Tyler Lyons to be recalled by St. Louis Cardinals

Left-handed pitcher Tyler Lyons will be recalled by the St. Louis Cardinals on Monday according to MLB.com.
Mar 8, 2014; Jupiter, FL, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Tyler Lyons (70) delivers a pitch against the Washington Nationals at Roger Dean Stadium. The game ended in a 4-4 tie after 10 innings. Image Credit: Scott Rovak-USA TODAY Sports
In recalling Lyons, it fills two moves for the Cardinals. One, he takes the slot in the Cardinals rotation that was opened by placing Joe Kelly on the DL last week. Two, it gives the Cardinals a left-handed pitcher in the rotation. Obviously, this is temporary as Kelly is expected back as soon as he’s healthy enough to pitch.

It’s not yet known as to which pitcher will be sent down to the Memphis Redbirds. It will be either Jorge Rondon or Eric Fornataro when the team officially announces the move on Monday.

Lyons impressed Cardinals manager Mike Matheny last season before he was shut down due to injury. Lyons would have made his next Memphis start on Monday so the move works out for him, too. In his last outing with Memphis, Lyons pitched seven innings where he allowed one run on five hits while striking out six batters.

In eight starts last year, Lyons was 2-4 with a 4.75 ERA. It should be noted that he only allowed two runs in his first two starts (14 innings pitched).

The Cardinals may have found a way to conserve Yadier Molina this season. On Saturday, it was the second Lance Lynn start that featured Tony Cruz behind the plate. It’s not unusual for a pitcher to have their own personal catcher. Whether this is permanent remains to be seen but the Cardinals have twenty games in twenty days.

While in town toplay the Washington Nationals, Matheny took some time out of his schedule to address the Bureau of Consular Affairs at the U.S. Department of State for roughly an hour.