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St. Louis Cardinals

2012 – Second in the NL Central

Record : 88-74

The Cards were in a unique position heading into the 2012 season. Having won a riveting World Series the previous year, the Red Birds lost not only their iconic manager in Tony LaRussa, but the face of the franchise, with Albert Pujols leaving via free agency.

There was certainly no doubting the fact that the loss of Pujols would be tough, but equally it was evident that they were a play-off calibre team without him. This off-season was one of relative stability. Lance Berkman was the only major departure, with little in the way of arrivals. All of this equates to the Cardinals being there or there about come late September.

INCOMINGS

SS/2B Jake Lemmerman – Trade (LAD)
IF Ronny Cedeño – Free Agent (NYM)
IF/OF Ty Wigginton – Free Agent (PHI)
LHP Randy Choate – Free Agent (LAD)

OUTGOINGS 

1B Lance Berkman – Free Agent (TEX)
2B/OF Skip Schumaker – Trade (LAD)

Outfielders

Matt Holliday and Carlos Beltran are the star duo of the Cardinals outfield. With a combined 563 homers and 13 All-Star appearances, the pair are clearly still a threat despite approaching the twilight years of their respective careers. They will be accompanied by Jon Jay, who hit .307 with a team-leading 19 stolen bases last year.

The versatile pairing of Ty Wigginton and Matt Carpenter are the main reserves, however both can play infield, so the fourth outfielder spot may well belong to Shane Robinson. The 28-year-old batted .253 in 102 games for St. Louis last season, while Oscar Tavarez is the no.1 prospect in the system and could see time with the Cards this season if he continues his domination of the Minor Leagues. He hit .321 with 23 homers at Double-A in 2012 and has impressed in Spring Training.

Infielders

There may be no Albert Pujols or Lance Berkman and now, sadly, there will be no Rafael Furcal. The 35-year-old will miss the season following surgery and his loss will be a big blow to the Cards infield that otherwise lacks experience.

Allen Craig and David Freese had outstanding 2011 play-offs and they both built upon that last season and are entrenched in the Cards line-up. Craig had a spell on the sidelines but still managed 22 homers in 119 games, batting .307. Freese knocked 20 long balls with a .293 average. The infield pairing is a potential weakness. Daniel Descalso hit just .227 last year but is solid defensively, while Peter Kozma has made only 42 appearances in the Bigs.

Matt Carpenter could force his way into the starting line-up at second base, especially following the recent release of veteran Ronny Cedeno. Matt Adams could also make the roster as a bench player, having impressed in Spring following a brief stint in the Majors last season.

Catchers

Yadier Molina is one of the finest catchers in the game. He batted .315 last year, hitting 22 homers. With nearly 1100 games for the Cards, an injury free season will see the 30-year-old overtake Tim McCarver and move in to second place in the all-time catcher appearance list for the storied franchise. His back-up will be Tony Cruz, with veteran Rob Johnson another option.

Starters

The big starting rotation news for St. Louis is the injury to Chris Carpenter, who may end up calling it a career. Adam Wainwright will be the Opening Day starter. He rebounded well from a missed 2011 season, ending up with a 3.94 ERA in 32 starts. Matheny will be hoping he can take a further step forwards this time round.

Jaime Garcia and Jake Westbrook had almost identical numbers last year. Both players missed some time with injuries with Garcia recording a 3.92 ERA and 1.36 WHIP, while 35-year-old former Indians pitchers Westbrook numbers were 3.96 ERA and 1.39 WHIP. Lance Lynn was a pleasant surprise after moving into the rotation, with his 18 wins being a team high. The youngster went 18-7 with a 3.78 ERA.

The back end of the rotation is up for grabs. Youngster Shelby Miller could be the favourite. The 22-year-old had a 1.32 ERA in just 13.2 IP last season after recording a 10.6 K/9 in Triple-A. Joe Kelly started 16 games last season and performed admirably and will be in with a shout. Four of the top nine prospects in the system are starting pitchers, so the future certainly looks bright, but with a rotation that has a long history of injuries, it wouldn’t be surprising to see a couple of them at Busch Stadium this summer.

Relievers

Jason Motte grabbed 42 saves in his first year in the role, having tasted it slightly the previous year. With a 0.92 WHIP and 10.8 K/9 he’s certainly the man for the job, but the Cards do have bullpen depth.

Randy Chaote, the veteran of the staff at 37, and Marc Rzepczynski will be the lefties in the bullpen. The latter struggled slightly last season (4.24 ERA and 1.35 WHIP) and will need to improve on those figures. Mitch Boggs and Edward Mujica combined for 2.60 ERA last year, while phenom Trevor Rosenthal, just 22, has definite closer material.