Cardinals seek fifth straight postseason trip

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[February 21, 2015]  The Sports Xchange

MLB Team Report - St. Louis Cardinals - INSIDE PITCH

Most teams would be thrilled with a division title and an appearance in a league championship.

For the 2014 St. Louis Cardinals, that actually represented somewhat of a comedown. Expected to repeat as National League champions and perhaps avenge their 2013 World Series loss at the Boston Red Sox's hands, St. Louis instead walked off the field in San Francisco, victimized by Travis Ishikawa's season-ending three-run homer in Game 5 of the NLCS.

That paled in comparison with the tragedy the team endured just 10 days later when promising outfielder Oscar Taveras died in an auto accident in his native Dominican Republic.

Shortly after Taveras' funeral, the Cardinals had to consider a hard reality: How to fill the right field spot slated to be his in 2015. That led them to their major offseason move, a trade for Atlanta Braves right fielder Jason Heyward that came at the cost of starting pitcher Shelby Miller.

Otherwise, St. Louis is playing a pat hand as it seeks a fifth straight postseason berth. While it lost eighth-inning setup man Pat Neshek to Houston in free agency and waved bye to utility man Daniel Descalso, who signed with Colorado, most of the same faces are back in the same places.

The lineup still has proven veterans in left fielder Matt Holliday, shortstop Jhonny Peralta and catcher Yadier Molina. The emerging nucleus of the team -- third baseman Matt Carpenter, first baseman Matt Adams, second baseman Kolten Wong and center fielder Jon Jay -- return ready to assume bigger roles.

Aside from Miller's departure, the starting rotation returns intact. Twenty-game winner Adam Wainwright will front it, followed by Lance Lynn and John Lackey. Michael Wacha should be the No. 4 starter as long as he displays command and health in spring training.

Carlos Martinez and Marco Gonzales will battle for the No. 5 spot. Martinez clearly has the best stuff, but Gonzales made key late-season contributions as both a starter and reliever. The oft-injured Jaime Garcia could also figure into the mix if -- and that's a big if -- he's healthy.

Trevor Rosenthal is back as the closer, although his command waned badly last year and forced manager Mike Matheny to pull him from a handful of save chances. Newly acquired right-handers Jordan Walden and Matt Belisle join double-play machine Seth Maness in setup duty. Veteran Randy Choate, hard-throwing Kevin Siegrist and Sam Freeman are back as lefty options.

The bench features a newcomer in corner infielder Mark Reynolds, who will offer a power threat and also pick up occasional starts to spare Adams against tough lefties. A utility man must be picked from among Pete Kozma, Greg Garcia, Dean Anna and Ty Kelly. Peter Bourjos and Randal Grichuk figure to serve as backups in the outfield.

How eager are the Cardinals to make amends for 2014? No less than 20 players were seen at their complex on Monday, 72 hours before pitchers and catchers were scheduled to report.

"When your best guys do that, it sets the tone for everybody else," manager Mike Matheny said to cardinals.com. "If you don't jump on, you're going to get left behind. It shows a respect for how hard this game is."

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MLB Team Report - St. Louis Cardinals - NOTES, QUOTES

POSITION BATTLE TO WATCH: The everyday lineup is basically set, so the big question among the position players is the utility slot. Organization men Pete Kozma and Greg Garcia are part of a four-man scrum with former Yankee Dean Anna and ex-Mariners/Orioles farmhand Ty Kelly. Kozma started at shortstop for the 2013 World Series team but just hasn't proven he can hit enough to stay in the majors. Garcia and Kelly might be a bit more versatile defensively, which could prove to be the difference.
 


ROOKIE WATCH: LHP Marco Gonzales won four games for St. Louis in the season's final month, then picked up two more wins in the NLDS against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Gonzales is battling Carlos Martinez for the No. 5 spot in the rotation this spring. The team's No. 1 pick in the 2013 draft, Gonzales is at his best when he can get ahead in the count and use his changeup as his out pitch. If Gonzales doesn't win a spot in the rotation, he could make the Opening Day roster as a reliever.

COMEBACK TRAIL: LHP Jaime Garcia has one year left on his contract and wants to make the team in spring training. Garcia has proven he can win games and eat up innings when he takes the ball every fifth day. And that's the problem ... when he takes the ball. Garcia has battled injuries most of the last two seasons, making just 16 starts. It's foolish to count on Garcia as a 32-start guy at this point, but with some uncertainty about the back end of this rotation, the Cardinals shouldn't excise him from their plans just yet.

PLAYER NOTES:

--CF Jon Jay, who was out of an everyday job at this time last year, inked a two-year pact for $10.975 million earlier this month. Jay is to relieve $4.125 million this season and $6.850 million next year, when he'll be 31-years-old. Jay upped his batting average 27 points over 2013, hitting .303 in 413 at-bats, then hit .467 in 30 postseason at-bats.

--RF Jason Heyward is in his walk year, one in which he'll receive $7.8 million. The newly-acquired Heyward was acquired in November from Atlanta as the organization acted quickly to fill the void left by the death of projected starter Oscar Taveras. St. Louis doesn't want Heyward to be a one-year rental, but a really good year could price him outside the club's budget.

--RHP Lance Lynn signed a three-year deal with the Cardinals on Jan. 15 for $22 million, which is a relatively club-friendly contract considering Lynn's production since becoming a starter prior to the 2012 season. Lynn has 48 wins in that time and enjoyed his best season last year, finishing with an ERA under 3.00 for the first time. He'll get $7 million this year and $7.5 million in each of the next two years.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "I'm real happy with everything, the way everything is coming out, the way the arm feels throughout the whole 'pen." -- RHP Michael Wacha, limited to 19 games last year after a stress reaction in his right shoulder, to cardinals.com after a bullpen session on Feb. 17.

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MLB Team Report - St. Louis Cardinals - ROSTER REPORT

PROJECTED ROTATION:

RHP Adam Wainwright

RHP Lance Lynn

RHP John Lackey

RHP Michael Wacha

LHP Marco Gonzales or RHP Carlos Martinez

Wainwright is coming off the second 20-win season of his career despite battling occasional arm problems that left him unable to open jars or doors at times. Lynn enjoyed a breakout season last year, posting an ERA of less than 3.00 for the first time and learning how to use his intensity in a way which didn't backfire on him.

Lackey is a perfect No. 3 starter at this stage of his career, an innings-eater who figures to be good for about 15 wins. A healthy Wacha gives this team a No. 2 type starter in the No. 4 spot. The loser of the Gonzales-Martinez duel at No. 5 opens the season in the bullpen. LHP Jaime Garcia could still figure into this mix if he can ever get and stay healthy.

PROJECTED BULLPEN:

RHP Trevor Rosenthal (closer)

RHP Jordan Walden

RHP Seth Maness

LHP Randy Choate

RHP Matt Belisle

LHP Kevin Siegrist

LHP Marco Gonzales or RHP Carlos Martinez

Rosenthal notched 45 saves in his first year as closer, but lost command of the strike zone far too often. After issuing only 20 walks in 75 1/3 innings in 2013, Rosenthal passed 42 hitters in 70 1/3 innings last year and was pulled from some save chances in the ninth inning due to his wildness. He simply has to throw more strikes than he did last year to maintain his effectiveness as a closer.

Walden figures to fit into the eighth-inning role filled so well last year by Pat Neshek, who left via free agency for Houston. Maness is durable and can throw double-play grounders like nobody's business. If Siegrist can regain the dominant form he showed in 2013, he could become another eighth-inning option. The loser of the Gonzales-Martinez battle for the No. 5 spot in the rotation should wind up in the bullpen.

 

 

PROJECTED LINEUP:

1. RF Jason Heyward

2. 3B Matt Carpenter

3. LF Matt Holliday

4. 1B Matt Adams

5. SS Jhonny Peralta

6. C Yadier Molina

7. 2B Kolten Wong

8. CF Jon Jay

Manager Mike Matheny has options at the top of his lineup. He could stick with Carpenter, who's reached base a whopping 545 times the last two years, or use Heyward. The guess here is he leads off with Heyward, who also has a good eye and can steal a base, and move Carpenter down in the order to give him more chances to drive in runs.

Holliday struggled until the calendar flipped to July, then kicked into gear and was at his best in late August and September. Adams beat defensive shifts consistently but left some wishing he had hit more homers. Wong displayed 20-homer pop late in the season and the playoffs. The Cardinals averaged just 3.8 runs per game last year while hitting fewer homers than anyone in the NL. That can't happen again if they're to make noise in 2015.

St. Louis was much-improved defensively last year and might get better with the addition of Heyward, who has Gold Glove ability in right field. Molina remains the gold standard defensively at his position.

MEDICAL WATCH:

--CF Peter Bourjos (right hip surgery in October 2014) says he is 100 percent for the first time in his major league career. Bourjos dealt with the injury throughout his pro career but finally opted for surgery when he experienced debilitating pain in late September.

--LHP Jaime Garcia (thoracic outlet surgery in July 2014) is ready for spring training and is hopeful of claiming the No. 5 spot in the rotation with a good spring. The Cardinals are wary, knowing that injuries limited him to 36 starts over the last three years.



--RHP Michael Wacha (sore right shoulder) threw a bullpen session just before spring training started and reported no problems. Wacha made just 19 starts last year after missing about 2 1/2 months with a stress reaction, and he didn't have good command after returning.

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