Biggest Offseason Additions
Jhonny Peralta
One of the more unexpected, but beneficial signings of the offseason goes to the Cardinals, who locked up Peralta on a four-year deal worth $53 million. The deal is for a bit more than expected, but the Cardinals were able to lock up one of the most-consistent hitting utility men in the game, and his services are still up in the air as far as where he’ll be needed most.
With the loss of David Freese and Carlos Beltran the Cardinals have the option of moving Peralta over to right field unless manager Mike Matheny feels that a shift of Jon Jay to right would be more beneficial with the addition of Peter Bourjos in centerfield, which could ultimately move Peralta to third or shortstop in place of the offensively stagnant Pete Kozma. Moving him here would also entail that leadoff hitter Matt Carpenter would shift to third, leaving second base open for the newly acquired Mark Ellis or Daniel Descalso. Seriously, the Cardinals have a lot of options to work with here.
Even though Peralta is only a .268 career hitter, it’s within the last three seasons that he has turned it up, hitting at least .299 in 2011 and 2013 while striking out less than 100 times and making the All-Star Game roster each year.
In 11 seasons as a member of the Cleveland Indians and the Detroit Tigers Peralta has played in 161 Interleague games (exactly a full season minus one game) in which he is hitting .308 with 19 home runs and 77 RBI against the National League. Impressive.
Obviously the one bit of bad luck going for both parties is that Peralta was suspended for 50 games in 2013 for being named in the Biogenesis debacle; however, like all parties involved, he didn’t actually test positive for PEDs. Hopefully the implication is only that.
Peter Bourjos
The Cardinals have been hurting for an outfielder with speed since Reggie Sanders was last with the team in 2005. Even though the trade they made with the Los Angeles Angels cost them their hero of 2012 in Freese, the amount of potential in Bourjos, especially at the NL level, is exponentially greater.
Bourjos can easily swipe at least 25 bases and average double digits in triples per season just as long as he’s able to keep his strikeouts underneath 100. Bourjos’ best season came in 2011 when he played in 147 games and led the league with 11 triples while maintaining a .271 average along with 12 home runs and a .765 on-base plus slugging percentage.
Since then Bourjos’ numbers have taken a dip, as has his playing time thanks in part to Mike Trout. The move to the Cardinals may help ease the pressure of trying to play better than one of the most-gifted athletes of the last 20 years who also happens to be the guy fighting for playing time against (Trout). If anyone can use him effectively, it’s Matheny.
Biggest Offseason Losses
Chris Carpenter
Carpenter’s retirement was bound to happen, but not for at least another year or two. Unfortunately for him, the Cardinals and the fans the injuries finally caught up. The hole that Carpenter leaves is rather interesting mostly for the sake that the Cardinals are stacked, as far as starting pitching is concerned, with the likes of Adam Wainwright, Shelby Miller, Michael Wacha, Joe Kelly and even Lance Lynn. Realistically, one more season with Carpenter as the one or the two starters would have provided valuable insight for the likes of the young up-and-coming pitchers.
Nonetheless, the legacy that Carpenter leaves behind will be a tough one to match. Even though he has 15 years in the Majors, the first six years of his career with the Toronto Blue Jays were average at-best, but the last nine with the Cardinals is where he truly showed his talent: 95-44 with a 3.07 ERA, 1,085 strikeouts, three All-Star Game appearances, two World Series rings (2007 and 2011) and a NL Cy Young Award in 2005.
Carlos Beltran
For the last two seasons Beltran was an offensive dynamo: .282 with 56 home runs and 181 RBI. He’s a 300 stolen base/300 home run guy and he’s also one of the most clutch postseason hitter of the last 20 years. His glove was decent, just as long as it wasn’t hit with enough force over his head. Beltran will be a huge loss in the lineup, but it won’t be the end of the world.
The Cardinals may see a dip in team home runs and team RBI, but the team average will stay about the same. The hole that Beltran leaves could in fact be filled by Allen Craig, a former outfielder, and his spot at first base could be filled by Matt Adams.
Both players finished third and fourth in regard to home runs, behind Beltran and Matt Holliday, and both also managed to average .284 or better on the season. In short, Beltran is a great player and a definite addition to any team; however, the Cardinals are one of the few fortunate teams who always have quality guys waiting in the wings.
David Freese
Freese had his worst season (statistically) in 2013 to the tune of a .262 average, nine home runs and 60 RBI. Over the previous four years his average never dipped below .293; then again, 2012 was the first season in which he played in over 97 games (144).
Even though 2013 was a bit of a down year for Freese, his clutch hitting and reliability at third base will surely be missed, plus there is that whole playoff thing he was relied upon prior to this last season. Even though his numbers in 2011 and 2012 (.297/five home runs/25 RBI) were much better to build hype around, his numbers in 2013 (.179/one home run/four RBI) hardly caused a ripple, which is one of the prime reasons why he became expendable in the offseason.
Nonetheless, two great seasons out of three plus one World Series championship/MVP should have been enough to keep him on the roster. In theory it will be easy for the Cardinals to replace the All-Star with the crop of talent they have, but he will most certainly be missed down the stretch.
Name to Watch in Spring Training: Michael Wacha
Even though he pitched more than the minimum 45 innings to qualify for the 2014 NL Rookie of the Year Award in 2013 (64 2/3 innings), Wacha was still one of the most dynamic pitchers of the last season. In nine starts (15 games total) Wacha dazzled with a 4-1 record, 2.78 ERA, 65 strikeouts, a 1.098 WHIP and he even threw a one-hitter against the Pittsburgh Pirates in Game Four of the NLDS.
With the loss of Carpenter, Wacha will be THE guy who will have to step up to be a dependable two or three starter in the rotation, as he certainly has the confidence and talent in his game to back up Wainwright. At only 22-years-old Wacha has the potential to be one of the next great pitchers in the league who can lock down one or more Cy Young Awards, just as long as Los Angeles Dodgers’ pitcher Clayton Kershaw doesn’t get greedy and hog them all.
Biggest Spring Training Battle: Retooling the Roster
The problem with having too many stars on any given ball club is trying to find a valuable place for every one of them. Even though the Cardinals lost only two players in the field (Beltran- right field and Freese- third base), the replacement the team added far exceed the need.
For starters, the addition of Peralta gives Matheny a lot to work with due to the fact that he can play almost every position in the infield as well as the corners of the outfield. Then you have the addition of Ellis at second base, the addition of Bourjos in the outfield and the fact that they already have Matt Carpenter who can play at second, first, third and in the outfield as well as Craig who can play at first base and in the outfield as well.
None of these players and position possibilities leave any doors open for the likes of infielders Kolten Wong or Kozma, This is one of the few times where Spring Training will surely come in to play as to see where each player, new and old, will thrive in 2014. The only real downside of any of these moves is that the Cardinals don’t have the luxury of the DH, which will hit them hard as the power-hitting Adams will be spending most of the season on the bench except in pinch-hitting scenarios. One thing is for sure, Matheny has his work cut out for him this season.
What Went Right in 2013
Everything went right for the Cardinals in 2013, with the exception of their loss in the World Series in six games to the Boston Red Sox. Five players hit .296 or better, three of their starters finished the season with 15 or more wins, four of their starters finished with ERA of 3.06 or less and Matt Carpenter really stole the show by leading the league in doubles (55), runs (126) and total hits (199).
Biggest Areas of Improvement in 2014
General Manager John Mozeliak made some tough choices during the offseason, but at least every move he made benefitted the team. The one move which may come back to bite them is the fact that Mozeliak only offered Beltran a one-year qualifying offer, as opposed to the three-year deal the New York Yankees offered him when he elected to file for free agency.
This decision is what ultimately pressured Mozeliak to trade Freese for Bourjos to fill in the empty spot in the outfield. Had that not happened and Beltran re-signed, Peralta would have been the only likely acquisition, maybe Ellis as well, to provide more offensive depth at the shortstop position. Instead, Bourjos will likely be leading the outfield at center, Holliday will stay at left field and Craig will be taking over for Beltran.
This is bad for Jay, who has been THE guy at centerfield since 2010, but unfortunately boasts a .219 career postseason slugging percentage which is tied for the worst with Yankees’ manager Joe Girardi for the worst in MLB history.
Overall Spring Training Preview
Even with the few changes that Mozeliak and the Cardinals made, there is little-to-no doubt that the Red Birds will repeat as NL Central Division champions. The amount of depth that the Cardinals possess dates back to the early 1920s when then-manager Branch Rickey developed the first farm system, becoming the first real general manager the game has seen.
As a result the Cardinals have been deeply invested in making start draft, developing their players for five-to-ten years down the line. Realistically, any year the Cardinals don’t win their division is a bit of a surprise, but with the pitching they have these days alongside clutch, consistent and power-hitting, it’s hard to count them out.
The other important thing to note going into 2014 is that the Cardinals are the only team in the NL Central to not go through a massive overhaul. The Chicago Cubs and Cincinnati Reds both have new managers, the Milwaukee Brewers lost a few important guys, but also gained Matt Garza and a newer, cleaner Ryan Braun and the Pirates lost Garrett Jones, Marlon Byrd and A.J. Burnett. It’s really the Cardinals’ division to lose.