Two seasons removed from being the World Champions of baseball, the St. Louis Cardinals have gone thru numerous ups and downs, injuries, off the field problems and player and personnel defections. As they begin the 2008 season, the Cardinals have a lot more questions then answer’s about the direction of not only the team, but the franchise as well. Gone after last season are general manager Walt Jocketty and President Mark Lamping, who both were rumored to have had issues internally with majority owner Bill DeWitt. In there place respectively steps John Mozeliak, Jocketty’s right hand man the past few seasons, and Bill DeWitt III, son of the owner. Tony LaRussa returns as manager after an off-season that saw him seriously contemplating retirement. He signed a 2 year contract and barring anything drastic, will be the coach for the Cardinals thru 2009.

 

The heart and soul of the Cardinal franchise is Albert Pujols, a perennial All-Star and MVP candidate year in and year out. Pujols is the one constant that this team has offensively right now and along with Chris Duncan and Yadier Molina, they are the only everyday position players that remain from the 2006 championship team. Pujols has had a terrific spring, even with an elbow/arm injury that’s so serious it’ll have to be operated on at some point in his life. Right now, he can’t do anymore damage to the ligaments and if he can play thru it and produce like only Albert can, then there is no problems. That’s a big if though, and expect Tony to rest Albert more then normal to minimize the stress on the arm. If Albert goes down for an extended amount of time, the Cardinals will be in for a long year. Troy Glaus begins his first year as the Cardinal third baseman, taking over for the disgruntled Scott Rolen, who was traded in the off-season. Glaus is looking to rebound from an injury plagued 2007 and he will be asked to protect Pujols in the Cardinal lineup. In the middle of the field, the Cardinals will start Adam Kennedy at second base and Caesar Izturis at shortstop. Kennedy struggled in 2007 after signing a free agent contract while Izturis will be asked to replace fan favorite David Eckstein, who decided this offseason to take his ability to Toronto. Don’t be surprised if you see a lot of platooning at these two positions, with Aaron Miles and Brendan Ryan seeing a lot of playing time. Yadier Molina is one of the leagues best young defensive catchers and with a new contract and confidence in his abilities offensively, he could be poised for a breakout season. Jason LaRue replaces Gary Bennett as Molina’s backup and is a serviceable player who can backstop a team if need be.

 

In the outfield, the Cardinals will start Chris Duncan in left, Rick Ankiel in center and Skip Schumaker in right. Schumaker has had a terrific spring and he will take over the leadoff spot in the lineup. Schumaker has above average speed, a good batters eye and a cannon of an arm in the outfield. Chris Duncan will be looking to rebound after a dismal second half of 2007, which saw his power numbers drop and his strikeouts rise before being shutdown with a sports hernia. Expect Duncan to also see some time at first base when the Cardinals spell Pujols, which means that Rule 5 draftee Brian Barton will take his spot in left field. Barton has to stay on the team this season or the Cardinals would have to give him back to the Indians. Barton has done his part to stay in St. Louis after displaying speed, defense and some pop in his bat. He’ll get his fair share of at-bats this season backing up all 3 outfield spots. Rick Ankiel begins his first full season as a major leaguer, taking over for fan favorite Jim Edmonds in centerfield. Edmonds was traded this past offseason to San Diego, ending a stellar career for the birds. Ankiel isn’t as savvy defensively like Edmonds was, but he has a great arm, above average speed and he can cover a lot of ground. He will be asked to improve on his second half from last season, where he burst on the scene and brought some life to a stagnant team. Ankiel will also find himself batting behind Albert Pujols in the lineup and if he can be patient, he could have a breakout season. Ryan Ludwick is the other Cardinal outfielder, a right handed hitter who brings some power off the bench. Down the road, expect rookie sensation Colby Rasmus to make his major league debut, especially if the Cardinals are out of it by July. Rasmus possess’ all the tools needed to be a star in this league and despite having a solid spring, he needs to produce at the AAA level to prove to Cardinal management that he can get the job done.

 

Perhaps the biggest concern for the Cardinals is pitching. Outside of Adam Wainwright, the Cardinals have a cast of unknowns who will try to patch together a pitching staff. With Chris Carpenter, Mark Mulder, Joel Piniero and Matt Clement unavailable to start the season, the Cardinals will rely on Braden Looper, Todd Wellemeyer, Brad Thompson and recent free agent signee Kyle Lohse to fill those voids. While not exactly the Gas House Gang, these pitchers have the ability to keep the Cardinals close, which is all that you could ask for. Help is on the way though, as Mulder, Clement and Piniero have begun throwing simulated games and if all goes well, they should be back by the time May rolls around. Wainwright is the ace of the staff and barring injury, he could be a Cy Young contender this season. Looper struggled down the stretch in 2007 while Lohse did the same for the Reds and Phillies. The Cardinals have actually done well in starts by Todd Wellemeyer and Brad Thompson, composing a record of 22-7 last season. 

 

The bullpen again figures to be this team’s strength, with Russ Springer, Ryan Franklin and Jason Isringhausen manning the seventh, eighth and ninth innings respectively. Randy Flores returns as a left handed specialist and newcomer Ron Villone will begin the season as a replacement for the injured, Tyler Johnson. Kelvin Jimenez is back as the long reliever, along with St. Louis native Kyle McClellan and down the road, Josh Kinney will return as another cog in the bullpen engine. Cliff Politte and newcomers Jason Motte and Chris Perez may get some looks early before Thompson and Wellemeyer find themselves back in the bullpen, making room for Clement and Piniero in the starting rotation.

 

Projected starting lineup –

 

Skip Schumaker - RF

Chris Duncan/Brian Barton - LF

Albert Pujols - 1B

Rick Ankiel - CF

Troy Glaus - 3B

Yadier Molina - C

Adam Kennedy - 2B

Pitchers Spot

Caesar Izturis - SS

As you can see, there are a lot of what question marks and what ifs for this team. The Cardinals have decided to go the cheap route the past couple of seasons and while it did produce there 10th World Title, you often get what you pay for in the world of sports. This team has issues, mainly pitching, and they did little or nothing to improve on a team that last year faded in the month of September. With too many unknowns offensively and pitching, I can’t imagine them really challenging for the National League Central and realistically, I see them the fighting back and forth with the Astros and Reds for 3rd, 4th and 5th.

 

My prediction – a long year in St. Louis - 5th place