If the Cardinals just use Nolan Gorman against righties, he can get plenty of work at DH. There is plenty of skepticism about his fielding ability at second base, so we'll have to see if he can be more than a spot starter over there. Edmundo Sosa can hit lefties, so there would be no point in putting Gorman in unfavorable matchups once this team gets healthy.
Good point. Both are big guys with the ability to use that size along the walls, but neither does it as consistently well as Alexei Toropchenko does.
This assumes Plan B, Edmundo Sosa, doesn't pan out. He has hit pretty well as a starter the past two seasons. He has a good glove at shortstop and he gives the Cardinals additional speed on the base paths.
If the bidding gets too high on Ville Husso, that could happen. The Blues can't keep everybody and David Perron is making a great case to get paid again. I believe the Blues would love to have both guys and kick the decision can down the road, but the salary cap will make that difficult.
Torey Krug made the trip to Colorado, but only to continue his rehab work with the trainers. I would be surprised if he played in this series.
Good question. Maybe we could line up Matt Carpenter and Paul DeJong for a panel discussion on this topic.
Remember that Scott Perunovich came back from wrist surgery and walked right into the playoffs without much preparation. That is not ideal. Back in November he had five straight games with 18+ minutes of ice time. He was a regular through much of that much and December.
Juan Yepez has been taking regular turns in the corner outfield slots. And he hasn't looked horrible out there.
Major League Baseball struck that deal with Apple TV, not the Cardinals. And it was worth $85 million to split up among the owners.
To win a Stanley Cup, a team has to go into the playoffs with its act together and then it must find ways to keep getting better and better and better. That comes organically -- with the players rising up collectively -- as it did for the Blues in 2019. Or it doesn't. Having veterans with Cup experience helps the transformation for sure, but year after year the Blues employed some of hockey's all-time greats, leaders with remarkable playoff track records . . . and the team could not get over the hump until 2019.
If Gorman plays second, that bumps Edman to shortstop.
Nolan Gorman will get a look at second base. This is where he has been playing in the minors. But you are right, there is a offense/defense balance to consider. Right now Oliver Marmol is leaning toward offense with his configuration. Personally, I would use Edmundo Sosa most of the time at shortstop, leave Tommy Edman at second base for most games and make Gorman the DH against righties. Albert Pujols could DH against lefties, pinch hit and make the occasional start at first base.
Given is playoff success and desire to finish his career here, I'm guessing the Blues try to re-sign him to a contract that fits their pay structure. But he wants to chase the last dollar as Alex Pietrangelo did, there could be more cash out there from another team.
Say, this isn't a paid endorsement, is it?
Yeah, the 2019 playoffs saw the top seeds take groin shots left and right. Facing this Colorado team in the second round is tougher than facing that Dallas team -- and the Blues came an inch away from losing that series to the Stars. So, yes, this potential path is harder?
No, Joe Thornton plays for the Florida Panthers. Or, in the playoffs, he is a healthy scratch for the Panthers.
There are paths to keeping the 40-man roster in order. But Nolan Gorman's best role for this team is to be the lefty DH and Juan Yepez can provide outfield depth, so it's easy to imagine a scenario where Corey Dickerson loses those roles on this team.
Yes, Juan Yepez has played 13 innings at first base this season.
I believe it would take a severe off-field transgression to get Fredbird fired. And frankly, I don't want to envision what such a transgression would look like.
If the Cardinals just use Nolan Gorman against righties, he can get plenty of work at DH. There is plenty of skepticism about his fielding ability at second base, so we'll have to see if he can be more than a spot starter over there. Edmundo Sosa can hit lefties, so there would be no point in putting Gorman in unfavorable matchups once this team gets healthy.