The story around the Cardinals-Brewers game this afternoon was the return of Cardinals righty Alex Reyes. Reyes was activated for his first major league appearance since Sept. 29, 2016, having missed all of last season and the first couple of months of this season recovering from Tommy John surgery.
Reyes was 4-1 with a 1.57 ERA two years ago, striking out 52 in 46 innings. Since coming back for a rehab assignment he was 3-0 with a 0.00 ERA in four minor league starts, striking out 44 in 23 innings. It appeared to be all systems go.
Then the game started. He looked good in the first inning but soon began to struggle with his control and saw his velocity dip in the following three. Following a mound meeting things ticked back up again and he tossed four scoreless innings but was lifted at 73 pitches. Whether adrenaline got the best of him or if he’s not feeling right is unclear as the game is still going on. For what it’s worth, he is just sitting in the dugout, not talking to trainers or anything, which suggests he’s fine, but we’ll know more later.
