Photo credit: Allison Rhoades/Memphis Redbirds
Shelby Miller
Shelby Miller
Editor’s Note: We originally compiled this list two years ago. All the players have earned permanent spots on the diamond and we've added one more to mark the Redbirds’ twenty-first season.
• Keith McDonald — The starting catcher for the 2000 Pacific Coast League champions, McDonald made the most of a brief midseason promotion to the St. Louis Cardinals. He became only the second player in major league history to homer in his first two big-league at-bats.
• Albert Pujols — You’ve heard of him. As a late-season call-up (from Class A) in 2000, Pujols took over duties in left field for a team bound for the Pacific Coast League playoffs. His home run in the 13th inning of Game 4 of the PCL championship series gave Memphis a title in AutoZone Park’s inaugural season. You’ll find a red seat on the right field bluff today marking the spot where that historic baseball landed.
• Stubby Clapp — As a slap-hitting second-baseman, Clapp served as a sparkplug for the Redbirds’ first Pacific Coast League championship team in 2000, leading the club in runs (89) and hits (138). As a manager, he led the Redbirds to two more championships, earning PCL Manager of the Year honors in both 2017 and 2018.
• Kevin Witt — He only played one season in Memphis (2004), but this big first-baseman set a single-season home run record (36) that no Redbird has matched since. He’s also one of only three Redbirds to drive in 100 runs in a season.
• Yadier Molina — His stint in Memphis wasn’t quite as brief as that of Pujols, but those of us who saw him at AutoZone Park will tell our grandchildren about the superstar catcher. He hit .302 in 37 games for Memphis in 2004 before getting the call from the Cardinals. He ended the season by starting Game 4 of the World Series.
• John Gall — This outfielder/first-baseman suffered the tag of a “Four-A” player, spending most of four seasons (2003-06) in Memphis. His best season came in 2004 when he hit .292 with 22 homers and 84 RBIs. He’s second in Redbirds history in games played (454) and hits (476).
• Adam Wainwright — The tall righty merely teased Memphis fans, going 14-14 over two seasons (2004-05) with the Redbirds. He led the PCL with 182 innings pitched in 2005, a year before coming out of the bullpen to help the Cardinals win their first World Series in 24 years.
• Skip Schumaker — Here’s a stat for you: Schumaker is the only player to accumulate 300 hits with both the Memphis Redbirds and St. Louis Cardinals. His best season in Memphis came in 2006 when he hit .306 and led the Redbirds with 113 hits.
• Rick Ankiel — As a flame-throwing pitcher, Ankiel electrified Redbird fans in the last season the team played at Tim McCarver Stadium (1999). But he stole the show in his comeback — as an outfielder — in 2007. Doing his best Babe Ruth impression, the former hurler hit 32 home runs and earned a late-season promotion to St. Louis, where he would be the Cardinals’ everyday centerfielder in 2008.
• David Freese — Before he was a World Series hero with the Cardinals, Freese helped Memphis to the 2009 PCL championship. He hit a home run that proved to be the only run in the Redbirds’ decisive victory over Albuquerque in the semifinals, then did precisely the same thing in Game 1 of the championship series, the first win in a three-game Memphis sweep.
Photo credit: Allison Rhoades/Memphis Redbirds
Allen Craig
Allen Craig
• Allen Craig — As pure a hitter (for two seasons) as AutoZone Park has seen. Craig batted .322 and slammed 26 homers in 2008, then drove in 81 runs in just 83 games in 2009, a season that ended with the Redbirds’ second PCL championship. Craig’s 176 RBIs are fourth in franchise history.
• Nick Stavinoha — This slugger played parts of five seasons (2007-11) with Memphis and all but owns the franchise record book. No Redbird has played in more games (479), hit more home runs (74), or driven in as many runs (316) as Stavinoha.
• P.J. Walters — There have been pitchers with better stuff, ranked higher on prospect lists, and destined for longer big-league service. But no pitcher has won more games with the Redbirds than Walters (32). He won at least seven games in four consecutive seasons (2008-11), including the 2009 championship campaign.
• Adron Chambers — Among the fastest Redbirds to take the field, Chambers manned center field for the better part of four seasons (2010-13). His 57 stolen bases are second in franchise history. Chambers batted .277 in 2011 before a promotion to St. Louis where he scored a critical run in the Cardinals’ postseason revival, one that ended with a World Series title.
• Victor Marte — The only Redbird pitcher to save 30 games in a season (31 in 2011). Marte also holds the franchise record for career saves (45).
• Shelby Miller — Miller dominated PCL hitters in 2012, winning 11 games and setting a Redbirds’ record with 160 strikeouts (in 137 innings) that stands to this day.
• Tommy Pham — Part of the greatest collection of outfielders Memphis has seen. Competing for playing time in 2014 with Randal Grichuk, Oscar Taveras, and Stephen Piscotty, Pham managed to hit .324 and steal 20 bases in 104 games.
• Patrick Wisdom — The hard-nosed third-baseman earned All-PCL honors in the Redbirds’ 2017 championship season when he hit 31 home runs and drove in 89 runs. His two-run homer in Game 5 of the PCL championship series in El Paso proved to be decisive in bringing Memphis its third PCL title.
• Wilfredo Tovar — One of only two players to appear in 100 games for both the 2017 and 2018 PCL champions. Tovar played a brilliant shortstop and improved from a .253 hitter in 2017 to .297 last year.
• Dakota Hudson — The 23-year-old righty became the first Redbird to earn PCL Pitcher of the Year honors in 2018 when he went 13-3 with a 2.50 ERA. You’ll find him this season pitching in the Cardinals’ starting rotation.
• Tommy Edman — This infielder spent most of the 2017 and 2018 seasons at Double-A Springfield, but earned a promotion for the Redbirds' postseason run each year. He electrified in 2018, hitting .432 over nine games to help Memphis repeat as Pacific Coast League champs. After hitting .305 over 49 games with the Redbirds in 2019, Edman made the leap to St. Louis. He's been a regular in the Cardinals' lineup ever since, taking turns at second base, third base, and right field.
