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Cardinals Activate Alex Reyes

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As expected, the Cardinals have announced the activation today of young righty Alex Reyes from the 60-day DL. To create roster space,the team optioned reliever Mike Mayers and moved bullpen mate Dominic Leone from the 10-day to the 60-day DL.

It has been known for some time, of course, that Reyes would likely be available around this point in the season. But he first had to advance through the final stages of his rehab from Tommy John surgery and build back up in the minors. And the club then had to decide how it would use him.

It was determined recently that Reyes would be deployed in the rotation. And we heard also that he would likely not face a strict innings limit. With all signs pointing to the talented 23-year-old slotting fully and permanently into the rotation, and Carlos Martinez also working his way back, the Cards decided not to option out righty John Gant. Rather than keeping Gant stretched out at Triple-A, he’ll take up residence in the MLB pen over Mayers.

Fair to say, Reyes forced the present decisions with his performance on his rehab assignment. Whispers of the return of his high-powered arsenal were confirmed as he took the hill for four dominating outings at four different levels of the minors. In the aggregate, Reyes has allowed just seven hits and seven walks over 23 scoreless innings, with a whopping compilation of 44 strikeouts.

That recent performance alone may not portend MLB stardom, but it’s good evidence that Reyes is at least back to the already-impressive form he showed before the TJ procedure. (It also seems particularly promising that he is not exhibiting walk issues, as that has been one area of concern for him as a prospect.) Already seen as one of the best young pitching talents in the game heading into the 2016 season, Reyes increased expectations with a strong, 46-inning debut effort. In his five starts and seven relief appearances, he worked to a 1.57 ERA with 10.2 K/9 and 4.5 BB/9.

Cards Continue To Benefit From Pitching Development

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  • The Cardinals’ ability to develop from quality pitching from within has long been a strength, The Athletic’s Bernie Miklasz writes (subscription required), as St. Louis has struck gold time and time again with homegrown starters and relievers, some of whom were longshot draft picks.  This ability to identify unconventional pitching talent has also extended to signings like Miles Mikolas, who is posting superb numbers after spending the last three seasons in Japan.  “For years now, everyone in baseball has looked at the St. Louis organization and asked, ’How do they keep doing this?’ Their people see attributes that others don’t,” one rival executive told Miklasz.  “They’re really good about projecting what a pitcher can become….They turn out better than many in our business envisioned. The Cardinals do a fantastic job. Better than anyone, really. It’s not like the Cardinals are sitting there every year, drafting in the top 10.”

Cardinals, Orioles Nearly Had Manny Machado Deal In Offseason

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Although the Orioles didn’t find a Manny Machado trade to their liking over the winter, the club did believe it was progressing toward a deal with the Cardinals in December, Buster Olney of ESPN reports. St. Louis backed out of negotiations on a swap that would have sent pitching prospects and third baseman Jedd Gyorko to Baltimore, per Olney. The identities of the prospects aren’t known, though Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reported in mid-December that the Orioles had interest in young Cardinals hurlers Luke Weaver, Jack Flaherty and Jordan Hicks. It’s hard to imagine the Cardinals parting with any of those three now, but Olney notes it’s possible they’ll circle back on Machado as the season progresses. Regardless, the Machado trade sweepstakes is likely to kick off in earnest after the June 4-6 draft, according to Olney.

Alex Reyes To Make 2018 Debut On May 30

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  • Cardinals righty Alex Reyes will make his much-anticipated 2018 debut on May 30 in a start against the Brewers, Joe Trezza of MLB.com tweets. It’ll be the prized 23-year-old’s first MLB outing since he underwent Tommy John surgery prior to the 2017 season. Reyes tore through multiple minor league levels during his rehab stint this year, racking up 44 strikeouts against seven walks in 23 scoreless frames, and looks unlikely to work under an innings limit upon his return to the majors.

Cardinals Activate Tyler Lyons, Carson Kelly; Place Greg Holland On DL

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The Cardinals have made several injury-related moves, activating lefty reliever Tyler Lyons and catcher Carson Kelly while simultaneously moving righty reliever Greg Holland to the 10-day DL. The club also optioned catcher Steven Baron to Triple-A Memphis in a related move.

There’s no word yet as to the nature of Holland’s injury, though he’s certainly dealing with some swelling in his ERA and walk rate. On the season, those figures stand at 9.45 and 10.15, respectively. While he’s been unfortunate in the BABIP department (.388), there’s no arguing that Holland’s pitching has been astonishingly poor; the Cardinals are surely disappointed in the early returns on his one-year, $14MM contract. On the bright side, perhaps an extended rehab stint in the minors will allow Holland to get back on track.

The swap of Holland for Lyons, then, can probably be considered somewhat of a boost to the Cards’ bullpen. Though Lyons’ surface results don’t look much better (6.17 ERA), his strikeout-to-walk ratio (2.40) looks much less disastrous than that of his right-handed counterpart. Lyons emerged as a dominant left-hander for St. Louis last season, striking out 11.33 batters per nine innings en route to a 2.83 ERA.

Kelly’s return is welcome news for a Cardinals ballclub that’s been missing both he and feature backstop Yadier Molina all week. Formerly a highly-regarded catching prospect, Kelly hasn’t yet lived up to his billing. He’s hit just .160/.222/.200 across 108 plate appearances in the major leagues. He’ll likely see plenty of playing time as long as Molina remains out, though, so perhaps this is his chance to turn his offensive reputation around.

Injury Notes: Prado, Murphy/Goodwin, DeJong, Casilla, Trumbo, More

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It seems that Marlins infielder Martin Prado has suffered a rather significant left hamstring injury, as Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald reports. The 34-year-old has endured a run of significant problems with his hamstring muscles in the past year or so. Details aren’t yet known, but it certainly sounds as if Prado will be sidelined for a lengthy stretch. He’s owed $13.5MM this year and $15MM for the 2019 campaign. The long-productive infielder has struggled to a .169/.221/.180 batting line in 95 plate appearances on the season.

Here’s more on the injury front:

  • The Nationals finally got some promising injury news, as they’ll send both Daniel Murphy and Brian Goodwin on rehab assignments beginning tomorrow. Jon Heyman of Fan Rag tweeted the news with regard to the former; Jorge Castillo of the Washington Post tweeted manager Davey Martinez’s announcement on both players. Murphy has yet to appear in the 2018 campaign after offseason microfracture surgery, while Goodwin has been slow to return from a wrist injury.
  • It’s still unclear just how long the Cardinals will go without shortstop Paul DeJong, but he says he has been given a four-to-eight week estimate by the medical professionals, as Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports. More than anything, it seems that broad range indicates that there’s not a lot of clarity at this point as to how long it’ll take to heal. All involved will obviously hope that it hues toward the earlier estimate, as the replacement options all have their warts as semi-regular shortstops.
  • It seems the Athletics will go without reliever Santiago Casilla for a stretch. He has been diagnosed with a shoulder strain, as MLB.com’s Jane Lee reports (Twitter links). Details of his anticipated absence are not yet available, but it’s said to be likely that Casilla will end up on the DL. At the same time, he says he does not believe it’s a serious malady. The veteran entered play today with an ugly 14:13 K/BB ratio, but had allowed eight runs on only 11 hits in his 21 innings of action.
  • Though he seemingly avoided a more concerning fate, Orioles slugger Mark Trumbo will likely head to the DL to rest his ailing right knee, as Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com was among those to report (Twitter links). Trumbo was diagnosed with a fairly significant case of arthritis, which won’t necessarily put him on the shelf for long but also probably isn’t the best news for a defensively limited player who’s owed $12.5MM this year and $13.5MM next. He has been productive thus far in 2018, though, with a .309/.317/.469 slash through 82 plate appearances. On the other hand, it’s somewhat worrisome that he has managed only a pair of home runs and a single walk in that span.
  • In other AL East news … so long as there are no surprises in the interim, Nate Eovaldi will finally start for the Rays on Tuesday, as Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times tweets. The Yankees announced that reliever Tommy Kahnle is back from the DL, which represents a promising development given the uncertainty that surrounded him when he went on the shelf. And while the Blue Jays still aren’t planning on a near-term return from Troy Tulowitzki, skipper John Gibbons says the veteran shortstop is at least ready to begin running, as Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca tweets.
  • While the Padres had hoped to welcome back catcher Austin Hedges in relatively short order, he’s now halting his rehab after his problematic right elbow flared up, as MLB.com’s AJ Cassavell writes. It still seems there’s little reason to fear that Hedges is dealing with a real structural problem, though surely it’s frustrating for the organization that he hasn’t yet fully turned the corner.
  • Meanwhile, the Angels provided an update on hurler Matt Shoemaker, though it mostly suggests ongoing uncertainty with regard to the root of his arm issues. As the club announced, and MLB.com’s Maria Guardado tweets, the latest examination “ruled out peripheral nerve involvement” but “showed mild edema in the forearm.” Shoemaker is also said to have undergone a bone scan. The results of that weren’t specifically cited, but it seems to suggest that the organization is looking at quite a lot of possibilities to figure out what’s really causing problems for the starter.

Cardinals Unlikely To Put Innings Limit On Alex Reyes

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Alex Reyes’ rehab stint as he makes his way back from Tommy John surgery has been the stuff of legend. The vaunted prospect has fired 23 scoreless innings with a ridiculous 44-to-7 K/BB ratio in that time and, in what is almost certain to be his final rehab appearance, punched out nine consecutive hitters last night.

It’s already known that the Cardinals, who initially were mulling a bullpen role for Reyes upon his return, plan to use him in the rotation. President of baseball ops John Mozeliak reinforced that idea following last night’s start, writes Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, saying Reyes is “likely” to be in the rotation and, more interestingly, indicating that he won’t be restricted in terms of innings. With a late-May start to Reyes’ workload, Mozeliak tells Hummel, “I don’t think he will have a cap.”

That’s not to say, of course, that the Cardinals won’t exercise caution with regard to Reyes’ workload. Logic would dictate that he could be eased back into the rotation in terms of pitch count early on, and with as many as six other rotation options at their disposal, the Cardinals can afford to get Reyes an extra day of rest here or there depending on how his body responds after not throwing a single regular-season pitch last year due to Tommy John surgery.

[Related: St. Louis Cardinals depth chart]

Reyes will step back into a rotation mix also featuring Miles Mikolas, Luke Weaver, Michael Wacha, fellow prospect Jack Flaherty and swingman John Gant, with ace Carlos Martinez also on the mend from a strained lat muscle. (Hummel notes that Martinez’s return from the DL could follow Reyes’ own activation in relatively short order). It’s not entirely clear how the Cards plan to divide up the workload, though pitching coach Mike Maddux rightly noted that any club would welcome the opportunity to have to gameplan for that sort of “problem.” Maddux also points out that the depth will be of particular use following the All-Star break, as the Cards open the second half with six games in a span of five days.

The exact date of Reyes’ highly anticipated return hasn’t been set, though it seems likely to come at some point early next week in a key series against the division-leading Brewers. While that return won’t mark the MLB debut for Reyes, who pitched 46 innings for the Cardinals in 2016, it’ll mark the latest in a recent series of promotions for the game’s next young wave of stars. Shohei Ohtani, Ronald Acuna, Gleyber Torres and Juan Soto (among others) have all debuted to considerable fanfare this season and provided several memorable moments. Reyes looks likely to be the next to step into that spotlight as yet another impressive young talent who’ll be expected to play a key role on a contending club.

Jordan Hicks Hires Ballengee Group

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Cardinals righty Jordan Hicks has hired the Ballengee Group as his representatives, according to Jon Heyman of Fan Rag (via Twitter). MLBTR’s Agency Database now reflects that and other recent agency moves.

Hicks is just 21 years of age and had never pitched above the High-A level entering the season. But he’s now the owner of a 1.96 ERA through 23 MLB frames. With the game’s biggest fastball at his disposal, Hicks has captured quite a lot of attention in recent weeks.

Of course, there’s also some cause for skepticism. Hicks has generated a pedestrian 7.2% swinging-strike rate and dished out 16 walks against just 11 strikeouts. And Hicks may not be able to sustain a .191 BABIP-against, as Statcast numbers suggest the quality of contact produced by opposing hitters supports a .346 xwOBA that substantially lags the .254 wOBA that has resulted.

The statistical questions only increase the intrigue surrounding Hicks. Ultimately, we’ll have to wait to see whether he can sustain the excellent bottom-line results. If he’s able to do so, there could be a near future where Hicks racks up saves, arbitration earnings, and endorsement deals. No matter what, he’ll be a fascinating player to watch.

Jordan Hicks, Fast As It Gets?

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Cardinals reliever Jordan Hicks became the second pitcher ever (after Aroldis Chapman) to hit the 105mph mark, tossing two fastballs at that epic speed during an appearance against the Phillies on Sunday.  As The Athletic’s Mark Saxon writes in a subscription-only piece, Hicks’ feat may represent the virtual limit of how fast a human arm can throw a baseball.  “The maximum can’t go up, because the ligaments can’t take it,”  said Dr. Glenn Fleisig, research director of the American Sports Medicine Institute.  “We’re at the limit, based upon what ligaments and tendons can take….What’s happening is more teams have more guys near the top of the limit, but the limit is just going up nominally.  It really can’t go up.  Maybe at the top it will go up one mph or so, but never will it be 10 mph faster.  It’s just more crowded near the top now.”

Evaluating Jordan Hicks

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  • Over at Fangraphs, there are a couple pieces well worth a read for fans of the division. Jeff Sullivan examines the curious case of Cardinals reliever Jordan Hicks, the flamethrowing reliever who has thus far registered very few strikeouts. It’s a well-balanced take on the youngster, who certainly has exhibited a fascinating skill but still will need to make improvements to become a dominant MLB reliever. Speaking of fastballs, Jay Jaffe looks at the arsenal of Cubs starter Yu Darvish and his reasonably promising return from the DL. It’s a complicated picture, but well worth a look for anyone looking to gauge where things are headed for the high-priced hurler.
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