Luvofthegame
09-09-2006, 04:58 PM
By Derrick Goold
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
09/09/2006
Anthony Reyes looks towards home plate as Diamondbacks' Chad Tracy, left, makes his way around the bases after Tracy's three-run homer in the third inning.
PHOENIX — When rookie Anthony Reyes was auditioning to become the Cardinals' fifth starter, an obstacle that he had no way of overcoming in spring training was the question of durability.
The Cardinals didn't know whether he could be relied on to make 30 starts, to "take the ball" every five days, for one glaring reason.
"He hadn't done it," pitching coach Dave Duncan said. "It was something that he hadn't proven he could do, so naturally until he does there was no reason to believe that he can or can't. You just have to find out."
Entering this season, Reyes had not pitched an entire season without missing a few starts for ailments ranging from shoulder to elbow trouble. Before he threw a pitch Friday night in his start against Arizona, the rookie righthander had already topped his previous career high for innings pitched and was wading into uncharted territory.
With the possibility of four starts (and October) remaining. Reyes entered Friday's game having thrown 155 innings already this season, 13 more than his previous high, which he threw last summer. For perspective, the righthander had fewer innings pitched in his entire pro career entering this season than Cy Young winner Chris Carpenter had total in 2005, 253 innings to 262 2/„3 innings, respectively.
It has the Cardinals' attention.
"Just look at his games. ... whether he's been out there for a little while and it looks like he's going to have to reach back there for something extra," manager Tony La Russa said. "We've got to think about it carefully whether it's smart to have him reaching for extra."
Friday's start was Reyes' 14th in the majors this season, and in just four of the previous 13 did he get past the sixth inning.
Reyes had been limited by tendinitis and discomfort in previous seasons, going on the disabled list in 2004 with tendinitis in his shoulder. This season he had only one start pushed back -- because of rain. He has not skipped a scheduled start.
He changed his routine between starts to limit the troubles he had with his elbow and shoulder. An aggressive weightlifter in college, he lessened the weight and limited his workouts to decrease what others saw as a strain on his pitching arm.
"Coming out of college, I liked to lift -- lift a lot," Reyes said. "But with this type of season, you really can't. You have to pace yourself. I had to remember I'm a pitcher and I need my arm to throw, not to get big."
Duncan said he eyes Reyes' actions between starts for signs of weariness or other signals of a young arm running out of innings. He hasn't seen any.
"I pay a lot of attention to how he handles his work between starts, and if he were to get tentative with it, that would be a cause for concern, which he hasn't done yet," Duncan said. "He's done that work as if he feels strong and healthy. There are no red flags there. As long as proper attention is paid to pitch count, there is no reason to get too paranoid about the number of innings he has.
"In order to pitch as a major-league starter, you have to be able to pitch 200 innings," he concluded. "Time will tell. It has to start somewhere. He's at the start of establishing that he can take the ball for an entire season."
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
09/09/2006
Anthony Reyes looks towards home plate as Diamondbacks' Chad Tracy, left, makes his way around the bases after Tracy's three-run homer in the third inning.
PHOENIX — When rookie Anthony Reyes was auditioning to become the Cardinals' fifth starter, an obstacle that he had no way of overcoming in spring training was the question of durability.
The Cardinals didn't know whether he could be relied on to make 30 starts, to "take the ball" every five days, for one glaring reason.
"He hadn't done it," pitching coach Dave Duncan said. "It was something that he hadn't proven he could do, so naturally until he does there was no reason to believe that he can or can't. You just have to find out."
Entering this season, Reyes had not pitched an entire season without missing a few starts for ailments ranging from shoulder to elbow trouble. Before he threw a pitch Friday night in his start against Arizona, the rookie righthander had already topped his previous career high for innings pitched and was wading into uncharted territory.
With the possibility of four starts (and October) remaining. Reyes entered Friday's game having thrown 155 innings already this season, 13 more than his previous high, which he threw last summer. For perspective, the righthander had fewer innings pitched in his entire pro career entering this season than Cy Young winner Chris Carpenter had total in 2005, 253 innings to 262 2/„3 innings, respectively.
It has the Cardinals' attention.
"Just look at his games. ... whether he's been out there for a little while and it looks like he's going to have to reach back there for something extra," manager Tony La Russa said. "We've got to think about it carefully whether it's smart to have him reaching for extra."
Friday's start was Reyes' 14th in the majors this season, and in just four of the previous 13 did he get past the sixth inning.
Reyes had been limited by tendinitis and discomfort in previous seasons, going on the disabled list in 2004 with tendinitis in his shoulder. This season he had only one start pushed back -- because of rain. He has not skipped a scheduled start.
He changed his routine between starts to limit the troubles he had with his elbow and shoulder. An aggressive weightlifter in college, he lessened the weight and limited his workouts to decrease what others saw as a strain on his pitching arm.
"Coming out of college, I liked to lift -- lift a lot," Reyes said. "But with this type of season, you really can't. You have to pace yourself. I had to remember I'm a pitcher and I need my arm to throw, not to get big."
Duncan said he eyes Reyes' actions between starts for signs of weariness or other signals of a young arm running out of innings. He hasn't seen any.
"I pay a lot of attention to how he handles his work between starts, and if he were to get tentative with it, that would be a cause for concern, which he hasn't done yet," Duncan said. "He's done that work as if he feels strong and healthy. There are no red flags there. As long as proper attention is paid to pitch count, there is no reason to get too paranoid about the number of innings he has.
"In order to pitch as a major-league starter, you have to be able to pitch 200 innings," he concluded. "Time will tell. It has to start somewhere. He's at the start of establishing that he can take the ball for an entire season."