Cardinals Minors: A look at the top arms down on the farm

Jul 4, 2013; Anaheim, CA, USA; General view of a St. Louis Cardinals hat and a baseball glove in the dugout during the game against the Los Angeles Angels at Angel Stadium Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports.

Alex Reyes 

For many reasons, this particular Reyes is my absolute favorite prospect in the Cardinals’ system.

It was of little surprise to anyone with knowledge of the system when Reyes put together an impressive strong start to the season. That success was slightly derailed with a minor shoulder injury that prompted him to miss almost an entire month, as well as the MLB Futures Game during All-Star Week.

On paper Reyes, hasn’t had the type of season that Artie Reyes and Luke Weaver have enjoyed.

However, he has excelled in a way that neither of them has. His best asset this season has been his strikeouts; he’s averaging 13.5 strikeouts per nine innings pitched.

The most impressive part of this is that he has not pitched past the sixth inning yet this season. It only took a couple starts for Reyes to be promoted up to Double-A Springfield after his injury.

Reyes’ overall numbers this season are pretty nice for a guy who is still working on his command and control.

In Palm Beach, he had an ERA of 2.26 and a WHIP of 1.26. Like the other pitchers, Reyes has an ability to keep the ball in the ballpark not allowing a single homer yet this season despite his high fastball velocity and usage.

His BABIP leaves plenty to be desired, coming in at .371 – despite his low ERA.

If he can continue to straighten things out with Springfield, he could be a long-shot to reach the big league Cardinals when rosters expand next month.