St. Louis Cardinals Place Jhonny Peralta on DL, Activate Tyler Lyons
The Cardinals have placed Jhonny Peralta on the disabled list and activated Tyler Lyons.
One of the most prominent storylines during the early weeks of the St. Louis Cardinals’ 2017 season has been the major rut that third baseman Jhonny Peralta has been, both in the field and at the plate. Though he hasn’t played in a game since he started against the New York Yankees back on April 15, Peralta has a .120/.185/.120 slash line with no extra-base hits this season.
With Greg Garcia and Jedd Gyorko having passed him up on the depth chart, the Cardinals found a unique way to try to jumpstart his season on Thursday, placing him on the 10-day disabled list retroactive to April 16 with an upper respiratory issue. The placement of Peralta on the DL made room on the 25-man roster for lefthanded reliever Tyler Lyons, who had been with the team in St. Louis for several days as the Cardinals tried to find a way to fit him onto the active roster.
Unless Peralta is dealing with a more serious condition than the team has disclosed to this point, it seems that the decision to place him on the disabled list with a cold seems to be an attempt to get him a few days off, send him out on a minor-league rehab assignment, and then try to get his bat hot.
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If that doesn’t happen, the Cardinals may be faced with a decision as to whether eat the remainder of his $10 million-dollar salary or to allow him to continue duking it out at the major-league level.
Garcia and Gyorko have obviously shown themselves to be more capable players in the early going, so it’s difficult to envision him claiming any more valuable playing time unless he’s able to prove that he’s regained his hitting stroke. Peralta hasn’t been effective at the plate for a prolonged period since the first half of 2015, when he hit .298/.355/.473 with 13 homers in 372 plate appearances.
Lyons, meanwhile, will get ready to make his 2017 debut after completing his recovery from a series of knee surgeries. The 29-year-old lefty brings the ability to fill a variety of roles as the eighth man in the Cardinals’ bullpen, as he can throw multiple innings, face tough lefthanded hitters, throw high-leverage innings, and make a spot start if necessary.
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Lyons was dominant during a rehab stint at Triple-A Memphis to start the season, posting a 1.29 ERA and 0.93 WHIP while striking out 14 and walking two in three starts.