Does Alex Reyes hold keys to Cards' closer role?
Alex Reyes grabbed the St. Louis Cardinals' 9th inning role in a somewhat surprising move, and NBC Sports EDGE's Drew Silva thinks the 25-year-old is in the driver's seat for saves.
Video Transcript
DREW SILVA: In a somewhat surprising development, Cardinals manager Mike Shildt announced before the team's opening day game in Cincinnati that Alex Reyes will operate as the team's primary closer to begin the year. Jordan Hicks looked to be the favorite for much of the spring and Giovanny Gallegos is maybe the Cardinals most steady reliever. But Reyes was one of the very best pitching prospects in baseball not all that long ago.
And he seriously looks better this year at age 25 than he has ever looked before, after battling through a whole lot of injuries and off field personal trauma. Hicks could eventually grab the closer job as he moves further and further away from his 2019 Tommy John surgery, but the Cardinals understandably want to ease him in.
And that plan has given Reyes some runway to potentially put a firm grip on the majority of save opportunities. Reyes had an average draft position of 231.1 this spring on Yahoo, which could look pretty silly when all is said and done. Right now, he's the locked in ninth inning man for a Cardinals team that is favored to win the National League Central title.