals August Minor League Player of the Month...Texas League Player of the Week ending June 25, batting .591 (13-for-22) with three doubles, a triple, a home run, seven RBI and a 1.609 OPS, hitting safely in all seven games...Sent to the Cardinals at the trade deadline from the Rangers with LHP John King and RHP Tekoah Roby in exchange for LHP Jordan Montgomery and RHP Chris Stratton...Hit nine HR in his first 22 games with Springfield...Recorded over 20 RBI in three straight months (June - 25; July - 24; Aug. - 26) with his 75 RBI over those three months second-most in all of professional baseball...Hit three grand slams while with Frisco (5/12 vs. Wichita; June 2 vs. San Antonio; July 22 vs. San Antonio).