New Cardinals right-handed reliever Dominic Leone has had success at two previous stops in his career, Seattle and Toronto.
“The one place he didn’t pitch very well was Arizona,” said John Mozeliak, the Cardinals’ president of baseball operations after acquiring him from Toronto Friday in a trade involving outfielder Randal Grichuk. “I thought he had pitched well prior (to Arizona) and after that,” Mozeliak said.
Former Cardinals manager Tony La Russa, who was head of the Arizona front office in 2015-16 when Leone pitched there, said, “He had a big year in Seattle (in 2014). But he pitched a lot. And he came back with some health issues.”
Leone was 8-2 with a 2.17 earned run average in 57 games as a rookie with Seattle in 2014 but was 0-4 with a 6.75 ERA before he was dealt to Arizona in 2015 in a swap involving slugger Mark Trumbo, who went to the D-backs. Leone was 0-1 with a 14.73 ERA in three games for Arizona in 2015 and wasn’t much better in 2016 in 25 games with the Diamondbacks, posting a 6.33 ERA. Having spent part of that 2016 season in the minors, Leone was taken off the roster at season’s end and was claimed by Toronto on waivers and, with the Blue Jays, Leone again was a top-shelf setup man, posting a 3-0 mark and 2.56 ERA in 65 games last year.
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“You could tell he had to work through (arm) issues,” said La Russa. “When he’s healthy, he’s been very useful.
“He’s got a live arm. Like the outfielder (Grichuk), they’re both talented guys and when they’ve got it together, they’re productive.”
Mozeliak said he couldn’t pinpoint how Leone would be used other than to say that he hasn’t had closer’s experience. Mozeliak said Leone, a 5-foot-11, 195-pounder, will contribute to the “balance and depth” of a Cardinals bullpen which has taken on a much different look from the one which started last season.
Gone are Trevor Rosenthal, Seung Hwan Oh and Kevin Siegrist — the top three in the pecking order — as well as Jonathan Broxton and Miguel Socolovich, who were dispatched during the season, along with Siegrist. The only returnees from last year’s bullpen at the start are left-hander Brett Cecil and right-hander Matt Bowman and Sam Tuivailala, but the last named was there for only a few days as he was optioned back and forth between St. Louis and Memphis a handful of times during the season. Left-hander Tyler Lyons technically was with the club all season but was disabled at the start of the season as he recovered from knee surgery.
Right-hander John Brebbia, a surprise with a 2.44 ERA and 51 strikeouts in 51 2/3 innings, joined the Cardinals during the season, as did left-hander Ryan Sherriff later on. Signed in the off-season was right-hander Luke Gregorson, who is advertised as the closer, so far. Alex Reyes, who ultimately will be a starter, may open the season in the bullpen.
Clemson product Leone, much like Bowman, could be used during the middle of innings, having stranded 78 percent of his inherited runners last year, fourth in the American League.
“Now we’ll have to look and back-fill for Dominic,” said Toronto general manager Ross Atkins. “He had an incredible year for us. We expect him to have another incredible year and it will be for another team. It was a very tough loss for us.”
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