Scouting Report

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Scouting grades: Fastball: 55 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 50 | Control: 55 | Overall: 45

A standout in high school who starred at SoCal powerhouse Orange Lutheran and for USA Baseball’s 18U national team, Rajcic went undrafted in the shortened 2020 Draft, partially because of his strong commitment to UCLA. He served as an effective closer for the Bruins as a freshman before making a successful move to their weekend rotation this season.

While not the biggest guy in the world at six feet tall and fairly physically mature, Rajcic does have an intriguing four-pitch mix he can use for a solid north-south kind of attack. The right-hander can run his fastball up to 95 mph, averaging around 91 mph. He has two distinct breaking pitches, with his true upper 70s curveball with downer action better than his low-80s slider, though both are usable pitches. He throws his low-80s changeup with conviction and fade.

While none of Rajcic’s pitches grade out as plus, they play up because he can throw strikes at the top and the bottom of the zone very consistently. He’s super-competitive on the mound and has never shied away from the spotlight, something that will appeal to many teams, even if his size and delivery carry some reliever risk.

Scouting grades: Fastball: 50 | Curveball: 55 | Slider: 45 | Changeup: 55 | Control: 50 | Overall: 40

Rajcic was effective as both a closer (2021) and a starter (2022) during his two years at UCLA, and though he dropped to the sixth round as a Draft-eligible sophomore in ‘22, the Cardinals went above slot to sign him for $600,000. That investment looked like a good one early on. Rajcic was named St. Louis’ Minor League pitcher of the year after leading the system in ERA (2.48), FIP (3.14), average-against (.216) and K-BB percentage (19.6) over 123 1/3 innings between Single-A and High-A. He even made a postseason appearance for Double-A Springfield to sprinkle in a third level. 

The 6-foot right-hander isn’t afraid to go right after hitters with a 91-95 mph fastball featuring some armside running action. The velo might just be average, but he spots the heater well, allowing him to get into pitchers' counts quickly. His 78-82 mph curveball may be his most visually pleasing pitch, dropping sharply with 12-to-6 movement that can play off the fastball at the top of the zone. His mid-80s changeup also helped him pick up whiffs with promising armside fade, and it was notable that Rajcic had almost even splits against both lefties and righties in 2023. He’ll also show a low-80s slider with a little depth. 

Rajcic was a known strike-thrower because of his fastball command, but it was notable that his walk rate jumped from 3.8 percent at Palm Beach to 7.2 at Peoria as hitters knew to lay off the softer stuff. Even so, he has the control and deep arsenal to be a potential backend starter. Bigger tests await in his return to the Texas League for a longer stay in 2024. 

Scouting grades: Fastball: 50 | Curveball: 55 | Slider: 45 | Changeup: 50 | Control: 55 | Overall: 45

Rajcic gained notoriety on USA Baseball’s 18U national team -- the same club that boasted future Top 100 prospects Pete Crow-Armstrong, Robert Hassell III and Kyle Harrison, among others -- and made a pair of solid starts during a silver medal run at the World Cup in Taiwan. He still went undrafted in the shortened 2020 Draft, in part due to his strong commitment to UCLA, and he became an instant closer for the Bruins as a freshman in 2021 before getting starting experience in the Cape Cod League that summer. Draft-eligible as a sophomore, he became a full-time starter for the Bruins in 2022, posting a 3.28 ERA with 92 strikeouts in 85 innings. The Cardinals selected Rajcic in the sixth round and went well above slot to sign him for $600,000.

The 6-foot right-hander is at his best working up and down in the zone, constantly changing eye levels. His fastball is now around 92-94, topping out at 95 with good ride, but he wasn’t always deceptive with it. His upper-70s curveball with downer action and low-80s fading changeup with armside movement looked like his closest pitches to being above-average, and there was another breaking ball in there in his low-80s slider, which trailed behind the curve in terms of quality breaking offerings.

Rajcic commands the ball well, and his ability to mix and match within that arsenal is an advantage, even though he doesn’t claim a true plus pitch. Still, the Cardinals were surprised to get him in the sixth round and used late third-round money to add him to the organization, proving how highly they truly valued him.

Scouting grades: Fastball: 50 | Curveball: 50 | Slider: 45 | Changeup: 45 | Control: 55 | Overall: 45

A standout in high school who starred at SoCal powerhouse Orange Lutheran and for USA Baseball’s 18U national team, Rajcic went undrafted in the shortened 2020 Draft, partially because of his strong commitment to UCLA. He served as an effective closer for the Bruins as a freshman before making a successful move to their weekend rotation this season. The transition was enough to get him taken in the sixth round by the Cardinals, who went well above slot to sign him for $600,000.

While not the biggest guy in the world at 6-feet and fairly physically mature, Rajcic does have an intriguing four-pitch mix he can use for a solid north-south kind of attack. The right-hander can run his fastball up to 95 mph, averaging around 91 mph. He has two distinct breaking pitches, with his true upper 70s curveball with downer action better than his low-80s slider, though both are usable pitches. He throws his low-80s changeup with conviction and fade.

While none of Rajcic’s pitches grade out as plus, they play up because he can throw strikes at the top and the bottom of the zone very consistently. He’s super-competitive on the mound and has never shied away from the spotlight, something that likely appealed to the Cardinals, even if his size and delivery carry some reliever risk.

Video scouting report »

Scouting grades: Fastball: 55 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 50 | Control: 55 | Overall: 45

Playing for Southern California high school powerhouse Orange Lutheran High School, Rajcic contributed to three straight National High School Invitational titles, one as a hitter as a freshman, then the next two as a two-way star. He also played for Team USA’s 18-and-under team in international competition for two years, so he’s extremely well known by the scouting industry.

There isn’t much projection left with the undersized right-hander, but there’s a lot of now stuff to like about Rajcic. He has the chance to have three average to above-average offerings in the future. His fastball sits 92-93 mph consistently, thrown with a lot of sink and commanded well, and he maintains his velocity deep into starts. He backs it up with a high-spin breaking ball, a slider that flashes plus. His changeup is a touch behind, but he shows enough feel for it to easily see an at least average offspeed offering.

Rajcic has always thrown a lot of strikes and as a guy who hit in the middle of OLU’s lineup, his athleticism plays very well on the mound. He clearly loves the big stage and is super competitive, something teams will certainly take into account when deciding if they want to try to sign him away from his commitment to UCLA.

Awards

MiLB.com Organization All-Star

Year	Team
2023

Baseball America Low Class A All-Star

Year	Team
2023

FSL Post-Season All-Star

Year	Team
2023

FSL Pitcher of the Year

Year	Team
2023

FSL Pitcher of the Week

Week	Team
06/04/2023

Transactions

Team	Date	Transaction
	03/07/2024	St. Louis Cardinals Prospects activated RHP Max Rajcic.
	02/23/2024	St. Louis Cardinals invited non-roster RHP Max Rajcic to spring training.
	09/19/2023	RHP Max Rajcic assigned to Springfield Cardinals from Peoria Chiefs.
	06/26/2023	RHP Max Rajcic assigned to Peoria Chiefs from Palm Beach Cardinals.
	04/05/2023	RHP Max Rajcic assigned to Palm Beach Cardinals from FCL Cardinals.
	03/06/2023	RHP Max Rajcic assigned to FCL Cardinals from Cardinals Organization.
	08/16/2022	RHP Max Rajcic assigned to Cardinals Organization.
	07/23/2022	St. Louis Cardinals signed RHP Max Rajcic.
	03/01/2022	RHP Max Rajcic and assigned to UCLA Bruins.
	07/19/2019	RHP Max Rajcic assigned to UA National.
	07/19/2019	RHP Max Rajcic assigned to UA National.