Springfield, MO – The Texas League announced on Monday that, for the second time this season, a pair of Springfield Cardinals has swept the weekly league awards with RHP Alex Reyes named Texas League Pitcher of the Week and SS Aledmys Diaz named Texas League Player of the Week for August 10 – 16.
It marks the sixth and seventh weekly awards for the Cardinals this year, with previous winners including 3B Patrick Wisdom (June 15 – 21), RHP Arturo Reyes (June 8 – 14), RHP Thomas Lee and C Michael Ohlman (June 1 – 7) and RHP Thomas Lee (May 4 -10).
Reyes, 20, was dominant in his lone start on the week, shutting down the Frisco RoughRiders in the Cardinals 7-2 win on Friday, August 14. Reyes retired 17 of the 19 batters that he faced through six scoreless innings on Friday, yielding only one hit and one walk. He struck out the side in the first and third innings, tallying a team season-high 10 strikeouts in total.
The Elizabeth, New Jersey native has gone 1-1 with a 3.72 ERA through five starts since being promoted from High-A Palm Beach on July 23. Through 19.1 innings with Springfield so far, Reyes has already rattled off 30 strikeouts while allowing just nine runs on 11 hits and nine walks. Ranked by Baseball America as the Cardinals top prospect, Reyes is currently scheduled to start for Springfield at Hammons Field this Thursday, August 20 at 7:10pm with tickets available at SpringfieldCardinals.com and (417) 863-2143.
Diaz, 24, helped lead the Cardinals offense throughout the week by hitting .435 (10×23) with one home run, two doubles and six RBIs in five games. He logged at least one hit in each of his five games on the week with multiple hits in four of the five contests, including a go-ahead three-run homer in Sunday’s game in Frisco.
The Villa Clara, Cuba native has hit safely in 14 of his last 15 games since July 30, hitting .397 (23×58) with four homers, six doubles and 13 RBIs during that stretch. In his second professional season since signing with St. Louis in March, 2014, Diaz is hitting .262 with nine home runs, a team-leading 24 doubles and 42 RBIs through 97 games this season.
