ST. LOUIS CARDINALS
| Shane Andrews (3B, 30, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 MON 150 492 117 30 1 25 48 69 58 137 238 314 455 1 6 1999 MON-CHC 117 348 68 12 0 16 41 51 50 109 195 295 368 1 1 2000 CHC 66 192 44 5 0 14 25 39 27 59 229 329 474 1 1 |
| Andrews had a brief home run tear early in the season, then went on the 60-day DL in June with chonic pain in his lower back. He has power, but he's a career .221 hitter, he's turning 30, and he has back pain. He probably won't last much longer. |
| Rick Ankiel (22, L) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 A 12 6 28 28 1 0 0 161 106 50 222 262 1999 AA-AAA 13 3 24 19 1 1 0 137 98 62 194 230 |
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Awesome young pitcher. Ankiel was highly touted before the season, and didn't disappoint; in my opinion, he was the Rookie Of The Year. If he stays healthy, then there is no reason to think that he won't soon become the best pitcher in the league. As for all of those wild pitches in the playoffs... I'm not really sure what to make of those. If the problem resurfaces, I'd suggest he sit down and watch Bull Durham to pick up some pointers. |
| Bobby Bonilla (OF, 38, S/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 FLO-LA 100 333 83 11 1 11 39 45 41 59 249 326 387 1 2 1999 NYM 60 119 19 5 0 4 12 18 19 16 160 277 303 0 1 2000 ATL 114 239 61 13 3 5 23 28 37 51 255 356 397 0 0 |
| So the Braves sign Bobby Bonilla, he hits .250 with no power and no speed and no defense, and then they lose in the first round of the playoffs. So what was the point of that? Now he's been signed by St. Louis, and presumably they have a plan for him... but he's 38 years old, and hasn't played well in three years. |
| Will Clark (1B, 37, L/L) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 TEX 149 554 169 41 1 23 98 102 72 97 305 384 507 1 0 1999 BAL 77 251 76 15 0 10 40 29 38 42 303 395 482 2 2 2000 BAL-STL 130 427 136 30 2 21 78 70 69 69 319 418 546 5 2 |
| Clark announced his retirement after the season, ensuring that he will be remembered as an outstanding hitter till the end. Injuries cost him a place in the Hall Of Fame, but Clark was still one of the best hitters of his generation; in 15 years, he never hit below .282. See the Mark McGwire comment to see how he compared to some of his peers. |
| J.D. Drew (OF, 25, L/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 AA-AAA 45 146 47 11 2 7 33 24 35 33 322 453 568 3 4 |
| Drew's sophomore season left little doubt that he is going to become one of the best hitters in the league. He hasn't learned to hit left-handers yet, but that will come with practice. He's young and very good, and will start to play on an everyday basis in 2001. |
| Jim Edmonds (CF, 31, L/L) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 ANA 154 599 184 42 1 25 115 91 57 114 307 368 506 7 5 1999 ANA 55 204 51 17 2 5 34 23 28 45 250 339 426 5 4 2000 STL 152 525 155 25 0 42 129 108 103 167 295 411 583 10 3 |
| Edmonds started red-hot, and remained an MVP candidate for the entire season. He's a terrific player, both at bat and in the field... and the Angels traded him for Kent Bottenfield??? |
| Bernard Gilkey (OF, 35, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 NYM-ARI 111 365 85 15 0 5 41 33 43 80 233 320 315 9 3 1999 ARI 94 204 60 16 1 8 28 39 29 42 294 379 500 2 2 2000 ARI-BOS 74 164 29 6 1 3 17 15 17 28 177 265 280 0 0 |
| He had a really bad season, coming off the heels of a really good season in 1999. Gilkey's career has been a series of ups and downs, and I suppose another "up" may be possible... but age 35, things are probably all downhill from here. |
| Luther Hackman (26, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 AA 3 12 28 23 1 0 0 139 169 54 90 544 1999 AAA 7 6 15 15 1 1 0 101 106 44 88 374 2000 AAA 8 9 21 21 0 0 0 120 134 36 66 474 |
| Hackman has good control, but his minor league record has been pretty dreadful, and he didn't pitch well at Memphis last year. He's a marginal talent. |
| Dustin Hermanson (28, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 MON 14 11 32 30 1 0 0 187 163 56 154 313 1999 MON 9 14 34 34 0 0 0 216 225 69 145 420 2000 MON 12 14 38 30 2 1 4 198 226 75 94 477 |
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How thin is starting pitching these days? After the season, a bidding war erupted for Hermanson; the Cardinals eventually got him, giving up Fernando Tatis in return. Overshadowed was the fact that Hermanson kinda stunk last year. The strikeouts were way down, and the walks were up, and that's not a good sign. On the other hand, he is young, has pitched well in the past, and he'll be working with Dave Duncan/Tony LaRussa, and those are all positives. I'm still skeptical, though; I'll be surprised if he wins more than a dozen games. |
| CarlosHernandez (CA, 34, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 SD 129 390 102 15 0 9 34 52 16 54 262 305 369 2 2 1999 DID NOT PLAY 2000 SD-STL 75 242 62 15 0 3 23 35 21 35 256 322 355 2 3 |
| Hernandez lost the 1999 season to injury, but came back last season, and was OK. He's a decent second-string catcher; he's also 34, and made two trips to the disabled list last season. I would expect his playing time to decrease significantly in the short term. |
| Thomas Howard (OF, 36, S/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 LA 47 76 14 4 0 2 9 4 3 15 184 215 316 1 0 1999 STL 98 195 57 10 0 6 16 28 17 26 292 353 436 1 1 2000 STL 86 133 28 4 1 6 31 28 7 34 211 255 391 1 0 |
| He had a disappointing season that included a demotion to the minors during the summer. He's 36; he doesn't do many things well, and he also doesn't do them consistently. If I were a General Manager looking for a fourth outfielder, Howard's name would not be high on my list. |
| Mike James (34, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 ANA 0 0 11 0 0 0 0 14 10 7 12 193 1999 INJURED - DID NOT PITCH 2000 STL 2 2 51 0 0 0 2 51 40 24 41 316 |
| James once was a good setup man with the Angels, but he missed almost two full seasons following surgery on his arm. The Cardinals took a chance on him last year, and he proved to be a valuable member of their bullpen. He's a good pitcher, but his health is a major question mark. |
| Darryl Kile (32, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 COL 13 17 36 35 4 1 0 230 257 96 158 520 1999 COL 8 13 32 32 1 0 0 191 225 109 116 661 2000 STL 20 9 34 34 5 1 0 232 215 58 192 391 |
| Kile is a wonderful pitcher who discovered that pitching in Colorado is about as fun as having your teeth pulled without anaesthetic. He made a great comeback last year, and should be even better in 2001. |
| Steve Kline (29, L) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 MON 3 6 78 0 0 0 1 71 62 41 76 276 1999 MON 7 4 82 0 0 0 0 70 56 33 69 375 2000 MON 1 5 83 0 0 0 14 82 88 27 64 350 |
| Kline was a workhorse in Montreal, leading the league in games pitched the past two seasons. He was acquired by the Cardinals after the season; I expect that LaRussa will keep him in a more limited role, and not let him face so many right-handers, who tend to hit him hard. |
| Ray Lankford (LF, 34, L/L) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 STL 154 533 156 37 1 31 94 105 86 151 293 391 540 26 5 1999 STL 122 422 129 32 1 15 77 63 49 110 306 380 493 14 4 2000 STL 128 392 99 16 3 26 73 65 70 148 253 367 508 5 6 |
| Lankford's numbers dropped a bit, though he still had a pretty solid year. He has struggled his whole career against left-handers, and last season was particularly bad, batting only .135 against southpaws. At this stage in his career, he should be a platoon player; he can still be a formidable player in that role. |
| John Mabry (OF/3B, 30, L/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 STL 142 377 94 22 0 9 41 46 30 76 249 305 379 0 2 1999 SEA 87 262 64 14 0 9 34 33 20 60 244 297 401 2 1 2000 SEA-SD 96 226 53 13 0 9 35 32 15 69 235 287 398 2 1 |
| Following two bad seasons, Mabry somehow managed to get another 200 at bats - and had another bad season. His batting average has now dropped for five straight seasons; his plate discipline is bad and getting worse. Perhaps it's time to look for another option? |
| Eli Marrero (CA, 27, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 STL 83 254 62 18 1 4 28 20 28 42 244 318 370 6 2 1999 STL 114 317 61 13 1 6 32 34 18 56 192 236 297 11 2 2000 STL 53 102 23 3 1 5 21 17 9 16 225 302 422 5 0 |
| His 1999 season was a spectacular disaster; last year was only slightly better. I imagine that the Cardinals have run out of patience with Marrero's bat, and will probably keeping an eye out for better options. |
| Mike Matheny (CA, 31, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 MIL 108 320 76 13 0 6 24 27 11 63 238 278 334 1 0 1999 TOR 57 163 35 6 0 3 16 17 12 37 215 271 307 0 0 2000 STL 128 417 109 22 1 6 43 47 32 96 261 317 362 0 0 |
| The new Kirt Manwaring, Matheny surprised everyone by playing on a regular basis, and having his best year with the bat. It was all for naught, however, as he sliced his hand open in September in a freak accident, and missed the playoffs. Even in a career year, he wasn't much of a hitter; Matheny is a good defensive player, but I really wouldn't want him to play every day for my team. |
| Mike Matthews (27, L) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 AAA 9 6 24 23 0 0 0 130 137 68 86 463 1999 AA-AAA 3 7 36 11 0 0 0 71 73 43 44 624 2000 AAA 3 1 9 9 0 0 0 52 33 32 50 312 |
| Matthews has been pitching in the minors for a long time, without much success. His left-handedness got him a look with the Cardinals, but he injured his left hand and went on the 60-day DL. Realistically, he has little chance of having a career. |
| Quinton McCracken (OF, 31, S/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 2000 AAA 85 334 87 18 2 2 54 28 34 57 260 322 344 13 7 |
| McCracken's first year in Tampa Bay was big fun, but the last two have been miserable. He missed most of 1999 with injury, and when he came back last year, he discovered that his job had disappeared. He spent most of the Durham... and didn't have much fun, hitting only .260. He'll be looking to rebound with the Cardinals as a fourth outfielder, and he could probably do the job as well as Willie McGee did for about a decade. |
| Keith McDonald (CA, 28, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 AAA 58 170 54 8 0 7 21 22 10 30 318 363 488 1 1 1999 AA-AAA 88 276 84 17 0 7 41 41 35 60 304 388 442 2 0 2000 AAA 83 266 70 15 0 5 34 30 28 59 263 333 376 0 2 |
| McDonald makes his living as a spare catcher at Memphis. He's not bad at what he does, and even got a chance to bat a few times for the Cardinals. If you need a third-string catcher, McDonald is as good as anybody. |
| Mark McGwire (1B, 37, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 STL 155 509 152 21 0 70 130 147 162 155 299 470 752 1 0 1999 STL 153 521 145 21 1 65 118 147 133 141 278 424 697 0 0 2000 STL 89 236 72 8 0 32 60 73 76 78 305 483 746 1 0 |
Incredibly, McGwire was on pace to have his best season before he was derailed by a bad knee. Health is his biggest question mark entering the 2001 season; I wouldn't worry too much about his age, since even a sharp decline in his numbers would still leave him among the best hitters in the league.Name GM AB HT DB TP HR RN RBI BB AVG OBA SLU SB MMcGwire 1777 5888 1570 248 6 554 1119 1350 1261 267 398 593 12 MGrace 1910 7156 2201 456 43 148 1057 1004 946 308 386 445 67 RPalmeiro 2098 7846 2321 455 36 400 1259 1347 935 296 372 516 88 FMcGriff 2055 7352 2103 372 20 417 1176 1298 1136 286 381 512 70 WClark 1976 7173 2176 440 47 284 1186 1205 937 303 384 497 67 CFielder 1470 5157 1313 200 7 319 744 1008 693 255 345 482 2 Here is another update of the six first basemen who were born between September 9, 1963 and September 24, 1964. Fielder is long gone, and Clark has retired as well. McGriff and Grace both had off-years, and McGwire was hurt. Only Palmeiro put together a big season. |
| Matt Morris (27, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 STL 7 5 17 17 2 1 0 113 101 42 79 253 1999 INJURED 2000 STL 3 3 31 0 0 0 4 53 53 17 34 357 |
| An outstanding young pitcher, Morris missed all of the 1999 season after having surgery on both his elbow and shoulder. Ouch. Last year he came back, and pitched well in the bullpen. It's probably best to keep him in long relief for a couple of years, then wait and see how his arm holds up. If he is healthy, he can play a key role on any pitching staff. |
| Craig Paquette (1/3/OF, 32, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1999 STL 48 157 45 6 0 10 21 37 6 38 287 309 516 1 0 2000 STL 134 384 94 24 2 15 47 61 27 83 245 294 435 4 3 |
| After the Cardinals' dealt Fernando Tatis, it was reported that they would replace him with Placido Polanco and Craig Paquette. Sure they will; when was Craig Paquette good enough to replace anybody? He is versatile, and has a little power, but doesn't do much else. He should only get 150 at bats in a season - and that may be too much. |
| Eduardo Perez (1B/3B, 32, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 2000 AAA 77 277 80 12 3 19 57 66 43 48 289 383 560 10 3 |
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Eduardo spent the early part of the season beating up on pitchers at Memphis; he's another guy who could have had a glorious opportunity to play when McGwire was hurt, but he developed chronic knee problems, and made a couple of trips to the DL. He can hit a little, but his chances to play are going to dwindle as he ages. ADDENDUM: Perez was sold to Japan. Happy trails. |
| Placido Polanco (IF, 25, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 STL 45 114 29 3 2 1 10 11 5 9 254 292 342 2 0 1999 STL 88 220 61 9 3 1 24 19 15 24 277 321 359 1 3 2000 STL 118 323 102 12 3 5 50 39 16 26 316 347 418 4 4 |
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Polanco had a pretty good year for the Cardinals, hitting .316 and playing good defense at second, third and short. The Cardinals have dealt Tatis, and I read somewhere that they would platoon Polanco and Paquette at third, though since they are both right-handed I don't know how well that would work. More likely, they'll just make Polanco the regular. Polanco will certainly improve the defense at third, but otherwise I am skeptical. He doesn't have power or speed and he doesn't walk, so even if he hits .300 he doesn't put many runs on the board. His long-term future may be at short; he is a year younger than Renteria, and is probably a better defensive player. |
| Scott Radinsky (33, L) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 STL 6 6 62 0 0 0 13 61 63 20 45 263 1999 STL 2 1 43 0 0 0 3 28 27 18 17 488 2000 INJURED |
| A good pitcher, Radinsky appeared in only 1 game with the Cardinals, then spent the rest of the year on the DL with elbow problems. He's had serious arm trouble before; at age 33, it seems unlikely that he will have much of a comeback in him. |
| Edgar Renteria (SS, 26, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 FLO 133 517 146 18 2 3 79 31 48 78 282 347 342 41 22 1999 STL 154 585 161 36 2 11 92 63 53 82 275 334 400 37 8 2000 STL 150 562 156 32 1 16 94 76 63 77 278 346 423 21 13 |
| He's only 25, but he hits like he's 35. He's losing speed while developing power; he's also increasing his walk totals while cutting down on the strikeouts. The only thing that Renteria has been unable to do is raise his batting average, which has remained steady for four straight seasons. He's a solid shortstop, very durable, and he's certainly capable to playing better. |
| Jose Rodriguez (26, L) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 A 2 4 40 0 0 0 0 39 47 19 30 458 1999 AA 1 2 30 0 0 0 0 36 38 25 30 325 2000 AAA 4 2 40 0 0 0 3 47 48 19 37 380 |
| Tony LaRussa loves left-handed relievers, and Rodriguez has been groomed as such. But he gets hit hard, and his control isn't very good. The Cardinals have also acquired Steve Kline; I expect that Rodriguez will be back at Memphis in 2001. |
| Luis Saturria (OF, 25, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 A 129 462 136 25 9 12 70 73 28 104 294 341 465 26 15 1999 AA 139 484 118 30 4 16 66 61 35 134 244 299 421 16 8 2000 AA 129 478 131 25 10 20 78 76 45 124 274 340 494 18 11 |
| Saturria made his big-league debut with the Cardinals last season, getting 5 at bats. He isn't a prospect; he has poor command of the strike zone, and hasn't even faced Triple-A pitching to this point. He has both power and speed, but at this point is a poor base stealer. |
| Bud Smith (21, L) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 R 3 3 14 14 0 0 0 64 85 34 65 518 1999 A 8 10 27 27 0 0 0 157 144 48 152 292 2000 AA-AAA 17 2 27 26 3 3 0 163 133 42 136 226 |
| The Cardinals' current left-handed phenom, Rick Ankiel, had a few problems throwing strikes last year. Their next one, Bud Smith, threw nothing but strikes for both Arkansas and Memphis. He's only 21 years old; there doesn't appear to be any reason why he won't become an outstanding pitcher. |
| Garret Stephenson (29, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 PHI 0 2 6 6 0 0 0 23 31 19 17 900 1999 STL 6 3 18 12 0 0 0 85 90 29 59 422 2000 STL 16 9 32 31 3 2 0 200 209 63 123 449 |
| LaRussa and Dave Duncan rescued Stephenson's career, and he rewarded them with 16 wins. Like Kile and Benes, he gives up a lot of home runs... but then, the Cardinals hit a lot of home runs as well. I like his chances of having an even better season in 2001. |
| Larry Sutton (1B/OF, 31, L/L) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 2000 AAA 95 347 89 21 2 12 61 70 67 56 256 377 432 4 1 |
| When Mark McGwire was injured, the Cardinals had the option of replacing him with Sutton... but they didn't go for that. Instead, he spent most of the year at Memphis, and didn't hit very well. I can't see him ever getting much playing time again. |
| Mike Timlin (35, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 SEA 3 3 70 0 0 0 19 79 78 16 60 295 1999 BAL 3 9 62 0 0 0 27 63 51 23 50 357 2000 BAL-STL 5 4 62 0 0 0 12 65 67 35 52 418 |
| St. Louis will be the first team that Timlin has pitched for where he won't be expected to be the closer. This may help; he has pitched well for most of his career, but his confidence and reputation have both taken hits because of his various misadventures trying to close games. If he can settle into a setup role in LaRussa's bullpen, he'll be okay. |
| Dave Veres (34, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 COL 3 1 63 0 0 0 8 76 67 27 74 283 1999 COL 4 8 73 0 0 0 31 77 88 37 71 514 2000 STL 3 5 71 0 0 0 29 76 65 25 67 285 |
| An outstanding pitcher, Veres is now with his fourth team, and he has pitched very well for all of them (even Colorado). He's starting to get a little long in the tooth, but for now I would say that he is a safe bet to come back with another fine season. |
| Fernando Vina (2B, 32, L/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 MIL 159 637 198 39 7 7 101 45 54 46 311 386 427 22 16 1999 MIL 37 154 41 7 0 1 17 16 14 6 266 339 331 5 2 2000 STL 123 487 146 24 6 4 81 31 36 36 300 380 398 10 8 |
| Vina is a little guy who gets on base and plays spectacular defense at second. He also gets hits by lots of pitches, including a career-high 28 in 2000. He's an underrated player, and an important part of a good team. |
| Dave Wainhouse (33, R) |
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YEAR TEAM WN LS GP GS CG SH SV IP HIT BB SO ERA 1998 COL 1 0 10 0 0 0 0 11 15 5 3 491 1999 COL 0 0 19 0 0 0 0 29 37 16 18 691 |
| Another pitcher whom the Cardinals rescued from the Rockies, Wainhouse pitched very poorly at Memphis, then went on the DL with "right shoulder discomfort". His career is probably over. |
| Jason Woolf (SS/OF, 24, R/R) |
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YEAR TM GM AB HT DB TP HR RUN RBI BB SO AVG OBA SLU SB CS 1998 AA 76 294 78 22 5 4 63 16 34 84 265 358 415 28 5 1999 AA 86 320 87 18 4 8 46 15 28 86 272 345 428 11 3 2000 AA-AAA 77 268 64 13 3 3 43 19 35 63 239 340 343 12 11 |
| Woolf is a young prospect with the Cardinals; he joined the big club in September, but didn't get a chance to bat. To be honest, that first at bat may still be a long ways away. He doesn't do anything well at the plate, and doesn't appear to have a defensive position. No potential for the future. |