Cardinals No. 1 prospect Alex Reyes, the No. 17 prospect overall, according to MLB Pipeline, will make his season debut on Wednesday against the Brewers in Milwaukee, the team announced. The 23-year-old right-hander hasn't pitched in a Major League game since Sept. 29, 2016, before undergoing Tommy John surgery following that season.
Reyes was given an extra month to rehab after St. Louis signed Greg Holland, and the delayed return to the mound could mean Reyes pitches in October should the club reach the postseason. President of baseball operations John Mozeliak said the organization does not foresee any restrictions being placed on Reyes, other than standard pitch-count and stressful inning assessments.
Reyes made his MLB debut in 2016 and appeared in 12 games (five starts), posting a 1.57 ERA (eight earned runs in 46 innings). He struck out 52 of the 189 batters he faced (28 percent). In four rehab starts with Class A Peoria, Class A Advanced Palm Beach, Double-A Springfield and Triple-A Memphis, he tossed 23 scoreless innings while fanning 44 of the 82 batters he faced.