INSIDE PITCH
It appears shortstop Brendan Ryan,
who had right wrist surgery Feb. 9, will be able to play in exhibition games
sometime around March 21. But manager Tony La Russa said that didn't necessarily
mean he would be ready for the regular season two weeks after
that.
"Once he's strong and ready, he's
got to take enough at-bats where he's got his timing," La Russa said. "He can't
rush in there for four days and say, 'Hey, I'm ready.' And all of a sudden he
hits .210."
Ryan said he "can't imagine" not
being ready to start the season.
"I never saw myself not ready for
opening day," Ryan said. "That's what I'm shooting for. But if there's a chance
of risk, I'm not going to be stupid."
While Ryan gradually is rounding
into form, veteran Julio Lugo will see much of the time at shortstop, along with
young Tyler Greene and veteran utility man Felipe Lopez. Ryan hit .292 and
committed just nine errors in his first year as the regular
shortstop.
Lugo is a holdover from last season, acquired in a trade
with Boston,
with the Red Sox paying all but $400,000 of his $9 million salary. But the
signing of Lopez might cut into Lugo's playing
time, and he wasn't happy in Boston when he didn't play as
much.
"It doesn't change anything for
me," Lugo said.
"I just worry about myself and getting ready. They're the ones who make the
decisions."
Lugo hit .277 in 148 at-bats for the Cardinals
last season.
"I always play for 30 teams,"
Lugo said. "I'm
on the Cardinals, but you never know what's going to happen. I'm going to enjoy
myself, get ready and get a lot of hits."
WHERE: Roger Dean Stadium,
Jupiter, Fla.
The Cardinals have been there since 1998, but there have been changes all
around. With the Orioles moving to Sarasota, Fla., and the Dodgers previously
going to Arizona, the Cardinals have only the Marlins (who share a complex with
the Cardinals in Jupiter) and the Mets as opponents any closer than two hours
away.
AUTHORITY FIGURES: Tony La Russa
returns for his 15th season as Cardinals manager, having won 1,232 games in St. Louis and 2,552 games overall, which is third on the all-time list. The
65-year-old La Russa, for the first time with the Cardinals, has only a one-year
contract, fueling speculation that this might be his last season on the field.
The coaching staff returns intact with the notable exception of former Cardinals
star Mark McGwire replacing Hal McRae as the hitting
coach.
NOTES,
QUOTES
--It worked with 2B Skip Schumaker
last spring, so the Cardinals are giving diminutive OF Shane Robinson some
instruction as an infielder this spring under the tutelage of coach Jose
Oquendo. "Got to add a little trick to my bag," said Robinson, 25. "I'm just
trying to get the basics (of second base) down."
--Manager Tony La Russa will
assess several young players (Tyler Greene, Allen Craig, Joe Mather, Jon Jay,
Nick Stavinoha) this spring, a couple of whom are likely to fill out his bench.
"I'm hoping whoever is on our bench has an offensive and defensive value," La
Russa said. "The people there should be there to come in in the middle of the
game or start a game and you not have to cross your
fingers."
--LHP Sam Freeman, a promising
reliever, will have to have Tommy John surgery on his left elbow. Freeman felt
pain in his left elbow when he tried to throw a changeup in a recent drill. He
is likely to be out most, if not all, of the season.
--RF Ryan Ludwick, who had a slow
start to his spring last year, homered and doubled in his first exhibition game
against the Mets. Ludwick, who hit .216 last spring, said, "It's better than
last year, for sure. I felt like everything was where I needed to be at this
point ... but it's early, though."
--Rookie OF Allen Craig, the best
minor league hitting prospect in camp, was slow off the mark because of a
strained left quadriceps. With the cold weather in Florida, La Russa planned
to keep Craig out for a while. "It's sore," La Russa said of Craig's leg. "No
matter what the weather, you're not going to want to push
it."
BY THE NUMBERS: 24 -- Players the
Cardinals signed to one-year contracts, concluding the negotiations with the
40-man roster.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "I recognized this
was going to be part of it. I knew people would have questions. I've tried my
best to answer those questions." -- New Cardinals hitting coach Mark McGwire,
discussing the attention created in camp by his recent steroids
admission.
ROSTER
REPORT
After winning their first division
title in three seasons, the Cardinals really had only one real offseason mission
-- to re-sign LF Matt Holliday. This they did at a cost of $120 million for
seven years. Their only other player-personnel move of consequence was to sign
RHP Brad Penny to replace departed RHP Joel Pineiro in the rotation. They also
made one prominent coaching change, hiring former slugger Mark McGwire to
replace Hal McRae as the hitting coach.
ARRIVALS: RHP Brad Penny (free
agent from Giants), LHP Rich Hill (minor league free agent from Orioles), INF
Ruben Gotay (minor league free agent from Diamondbacks), INF Felipe Lopez (free
agent from Brewers).
DEPARTURES: RHP Brad Thompson
(released, signed minor league deal with Royals), INF Joe Thurston (free agent,
signed minor league deal with Braves), 3B Troy Glaus (free agent, signed with
Braves), INF Mark DeRosa (free agent, signed with Giants), INF Khalil Greene
(free agent, signed with Rangers), OF Rick Ankiel (free agent, signed with
Royals), RHP Joel Pineiro (free agent, signed with Angels), RHP Todd Wellemeyer
(free agent, signed minor league deal with Giants), RHP John Smoltz (free agent,
unsigned).
SPRING FOCUS: Having re-signed LF
Matt Holliday, the Cardinals' lineup should be in good shape for another run at
the World Series. 3B David Freese, a rookie, is the only real unknown in the
equation, and the Cardinals might have to bring in a veteran presence to compete
with him. A fifth starter is needed, as well as bench help, specifically from
the left side. Much of the focus will be on new hitting coach Mark McGwire as he
returns to baseball after eight seasons out of the game and amid commentary
about his use of performance-enhancement drugs when he
played.
PROJECTED
ROTATION:
1. RHP Chris Carpenter
2. RHP Adam Wainwright
3. RHP Kyle Lohse
4. RHP Brad
Penny
5. RHP Kyle McClellan or LHP Rich
Hill or LHP Jaime Garcia
Penny, a free agent acquisition,
replaces RHP Joel Pineiro, a 15-game winner who signed with the Angels. RHP Todd
Wellemeyer had the most starts from the fifth spot last year, but he wasn't
re-signed, so Hill, Garcia and perhaps RHP Kyle McClellan will contend for the
fifth spot. No Cardinals lefty started a game last year, as Cy Young Award
candidates Carpenter and Wainwright led an often-dominant, all-right-handed
rotation.
PROJECTED
BULLPEN:
RHP Ryan Franklin
(closer)
RHP Jason Motte
RHP Kyle
McClellan
RHP Blake
Hawksworth
RHP Mitchell Boggs
LHP Trever Miller
LHP Dennys Reyes
Franklin had a stellar, 38-save season in his
first full year as the closer, although he was wobbly at the end. The bullpen
was one of the strengths of the division-championship club, and it is likely
that it will return almost intact this season. McClellan might be moved into the
rotation, if the need arises.
PROJECTED
LINEUP:
1. 2B Skip
Schumaker
2. CF Colby Rasmus
3. 1B Albert Pujols
4. LF Matt
Holliday
5. RF Ryan
Ludwick
6. C Yadier Molina
7. 3B David
Freese
8. SS Brendan
Ryan
The key lineup question for
manager Tony La Russa is the No. 2 spot. Does he go for "damage," as he likes to
put it, with CF Colby Rasmus, knowing that Rasmus, one of his best base
stealers, isn't apt to run much in front of Pujols? Or does he go at Nos. 1-2
with Schumaker and Ryan, neither of whom hits for much power nor walks much, in
front of Pujols and Holliday?
PROJECTED
RESERVES:
C Jason LaRue
INF Julio Lugo
INF/OF Joe
Mather
INF Felipe
Lopez
OF Allen
Craig
The late-February signing of Lopez
added some experience to the bench.
Craig, who batted .322 with 26
homers and 83 RBIs at Class AAA Memphis, is an intriguing rookie. The
25-year-old was signed as an infielder but has been moved to the outfield, where
he is not an accomplished defender. Still, next to the batter's box, the
outfield appears to be his best position. Mather, a valuable extra man in 2008,
had a terrible season (.176 at Class AAA Memphis and .209 at Class AA
Springfield) in 2009 as he had continued trouble with a left hand on which he
had surgery in 2008.
TOP ROOKIES: David Freese, who
came on strong late last season after recovering from a left ankle injury
suffered in a January auto accident, will be given the first shot to win the
third base job that belonged mostly to Mark DeRosa in the second half of last
season. Freese was 7-for-12 in a late recall from Class AAA
Memphis.
LHP Jaime Garcia, a 23-year-old
from Mexico, pitched effectively in the
last month of the minor league season after recovering from Tommy John elbow
surgery. He is considered a candidate for the one remaining starting berth,
although pitching coach Dave Duncan is hesitant about Garcia being able to pitch
that many innings yet. Garcia never has worked more than 150 innings in a
season.
RHP Pete Parise had an outstanding
Caribbean Series while pitching for Puerto Rico
and he has an outside shot at a big-league relief job. Parise had eight saves,
most of them late in the season, as he helped pitch Memphis to the Pacific
Coast League championship last year.
MEDICAL
WATCH:
--1B Albert Pujols (arthroscopic
right elbow surgery in October 2009) was fine at the start of spring
training.
--SS Brendan Ryan (right wrist
surgery in February 2010) hopes to be healthy for the start of the regular
season.
--LHP Rich Hill (left shoulder
surgery in August 2009) was throwing off a mound early in spring
training.