Ponce de Leon, who closed out the first half of the season with two appearances during which he fired a combined 4.2 innings of scoreless, one-hit ball and recorded six strikeouts, is impressing in his current long-relief role, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.
The versatile right-hander has been an effective jack of all trades for manager Mike Shildt this season, also thriving in occasional rotation duty (1.20 ERA across three starts). Most recently, the Cardinals have taken advantage of his stretched-out arm to have him consume some valuable innings out of the bullpen. Ponce de Leon took over in the second inning for an ineffective Dakota Hudson on June 29 against the Padres, and although he gave up four runs across 5.1 innings, he also recorded an impressive nine strikeouts. He followed up that outing with the aforementioned pair of dominant, multi-inning efforts, the first which also netted his first big-league win. Ponce de Leon's ability to adjust has made an impression on the Cardinals' skipper, who envisions a progressively bigger role for the 27-year-old. "If he pitches that well, he's a candidate for a bigger role for sure," Shildt said after Saturday's game. "Ponce did a nice job, and he continues to earn more opportunities."