Cardinals Rumors

Cardinals Notes: Reyes, Stolen Bases, Molina, Guilmet

By Steve Adams | May 31, 2018 at 8:45am CDT

Alex Reyes made his much anticipated return to the Cardinals’ rotation yesterday and looked dominant in the first inning, whiffing two hitters with a fastball that reached 97 mph. However, a shaky second inning saw him issue a pair of walks and hit a batter, and his fastball at one point dipped to 92 mph. Reyes’ start was finished after just four scoreless innings and 73 pitches. Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch looks at whether there’s any cause for concern, quoting Reyes as the young righty acknowledged some fatigue. As Goold notes, Reyes didn’t go through an inning nearly as challenging as Wednesday’s second frame at any point during his rehab assignment. Manager Mike Matheny characterized the early hook as a precautionary move, acknowledging that the drop in velocity was a significant factor in the decision. Goold notes that Reyes at one point also winced and flexed his shoulder during the fourth inning, prompting a visit from the Cardinals’ staff, though certainly that could simply be related to the aforementioned fatigue, and it’s worth noting that Reyes did hit 97 mph again in the fourth immediately after that mound meeting.

President of baseball ops John Mozeliak spoke to Jim Bowden of The Athletic and CBS Sports last night and stated that Reyes’ elbow is “fine” in the aftermath of the potential scare (Twitter link), though it stands to reason that the Cards figure to proceed with caution early in the 23-year-old’s return to the big league rotation.

Here’s more out of St. Louis…

Goold also examines an oddity in St. Louis, examining the surprising fact that the Cardinals have yet to prevent an opposing stolen base attempt in 2018. Other teams aren’t running on the Cards very often — they’re 20-for-20 through 53 games — which serves as a testament to the pitching staff’s ability to hold runners. But Goold still notes that no team has gone this far into the season without a single caught-stealing by its catching staff since 1951. St. Louis coaches are encouraging the staff to vary their delivery times and utilize slide steps when necessary as well. The trend is bizarre, to be sure, though it’s also almost certainly a short-term anomaly. Yadier Molina is on the mend and had the game’s second-best pop time prior to hitting the disabled list, Goold notes. And interim starter Francisco Pena comes with a 32 percent caught-stealing rate in his minor league career.
Speaking of Molina, he took a significant step toward his return to the roster Wednesday, writes MLB.com’s Joe Trezza. Doctors cleared Molina to resume baseball activities, and he caught pitches in full gear yesterday in a batting cage in addition to taking some swings. He’ll head out on a rehab assignment in the near future if all continues to go well. Molina took a foul ball to the groin earlier this month and underwent emergency surgery to repair what the team called a “traumatic hematoma” later that evening.
Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic tweets that Triple-A reliever Preston Guilmet, who has seen MLB time in the past with the Orioles, Rays, Indians and Brewers, has a June 1 opt-out provision in his minor league deal with the Cards. Guilmet’s opt-out is of particular note, given that the 30-year-old has torn through Triple-A batters with 26 innings of 1.04 ERA ball and a 32-to-4 K/BB ratio. He’s had some remarkable fortune on balls in play (.102 BABIP), but that doesn’t mean that Guilmet’s brilliant K/BB numbers should be wholly dismissed, either. Guilmet has allowed 21 runs in 23 MLB innings, but he’s been dominant in his past two Triple-A seasons now and had a solid run with the Yakult Swallows of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball in 2017 (3.79 ERA, 9.4 K/9, 2.5 BB/9 in 54 2/3 innings of relief).

Cardinals Activate Alex Reyes

By Jeff Todd | May 30, 2018 at 10:29am CDT

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.

Quick Hits: Martin, Cardinals, Hanley, Vasil

By Mark Polishuk | May 28, 2018 at 12:03am CDT

Seven different players have started games at shortstop for the Blue Jays this season, with catcher Russell Martin being the latest (and most unusual) addition to that list on Saturday. With Troy Tulowitzki and Aledmys Diaz both on the DL, the Jays have been strapped for answers at short, Sportsnet.ca’s Ben Nicholson-Smith writes, as the likes of Yangervis Solarte, Martin, or Gio Urshela aren’t really suited to the position, while young shortstops like Richard Urena, Gift Ngoepe, or Lourdes Gurriel Jr. aren’t yet MLB-caliber hitters. Solarte might end up being the best short-term answer, provided that Devon Travis can regain any of his old hitting form as a regular second baseman. As for Martin, he has already expressed a willingness to see more time around the infield as a way of helping alleviate Toronto’s infield depth problems, and it isn’t out of the question that he’ll again make an appearance at shortstop given the Jays’ lack at the position. “Really, we don’t have a true shortstop on the team right now. Russell’s got good range, he’s got a good arm. He’s got everything. He’s got good hands,” manager John Gibbons said.

Some more from around baseball…

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.”
Once Hanley Ramirez passes through the DFA process, Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune argues that the White Sox should sign the veteran slugger as a short-term boost for the DH spot and for the lineup as a whole. Essentially, it would be a “what’s the worst that could happen?” signing for the team, Sullivan admits, and it may not necessarily make sense for a team that is prioritizing young players. I’d also add that if Chicago did sign Ramirez, he could potentially be flipped at the deadline or in August if he heats up at the plate.
Massachusetts high schooler Mike Vasil has announced that he is attending the University Of Virginia this fall and has thus withdrawn his name from draft consideration, MLB Pipeline’s Jonathan Mayo reports (Twitter link). Vasil provided a fuller explanation of his decision on his own Twitter feed. The right-hander was a well-regarded member of this year’s draft class, with high placements on pre-draft rankings lists from MLB.com (which had Vasil 25th) and Baseball America (37th). He had already committed to Virginia, though it’s very common for high schoolers to forego college and begin their pro careers after being drafted.

Quick Hits: Machado, Cards, Herrera, Bumgarner, Yu

By Connor Byrne | May 27, 2018 at 9:15am CDT

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.

Central Notes: Meadows, Reds, Cards, Miggy

By Connor Byrne | May 26, 2018 at 8:01pm CDT

When the Pirates promoted outfield prospect Austin Meadows on May 18, the plan was for him to quickly return to the minors, manager Clint Hurdle told Elizabeth Bloom of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and other reporters Saturday. However, Meadows’ “performance was eye-catching,” according to Hurdle, which convinced the team to keep him around when it activated fellow outfielder Starling Marte from the disabled list Saturday. With Marte, Gregory Polanco and Corey Dickerson, the Pirates now have their starting outfield intact again, but Hurdle still sees enough opportunities for the 23-year-old Meadows to justify keeping him in the majors. “We need to continue to monitor [Corey] Dickerson’s on-field innings,” Hurdle said. “Marte’s bouncing back, we’re going to be smart with, and Polanco. So I think between the four of them, and a true fourth outfielder, we’ll be able to have the opportunity to get everybody playing time.” Meadows was out of the lineup for the Bucs’ game on Saturday, but he did collect a pinch-hit appearance. He didn’t reach base in that at-bat, dropping his line to a still-stellar .433/.433/.867 over his first 29 major league trips to the plate.

More from the majors’ Central divisions…

Reds left-hander Brandon Finnegan tells Bobby Nightengale of the Cincinnati Enquirer that he’s displeased the team demoted him to Triple-A on May 10 to make room for Matt Harvey’s acquisition. Finnegan noted that he’s fine either starting or relieving in the majors, saying “whatever helps the team out is what I want to do,” but he believes he made a case earlier this season to continue in the Reds’ rotation. “I felt like I had two pretty good starts up in Cincinnati,” Finnegan said. “You can’t do anything about getting taken out of the game after 70 pitches. (Reds interim manager Jim) Riggleman loves using the bullpen; that’s his thing. That part was out of my hands. Besides that, two of my five starts I had, I thought were pretty good. I was attacking guys.” Notably, Finnegan added that he has no hard feelings toward Riggleman, per Nightengale. Regardless, Finnegan didn’t exactly make a case to stay in the Reds’ rotation during his five pre-demotion starts – he logged a 7.40 ERA with 15 walks and 14 strikeouts in 20 2/3 innings – though he still expected more leeway after missing most of last season with shoulder issues. The Reds, for their part, haven’t given up on Finnegan serving as a starter in the majors, and they sent him down so he’d work out of their their Triple-A rotation rather than the big league bullpen, Nightengale writes. Finnegan, meanwhile, is using his stint in the minors as motivation and “hoping to get back” to the Reds sooner than later.
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.
Tigers first baseman Miguel Cabrera is making progress as he works back from a hamstring strain, as Evan Woodbery of MLive.com details, but a return date for the future Hall of Famer is still unclear. Cabrera hasn’t played since May 3, before which he seemed to be in the midst of a bounce-back campaign. After posting an uncharacteristically pedestrian 2017, Cabrera opened this year – his age 35-season – with a .323/.407/.516 line in 108 PAs. Fortunately for Detroit, first base fill-ins John Hicks and Niko Goodrum have fared respectably in Cabrera’s stead.

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

By Kyle Downing | May 26, 2018 at 12:09pm CDT

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

By Jeff Todd | May 26, 2018 at 12:08am CDT

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

By Steve Adams | May 25, 2018 at 11:30am CDT

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

By Jeff Todd | May 24, 2018 at 11:10am CDT

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.

Quick Hits: Hicks, Swihart, Reyes, Nolasco

By Mark Polishuk | May 22, 2018 at 11:27pm CDT

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.”

While we wonder if Dr. Fleisig has ever heard of a former Mets phenom named Sidd Finch, let’s check in on some news from around the baseball world…

The Red Sox have put a high price tag on Blake Swihart in trade negotiations with other teams, NBCSports.com’s Evan Drellich reports. “Hard to find a trade partner when you’re asking for some of teams’ best prospects,” one rival talent evaluator tells Drellich. Swihart has barely played at all this season coming off the Sox bench, and his previous two seasons also saw little MLB action (though injuries were a big factor in the lack of activity). While these factors have seemingly dimmed Swihart’s former top-prospect status, the Sox are still aiming for a big return for Swihart, with Drellich noting that some familiar with the trade talks have described Boston’s demands as “unreasonable.” The Sox may end up designating Swihart for assignment when Dustin Pedroia returns to ensure that a Swihart deal will happen, though this may or may not create the “bidding war” the Red Sox hope will then occur. MLBTR’s Steve Adams recently broke down the potential market for Swihart, and while there are several teams that could use catching help, it hardly seems like Boston will score multiple quality minor leaguers in exchange for Swihart.
Jose Reyes had another tough game tonight, making two errors that contributed to a 5-1 Mets loss to the Marlins. Reyes now has a measly .145/.203/.200 slash line through 59 plate appearances this season, leading the New York Post’s Mike Puma to question whether Reyes’ time on the roster is coming to an end. Rookie Luis Guillorme may have more to offer in the utility infield role, leaving Reyes as the potential odd man out once Todd Frazier returns from the disabled list.
Veteran right-hander Ricky Nolasco is hopeful of continuing his career, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports (via Twitter). Nolasco was released from a minor league deal with the Royals during Spring Training and has yet to catch on with another team. A veteran of 12 Major League seasons, Nolasco posted a 4.92 ERA, 7.1 K/9, and 2.47 K/BB rate over 181 innings with the Angels in 2017. While his performance has generally dimmed in recent years, Nolasco is still an effective innings-eater and managed a 2.6 fWAR season as recently as 2016.

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