St. Louis Cardinals right-handed pitching prospect Alex Reyes punched a wall following his most recent Triple-A start and fractured the left pinky on his non-throwing arm. Reyes, 24, will relocate to St. Louis' spring training facility in Jupiter, Fla. to continue throwing but he will miss three weeks of game action, Cards general manager Mike Girsch told MLB.com's Jennifer Langosch and other reporters on Sunday.
Alex Reyes punched a wall after his last start and fractured his left pinky. He'll relocate to extended spring training to continue throwing, but will be out of active competition for about three weeks. #stlcards
— Jenifer Langosch (@LangoschMLB) April 28, 2019
Girsch on Alex Reyes who fractured his left pinky after punching a wall in his last start at Memphis: "We'll be able to keep stretching him out, it'll just be a little different... It's his left hand so that's good." #TimeToFly pic.twitter.com/uDyAikmVrI
— FOX Sports Midwest (@FSMidwest) April 28, 2019
Reyes hurt himself after his April 25 start in which he allowed three runs in 2 2/3 innings. The first came on a wild pitch in the first inning, the other two were charged to him after leaving the third inning with the bases loaded. Cardinals fans have been waiting a while for Reyes to make his return to the big leagues, and now the wait will be pushed back even more.
As St. Louis' top prospect in 2015 and 2016, Reyes received a 50-game suspensions after he tested positive for marijuana. He missed the conclusion of the Arizona Fall League season and the start of the 2016 season. Then Reyes missed the entire 2017 season because of Tommy John surgery. In 2018, Reyes made his first MLB appearance since 2016 but in June, Reyes underwent surgery for a torn tendon in his lat muscle, effectively ending his season.
Reyes began the 2019 season in the Cards bullpen, but was optioned to the minors on April 7 amid continuing command issues while pitching in relief (5 R, 3IP, 6 BB). Since his demotion, the Cardinals have moved Reyes back on a starter's schedule.
