Skip to main content

I Can't Decide

Alright, you tell me. Is the following by Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle the sign of thoughtful analysis or morning drinking? Cards’ kids could trump Cubs’ vets for division title

I still like the St. Louis Cardinals in the National League Central. Who cares if the Cubs have spent like drunken sailors?

The Cubs have thrown money around the last three winters, and all it has gotten them is more disappointment. Does anyone think Milton Bradley is going to decide a division race?

Besides, the Cardinals have something the Cubs don’t: depth in the minor league system.

Hmmm... minor league system depth as trump card. I'm not sure I buy it completely. for example, the Minnesota Twins have traditionally had a pretty good farm system which has largely kept them respectable (or more than respectable), but I'm not sure any of the teams in their division have the deep pockets the Cubs are showing off. The main division rivals of the Twins (the White Sox, Indians and Tigers) basically have to construct teams the same way the Twins do.

The Cubs, on the other hand, seem to be positioning themselves to take the Yankees/Red Sox model for the foreseeable future. Just ask the rest of the American League East; farm system depth can only do so much.

The Cardinals might win 90 games or lose 90. They don’t have as much money as the Cubs, so they have to count on more kids. Counting on kids is risky business. But if the kids don’t get overwhelmed, they bring an energy to the clubhouse that a Milton Bradley simply can’t.

The Cardinals have done things right in player development, so even with little payroll flexibility, they’ve got a chance to contend.

Check out the National League Central. The Brewers and Astros have gotten worse, and the Reds and Pirates are still building.

The Cubs could still make the playoffs without adding another piece. At worst, they seem to be competing with the Phillies, Mets and Braves for the NL wild-card berth.

Sure, St. Louis fans may want the team to add Manny Ramirez or Adam Dunn or Ben Sheets. They’re all still unsigned, and as the market continues to spiral south, the Cardinals may decide they need one of them.

Then again, if the Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright both stay healthy, the Cardinals could again end up atop the National League.

Neither player is certain to avoid the disabled list. Carpenter has made just four starts the last two seasons, and even though medical reports about his recovery from elbow surgery are positive, it’s impossible to know what he has until he takes the mound.

Wainwright started and ended last season as the Cardinals’ ace. In between, he was sidelined almost three months with a finger injury. He, too, will be healthy on the first day of spring training.

No National League team is better than the Cardinals if those two are healthy.


Sheesh, this seems optimistic, but I'm willing to drink the kool-aid as long as it is the color red.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Early Thoughts on City 2025

There are few things harder to keep track of than an MLS side in their off-season, at least for me. Despite the fact it takes place roughly during the time the MLB Hot Stove season is in full swing, it is nowhere near as easy to follow along with as baseball. Part of it is how disconnected MLS is with the international soccer calendar. St. Louis City SC is still digesting the moves it made last summer even though those players have already played important games for the club. It is all weird and disjointed, and I always feel like I am playing catch-up. Happily, the moves made in the off-season this year were not numerous.  German Timo Baumgartl comes over from Europe as an option at center back, which is good because that was a position that was a little rocky for City last season. Given his own troubles over the last few seasons (cancer and uneven play in the aftermath of that), a spell with City can give Baumgartl a chance to have a re-set. Given his pedigree and the fact City si...

Blues Fall Off a Cliff

 Hockey seasons will have their ups and downs. For whatever reason, be it injuries, a challenging schedule, an inexplicable loss of form, it is difficult for teams to maintain a good level of compete for an entire season. The good teams just limit their funks. The St. Louis Blues, however, are not a good team. They are a poor team, and poor teams sink under the weight of "here we go again" night after night.  I will admit I only watched the first two periods of last night's 5-0 loss to a Colorado team that had been scuffling of late. Two periods were more than enough to get the gist of it. It was also enough to lead me to a diagnosis as to what ails the team. It isn't that they are young and are going through growing pains. No, the reason the Blues are so bad is that the veterans who are being paid to be the backbone of this team are not doing their jobs. I'm talking about Schenn, Buchnevich, Faulk, and even Binnington and Parayko. Over $30M of the salary cap is b...

My Life Amongst the Moguls

 It maybe trendy YOLO nonsense, but as I get older I have taken to "experiences" more than I used to in the past. Do not get me wrong, I still love stuff, and I am not unaware that having cash at my disposal opens up the range of possible experiences. However, I must say my mood is often "I'll try anything once," as often as not.  To that end I recently became a part owner in three racehorses. Through the website MyRaceHorse.com I have purchased ownership shares in three horses, 1 share each in an as yet unnamed colt and unnamed filly, and 2 shares in a colt named Munny Problem.  All of these horses are 2-year-olds who are just beginning their lives as potential racehorses. I say potential because there is no guarantee any of them will ever make it to the starting gate of an official race. The race game is a tough one and plenty of well-bred horses don't make the cut for various reasons; they can get injured, they don't take to the training, they turn ou...