Just about everyone in Cardinal Nation has had plenty of time to become acquainted with the latest flapdoodle involving Skip Schumaker’s latest baseball card from Topps.  It features the now famous Busch Squirrel (aka Rally Squirrel), and it really is an actual card with Skip’s name on it.

Chasing Tail

Yep.  That’s it.  A squirrel running across the ground.  Not pictured is Roy Oswalt about to go postal on the mound due to the interruption which may have cost Roy a potential strike.  No matter.  This is all about poor Skip.  He has to share the spotlight with a lousy squirrel.  Sad.

Or so we thought….

It turns out that we have uncovered the original print that was created by Topps, and it does not have a squirrel anywhere to be seen.

Little Braun

We’ve been bamboozled.  Hoodwinked.  Run amok and yadda, yadda, yadda, and meh.  The only thing scampering across the ground near Skip’s foot was a miniature Ryan Braun.  It’s hard to be sure in two dimensions, but it appears that Braun is attempting to roll into Skip’s foot in order to throw Skip off balance.  There is no way of knowing how Braun turned himself into “Little Braun” or whether or not the name “Little Braun” is already being used by Braun for another reason.  The obvious thing here is that he is a devious little rodent with no regard for other people when he is “Little Braun”.  Truly sad.  Not exactly the kind of thing I would expect from a league MVP.

Like you, we here at PH8 have been wondering what team will sign Aaron Miles.  Sure, his massive 1.0 WAR in 9 seasons may be easily overlooked, and his ability to play all the positions on the field (including free safety and punter) can be forgotten.  How can teams pass on a middle infielder who possesses a fastball that moves like Jagger?

As it turns out, Aaron has been keeping himself busy.  Very busy.

Sirius Miles of Azkaban

Between fighting he who shall not be named and commuting between Azkaban and Hogwarts, Sirius Miles has no time for petty Muggle games like baseball.  Too bad.  He’s almost old enough that the Rockies might start showing interest.

Naturally, some in St. Louis were sad to hear that Edwin Jackson had signed with the Washington Nationals during this offseason.  Good news, sports fans.  It turns out that E-Jax is so excited about his new gig that he’s doing everything he can to fit in right away.

Which President is Edwin?

It really does not get any more pathetic than this.  At least E-Jax is leading the presidential pack…..but he’s still playing for the Nationals.

TIDBIT:  For those of you confused by the numbering system, “IX” is like the number “9″ in Martian or something.

Follow gr33nazn on Twitter for more non-facts and made up things (like my golf handicap)!

Last week I asked the question, “If the Cardinals could add anyone, whom should they add?”  I was curious to see which active player — with accompanying contract — Cards fans desire the most.

Big thanks to all of you who participated in the poll. We got more than 150 votes, and they were quite interesting. All 19 players I listed got at least one vote, plus there were three serious write-in votes — not counting my Cubs fan friend’s Kosuke Fukudome pick — so the totals were pretty well spread out.

Results (as of noon Friday):

29 VOTES (18.35%): Troy Tulowitzki

15 VOTES: Justin Verlander

14 VOTES: Matt Kemp

11 VOTES: Matt Moore, Albert Pujols

10 VOTES: Clayton Kershaw, Evan Longoria

9 VOTES: Bryce Harper

8 VOTES: Andrew McCutchen

6 VOTES: Dustin Pedroia

5 VOTES: Buster Posey

4 VOTES: Jose Bautista, David Price, Mike Stanton

3 VOTES: Miguel Cabrera, Stephen Strasburg, Justin Upton

2 VOTES: Felix Hernandez

1 VOTE: Madison Bumgarner

Image via Wikipedia

I didn’t really undertake this poll with a clear expectation of how it would turn out, but I was somewhat surprised to see Troy Tulowitzki earn about twice as many votes as his nearest competitor.

On one hand, I can see why. Tulo is one of the game’s best players, and as a shortstop, he plays a high-value position where the Cardinals have little organizational talent. On the other hand, his contract guarantees him another $148 million over the next nine years, going through his age 35 season. If you believe Tulo’s performance during the first half of the contract will make it worthwhile to take on or that he will age in an especially graceful manner, I can see the argument for choosing him.

But remember that in this hypothetical situation, your entire budget is not unlimited, so absorbing Tulo’s contract severely cripples your flexibility. For me, the $74 million he’s owed for his ages 32-35 seasons is too much to ignore.

Some other observations about the results:

• I  found it odd that Justin Verlander, who finished second, outpaced Felix Hernandez, 15 votes to 2. Why? Their contracts going forward are both for three years, with virtually identical money. But while Verlander has been a little more valuable over the past three years, he’s also three years older. I think this result probably reflects Verlander’s outstanding 2011, but I would bet on King Felix being the better pitcher going forward.
• Albert Pujols got 11 votes, tying him for fourth. I find this fascinating. First, his 10-year, $240 million contract is insane. Second, I figured that if nothing else, fan resentment would prevent people from voting for Pujols. Is this sentimentality or a reflection of a belief that Pujols actually would be the team’s best bet over the next decade? If anyone who voted for El Hombre wants to explain in the comments, I’d be quite interested.
• The player I perhaps was most curious to gauge support for was Bryce Harper, the Nationals phenom who probably will make his MLB debut this year at the age of 19. One of the most hyped prospects of all time, Harper has incredibly high expectations and earned nine votes in our poll. I don’t think I would use my pick on someone who has played 37 games above the Class A level, but Harper is a special enough prospect that I think it’s at least defensible.
• No love for Justin Upton or Mike Stanton, who combined for seven votes? Maybe it’s a function of them being corner outfielders and the Cards already having Matt Holliday locked up long-term. But Upton is a proven star at age 24 and is signed for four more affordable seasons. Stanton has unreal power, crushed the ball last season at age 21 and is under team control for five more years. I’d include both guys among my top five choices.
• Nobody used a write-in vote on a relief pitcher. Thank you!

And now, my pick.

This was extremely tough. Obviously, all of these guys are tremendous assets, although some of their contracts make them less so. Some guys I love but ultimately decided against because of huge long-term contracts (Tulo, Matt Kemp). Some guys I love but decided against because I wasn’t sure they had enough time left on their contract to justify the pick under these circumstances (Hernandez, Clayton Kershaw).

In the end it came down to a pair of Tampa Bay Rays, who both fared pretty well in the poll. Third baseman Evan Longoria plays a valuable position, is only entering his age 26 season and is owed a staggeringly team-friendly $39 million over the next five seasons (including team options), a length that ensures good return on investment while ending before Longoria figures to begin his decline. Oh, and Fangraphs’ WAR has him as the second-most-valuable position player in baseball over the past three years, just a touch behind a certain Mr. Pujols.

Starting pitcher Matt Moore has all of 9 ⅓ regular season MLB innings under his belt, but the 23-year-old left-hander demolished minor league hitters  – 13.5 K/9 in Triple-A last year — and is MLB.com’s No. 1 prospect. If that weren’t enough, Moore signed a contract so beautiful I imagine Andrew Friedman putting a copy of it under his pillow every night: 8 years — the last three of which are team options — for $37 million.

Between those two, you clearly can’t go wrong. But as tantalizing as Moore’s deal is, he’s still a pitching prospect, and pitching prospects will break your heart. With apologies to World Series Hero David Freese, I’ll take the safer bet and sign on for five years of Evan Longoria.

Pitching wins championships.  Defense wins championships.  The best defense is a good offense.  A watched pot never boils.

These cliches make some sense, but there is no absolute truth to be found among them.  The Cardinals won the 2011 World Series with something short of a stellar defense, but it would be woefully inaccurate to portray the team’s often inconsistent offense as the savior of its defense.  That leaves pitching or a boiling pot, but I’ll go with pitching.

How good was the pitching for the World Series winners?  “Good enough” isn’t a bad response, but just how do we measure “good enough”.  In this instance, I’m going to use FIP (Fielding Independent Pitching).  FIP is basically a statistic that seeks to quantify pitching performance by using a formula to account for the outcome of all plate appearances for which a pitcher is responsible.  That is an exceedingly complicated way of saying that FIP is like a pitcher’s ERA without defense being considered as a factor.  The premise is that it is possible to assess a pitcher’s performance based on outcomes that are independent of what the defense does.

Rather than regurgitate the formula and go into an explanation about FIP constants, I’m just going to give you a few examples (lower is better just like with ERA).

GOOD:  The year Chris Carpenter won the Cy Young Award, his FIP was 2.90.  It would be an understatement to mention that 2.90 is “good”.  Carpenter was dominant that season.  If you believe me when I say that Carp was dominant, then imagine what Pedro Martinez was like in 2001 when his FIP was 1.61.  Whew.

BAD:  Brad Penny posted a 5.02 FIP in 2011 which was good for 2nd highest FIP for a qualifying pitcher.  I’m not picking on Bad Penny, but….well…actually I am picking on him.  Moving on.

Consider the FIPs for the Cardinal starters in 2011.

• Chris Carpenter – 3.06 (3.31 xFIP)
• Kyle Lohse – 3.67 (4.04 xFIP)
• Jaime Garcia – 3.23 (3.31 xFIP)
• Jake Westbrook – 4.25 (4.08 xFIP)
• Kyle McClellan – 4.92 (4.34 xFIP)
• Edwin Jackson – 3.55 (3.73 xFIP), 4.01 FIP (4.03 xFIP) as a Cardinal

Based on a starting rotation of Carpenter, Lohse, Garcia, Westbrook, and Wainwright, what are the chances that the 2012 starting rotation is as good as the 2011 rotation?  Well, consider some projections from various, legitimate sources (and me, too).

• Carpenter Projections:  Bill James – 3.25, RotoChamp – 3.26, Fans – 3.37
• Lohse Projections: Bill James – 4.09, RotoChamp – 3.91, Fans – 4.14
• Garcia Projections:  Bill James – 3.47, RotoChamp – 3.31, Fans – 3.48
• Westbrook Projections:  Bill James – 4.35, RotoChamp – 4.31, Fans – 4.45
• Wainwright Projections:  Bill James – 3.24, RotoChamp – 2.99, Fans – 3.20

Depending on whose projections you use to compare, it could be too close to call.  Based on the Bill James numbers, the Cardinals would see a decline for all 4 starters returning from 2011.  The drop is then compensated for by the substitution of Wainwright for the McClellan/Jackson duo.  Is that good enough?

The answer may depend on what the goal is.  If the goal is just to make the playoffs, then I think the starting pitching looks to be in slightly better shape than last year.  If you consider a potential playoff run, that’s a whole different story.  The top 4 FIPs from 2011 – 3.06, 3.23, 3.55, and 3.67.  Projected top 4 for 2012?  3.24, 3.25, 3.47, and 4.09.  The implication here is that the Cardinals would be better off in a short series than in a 7 game series.  That’s not a horrible prognosis, but they have to get there first.

If you like using FIP, enjoy movies about gladiators, and you are a Cardinal fan, consider Roy Oswalt for a moment.  Oswalt was good for a 3.44 FIP (3.95 xFIP) in 2011, and his projects are as follows:  Bill James – 3.52, RotoChamp – 3.50, Fans – 3.47.  If the Cardinals manage to sign Ol’ Roy, then a FIP around 3.50 could make the top 4 for 2012 look like this:  3.24, 3.25, 3.47, 3.50.  Not bad at all.

TIDBIT:  The formula for FIP is (13 * HR + 3 * BB – 2 * K)/IP + a FIP constant.  Different sources use different constants, so that should be kept in mind when discussing with the rest of the guys on your lawn dart team.

MORE BITS OF TID:  I opted to use FIP, because more people I’ve spoken with about metrics use FIP than xFIP.  However, xFIP has a lot of value as well, because it removes a pitcher’s HR data and replaces it with the league average rate.

NOTE:  All FIP information was obtained from Fangraphs.com, because our research team here at PH8 was too busy working on TPS reports.

Follow gr33nazn on Twitter, and we’ll FIP the Birds some more!

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There is no questioning the results thus far.  Cardinals’ GM John Mozeliak has built a good track record during his time with the team.  Is there a method to his madness?  Maybe.  He may not have a printed set of blueprints for building a team, but he certainly seems to have an idea of how he wants the entire thing structured.  Betting long on a corner outfielder?  Refusing to bet the farm on a superstar 1B?  Signing the right guys to fill the right roles for just the right length of time?  He’s making it look easier than most GM’s do, and he’s doing it while maintaining payroll flexibility.  Consider 2 prime examples:

• Matt Holliday‘s enormous contract is only guaranteed through Holliday’s age 36 season.  The option year (age 37) is for $17M, but the buyout is only $1M.  Despite the fact that the Cardinals owe Holliday $85M for the next 5 years, I don’t necessarily think it’s a bad bet.  What are the odds that Holliday posts a total of 18-20WAR during that same period?
• Jaime Garcia is an up-and-coming ace, and he could be paid like one….sort of.  The big years in his contract are both team option years for $11.5M and $12M respectively, and the buyouts are only $500K for each season.  That means that the young lefty is signed through at least his age 28 season without the Cardinals being on the hook for $10M/yr unless they opt to pick up the option for 2016. For a guy who has averaged 30 starts and 175+ innings each of the past 2 seasons (26-15), that seems like a pretty reasonable deal.
• Although the comparison hasn’t been made much yet, it is worth noting that the Cardinals have switched their outfield rotation from something like Holliday-Jay-Rasmus-Schumaker-Berkman to Holliday-Jay-Schumaker-Beltran-Craig.  The former was okay, but the latter has the potential to be better than just “okay”.  Best of all, only LF is essentially committed to for the next several years, so there is room for another “baby bird” soon enough.

Finally, look at the really big picture…the one with the really big numbers.

• Matt Holliday – $17M
• Lance Berkman – $12M
• Kyle Lohse – $11.875M
• Chris Carpenter – $10.5M
• Adam Wainwright – $9M
• Jake Westbrook – $8.5M
• Yadier Molina – $7M
• Rafael Furcal – $6M
• Jaime Garcia – $3.25M
• Kyle McClellan – $2.5M
• Jason Motte – $1.95M
• Skip Schumaker – $1.5M
• JC Romero – $750K

Throw in $1.3M for Furcal’s buyout and $750K for Dotel’s buyout, and you still have a team under $95M ($93.875M for those keeping score at home).  Toss in Carlos Beltran and a bunch of pre-arbitration guys, and you have a full set for around $112M.

Given that projected opening day salary total, I’m not sure how to feel about the possibility of Roy Oswalt signing with St. Louis.  Unless Westbrook can be moved for a useful piece without the Cardinals paying a huge portion of his salary, it looks like Oswalt would be more than just an insurance policy.  The Cardinals already have guys who can spot start, and signing Oswalt could reduce financial flexibility in the short term.  Yes, adding Oswalt would give the Cardinals a really strong rotation on paper, but not too many playoff games are won on paper.

As it stands now, the Cardinals have an experienced starting rotation without a ton of mileage on all the arms, a solid core of position players who can put runs on the board with good regularity, a proven bullpen, and an All-Star catcher who is coming off of his best ever offensive season.  If that is Mozeliak’s blueprint for building a contender, then I’m all in favor of it.

Follow gr33nazn on Twitter for ideas on how I would spend $112M!

Image via Wikipedia

If longtime Cardinals nemesis Roy Oswalt is in fact headed to St. Louis on a modest one-year deal, it not only gives the Cards three of the best players from the 2004 Astros team it beat in the NLCS, but also provides the team with a low-risk, high-reward bet. If Oswalt gets hurt or flames out, it wouldn’t cost much. If he stays relatively healthy and pitches like he has the past few years, he’s a clear upgrade.

This is the type of move a team in the Cardinals’ financial situation should be making. It’s shrewd bargain shopping for John Mozeliak, who must realize any small improvement could make the difference in a division that figures to be a tight race between the Cardinals, Reds and Brewers.

But just for fun, let’s step out of the realistic world for a moment. What if the Cardinals weren’t limited to the Roy Oswalts of the world? What if they could grab any player on any MLB team without giving up anything in return? In this scenario, whom should they choose?

Before we get into it, a few important stipulations: 1) The player comes attached to his current contract; 2) To make things more interesting, let’s say Bill DeWitt has agreed to let you take on any contract, regardless of length or financial commitment; but 3) That’s a one-shot deal and doesn’t mean your entire budget is unlimited. In other words, the more you spend on this player, the less you have to address other needs.

As I see it, here are the main issues to consider, in no particular order:

• Fit: Perhaps you’re of the mind to simply grab the best player, but you also might consider what the organization’s biggest needs are. If you need a refresher on the Cardinals’ current depth chart and minor league system, check out this handy roster matrix.
• Age: If the idea is a long-term asset, a player already in his 30s obviously makes little sense.
• Ability: In the case of a very young player, how do you think he will develop? In the case of an older one, how gracefully will he age?
• Contract: Ideally, you don’t want one that eventually will become an albatross or prevent you from signing other players. But it also wouldn’t be wise to select someone who is close to free agency.

For your convenience, I came up with a list of players who could fit. It’s a mix of big stars and young, cheap players with big potential. Some of them are definitely big stretches for a variety of reasons, but I tried to be comprehensive. Check it out.

Now that you know what we’re working with here, it’s time for some tough choices. Considering all factors, my personal preference is for a young player who either has several years of team control left or is signed to a team-friendly long-term contract. In this scenario, I would prefer a position player (less risk) and one who plays a premium defensive position.

But what do you prefer? Let’s put it to a vote. Remember, the player comes with his contract!

In this poll, I’ve included several of my top choices, plus some other high-profile names I think will make for good debate. Please explain your reasoning in the comments, particularly if you choose, “Other.” I’ll be back next week to look at and discuss the results.

Having read some of the other great lists posted at the other United Cardinal Blogger sites today, it’s both clear to me and worries me a bit that I’ve interpreted the assignment differently. Not convinced that’s a good or a bad thing, I’ve decided to press forward with my own interpretation and list.

As such, you’ll note that I’ve chosen not to list out five plays – and that’s not a criticism of those that did, again just my interpretation – but rather to pick five things that to me “stand for” the Cardinals. Events, traditions, and yes, some great plays that collectively, to me, represent what I think of when I think of the St. Louis Cardinals. Iconic Cardinal Moments.

5. Ozzie Smith flips

For a child of the Eighties, Ozzie WAS the Cardinals. Yeah, sure, they won a lot, and there was Whiteyball – but an eight-year old can only appreciate a World Series against the Minnesota Twins so much. I wanted to see Ozzie flip.

4. World Series Championships

Sometimes, and it’s become more frequent and easier living amongst many friends that are Cub fans, I have to stop myself from being frustrated with the Cardinals and their current performance and appreciate what good fortune I’ve had as a baseball fan.  Eleven World Titles, three during my lifetime, and three more appearances in the Fall Classic during my years to boot.

Stop to think about that. Do the math. The Cardinals have appeared in more World Series during my lifetime than sixteen teams have in their respective franchise histories.  The Cardinals have WON more World Series in my lifetime than seventeen teams have in their entire histories.

Brian Bartow, the Cardinals’ Director of Media Relations shared a great story with the group of us bloggers that covered the Winter Warm-Up, telling us that a sportswriter friend of his had called after the Cards won this last Series, and asked if the team’s parade route through downtown St. Louis was going to be “the usual?”  The answer? “Yep.”

That’s iconic.

3. Enos Slaughter‘s Mad Dash and the Iconic Plays

That’s a kick-ass band name, eh?

I list Slaughter’s play specifically because it’s one of the most well-revered in Cardinal history.

But what others do we have?  Mark McGwire‘s home run record chase in 1998. Adam Wainwright versus Carlos Beltran. Ozzie Smith‘s “Go crazy, folks!” home run in 1985. David Freese in pretty much the entire 2011 World Series. Glenn Brummer stealing home…

Bob Gibson‘s seventeen strikeouts in 1968. Albert Pujols in 2005, 2011 – well, just a lot of Albert. Jim Edmonds circus catches. Yadier Molina‘s home run in New York in 2006. Mark Whiten‘s four home runs. I digress, but you get the point.

And there have been a fair share of solemn memories too. Darryl Kile‘s death in 2002. Jack Buck passing in the same year. And who could forget Jack’s poem after 9/11:

Yeah, there’s a lot of history there.

2. Opening Day in St. Louis

The Clydesdales and “Here Comes the King”. The Hall of Famers in red sport jackets. Good luck finding a seat.

I was privileged enough to attend Opening Day (yes, it’s something to be capitalized) in 2006. Opening not only what turned into a championship season for the Cards, but also the new (and at the time, yet unfinished) Busch Stadium was truly a treat.

If you are a Cardinal fan and you have the means and/or opportunity, Opening Day is a must on the bucket list.

1. Meet at Musial

A long-held Cardinal tradition, and one that has had a little extra meaning for me since 2004, Cardinal fans have been meeting up at the Stan Musial statue by Busch Stadium for years.

Groups of fans, whether meeting up from different workplaces or different places on the map, routinely will decide to “Meet at Musial” before a game, collecting their group and heading into the stadium to watch that night’s contest.

One of my personal favorite Cardinal memories was driving in from my new place of residence to meet my Dad before a 2004 World Series game. We were on the phone with each other throughout the day, making arrangements, planning details, when finally it was obvious I wasn’t going to make it into St. Louis until just before first pitch. What to do? Meet at Musial, of course.

After years of having just driven from across the river with my family and friends to attend a game, I finally had reason to make use of this long-standing tradition. Dad and I met at Stan’s statue and went into Busch II and enjoyed perhaps my favorite Cardinal loss ever (it makes sense, trust me).

We’re very blessed, Cardinal fans. Think about these lists of moments on the various Cardinal blogs today, and they don’t even begin to scratch the surface.

Hopefully you enjoy this list. What are some of your “iconic” Cardinal moments?

It’s true. Jaime Garcia will be feted, along with Jorge Posada, this Saturday evening in Laredo, TX.

From KGNS 8 in Laredo:

To be fair, Garcia’s inclusion is likely helped along by having played his high school baseball at Sharyland about 140 miles away from Laredo.

Jaime is in good company with Posada, who arguably has a bit better resume than Garcia. To wit, the video above promote Garcia’s Hall of Fame induction by noting he “has won 13 games each of his two season in the big leagues”. It’s not that Jaime doesn’t deserve to be recognized, but maybe let him build up a bit more of a resume? That said, the Latin American International Hall of Fame also counts Linda Ruth Tosetti as an inductee, presumably just for being Babe Ruth‘s granddaughter.

This has certainly been a whirlwind off-season for the World Champion Cardinals, and now another one of them can show up in Jupiter and sign autographs with “Hall of Fame” behind his name. Congratulations, Jaime Garcia.

Image by Jared Kelly via Flickr

The question has been asked since the day he was hired. “What kind of manager is Mike Matheny going to be?”

It was asked of the players, the existing coaching staff, and it was asked of Matheny himself.

The players seem genuinely excited about playing for Matheny, as evidenced by Chris Carpenter‘s comments at Winter Warm-Up.

“I know that Mike’s gonna be prepared. I’ve known Mike before you guys knew Mike. I played with him in Toronto. He’s a special man, great leader, positive guy, excited, prepared. Not that you can replace Tony La Russa, but I’m not sure you could pick a better guy to lead this organization. I know that he’s excited about it, I know the players in the clubhouse are excited about it. I’m looking forward to it. I’m looking forward to seeing his face every day and see what he has to bring to this team.”

So the question remains, what exactly might he bring to the Cardinals?  Perhaps the same things he outlines in a letter to parents of the youth team he coached in St. Louis, his most recent managing job prior to the Cardinals?

Posted at the website for Mac-and-Seitz Baseball and Softball, a training academy run by former Major Leaguers Mike Macfarlane and Kevin Seitzer, the letter pretty firmly and matter-of-factly outlines Matheny’s expectations of his young players – and their parents.

Some of the highlights:

I always said that the only team that I would coach would be a team of orphans, and now here we are. The reason for me saying this is that I have found the biggest problem with youth sports has been the parents. I think that it is best to nip this in the bud right off the bat.

So no Colby Rasmus return then, coach?

My main goals are as follows:

(1) to teach these young men how to play the game of baseball the right way,

(2) to be a positive impact on them as young men, and

(3) do all of this with class.

Reds and Brewers fans should have a field day with that.

The boys will not be allowed at any time to show any emotion against the umpire. They will not shake their head, or pout, or say anything to the umpire. This is my job, and I will do it well. I once got paid to handle those guys, and I will let them know when they need to hear something.

Hrmm, has he had this conversation with Carp yet?

I am completely fine with your son getting lessons from whomever you see fit. The only problem I will have is if your instructor is telling your son not to follow the plan of the team.

Still not looking good for a Rasmus return.

Every boy on this team will be worked as a pitcher.

Now you see what John Mozeliak meant when he called Skip Schumaker a “super-utility”?

I am a stickler about the thought process of the game. I will be talking non-stop about situational hitting, situational pitching, and defensive preparation. The question that they are going to hear the most is “What were you thinking?” What were you thinking when you threw that pitch? What were you thinking during that at bat? What were you thinking before the pitch was thrown, were you anticipating anything? I am a firm believer that this game is more mental than physical, and the mental may be more difficult, but can be taught and can be learned by a 10 and 11 year old.

Looks like there may be hope for Tyler Greene yet…

Speaking of batting order, I would like to address that right from the top as well seeing that next to playing time this is the second most complained about issue, or actually tied for second with position on the defensive field. Once again, I need you to know that I am trying to develop each boy individually, and I will give them a chance to learn and play any position that they are interested in.

Keep that outfielder’s glove close by, Matt Adams.

The boys will be required to show up ready to play every time they come to the field. Shirts tucked in, hats on straight, and pants not drooping down to their knees. There is not an excuse for lack of hustle on a baseball field. From the first step outside the dugout they will hustle. They will have a fast jog to their position, to the plate, and back to the bench when they make an out. We will run out every hit harder than any team we will play, and will learn how to always back up a play to help our teammates. Every single play, every player will be required to move to a spot. Players that do not hustle and run out balls will not play. The boys will catch on to this quickly. The game of baseball becomes very boring when players are not thinking about the next play and what they possibly could do to help the team. Players on the bench will not be messing around. I will constantly be talking with them about situations and what they would be doing if they were in a specific position, or if they were the batter. There is as much to learn on the bench as there is on the field if the boys want to learn. All of this will take some time for the boys to conform to. They are boys and I am not trying to take away from that, but I do believe that they can bear down and concentrate hard for just a little while during the games and practices.

All kidding aside, this last passage is my favorite part. Now, it’s clearly not quite the same managing million dollar men as it is managing a youth team (and their parents), but it’s clear that Matheny is an intellectual guy, much like his predecessor, and thoroughly invested in the fundamentals and preparation. So in other words, not much different than any other manager, really, but reading this letter gave me a bit more insight into Matheny’s personal goals for his teams and confirmed what many of us have already suspected about his mindset and motives.

Let me know as soon as possible whether or not this is a commitment that you and your son want to make.

Thanks,

Mike Matheny

My son and I are in, coach. We’re really looking forward to Spring Training.

Image by brianandjaclyn via Flickr

Yeah, I’m a little behind on this one – so what, wanna fight about it?

5. Chris Carpenter and Roy Halladay go fishing

I’ve been told, over and over and over and over again, that this was a thing. And then Doc saved someone from a snake and Carp busted up his toe. Story! (You can listen to Carpenter tell the real story at Winter Warm-Up here.)

4. Matt Holliday IS GOOD AT BASEBALL

Somehow, defending the baseball ability and honor of Matt Holliday has become a crusade of mine. Maybe it’s because all of the “he’s not worth the contract” and “Holliday should be traded” or “Holliday has been disappointing” is just nonsensical. Maybe I think he’s a dreamboat. Either way, he’s GOOD AT BASEBALL.

See arguments here … and here.

3. Cardinals minor league system rates highly

With or without a first baseman making north of $25mm per season, developing players from within that can contribute – see: Cardinals, St. Louis, c. 2011 – is a critical component of the Cards’ desire to remain consistently competitive for years to come.

To that end, it is meaningful then, to see well-regarded prospect/talent evaluators such as John Sickels rank the Cards’ organizational depth so well and highly amongst all MLB teams.

Obviously prospects don’t always pan out – but the more chances you have with higher odds, the better, no?

2. Organizational reconstruction

Being tardy in compiling this list has afforded me the knowledge that more coaches have departed and the organization continues to undergo a complete makeover from front office to on-field staff to player personnel, with varying levels of impact.

Clearly the departure of a future Hall of Famer will have the largest impact in terms of wins and losses, but what about the mainstays that have retired, prioritized family (and don’t misunderstand that, it’s with good reason), and/or found greener pastures elsewhere?

Having a rookie manager, Mike Matheny, is bound to cause Cardinal fans even more heartburn than the previously infuriating Tony La Russa. Time will tell if Derek Lilliquist can work any sort of magic similar to Dave Duncan‘s well-documented success with reclamation projects and creating superior pitching staffs.

But what of the departure of Jeff Luhnow and some of the other important front-office brains like Sig Mejdal and Mike Elias? This clearly will have an impact on the item we just discussed, continuing to develop the organization’s farm system toward being more self-sufficient, higher-performing, and most importantly – maintaining depth. The Cardinals have a very important position in the draft this year, holding many picks from free agency departures – Dan Kantrovitz should have some fun.

1. Cardinals win the 2011 World Series

Really, this entire list could’ve been made up of moments from the last month or so of the 2011 season, but what fun would that be? A lot, you’re right, but I decided to condense the season into one list item.

The Cardinals won the 2011 World Series. Is there more that must be said? Yes, it’s a fascinating and unfathomable story to hear how they got there, but at the end of the day Game Six of the World Series was one of the best ever (certainly in my still somewhat young memory) and the Cards finished the job in Game Seven.

As was said at the Winter Warm-Up last weekend – that was a great time to put the finishing touches on a celebration of 2011 and the organization’s success. Now it’s time to look forward to 2012, time to do work.

I’ll surely take a beating for this perhaps sounding a bit trite, but I say it with as much sincerity, genuine appreciation, and wonderment as I can – isn’t being a Cardinal fan awesome? Thanks Dad!

Lance Berkman at Winter Warm-Up

When asked what his thoughts were when he heard that Albert Pujols had signed with the Angels, Lance Berkman responded, “I thought I was gonna be playing first.”

Berkman went on to say that Pujols’ departure surprised him, that a year ago he would’ve said there was no way Pujols would leave St. Louis before adding, “I thought I was always going to be in Houston, and here I am a happy member of the St. Louis Cardinals.”

Berkman expects to make an easy transition back to first base, but joked, “It’s a lot easier to make the All-Star team as an outfielder, I know that.”

So what has changed in Berkman’s preparations for the 2012 season as a first baseman instead of outfielder?

In his best deadpan sarcasm, “I can just relax now. And I’m playing first base, so I can get huge.”

Obviously tongue-in-cheek comments aside, Berkman said not much else has changed about his preparation for the 2012 season, having only slightly modified the off-season conditioning plan that he and trainer Ben Fairchild developed last year used to lose weight and get into playing shape.

“Nothing really changes, I think as you age, you learn that you’ve got to deal a little bit more, you’ve got to be a little bit more conscious of how you prepare for the season and, you know, I learned a lot about that last year and doing a lot of the same things I did. Obviously with a shorter off-season you want to take the time to heal too, so you have to balance it and listen to your body, what it’s telling you. The bottom line is, I’ll be ready to go when we open camp.”

When pressed about last year’s comments about the running outfield being easier on his knees, Berkman responded with a chuckle, “Yeah, I was just joking with y’all.” The Cardinal first baseman went on to say that he doesn’t think much will change from the outfield to first base in terms of the impact on his knees or the rest of his body and fitness, echoing last off-season’s comment that the movements at the positions are just different, not any more or less impactful.

Berkman repeated similar comments heard from the Cardinal players about 2012 expectations, particularly sans Pujols, saying that one player didn’t win the World Series for them last season and that he’s really excited about the construction of the 2012 team.

As for his own expectations and statistics, having experienced a renaissance season in 2011 while winning the National League’s Comeback Player of the Year award, is it unfair for the team and fans to expect Berkman to perform similarly in 2012? “Yeah it’s fair. I mean, heck, if I don’t do that I’ll be disappointed. I think those were pretty close to my career averages, so until I get really old, I would expect myself to be able to produce that.”

Other Berkman tidbits:

• On Tony La Russa’s retiring - “He will be missed, but that having been said, I think the organization picked the right guy for the job, and I’m excited about playing for Mike [Matheny].”
• On whether he thinks Carlos Beltran can still play center field – “I think too much is made of, I mean heck, I hadn’t played the outfield in seven or eight years. You know, I wasn’t Willie Mays out there, but I did a decent job last year. If you’re athletic enough to have done that at some point, I mean the man’s only thirty-five, I think he’s a year younger than I am. While it may not be in his best interests to run out there in center field every single day, there’s no doubt that he could do it. I don’t believe that he’s ready for the rocking chair yet. He runs pretty out there.”

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Jason Motte doesn’t expect much to change for the St. Louis Cardinals, despite the turnover in the coaching ranks.

“Doesn’t change what we do. It doesn’t change how I go out there and pitch. I’m not going out there cause Tony’s not in the dugout, I’m not going ‘aw man, I can’t go get these guys out now, I’m not trying to get them out.’ You know, I’m going up there the same way. I’m sure, I can’t speak for them, but I’m thinking Berkman and Holliday are still gonna go up there and try to get hits and drive runs in. You know, I don’t think they’re gonna look at it any differently.”

Here’s the full video of Motte’s time in the media room:

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Those media training programs sure do pay off.

Now, obviously this falls squarely in the “well, what are they supposed to say?” or “what do you expect them to say?” line of thinking (unless you’re Mark Worrell), but I’ve found it interesting to hear very similar comments from Zack Cox, Ryan Jackson, Jordan Swagerty, Lance Lynn, Tyler Greene, and Matt Carpenter so far at the Winter Warm-Up.

Cox:

“There’s only some things that I can control, some things I can’t. Only thing I can do is show up to camp in shape and come every day ready to work.  And wherever they put me is where they put me.  If they put me in Springfield, Quad Cities, triple-A it don’t matter, I’m gonna go in there and I’m gonna play hard and see what happens.”

Jackson:

“Whatever helps me get to the big leagues faster, I’m all for that! … Whatever the Cardinals want me to do, you know, I’m all for it.”

Swagerty:

“You know, I just want to go out there and do good in Spring Training and get off to a hot start. When you go to big league camp and work with the big league guys you gotta learn new things and you gotta take it all in and hopefully you take a few things that really help you out and help you excel through the season.

“Whatever they want me to do, I like doing both, I just like being on the mound and facing hitters. If I’m a starter that’s great, if I’m a reliever that’s great, I just want to help teams win.

Lynn:

“I just know that I’m just gonna come in and try to pitch as well as I can to make the team and whatever it may be, you know, I’m just trying to make the team and that’s all I hope for.”

“I just want to pitch.”

Greene:

“…trying to get an opportunity anywhere that’s open. … That’s the goal, just to get out there every day.”

Carpenter:

“I don’t really have any expectations, I’m just going in to camp ready, to go in there healthy and just try to make an impression. You know, obviously everybody’s goal going into Spring Training is to make the team so, you know, that’s obviously my goal and whatever role that may be, I’m just going to go in and try to make a good impression with the coaching staff and give it my best effort.”

Again, clearly the players are not going to overstep bounds or step out of line when responding to questions about where they want to play next year or if they prefer one position or another – clearly they have an idea, a preference, but these youngsters are already well-versed in “whatever helps the organization.” Pleasant and tidy.

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Much more to come from Saturday’s goings on at the Hyatt, but looking forward to Sunday, here is some of the Winter Warm-Up lineup for day two:

Autographs

9am – David Green, JC Romero, Chris Duncan, Danny Cox, Curt Ford, Chuck Diering
10am – Red Schoendienst, Shelby Miller, Matt Adams, Jim Donohue
11am – Tony La Russa, Daniel Descalso, Tom Lawless, Brandon Dickson
12noon – Lee Thomas, Mitchell Boggs
1pm – Jason Motte, Jon Jay, Jaime Garcia, Mike Shannon
2pm – Todd Worrell, Shane Robinson, TJ Mathews
3pm – Lance Berkman, Jake Westbrook, Matt Holliday, Tom Henke
4pm – Neil Fiala

Presentations

10:30am – Championship Collection from the 2011 Season from the Cardinals Hall of Fame Museum
11:30am – “Collecting Sports Memorabilia”
12noon – Launching the Cardinals Hall of Fame Museum Website
1pm – St. Louis Baseball Beginnings
1pm – “Caring for the 2011 World Champions”
2pm – Meet the members of Team Fredbird
3pm – Baseball Photography; “Championship Year in Review”

I’ll be wandering around all day, please leave a comment below or tweet me @PitchersHit8th if there is a specific photo or story/quote you’d like to see!

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Keep checking back here for more updates from Winter Warm-Up, and follow @PitchersHit8th on Twitter.

Well, I’ve got 20 minutes of video from Adam Wainwright‘s appearance in the media room today – unfortunately, I’ve got some work to do to figure out how and/or where to upload it. It only occurred to me after the fact that the file size of 20 minutes of HD video is a bit prohibitive for usual distribution methods.

In any case, here is a clip from Wainwright’s time at the podium, answering a question about Albert Pujols leaving town. I apologize for the audio quality, in fact, you may not be able to hear it at all without attempting to blow your speakers. I’ll work on that for tomorrow.

At any rate, the video:

Highlights from the clip:

Wainwright said that obviously as a teammate you want a player of Pujols’ caliber and status as a Cardinal to come back, but understands and can see from a fan’s perspective how a long-term $300mm commitment could be “potential suicide.”

He went on to say that type of deal is fine “if Albert is Albert,” but at the end of the day free agency and baseball is a business and as much as you can want a guy to finish his career in one place, it doesn’t always work out that way.

Lots of similar reaction to the other players and what has already been said – thought the “potential suicide” choice of words was interesting.

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During his media session today at the Winter Warm-Up, Chris Carpenter told his version of the Carpenter, Roy Halladay, Skeet Reese fishing trip/anaconda wrestling story.

Here’s the audio: