Liam Doyle, the St. Louis Cardinals’ No. 2 prospect and No. 5 overall pick in the 2025 MLB Draft, made his professional debut with Palm Beach on September 6. The following day, he spoke with World Baseball Network about his first outing, his college path, and his reputation as one of the nation’s strikeout leaders. Since the interview, Doyle has been rapidly climbing the organizational ladder with a promotion to Double-A.
Doyle reflected on pitching 5.2 innings in his first start for Palm Beach, working with catcher Chase Heath.
“He has been good for me, so that’s always positive. It’s good to build a connection with a catcher in the organization. Going out there and pitching in my first professional game was fun and a good bucket list thing for me to do.”
The left-hander credited his experience across three programs — Coastal Carolina, Ole Miss under Mike Bianco, and Tennessee under Tony Vitello — for preparing him for professional baseball.
“You take something from each spot you’ve been to, and I was lucky enough to be in some pretty cool programs. Coach V was huge and very influential for me and the staff there. Just being at Tennessee was a huge leap for me. You take a little bit from everywhere, sprinkle it all around, and ending up at Tennessee last year was a great spot for me.”
Earlier in 2025, Doyle threw a combined no-hitter against St. Bonaventure, Tennessee’s first since 2022. He credited the depth of the Volunteers’ pitching staff.
“It was pretty cool. We had a lot of talent on that staff, a lot of great pitchers. The Cardinals also got another good one, Tanner, this year too. The staff at Tennessee was great. The coaches were awesome and built a great program around it, and we had a great year.”
Doyle finished second in the nation in strikeouts behind LSU’s Kaden Anderson and first in strikeout rate with 15.4 per nine innings. He said his approach was straightforward.
“I have good stuff and I throw in the zone a ton. Between that and competing, strikeouts are going to come with it. I try to do that every time I’m on the mound — just compete to the best of my ability, and strikeouts will come with that.”
Doyle’s combination of SEC pedigree, strikeout dominance, and early composure in his pro debut make him one of the most intriguing arms in the Cardinals’ system. On Saturday, September 6, the Cardinals’ No. 2 prospect and the No. 33 ranked player on MLBPipeline.com made his professional debut and started for Palm Beach against the Cincinnati Reds affiliate Daytona Tortugas in the second-to-last game of the 2025 Low-A Florida State League regular season. Doyle threw 1.2 innings, allowing one hit and one earned run on a homer to Alfred Duno in the first inning, walked two, and struck out three, throwing 42 pitches with 23 strikes in Palm Beach’s 3-2 win. He had been activated to Low-A Palm Beach on September 4 after a brief stint in the Florida Complex League.
The St. Louis Cardinals are promoting Liam Doyle to the Springfield Cardinals (AA). pic.twitter.com/eRdvx12Na0
— Milb Central (@milb_central) September 9, 2025
On Tuesday, September 9, Doyle was promoted to Double-A, marking a rapid step forward in his development.
The 21-year-old from Boston, Massachusetts was the Cardinals’ fifth overall pick in the 2025 MLB Draft and signed for a $7.25 million bonus on July 16. MLB Pipeline currently ranks him No. 34 on the Top 100 prospects list. Statcast scouting grades underline his profile: a 75 fastball that peaks at 100 mph, paired with a slider, cutter, and splitter all graded at 55, with overall control at 50.
Doyle was named the 2025 SEC Pitcher of the Year at Tennessee, where he led Division I in strikeout rate at 15.4 per nine innings, topped the nation with 105 strikeouts on his fastball alone, and solidified himself as one of the most unhittable arms in college baseball.
As he moves into the Cardinals’ upper minors, Doyle’s ability to translate that dominance — led by an explosive fastball out of a high release point — will be closely watched at every level of the organization.
