The Cardinals announced a round of high-profile cuts to their big league camp roster after Sunday's 10-0 Spring Training win over the Nationals, optioning top prospects Carson Kelly and Jack Flaherty to Triple-A Memphis alongside outfielder Oscar Mercado, left-hander Ryan Sherriff, second baseman Breyvic Valera and right-hander John Gant.
The 23-year old Kelly was expected by many to back up Yadier Molina at catcher on the Cardinals' Major League roster, but the team may prefer that Kelly gets more playing time and seasoning at the Minor League level to begin 2018.