Two Links and a Reminder

Here we are still four days away from the Super Bowl, and I’m already sick of the thing.  Luckily, there are guys like Bernie Miklasz, of the Post Dispatch, that can somehow mix in a little baseball with his media day coverage.  He talks about Tony LaRussa’s relationship to Patriot’s head coach, Bill Belicheck.  It’s an interesting read.  Find it here.

Next, as we continue to count down the days until Spring Training, looking for our daily baseball fix, be sure to read Matthew Leach’s take on the “muddled” starting rotation of the St. Louis Cardinals in his weekly “Around the Horn” segment.

And, if you haven’t done so already, voice your expectations of Mark Mulder by casting a vote in the poll question on the sidebar.  One day left.

Are You Kidding Me?!

Pujols is in the news again.  Phillies’ first baseman, Ryan Howard, is arbitration eligible, and is comparing himself to Cardinals’ slugger Albert Pujols.  Apparently, there is a $3 million difference in exchanged figures for the arbitration case, but Howard is seeking a long term deal worth somewhere between Pujols’ contract and Alex Rodriguez’s last bounty. Just the thought of this makes me laugh.  I understand that the market has changed since Albert’s signing, but Ryan Howard should never, ever be compared to either of the other two superstars.  Howard isn’t even the best player in Philadelphia.  Here are a couple of links to the story.  If you’re an ESPN Insider, click here.  If not, get a quick summary from MLB Trade Rumors here.  Be sure to check out the comments after the latter, too. There’s some funny stuff there.  I thought about comparing the numbers of Howard and Pujols for you, but I don’t think that’s necessary.

In the rest of the baseball world, one of the most anticipated moves of the off season occurred today.  The Minnesota Twins finally traded their ace, Johan Santana, to New York for four of the Mets’ top prospects. Marty Noble has the full story.  Perhaps now we’ll see the remaining starting pitching trade candidates moved, as well as the remaining free agents picked up.

Wellemeyer Avoids Arbitration

The Cardinals reached an agreement with the last of their arbitration eligible players today.  Pitcher, Todd Wellemeyer signed a one year, $1 million contract, which includes $100,000 in possible incentives for starts or innings pitched.  Rick Hummel has the full story here.

Wellemeyer was picked up off waivers from Kansas City last May.  After joining the club, he posted a 3.11 ERA in 63.2 innings.  As a swing man, Wellemeyer made 11 starts, nine of which were won by the Cardinals.

With all the question marks in the Cards’ pitching staff, a guy like Wellemeyer can be quite useful.  I have a feeling he’ll play a big role this season, and should have no trouble collecting his incentives.  He’ll be competing for the fifth spot in the rotation with Anthony Reyes, Brad Thompson, and others.  Out of the bullpen, Wellemeyer would assume the role once held by Josh Hancock.

I’m excited to see what Todd can do in a full season with the Redbirds.  Pitchers and catchers report in seventeen days.

More on Spring Training

The excitement of buying my Spring Training tickets has yet to wear off. This spring is my third year of attending the games in Jupiter, which is only an hour from my place.  My excitement, along with the lack of Cardinals news, allows me to take this time to get a little personal.

I moved from St. Louis to South Florida in March of 2006.  The move was kind of an “all-in” situation, where not making it wasn’t an option. Although times were tough at first, and we were counting our pennies, saving enough for a Spring Training game was a must.

I’ll never forget that first game.  We enjoyed a few beers as we waited for the gates to open.  I had heard good things about Roger Dean Stadium, but this was my first experience.  I remember thinking how small the concourse and vending area was as I passed through the entrance.  I guess I was comparing it to a major league park.  I made a quick stop at the beer cart before climbing the few steps to the seating area.  At the top of the staircase my breath was taken away.  It was amazing.  I couldn’t believe how close the field was. The proximity of the players was unreal.  At that moment, I thought, I’ll be back here often.

Since that first game, I’ve enjoyed several trips to Jupiter, as well as a few other ballparks within driving distance.  The more I learn about Spring Training, the better it gets.  I’ve seen the AB hitch, clydesdales and all, marching around the warning track just as they would in St. Louis.  I’ve seen all the stars, as well as the prospects, trying to shake off the winter rust.  I’ve gotten countless autographs from Cardinal greats, including Hall of Famer, Bob Gibson.  Now that I know what to expect, I’m more excited about camp than ever before.

For those who haven’t been to a Spring Training game, I couldn’t recommend it more.  You don’t know what you’re missing.  If you can’t make it down to Florida, I’ll do my best to provide you all the insights I can. As I said in yesterday’s post, I’ve already purchased tickets to four games, and I’m sure I’ll attend more.  I’ll take a ton of pictures, and do everything I can to give you an idea of all the happenings from camp.  If there’s anything in particular you’d like to see or hear about, please email me, or leave me a comment.  

Spring Training Tickets and More

Cardinals Spring Training tickets went on sale this morning at 8am.  If you’re anything like me, you were sitting in front of the computer, credit card in hand, waiting for the hour.  I bought tickets to four games so far, but don’t worry if you haven’t ordered any yet.  Check out Stubhub.  There’s a link in the sidebar, and they’ll have plenty of good tickets still available.  I hope to see you in Jupiter.

Speaking of Spring Training, the non-roster invitee list is out.  NRIs are players not on the roster, but who’ll be in camp either getting an extended look from the coaching staff, or competing for a spot with the club. There are quite a few intriguing names on the list, including top prospects Colby Rasmus and Bryan Anderson.  Matthew Leach has the full story here.

Also, be sure to check out Leach’s latest “Around the Horn”.  He discusses the new look outfield here.

Finally, the Cardinals have announced their television schedule on Wednesday.  FSN Midwest of course gets the bulk of the load, while KSDK returns to televise 20 games, all in high definition.  You can get all of the information here.

Mark Mulder Expectations

It seems as though the Mark Mulder situation has many Cardinal fans feeling uneasy.  As we all know, Mulder’s return date of opening day was already pushed back to May 1st.  Now, that date seems unlikely.  Mark has yet to start throwing off a mound, and has only been throwing at a distance of 45 feet.  He says he feels good, but is reluctant to set a timetable for his return.

“Estimates did good for me last year, huh?” Mulder said Monday.  ”People can put a date on it if they want.  My body and my arm will tell me when they’re ready.”

Read the full story here.

What can we expect from Mulder in 2008?  It’s nearly impossible to predict how he’ll perform, and projections get tricky for pitchers that missed so much time.  Mulder only made three big league starts in ‘07 after pitching about a half season in ‘06.

Here’s what the projections from ZIPS and Bill James look like:

                       W      L      GS     IP     ERA

ZIPS                 7     11      24    144    5.06

Bill James        7      9      23    143    4.34

Fangraphs has the entire projection lines, along with his career stats here.

Are these numbers realistic?  Was Mulder’s 7.69 ERA over the last two years due only to him pitching hurt? We can only hope.  Every Cardinal fan has been waiting to see the “old” Mark Mulder since he arrived in St. Louis in 2005 (His ‘05 numbers would have been the best on the staff last season).  He says he’s never been a whole pitcher as a Cardinal and still hopes to show fans what he can do.  What’s your opinion?  Cast your vote in the poll question in the sidebar, and as always, comments are welcome.

He Can Hit Anything

I dug up this old video game commercial for your viewing pleasure.  Enjoy!

Welcome Back, Mike Matheny

The anticipation and excitement for Spring Training has just gotten bigger.  Former Cardinals catcher, Mike Matheny, will head to Jupiter, Florida, to help instruct for the first two weeks of training camp.  Rick Hummel has the full story.

“This would be a foot in the door,” said Matheny, who has previously expressed an interest in coaching.

Matheny played for the Cardinals from 2000-04.  Not known for his bat, he collected four Gold Gloves during the course of his career, which was cut short by a series of concussions and their after effects.

Cards’ newest multi-millionaire, Yadier Molina, attributes a lot of his defensive success to Matheny.  The two split time behind the plate in ‘04.

Cardinal backup Jason Larue said of Molina, “He’s got one of the best arms in the game and has learned how to handle pitchers from watching Mike Matheny.”

Mike helped the Redbirds to four postseason appearances in five years, and was one of the biggest clubhouse leaders during his time in St. Louis.  After the departure of shortstop David Eckstein, Matheny’s old jersey number, 22 is available again.

“I don’t care about that,” said Matheny.  ”The one that counts is the logo across the chest.  It’s great to be back.”

It will be great to see him back.  I can’t wait to see Matheny and Molina standing together again with the Birds on the Bat.   To me, this story ranks right up there with the return of Rick Ankiel.  There are very few Cardinals from the recent past that are as respected as Mike Matheny.  Welcome back.

A Few Quick Links

The news of Yadier Molina’s new contract has finished making its rounds though the Cardinals’ corner of cyberspace.  As I read others’ reactions and opinions of the deal, one article in particular, really caught my eye.  The sabermetrics guys over at Fungoes further analyzed Molina’s effect on the running game (or lack thereof).  It’s an excellent read with somewhat surprising results.  Find it here.

A few other stories surrounding the ball club surfaced over the last couple of days, including Albert Pujols banning a local media team from a press conference.  C70 has his take, and all of the links here.

Lastly, Bud Selig was in St. Louis last night for the annual baseball writers’ dinner, further addressing the steroid issue, as well as the growth of the sport.  Tom Timmermann has the full story here.

Cards Lock Up Molina

The Cardinals inked catcher Yadier Molina to a four year contract today worth a guaranteed $15.5 million.  Molina will make $1.75 million in 2008, $3.25 million in 2009, $4.25 million in 2010, and $5.25 million in 2011.  The contract also includes a $250,000 signing bonus, and an option for 2012 worth $7 million.

“I love being a Cardinal,” Molina said.  ”I had to take it because I love being here. I love playing here in this beautiful city with the best fans.  Anybody can take that deal.  It’s great.  I feel happy.”

I think this is an excellent move.  Yadier is still only 25, and is arguably the best defensive catcher in baseball, although it seems as if the Gold Glove voters haven’t yet figured it out.

“There’s no reason you shouldn’t see some Gold Gloves from this kid,” Cardinals back-up catcher, Jason LaRue said.  ”I as surprised he didn’t win won this (past) season.  This kid has got some unbelievable tools behind the plate.”

Molina’s cannon of an arm, combined with his fantastic footwork and record glove-to-hand transfer time, completely shut down the opposition’s running game.  Most around the Cardinals’ organization say his best asset, however, is his game calling and handling of the pitching staff.

“Yadier is the best catcher in the game, period,” Cardinals pitcher, Adam Wainwright said.  ”The fact he has never won a Gold Glove is a joke.  And I’m sorry to anybody who voted for the other guy.  I know Russell’s good, but Yadier Molina is a blessing.  He just changes the game in so many ways.”

Molina has started to come around with the bat too.  After helping the Cardinals to a World Series championship in ‘06, hitting .358 in the playoffs, including a .412 average in the Series, Yadi followed with a strong 2007, hitting .275 with 6 home runs.

Now that he’s locked up long term, the team may opt to use their top catching prospect, Bryan Anderson, as a trading chip.  For more on the Molina signing, visit the Post Dispatch, here.