Cardinals Announce Roster Additions
The St. Louis Cardinals expanded their active roster by promoting catcher Leo Bernal, right-handed pitcher Hancel Rincón, and outfielder Victor Scott II. To make room on the roster, catcher Jimmy Crooks was optioned to Triple-A Memphis.
Bernal and Rincón will be making their Major League debuts, while Scott II returns to the club to bolster the outfield. The transactions coincide with Major League Baseball allowing active rosters to expand to 28 players.
CARDINALS ANNOUNCE ROSTER ADDITIONS
BERNAL, RINCÓN & SCOTT II PROMOTED; CROOKS OPTIONED
ST. LOUIS, MO., September 1, 2026 – The St. Louis Cardinals announced today that the team has promoted three players, and that catcher Jimmy Crooks was optioned to Memphis (AAA) following Sunday’s (Aug. 30) game, as Major League Baseball allows active rosters to expand to 28 players today.
Joining the Cardinals active roster for tonight’s series opener in Los Angeles are rookie catcher Leonardo (Leo) Bernal, rookie right-handed pitcher Hancel Rincón and outfielder Victor Scott II. Bernal and Rincón will be making their Major League debut with their first appearance. Scott II made his big league debut at Dodger Stadium in March of 2024.
Bernal (pronounced LAY-oh bur-NAHL), one of the top defensively acclaimed catchers in MiLB, was signed by the Cardinals as an international free agent in January of 2021. The 22-year-old native of Panama City, Panama was slashing .278/.363/.468 with an .831 OPS, 16 HR and 77 RBI (7th in International League) in his first season at the Triple-A level. The 2025 Rawlings Minor League Gold Glove recipient is currently rated as the Cardinals 5th best prospect by Baseball America.
The 6-0, 260-pound switch-hitting Bernal will wear uniform no. 13.
Rincón, 24, a member of the Cardinals organization since 2019, was signed by the Cardinals as an international free agent in January of 2019 at age 16 out of San Pedro de Macoris, DR. The 6-2, 185-pound Rincón (pronounced hahn-sell rin-CONE) has gone 6-6 with a 4.04 ERA this season at Memphis, striking out 88 over 71.1 IP (41 games) primarily as a reliever. Rincón has fashioned a 2.76 ERA & 0.92 WHIP since July 1.
Rincón will wear uniform no. 66.
Scott II, who was on the Cardinals Opening Day roster, appeared in 61 games with St. Louis this season, collecting 9 stolen bases, before being optioned to Memphis (AAA) on June 8. In 57 games at Memphis, Scott II was successful on 23 of 25 stolen base attempts while slashing .237/.320/.342. The left-handed hitting Scott II has 209 career stolen bases as a professional, including 48 with St. Louis. He wears uniform no. 11.
Bernal and Rincón will be joining a group of 10 rookies who had previously debuted for St. Louis this season when they see their first game action.
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The Bernal and Rincon news broke yesterday, so this isn’t all that surprising. The addition of Scott for Crooks was more surprising.
Sending down Crooks is probably needed. Bernal will be starting, so the team won’t need him, Crooks, Pedro Pages, and Ivan Herrera on the active roster.
The team is also short on capable outfielders with Joshua Baez, Bryan Torres, Nathan Church, and Jose Fermin all sharing time in left and center; none have set the world on fire, even though the potential is there with Baez. The question becomes what version of Scott will we see: the speedy, slap hitter that’s an on base machine or the early season guy that was completely lost as the plate?
Bernal was the #9 prospect in my pre-season rankings, while Rincon was #28. Both will retain their rookie eligibility for next season. Scouting reports for each will be out later today. Update: Scouting report for Bernal. Scouting report for Rincon.
