It’s no secret that Jimmy Crooks has been on an absolute tear in Memphis right now for the Redbirds.

He has played in six games down in Triple-A and is slashing .400/.538/.900 with a 1.438 OPS, three homers, six RBIs, five walks and one double.

Crooks also has a wide base behind the plate defensively and, despite that, still moves well laterally. The 24-year old had his offensive breakout when he was named the Texas League MVP back in 2024 when he slashed .321/.410/.498 in 90 games for Double-A Springfield.

So when should he be called up?

Yes, Iván Herrera is THE guy right now at catcher. After an atrocious start to the season against Tampa, Herrera has significantly improved his patience and swing, going 5-15 (.333/.545/.467) 189 wRC+.

Now Herrera has improved a lot, but his backup, Pedro Pages, is off to a relatively rough start offensively, going 3-16 (.188/.278/.375) 94 wRC+. Meanwhile, Crooks is 8-18 (.444/.545/1.000) 285 wRC+ against AAA pitching so far.

Crooks is someone the Cardinals highly value, and anticipate being a future cornerstone of the franchise. Called up on Aug. 29 last season for his MLB debut, he homered in just his second game for his first MLB hit and drew rave reviews from the coaching staff with his handling of the pitching staff. And at only 24 years old, there’s nothing wrong with him still working on improving mechanics down in AAA, especially at the plate.

So while it’d be fun to see Crooks as either catcher (if Herrera DH’s) or pinch-hitting for Herrera, Pages, or even Pozo, now probably isn’t the time to call him up. And that’s okay.

Rebuilds are going to have their ups and downs. And when the time comes for Crooks to get his shot,  it’ll be a big up for sure.