The most important recruiting angle for this upcoming season is how much the highly ranked classes Drinkwitz secured in the past pay off and play out on the field. If that goes well in this pivotal fourth season, then recruiting will be trending well moving forward. If not, there could be a change. That's the reality. The transfers incoming look promising enough. A bunch of Power 5 types that should be relatively familiar with the level of play in the SEC. Few will be more important than the Jake Garcia add at quarterback. The Miami transfer was a highly touted QB out of high school but he didn't win the job down there despite an injury to the starter ahead of him. Then again, the perception of the Miami program is that it wasn't getting the most out of its offense or its players. If Drinkwitz is bringing a guy in and risking upsetting the apple cart, he will expect that QB to have a chance to start. Most important position on the field.
We'll be doing some features on the B-hawks from time to time. I don't think the plan for now is to have daily coverage.
Correct. "Season of opportunity," is the unofficial tagline the team is selling. Not World Series, here we come.
It's a little bit of both. The Cardinals right now have six top-100 prospects, not according to the Cardinals, according to the prospect-ranking gurus. It's an impressive wave that should be coming. That said, yes, the Cardinals do love their faberge eggs. Always have. Always will. A draft-and-develop team that hopes to fill from the inside and supplement from the outside as needed is always going to tend to hope for the best from internal options.
Getting crushed on the boards game in and game out doesn't help. It's not going to be a strength of this team. I get it. But it's gotta get a little better. You can't get out and run when you're giving up a ton of second, third and sometimes even fourth-chance opportunities to the opposing offense. Missouri is averaging more than 11 steals per game but in conference play the Tigers are surrendering one of the weaker field goal and 3-point percentages to opponents in conference play. If the ball is going in a lot, you have to settle for more half-court sets and fewer chances to get out and run.
I think it's wise to feel that way. One alternative would be if teams are looking to dump salary and take fewer compelling prospect to offload cash at that time. But again, fewer teams looking to punt after playoffs expand.
I wouldn't make any decision on it today, because none is needed. If he has another season like this past one, I'd perhaps feel differently than I do today. No need to rush it. Arenado same thing. The Cardinals should consider extending them both if they keep proving they're going to hold up well, but no need to rush it.
I'm aware. I was there at winter meetings covering it. My answer was about how the ask the Cardinals got for Murphy can't fairly be compared to what the Braves did, because the Cardinals moving on to Contreras changed the scenario. I don't think the future for either of those pitchers is set in stone at this time. But this year is significant for both in determining their direction.
The Cardinals are viewing Jordan Walker as a corner outfielder now, and have suggested they're not going to ask him to play center, which is probably wise. The starting outfield the Cardinals have suggested to start is Tyler O'Neill (left field), Lars Nootbaar (center) and Dylan Carlson (right). Alec Burleson (left-handed hitter) and Juan Yepez (right-handed hitter) are corner outfield and DH types who have already debuted. If Walker secures a spot on the team, one of these guys mentioned above probably feels the pinch through getting sent to Memphis or traded. Injuries could also happen that affect things. They are an unfortunate reality.
Graceffo has hopped ahead of him, per the MLB.com rankings. Liberatore's performance last season left a lot to be desired but I don't think the Cardinals have cut bait in any way, shape or form. Big season ahead for him.
If the Cardinals are going to have a Hall of Fame manager, I think it's going to have to come via someone growing into that role on the fly. I don't see this version of the front office bringing in a manager from the outside who from the jump gets a ton of say about the team building and roster construction side of things. Maybe Marmol can get more say in that as he builds up his track record. I think Shildt was trying to work his way there, but he got on the wrong side of the front office and got dumped because of it.
Will FredBird put on pants? Hope so.
I don't see too many guaranteed spots in this bullpen, especially not for Gallegos, who lost that spot last season. Between the fringe starters who are going to quickly find out they are really competing for bullpen spots and the young guys who are eager to get to the majors as soon as they can, the jostling for bullpen spots should be pretty compelling. The Cardinals were wise, I think, to not clog the competition with contracts to veteran free agents who would feel like they had a spot guaranteed.
I've never paddled it up. Maybe that needs to change. My dad is into it a little bit. I have friends who play. Anyone want to let me join their team? Could be a good column!
I think you answered your own question. Still quite young. Still lots of promise. The game speed was a bit too fast for him last season at the MLB level. He's going to dig into play-calling and game-management stuff this season and it should help him moving forward. There is going to be a nice chance for a young, developing player to get some good playing time during the Contreras contract. That could be Knizner this season. Could be Herrera. The Cardinals have depth to deal from if they decide to later, and they have done that before with Carson Kelly. The Cardinals say they are still high on Herrera's future, but he wasn't quite ready yet.
Getting fed up about continued immediate postseason ejections would be the only thing. And their patience is a lot longer than some of their fans. This offseason tested the patience. The model remained unchanged.
The most important recruiting angle for this upcoming season is how much the highly ranked classes Drinkwitz secured in the past pay off and play out on the field. If that goes well in this pivotal fourth season, then recruiting will be trending well moving forward. If not, there could be a change. That's the reality. The transfers incoming look promising enough. A bunch of Power 5 types that should be relatively familiar with the level of play in the SEC. Few will be more important than the Jake Garcia add at quarterback. The Miami transfer was a highly touted QB out of high school but he didn't win the job down there despite an injury to the starter ahead of him. Then again, the perception of the Miami program is that it wasn't getting the most out of its offense or its players. If Drinkwitz is bringing a guy in and risking upsetting the apple cart, he will expect that QB to have a chance to start. Most important position on the field.