Piscotty named Cards' Minor League POY
Reyes, Gomber are co-recipients of Pitcher of the Year award
The Cardinals on Monday named outfielder Stephen Piscotty their Minor League Player of the Year while selecting both right-hander Alex Reyes and lefty Austin Gomber as their Minor League Pitchers of the Year.
This is the first time since the award's inception in 1995 that the Cards have named co-winners for their top Minor League pitching award. Piscotty, Reyes and Gomber will each receive their awards at the St. Louis Baseball Writers' Association of America Awards Dinner on Jan. 17.
Piscotty spent most of the season with Triple-A Memphis, but he turned out to play a key role in the big leagues as the Cardinals put together a 100-win season and captured their third straight National League Central title.
Piscotty hit .305/.359/.494 with seven home runs and 39 RBIs in the Majors and went 6-for-16 with three homers and six RBIs as the Cardinals fell to the Cubs in the NL Division Series.
In the Minors, Piscotty batted .272 with an .841 OPS in 87 games for the Redbirds.
"Following his productive work at Memphis, Stephen earned the promotion to St. Louis, stepped in and contributed to our Major League club down the stretch and into the playoffs," Cardinals director of player development Gary LaRocque said in a statement.
Reyes is the Cardinals' top prospect and was projected to make his Major League debut at some point in 2016. His arrival will be delayed by a 50-game suspension for a second positive test for a drug of abuse in violation of the Minor League Drug Prevention and Treatment Program.
But Reyes showed last season why he is bound for the big leagues, earning a midseason promotion from Class A Advanced Palm Beach to Double-A Springfield. Overall, the 21-year-old went 5-7 with a 2.49 ERA over 22 starts in 2015. He struck out 151 batters in 101 1/3 innings while limiting opponents to a .197 batting average.
"Alex distinguished himself in Palm Beach and Springfield, pitching effectively at both the Florida State League and Texas League levels," LaRocque said.
Gomber, the Cards' No. 21 prospect according to MLBPipeline.com, is coming off a dominant season with Class A Peoria. A fourth-round pick in the 2014 Draft, Gomber went 15-3 with a 2.67 ERA over 22 starts.
Gomber led the Midwest League in wins, strikeouts (140) and opponents' batting average (.198). He won his last 14 decisions following a loss on April 29, the longest winning streak by a starter in the Minors last season.
"This award caps off a memorable season for Austin," LaRocque said. "A season that was highlighted by his selection to the Midwest League All-Star team and a league-best 15-3 won-loss record."