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St. Louis Cardinals Recall RHP Alex Reyes from Triple-A, Place Michael Wacha on 15-Day DL

By Patrick Karraker

Jul 10, 2016; San Diego, CA, USA; World pitcher Alex Reyes throws a pitch during the All Star Game futures baseball game at PetCo Park. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 10, 2016; San Diego, CA, USA; World pitcher Alex Reyes throws a pitch during the All Star Game futures baseball game at PetCo Park. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports /
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Despite his struggles at Triple-A, Alex Reyes will join the major-league club and inject some excitement into the 2016 season.

The St. Louis Cardinals announced on Tuesday afternoon that they’ve purchased the contract of righthanded pitcher Alex Reyes from Triple-A Memphis and placed starter Michael Wacha on the 15-day disabled list with right shoulder inflammation. To make room for Reyes on the Cardinals’ 40-man roster, catcher Brayan Peña was moved to the 60-day disabled list.

Reyes was ranked as the Cardinals’ top prospect, the third-best starting pitching prospect in baseball, and the ninth-best prospect overall in baseball according to MLB Pipeline. Though Reyes has an extremely high ceiling due to his consistent 100+ MPH fastball velocity and his plus curveball, the results haven’t been good for him this year in his first run at Triple-A. Over 14 starts, the 21-year-old has a 4.96 ERA, 1.45 WHIP, and .252 opponent batting average with 93 strikeouts and 32 walks over 65 1/3 innings.

Considering the timing of the move, it seems most likely that Jerome Williams–who is unscored upon in 7 2/3 innings out of the Cardinals’ bullpen this season–will move into the rotation, with Reyes slotting into the bullpen. That way, he’ll be able to more effectively utilize his elite velocity without being exposed as he goes through the order multiple times.

Next: Former Prospect Friday: Nick Petree

For Wacha, this DL stint continues a season of disappointment for the 25-year-old starter. Over 23 starts, he now has a 4.45 ERA and 1.42 WHIP, though his 3.69 FIP would seem to indicate that his fielders have hurt him this year. Considering the previous shoulder injury Wacha dealt with in 2014 that seemed to pose a threat to his major-league career, there has to be some concern surrounding this latest development. While there’s no positive to potentially being left without a former All-Star starter, the Cardinals are fortunate to have Reyes and Luke Weaver nearly ready to break into the majors, with two more injured guys, Lance Lynn and Marco Gonzales, set to return next season.

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