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 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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