A year ago the Cardinals’ shifted their annual instructional league camp from the fall to January so that it could act as a slingshot into spring training for top minor-league players. Instructs had previously been held at the tail end of the minor-league season – with the focus on minor leaguers who needed to work on new positions, recoup missed at-bats, or get one-on-one work as pitchers or fielders with minor-league instructors.

Reyes continues to stand out among pitchers, despite the injuries.

For the third consecutive season, Baseball America ranked Reyes as the Cardinals’ top prospect, and he continues to rank high in the industry’s overall rankings. The righthander, a New Jersey native who moved to the Dominican to sign as an international free agent, has a fastball that can reach 100 mph and one of the better breaking balls in the organization. He blazed through the minors with 493 strikeouts in 357 1/3 innings. At every level he pitched in the minors, he was considered a top pitching prospect.

In 2016, he made 14 starts at Class AAA Memphis and struck out 93 batters in 65 1/3 innings while allowing only 63 hits. That catapulted him to the majors for 46 innings and 12 appearances, including five starts.