Kuzul

Yadier Molina has become the current face of the St. Louis Cardinals organization.  After Albert Pujols packed up last offseason and headed west, Cardinal fans turned their focus to hoping Yadier wouldn’t follow Albert out of town.

Talk about an PR nightmare if the Cardinals brass didn’t lock up Molina on a long-term deal. Thankfully for the fans in the best baseball town in America, John Mozeliak and company did just that. Molina signed a five-year/$75 million extension during spring training in 2012.

Molina responded well to his hefty contract by having a career year in 2012.  Molina hit .316 with 22 HR and 76 RBI, all career highs.

Yadi has been on the upswing at the plate almost every year since his miserable 2006 where he batted a paltry .216.  But now that Molina has had a career year at the plate, is this going to be the expected norm moving forward?

Yadier was a beneficiary of a lineup that features Matt Holliday, Carlos Beltran, Allan Craig and David Freese.  Granted Molina batted sixth for most of the season, so he did not have a lot of protection behind him.  

But what he did find from that excellent lineup in front of him was runners on base on a regular basis when he stepped to the plate.  Molina batted .330 with runners on base with 64 RBI.  With runners in scoring position, he batted a very solid .321 with 51 RBI.  

What I gleaned from those numbers is that Yadier loves to hit in the moment.  He found a way to get on base and drive the ball when it counted.  Molina posted a career-high .373 OBP in 2012.

So the question is: Can Yadier have a similar season or better in 2013?

My guess is he can have a similar season to his 2012 output if he stays healthy.  Molina has taken on a much larger leadership role with the Cardinals and as such is setting the example of what is expected when you are a Cardinal.  His hard work and dedication has paid off at the plate and in the clubhouse.  

That is not to say he didn’t do those things before, but Cardinal fans saw a different Yadier last season.

He will start the season at 30 and turns 31 in July, so he should be right in his prime and it is showing. Molina will never be Johnny Bench or Mike Piazza at the plate, but it wouldn’t be surprising to see him crank out 25 HR and 85 RBI next season and keep his average around .300.

The bar has been set high on what will be expected from Molina in 2013.  But Molina should be poised for the challenge and will hopefully help the Cardinals to another extended October appearance. 

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Loyal.

Humble.

Those are the first two things I thought of when I heard about Stan Musial‘s passing this evening. Being from the Midwest, I respected his relationship with the Cardinals organization and how popular of a team he made the Cardinals, even though they weren’t flashy or in a large market.

Musial’s strength was hitting, where he was a seven-time National League batting champion and led the Cardinals to three World Series titles. Musial played all of his 22 seasons in St. Louis and continued to have a close relationship with the team after his career was over—including a stint as GM when the Cardinals won another World Series in 1967.

Musial was always appreciated by Cardinals fans but I don’t think the modern fans truly understood how special he was until their most recent superstar, Albert Pujols, left for a larger market and more money. Players as loyal as Musial are a rare breed.  While most tributes over the next few days will be focusing on what a great player Musial was, I believe what made him so special was the type of person he was.

Fans from St. Louis have talked about how revered Musial was and that he was what an athlete should be. Musial always acted in a way that showed he was grateful for the opportunity to play baseball. Unfortunately more often than not, there are athletes who expect people to cater to their every need. I personally have encountered some of these athletes and it’s sad that they don’t realize how lucky they truly are.

Musial realized that.  He stood for a time that was great for baseball and was scandal-free. As more time passes, fans will start to forget about the players of the past and what a mark they left on baseball. Musial owned several records when he retired but I believe that he only cared about contributing to the Cardinals success.

Baseball lost a giant of a man today who represented all the good things about playing baseball and understood the responsibility of being a star athlete.

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Baseball legend Stan Musial passed away Saturday at the age of 92 (via a St. Louis Cardinals news release). The Hall of Famer spent his entire career (1941-1944, 1946-1963) with the St. Louis Cardinals. Following his retirement, he spent time in the Cardinals front office before retiring from the game altogether.

Following his retirement, Musial stayed very connected to the Cardinals organization. He’s beloved by not only the St. Louis community, but the entire community of baseball fans. Musial leaves a legacy as one of the best baseball players in history. His list of accomplishments can be matched by very few.

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With spring training just around the corner, St. Louis Cardinals players old and new are putting the finishing touches on the offseason as they prepare for 2013.

Some players are sure things to make the opening day roster, but the same can’t be said for everyone. With a handful of minor question marks regarding the starting rotation, bullpen, second base and a backup shortstop, some of the Cardinals young talent will have a shot to make the team.

With one of the strongest farm systems in the MLB, the Cardinals have plenty of options, but are they ready yet?

Last year several showed that they are, but just like everyone else, they will have to show it again in spring training.

Following are the chances of several top Cardinals prospects making the opening day roster. To be eligible for the list, a player must still have rookie eligibility. That means a player must not have exceeded 130 at-bats or 50 innings pitched in the Major Leagues, or accumulated more than 45 days on the active roster of a Major League club during the 25-player limit period.

Shelby Miller

The prospect that everyone used to be excited about (prior to the Oscar Taveras explosion) ended the 2012 season by reminding Cardinals fans what they had to look forward to.

Despite command problems early in 2012, Shelby Miller turned his season around full circle and ended the season with his first big league win in dramatic fashion.

Short of a horrible performance in spring training, I can’t envision a scenario where he doesn’t make the opening day roster in one form or another.

Chance: 95 percent

Trevor Rosenthal

While everyone was talking about Miller and Taveras, Trevor Rosenthal snuck up and put on a show in 2012.

A young pitcher with tremendous heat and a good handle on pressure situations, Rosenthal has an extremely high ceiling. Considering that he was one of the best arms in the bullpen down the stretch, there is little reason to not expect him to begin 2013 in St. Louis.

The question is whether it will be in the rotation or the bullpen. My hunch is that the Cardinals will be reluctant to throw off Miller’s mojo by a move to the bullpen, so I expect to see Rosenthal in the bullpen awaiting an injury.

Chance: 95 percent

Kolten Wong

Kolten Wong is viewed by the Cardinals as the future at second base.

At this point, however, he is just that: the future. It’s entirely possible he could see a call up at some point in 2013, but given that he finished the season at Double A Springfield I expect to see some time in Memphis to begin the year.

His day will come soon enough and there is no reason to rush his continued development. Don’t look for him on the opening day roster.

Chance: 40 percent

Carlos Martinez

Many view Martinez as one of the best pitchers to come up through the Cardinals farm system in years, but he still has a bit of refining to do.

After spending some time at Double A Springfield in 2012, he made some progress and has shown that he has the stuff to make it in the big leagues.

In all likelihood, he will begin 2013 back in Springfield with a Memphis promotion in his near future. Martinez is another example of one not to rush since it would create a serious rotation logjam in St. Louis. With presumably Miller, Rosenthal and Lance Lynn all in the running for the fifth starter slot, there is really no reason to promote him at this point.

Chance: 15 percent

Matt Adams

Matt Adams is an interesting situation. With Allen Craig at first base, there is likely no way to get him regular playing time in St. Louis at the beginning of the season.

It’s entirely possible this is a situation that will work itself out once the season begins, but short of a spring training injury, he probably won’t see St. Louis to start the season.

He could be a formidable bench bat given his ability to hit for average and power. Cardinals GM John Mozeliak showed reluctance in 2012 to use him in that role feeling that he needed to be playing every day regardless of whether it was in St. Louis or Memphis.

Chance: 50 percent

Oscar Taveras

The man everyone is dying to see in St. Louis, Oscar Taveras, has a legitimate shot at starting the season in St. Louis if the pieces fall into place for him.

If he comes in and dazzles the Cardinals brass and for some reason Jon Jay doesn’t, it’s possible he could make the roster. Until everyone is in Florida, it will be hard to tell because many factors play into the Taveras equation.

Carlos Beltran ended the season with knee issues. How is he moving around and feeling? Is Jay ready to prove himself as an everyday center fielder once again?

If everyone else looks good, my assumption is that Taveras will start the season in Memphis and at the first sign of trouble make the short trip to St. Louis.

As mentioned previously, he needs to be ready to go when Beltran’s contract ends at the end of the coming season. There is no better way to do that then by giving him a short stay at Memphis and then having him spend some time with Beltran who would make a fantastic mentor for the young, slugging outfielder.

Regardless of how it comes, one thing is certain. His debut will be made soon.

Chance: 45 percent

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Spring Training can’t come soon enough for rabid Cardinal fans, and with the turning of the new year, it’s a good time to preview the Cardinals‘ 25-man Opening Day roster.

As usual, the team has question marks in the middle infield and in the starting rotation.

Even with a completely clean bill of health, it’s difficult to envision a full season at shortstop from Rafael Furcal. We are going to wager that GM John Mozeliak leverages some of the Cards’ high-end pitching prospects for a long-term solution at short.

Mozeliak could move Trevor Rosenthal, first baseman Matt Adams—who has no path to St. Louis—and Pete Kozma (or other minor prospects) to Cleveland for Asdrubal Cabrera, whose name has come up repeatedly. This would put Jon Jay back in the leadoff spot of the lineup, where he was effective for much of 2012.

The status of Jaime Garcia is the other major mystery.

As we’ve noted in other articles, Mozeliak will use Garcia’s work in the World Baseball Classic as an early gauge of the lefty’s health.

If Garcia doesn’t have it, Shelby Miller is the best option. And in all honesty, Miller probably is, even if Garcia’s shoulder is sound.

Miller was one of the few Cardinal starters who was effective against the Giants in the NLCS.

If the above moves are made, the Cards’ Opening Day roster will look something like this:

Lineup:

• CF Jon Jay
• RF Carlos Beltran
• LF Matt Holliday
• 1B Allen Craig
• C   Yadier Molina
• SS Asdrubal Cabrera
• 3B  David Freese
• 2B  Daniel Descalso

The Cardinals are in need of another left-handed bat in the middle of the order, which switch-hitter Asdrubal Cabrera gives them. It also gives the team a strong one-through-seven batting order that will be tough for NL pitchers to navigate.

Starting Rotation:

• SP1 Chris Carpenter
• SP2 Adam Wainwright
• SP3 Jake Westbrook
• SP4 Lance Lynn
• SP5 Jaime Garcia / Shelby Miller

If Chris Carpenter can go a full season in the rotation, the Cards will be in good shape. And if only Adam Wainwright’s luck improves in 2013, he’ll be good for 16-18 wins. Realistically, though, he’ll be stronger and sharper this coming year, and should be an elite starter.

Bullpen:

• Closer RHP Jason Motte
• Set-Up RHP Mitchell Boggs
• Set-Up RHP Edward Mujica
• LOOGY LHP Randy Choate
• Middle RHP Joe Kelly
• Middle LHP Marc Rzepczynski
• Long-man RHP Fernando Salas

For the first time in three seasons, the Cards’ bullpen will be ready from Day 1. Jason Motte and Mitchell Boggs each had their best seasons yet in 2012. Motte tied for the league lead in saves with 42. Randy Choate will be their most effective “Loogy” (Lefty one-out guy) since Trever Miller was on his game.

Bench:

• C Tony Cruz
• IF Rafael Furcal
• IF/OF Ty Wigginton
• IF/OF Matt Carpenter
• OF Shane Robinson

Ty Wigginton adds a veteran right-handed bat the team has craved, but it’s questionable how effective he will be at his advancing age. Matt Carpenter has been working on his defense at second in the offseason, and may push Daniel Descalso to the bench. But the bench is probably the best place for Descalso and Rafael Furcal.

With the team winning just one division title in the last six years, the Cards are overdue to have a wire-to-wire division-leading season.

Manager Mike Matheny has his first playoff-quality season under his belt and should confidently lead St. Louis past the tough Reds in 2013.

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If the San Francisco Giants formula for success is as strong as it appears to be, they could have a run for their money coming from the St. Louis Cardinals over the next decade.

The cornerstone of the Giants success hasn’t come from blockbuster trades and massive free-agent splashes. It has come from two things, smart player acquisitions and some serious homegrown pitching.

The Giants approach to player development has put them in a position to win not just now, but for years to come. The biggest names on their staff have all come from within including Matt Cain, Tim Lincecum, Ryan Vogelsong (who left for a stint in Pittsburgh) and Sergio Romo.

The Cardinals, under the direction of then-director of player procurement Jeff Luhnow, have taken a similar approach in recent years. As you will soon understand, he may have been one of the most painful long-term losses of 2011-12.

With a focus on young, high-upside pitching talent, Luhnow managed to grab up a number of exciting arms. With the arrival of Shelby Miller and Trevor Rosenthal to the majors, his work is beginning to come to fruition and puts the Cardinals in a good position.

Miller has been the highlight of the organization’s farm system for several years and has the potential to be the face of the pitching staff in the future if he can keep everything in place. He’s a strikeout pitcher who had gotten by in the minor leagues on his fastball, but in 2012 he learned that it will take more than a fastball to get by in the big show.

Once he harnesses his off-speed pitches, and he showed good signs of that late in the season, he will be fun to watch. Pitching to Yadier Molina will also be a positive move for his continued development.

Trevor Rosenthal, who there were high hopes for, gained serious attention in 2012 when he posted a 1.29 ERA over five appearances totaling seven innings. He surrendered only one run.

Rosenthal has a four-seam fastball that rests around 98 mph and touches 100 when he wants it to. The advantage to Rosenthal is that he also has a nasty curveball that he uses about 13 percent of the time according to Brooks Baseball.

The two big names that have already seen St. Louis are only the beginning of why the Cardinals have a successful decade ahead of them. There are numerous pitchers in the system with similar ceilings who make the future bright in St. Louis.

Michael Wacha, drafted as the Cardinals top pick in 2012 from Texas A&M, will likely have a short stint in the minor leagues. In only the second half of 2012, he made his way from rookie ball to Double-A Springfield and he did so with a vengeance.

During his three months of professional baseball, Wacha piled up 21 relief innings with a 0.86 ERA. He surrendered only two runs on eight hits with 40 strikeouts. He’s an intense strikeout/groundball pitcher and held hitters to a .118 average.

Carlos Martinez, a 21-year-old right-hander from the Dominican Republic, is another one to be on the lookout for as he gets closer to making the trip to St. Louis. Much like Miller, he is a pitcher trying to harness an off-speed pitch to complement a powerful fastball.

His ceiling may not be as high as Miller’s or Rosenthal’s, but he is not one to discount. In only 15 games at Springfield in 2012, he put together a respectable 4-3 season with a solid 2.90 ERA over his 71 IP.

Most likely, he will spend some more time in Double-A to start the season before he steps up to Memphis.

Tyrell Jenkins is another name to keep an eye on. Only 20 years old, this fastball-thrower has a lot of developing left to do.

He had a rough season at Quad Cities going 4-4 with a 5.14 ERA. He is still quite raw in his development, but he’s progressing and with all of the other arms in the system there is no reason to rush him.

The chance of all of these pitchers realizing their potential is slim. If even half of them do, then the Cardinals will still have more high-end home grown talent than anyone in their division, possibly the league.

One thing is for sure, the Cardinals have the arms to become a feared foe in the National League over the next few years. This isn’t even taking into account pitchers like Joe Kelly, Lance Lynn and Jaime Garcia. All of them, don’t forget, also came up through the Cardinals farm system.

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Shelby Miller has been the Cardinals organization’s top prospect for the last three years or so.  Finally, in September, Cardinal fans were graced with Miller’s presence on the big stage.

Shelby pitched fairly well in his first stint with the big league club. 

He posted a a 1.32 ERA in his six appearances with one start sprinkled in.  In his one start against the Cincinnati Reds, he allowed only one hit and no runs.  Granted, the Reds already had their playoff spot secured and the regulars only took about two at-bats, but it was sparkling nonetheless.

Miller had his worst minor league season in 2012, posting a 11-10 record with a 4.74 ERA while surrendering 24 home runs in his 27 starts.  But when Miller got to the big show, his better-than-average fastball mixed in with decent off-speed stuff showed that he could pitch at the big league level.

So the question is, can Shelby Miller be an ace for the Cardinals in years to come?

My guess is that he can.  He reminds me a bit of what Adam Wainwright looked like when he came up for the Cardinals in 2006.  They have a similar frame with an above-average fastball.  As Wainwright developed, he proved he could be a workhorse, eating up innings along the way.  He also sharpened a wicked curveball that Miller will hopefully inquire about in spring training.

However, Miller averaged just over five-plus innings in his full seasons in the minors, so that will need to be improved as he develops at the major league level if he wants to be an ace.

All that said, if Miller can continue to develop and keep his strikeouts up as he historically did in the minors, he could be the foundational pitcher to lead the Cardinals into the future.

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The Los Angeles Dodgers have reportedly expressed interest in acquiring St. Louis Cardinals second baseman Skip Schumaker. The Dodgers have also reported that their shortstop, Dee Gordon, is available for trade.

With the limited amount of time that Schumaker played down the stretch in 2012 for the Cardinals, and the team’s desperate need for a shortstop, it appears that this trade could very well happen.

In 87 games last year, Gordon struggled for the Dodgers. He hit only .228 and had an on-base percentage of only .280. Gordon’s WAR was also an abysmal -1.3. Defensively, Gordon was not very good either. He made 18 errors at the shortstop position and had a DWAR of -1.1.

It was really a rough second year for Gordon in Los Angeles.

With all these awful stats, though, why would the Cardinals be interested in acquiring Gordon?

First off, the price is not too high. The Dodgers appear ready to be done with Dee Gordon, and the Cardinals may be able to trade away a 32-year-old player who is in the last year of his contract for a player who is 24 years old and is just beginning his career.

Secondly, Gordon has good offensive potential. In his first year in Los Angeles, Gordon hit for a .304 average in 56 games with the Dodgers and had an on-base percentage of .325. He is also a massive threat on the bases, having stolen 56 bags in only 143 major league games.

Sure, Gordon was terrible last year, but he was put under a lot of pressure from the start of the year. The expectations were fairly high for the second-year player, and he buckled under them early in the season and never quite recovered. The expectations will, of course, be very high in St. Louis as well, but the fans and media tend to be a little more compassionate in St. Louis than they are in Los Angeles.

Finally, Gordon has the potential to be not just a good shortstop, but a great one. The Cardinals have very good fielding coaches who can work with Gordon. Not to mention that Rafael Furcal can help him while Furcal is still in a St. Louis uniform. It was already mentioned that Gordon has tremendous speed, which is a huge key for shortstops. If he can combine that speed with a strong fielding ability, he could become a great shortstop for the Cardinals.

Skip Schumaker has done some great things with the Cardinals, but he is not likely to get much playing time with the team this year and would be an unlikely candidate to re-sign as a free agent next offseason. The Dodgers are interested in Schumaker, and they have a player the Cardinals could turn into a star.

It is obvious what needs to be done.

Dee Gordon needs to be brought to St. Louis.

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The Cardinals as an organization generally avoid signing free agents of any kind (at all costs) so the title of this slideshow is a little misleading, admittedly.

However, the club does like to work in the realm of the familiar—the known quantity—and like some middle-aged group of buddies in a garage band, sometimes they bring old friends back into the fold for one last gig.

Even if they can’t play a note.

At age 35, Jeff Suppan returned in 2010 after taking his free-agent lumps in Milwaukee for three years, but only went 3-6 for the Cards.

Ray Lankford came home in his final season in 2004 and somehow accumulated 200 at-bats. He only batted .255 and struck out 55 times, which was always one of his specialties.

And our favorite example: Ken Hill.

The plus-armed 25-year-old was included in a trade with Montreal to bring Andres Galarraga to St. Louis to fill their first-base vacancy.

Galarraga was a bust while Hill won 16 games in two of three seasons for the Expos, even finishing second in the 1994 NL Cy Young vote.

The Cardinals saw the chance to bring Hill back to anchor their pitching staff for the 1995 season. So of course he flopped again as he went 6-7 in 18 starts with a 5.06 ERA before being shipped off to Cleveland.

To add insult to injury, he won 16 games for a third time the very next season with the Rangers.

So while the team has very few holes to plug this offseason, the Cards always seem vaguely tempted to bring an old familiar face back into the fold.

While there is little chance any of the following former Cardinals will be signed by John Mozeliak, in case he has a momentary lack of reason, here are the reasons why the team should pass.

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Chuck Diering, who played for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1947 to 1951, died Friday at the age of 89.

According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the elderly former outfielder fell in his Spanish Lake, Miss. home on Thanksgiving and was later found by his son, Bob. He passed away at a hospital a few hours later from cerebral hemorrhaging.  

Diering, who was born Charles Edward Allen Diering on February 5, 1923, began his professional baseball career over 70 years ago. After losing three years in the military to World War II, he still played in over 750 major league games.

Spending over half of his big league career with the Cardinals, the speedy Diering was a serviceable backup outfielder to the likes of Hall of Famers Enos Slaughter and Stan Musial and reliable cog Terry Moore.

In 396 games with the team, he hit .252 with eight home runs, 75 RBI and 127 runs scored. He knew how to draw a walk, posting a .367 on-base percentage in his five-year St. Louis career, with a high mark of .388 in 1949.

In fact, 1949 was the only season he received significant time as a regular while in a Cardinals uniform. He played in 131 games that season, starting 78 of them, with 123 of his appearances being in centerfield.

Not a slugger, the then 26-year-old still hit .263 with 21 doubles and eight triples in 369 at-bats that year, scoring 60 runs and driving in 38.

The following year, he started 50 of the 89 games in which he appeared.

World War II took a major chunk out of his playing career. In 1941, he began his professional career as a Cardinals farmhand at age 18. In 1942, the up-and-comer hit .305 with 25 doubles in 126 games with the Class-D Albany Cardinals.

Then the military called.

He was a private-first class in the Army who served in the United States and the Pacific Theatre of Operations from 1943 to 1945, but Diering‘s career was not entirely stunted as he continued to play while enlisted. According to Baseball in Wartime, he led one league with a .524 batting average and eight home runs in just 12 games.

He returned to professional baseball in 1946, spending the entire year in the minor leagues—in his first year back, he stole 19 bases for the Triple-A Rochester Red Wings.

After that year of re-acclimation, he made his major league debut on April 15, 1947, thus beginning his five-year skein with St. Louis.

On December 11, 1951, Diering was traded to the New York Giants with aging pitcher Max Lanier for similarly aging second baseman Eddie Stanky. He spent a year with the Giants before playing all of 1953 in the minor leagues. From  1954 to 1956, he was with the Baltimore Orioles, wrapping up his big league career.

Overall, Diering hit .249 with 14 home runs, 149 RBI and 411 hits in nine major league seasons. He played 752 games, scored 217 runs and had 76 doubles. 

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