St. Louis Cardinals: What to do with the Cardinals’ Alex Reyes

There has been much speculation about St. Louis Cardinals top pitching prospect Alex Reyes’ return from Tommy John surgery. The front office has apparently already decided what they are going to do with him upon his return. However, are they telling us everything?

Up until this point of the off-season I have been very outspoken in my support of the St. Louis Cardinals front office. Right now though, I have a bit of a bone to pick with them. I cannot understand why they are choosing to handle Alex Reyes’ return the way they have publicly stated they will. Consider the following tweet from Mark Saxon regarding the situation:

I find this to be a very odd comment to make. First of all, the line of reasoning is asinine at best. Yes, Reyes is a future ace, but it should not preclude him from being able to close out games this year. Does the name Adam Wainwright ring a bell? The Cardinals already have proof on their current rotation a guy can go from being a closer to a staff ace. So no, that makes no sense.

Secondly, Saxon says he would be a multi-inning guy “IF” he goes to the bullpen. What was the reasoning? So he could “ramp up innings for next year”. This does not make sense either. If Reyes is going to be a multi-inning guy then why sign Bud Norris? Where does that leave Tyler Lyons, who already fills that role? Is Reyes even going to the bullpen? In this case, the word “if” raises more questions than it answers.

To ask another question, who goes back to the minors even though they’ve earned their spot simply so Reyes can increase innings for next year? Why not send Reyes to the minors where he can ramp up all the innings he wants for next year? The big league club needs to be focused on this year.

What a colossal waste of everyone’s time to roster a guy in St. Louis to prepare him for NEXT year when he can do that in Memphis THIS year. It isn’t fair to the bullpen guys who earned their place on this roster. It isn’t fair to the fan base either. They want the team to win now. So why don’t we just dispense with the “if” and send him to Memphis in May?

Mark Saxon’s tweet is nothing more than a double down on what was already spoken by the St. Louis Cardinals’ GM Michael Girsch. Read this:

This really is a head scratcher. First, we are led to believe that Alex Reyes is not considered a closing option because the team can’t control his innings and situations. Then, Saxon tells us he won’t close because the Cardinals want to ramp up Reyes’ innings for next year. So which is it? Do you want to limit his innings or ramp them up? It appears the front office has no idea what it’s doing with Reyes.

More from Redbird Rants

• Cardinals Rumors: 3 pros and cons of signing Carlos Rodon
• What’s next for the St. Louis Cardinals after Contreras signing?
• Report: Cardinals Emerge As Mystery Team for Carlos Rodon
• Cardinals: Trade targets after signing Willson Contreras
• Reflecting on the 2013 Cardinals’ top 30 prospects

Another thing that doesn’t make sense is the idea that you cannot control a closer’s innings or situations. They cannot be serious can they? A closer pitches one inning, sometimes less.

If you don’t like the situation, then don’t send him out there. Pitched too much already? Don’t send him out there. If it is that concerning to you, send him to Memphis.

I can play Devil’s advocate and see reasons for not having Reyes close. If the Cardinals want him to increase innings, that makes sense to do it over the course of the season should he be needed in the rotation or for a postseason run.

I have no problem with that. Most Cardinals fans would understand that as well. Again, that makes sense for this year and not next year.

If that really is the case though, then why not just say that? I believe it is because the front office either has no idea what it’s doing with Reyes, or they have something else in mind and aren’t ready to say what it is yet. Instead, they just feed Cardinals fans a line about how they want him ready for next year.

Next: Lynn sought return to Cards

Cardinals fans are the best fans in baseball. They are not just casual watchers of the game. We can all read between the lines and see that there is more going on here than what we are being told. Either that, or the St. Louis Cardinals front office has gone full on cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs. Right now, the jury is still out in regards to this situation.