Cardinals chat with Derrick Goold
Bring your Cardinals and MLB questions and comments, and talk to Post-Dispatch baseball writer Derrick Goold in a live chat starting at 11 a.m.

3rd & 7 37yd
3rd & 7 37yd
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Agreed. I've had this conversation several times with folks in the Cardinals organization and even a couple of the players. I was glad that Rick Hummel recently wrote an article about Lilliquist and his influence on this pitching staff. Wacha's new pitches? Taught to him and urged upon him by Lilliquist. The work Gonzales has done to expand the pitches he has is from Gonzales. Elevated fastballs? Lilliquist. Garcia's fastballs? Lilliquist. He has a feel for not just how to scout opponents but also how to improve the pitchers he has. Deserves a lot of credit.
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If the Tigers put Price on the market, I would think they'd want back guys who could contribute to winning in 2016 since they have so many expensive veterans still on the team. So while the Dodgers/Cubs might be able to offer prospects, could the Cardinals build a package around Lance Lynn? I like Lynn but he still has two years on control left at a manageable salary and is a proven workhorse which the Tigers would clearly need in 2016-2017 without Price. From the Cards standpoint, trading Lynn would offset around a third of the salary Price would command to re-sign. Plus with Wainwright, Wacha and Martinez locked in for 2016, possibly Lackey, possibly Garcia, possibly Marco, possibly Cooney and Reyes around a year away, they may be able to absorb losing Price as a free agent without return. Any thoughts on this?
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I cannot think of a reason to trade Lynn and his contract for two months of any pitcher. That would be a tremendous help to the Tigers, and leave the Cardinals exposed. It might sell more jerseys -- Price would move merchandise, as they say -- but it won't win more games.
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Kelly was claimed quickly because there is a time limit on waivers. It's not perpetuity. Kozma's place on the 40-man roster is because -- how to put this so I can help ... -- he's the handcuff for Peralta. Let's use Fantasy Football terminology. When you take a RB in Fantasy Football, you sometimes take his backup or his backup's backup so that you're covered in the case of injury. Same with QB, right? That's called a handcuff, and it's a strategy that also used in the real world. The Cardinals have steadfastly maintained that their only option in the organization if Peralta misses a significant amount of time is Kozma.
Argue that point if you want. And some have. Some have asked it often of the organization.
The Cardinals view hasn't changed. Kozma is the handcuff. -
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No. That's not fair to say. We haven't seen other players go off and do winter leagues when coming back from injury. The Cardinals could just be content with him having a normal winter and getting ready for spring. If he feels he needs to make up for these at-bats -- and he hasn't said he does -- then he can approach the team about winter ball, but I don't think this is a given. It would be unusual.
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I get the sense from prior chats that you believe the Cards are unlikely to pick up Jaime's 2016 option. You seemed to indicate they would want a reworked deal with appearance incentives. Am I warm? Would you say there is very little chance that the Cards will pick up his 2016 option?
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That's exactly what I've said. Multiple times. They would want some protection in there because of his track record of injury. That hasn't changed. Two months isn't going to change that. Look at this way. Say the Cardinals have room in their budget for a starting pitcher in 2016 and 2017. And they do. Garcia has two options, triggered independently, that will pay him $11.5 million in 2016 and $12 million in 2017.
Would you prefer the Cardinals ...
a) Take those options as written and have Garcia for two years, $23.5 million?
b) Sign John Lackey to a two-year, $23.5 million extension?
Which offers the larger likelihood of return? Now, if you rework the deal for Garcia where the guarantee is lower and the potential earning is the same, then the discussion changes because Garcia has to make starts and avoid the DL to maximize his earning potential. That's the protection I'm talking about. -
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The mantra these days seems to be "just make the playoffs and anything can happen"' i.e. Royals, Giants, Cards, etc. With that in mind, could the Cards just stay the course and not make any moves? At this point they are all but guaranteed to make the playoffs and any reason that would change that couldnt be remedied with a trade any how.
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That's more than a mantra -- that's a sound strategy. It's one that has been around for a lot longer than those teams. It goes back to 2004 when Theo Epstein articulated that as the way he looked at things for the Boston Red Sox. Survive the marathon. Then see what happens. Trades are about surviving the marathon, so you could easily see how the Cardinals would argue they have the depth to survive and see what happens. There are still holes to patch however that could cost them in the near-term.