By Chris Brown / STL Baseball Today | @cbrown_STLBBT | March 20, 2016, 12:30 pm CT
Diaz during 2016 Spring Training. By Chris Brown / STLBBT
UPDATE 3/20 @ 4:30 pm CT: The Cardinals cut three more players from big-league camp after the team’s loss on Sunday.
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One day after adding former Mets infielder Ruben Tejada to the shortstop mix, the Cardinals subtracted another player on Sunday, sending prospect Aledmys Diaz to the minors among six cuts from Major League Spring Training.
Diaz, who was making a push to start the season with the big-league club with an impressive spring, was optioned to AAA Memphis, along with infielder Dean Anna. Catcher Carson Kelly, along with pitchers Austin Gomber, Jeremy Hefner, and Deck McGuire, were reassigned to minor league camp.
Although he played just 14 games at AAA last season and has dealt with significant injuries in recent years, Diaz emerged as a candidate for a spot in the majors after Jhonny Peralta suffered a torn thumb ligament earlier this month. The 25-year-old went 8-32 in Grapefruit League action and showed an impressive glove in the field, but the club decided elected to send him to Memphis – where he’ll be the starting shortstop and receive regular at-bats – following the signing of Tejada.
[Related: Cardinals sign shortstop Ruben Tejada to 1-year, major league deal]
Anna, who has spent most of the three seasons at the AAA level, will likely serve as Memphis’ starting second baseman while providing infield depth for the big-league team.
Kelly, who ranks as the Cardinals’ 13th best prospect, is continuing to develop as a potential replacement for Yadier Molina when his playing days are over. The 21-year-old converted infielder had five hits in 12 spring at-bats.
“He’s better everywhere,” manager Mike Matheny told reporters, including KMOV’s J.J. Bailey. “He should be proud of how he’s handled everything. We gave him a lot.”
Gomber, the organization’s 2015 Minor League pitcher of the year, is expected to start the season at high Class A Palm Beach, while Hefner and McGuire, non-roster invitees, are likely to begin the year in Memphis’ starting rotation.
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“He’s a solid guy and he just wanted to absorb it all,” Matheny said of Hefner. “He’s thrived in this environment.”
