Ponce de Leon fired five scoreless innings in a Grapefruit League win over the Twins on Monday, allowing two hits and two walks while recording two strikeouts.
The right-hander was credited with a hold for his stellar multi-inning outing, which lowered his spring ERA to 0.69. The appearance was the embodiment of the versatility that makes Ponce de Leon so valuable to the Cardinals, and it also underscored the fact he's certainly stretched out sufficiently to open the season in a temporary rotation role and/or make the occasional spot start as the campaign unfolds.