Sarni\'s professional baseball career began in 1943 at the age of 15 when he played for the Los Angeles Angels of the Pacific Coast League. In 33 games he went 19-for-83 (.229) with one home run and nine runs batted in. Sarni led Texas League catchers with a .991 fielding percentage while playing for the Shreveport Sports in 1948. He led American Association catchers with 597 putouts and a .989 fielding percentage while playing for the Columbus Red Birds in 1950.\n', '

Sarni made his major league debut with the St. Louis Cardinals on May 11, 1951 at the age of 23. After hitting for only a .174 average during his rookie year, Sarni was sent back to the Columbus Red Birds in May 1952 in order to trim their roster down to the 25 player limit. He posted a .277 batting average along with 8 home runs and 60 runs batted in during the 1953 season with Columbus and, earned a spot on the American Association All-Star team. In October 1953, the Cardinals purchased Sarni from Columbus.\n', '

Sarni became the Cardinals starting catcher when Del Rice was injured during a play at home plate on June 7, 1954. In 123 games he posted a .300 batting average with 9 home runs and 70 runs batted in. He also led National League catchers with a .996 fielding percentage and 12 double plays. One odd footnote from the 1954 season was a game in St. Louis on July 18 against the Philadelphia Phillies in which, both Sarni and Phillies catcher Stan Lopata played the game without wearing chest protectors because of the intense heat.\n', '

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