Zack Cox is coming to SGF, St. Louis Cardinals fans (Time to rejoice)

Zack Cox, the St. Louis Cardinals 2010 First Round pick

The Springfield Cardinals season has officially begun — thanks to he promotion of third baseman Zack Cox.

Sure, the SGF Cards have been playing since April, but the summer was always hinged on the promotion of Cox, the Cardinals’ first round pick (25th overall) in last year’s draft, and Shelby Miller, the 20-year-old righthanded pitching phenomenon. With Cox’s promotion being announced yesterday, SGFers now can see the ascension of St. Louis’ proposed third baseman of the future.

Named the Cardinals’ No. 2 prospect by Baseball America, the publication also described Cox as last draft’s best pure hitter. But, as a draft-eligible sophomore, Cox let teams know he wanted to get paid. The huge price tag allowed him to freefall to the Cards at No. 25 and St. Louis drafted him, stuffing a reported $3.2 million in his pocket. He signed late, only getting 15 at bats at the rookie-level Gulf Coast League last season. The Cardinals decided to start him slow, beginning his season at High-A Palm Beach — and he didn’t last long.

While he started slow in April, hitting .290/.320/.312 with no home runs and only two doubles in 93 at-bats, Cox is annihilating Florida State League pitching in May. Through 19 games, he hit .394/.456/.606 with 3 homers, 13 RBIs and 6 doubles in 71 at-bats. Plus, he cut his strikeouts from 22 to 7 and increased his walks from 4 to 7. He’s still scuffling against lefthanded pitching, hitting only .227/.300/.273 in 44 ABs, but he’s obliterating righties for a clip of .375/.411/.500 in 120 ABs.

But the significance of his promotion to SGF in late May can’t be overlooked, nor how the rest of the summer unfolds. Cox played third base at Arkansas, and scouts are mixed on where he will end up, whether it be third or, even, second base. Scouts say it’s not a matter of arm strength, but rather quickness and instincts. Still, as we know by watching the St. Louis Cardinals, neither position is settled (David Freese, Skip Schumaker, Daniel Descalso, etc.). And if he can take a lethal — maybe even power-filled — bat to the big leagues, the draft pick will be worth it.

Springfield Cardinals fans, it’s time to go out and see Zack Cox. Because if he’s already here at Double-A before Memorial Day, there’s no reason he won’t get sent to Triple-A by the end of the season if he treats the Texas League like he did the FSL in May. And it’s moments like this why we should love the Springfield Cardinals. (And just wait until Shelby Miller shows up…)