OK, Bobo is here. Let's see if we can get this rolling today. No shortage of topics!
I can't imagine that Delvin Perez has much trade value, given his inability to progress offensively. He seems likely to time out as a prospect and fall by the wayside. I also doubt that other teams see Lars Nootbaar as more than a defensively capable fourth outfielder at this point. Juan Yepez has trade value for sure because teams asked about him in the offseason. He would be a tough guy to give up, given his offensive upside. I'm not sure where the front office stands on Alec Burleson, but his progress combined with Yepez's progress does create a potential logjam. Jake Woodford would have some value now that he has stretched out with a capable showing in his last Triple-A start. He has developed on schedule. Teams with a quality starting pitcher (like the A's with Frankie Montas) with surely target Zack Thompson and/or Matthew Liberatore.
Oliver Marmol's withering assessment of Drew VerHagen after Thursday's loss made you wonder if we're about to see a shuffling of relievers on the roster. Marmol does not sugarcoat his views. Marmol has been more optimistic about TJ McFarland's potential to overcome his bad first half because the team detected a better sink on his sinker.. But like Marmol likes to say, it's all about production . . . and McFarland could find himself on the clock if doesn't produce outs after getting back to work.
That is an optimistic view -- especially for the longer haul, when the SEC will make conference scheduling even tougher with Texas and Oklahoma coming aboard. In the near term the Tigers will need surprising good quarterbacking from relatively unproven players. But Coach Drink is going at this full tilt and he has filled a lot of immediate needs both on the recruiting trail and in the transfer portal. He has driven fundraising and he's helped Mizzou move into the brave new world of high-end college football. I believe has the right coach, but you can't underestimate how hard this job has become.
The Cardinals haven't spent much on this middle relief corps, which is part of the problem. This is not the place to cut costs. As noted week after week in the offseason, this team needed to meet the goal of loading the bullpen with high-leverage relievers. The way the game is managed now, you need at least a half-dozen guys who can be trusted with a late lead. Right now the Cardinals have three with Giovanny Gallegos, Ryan Helsley and Genesis Cabrera. Zack Thompson and Johan Oviedo have chipped in with some nice work, but it's safe to say this team needs to add a couple of high-leverage relievers before the trade deadline.
He pitched in one big league game this year and just 21 2/3 innings at Triple-A. His career MLB ERA is 5.22. At 31, he is who he is. If he wants to pitch in Memphis on a minor league deal, maybe there would be a spot there.
That is probably a fair assessment. That's why the team needs Jack Flaherty to translate the strength he feels in his shoulder into more consistent performance. His competitiveness got the best of him when he persuaded Oliver Marmol to let him work his way back at the big league level instead of doing more time in the minors.
The Cardinals certainly could have afforded a $22.5 million-per-year pitcher with the payroll they had in place, even with those other decisions. But Bill DeWitt Jr. would need lots of convincing to throw that kind of money at a free-agent pitcher these days, given the MLB pitching attrition rate that is only getting more severe.
Marmol is using Albert as a part-time player. And that part could get even smaller if the Cardinals ever have their full lineup again. Juan Yepez just keeps hitting, so he should see more DH work against lefties if the team is back to 100 percent at the corner infield and outfield spots.
Sure, the Dodgers would love Carlson. But that that has take big injury hits on its pitching staff. If the Cardinals trade a player of Carlson's caliber, the pitcher coming back needs to Top 3 in this rotation now and either under contract or team controlled for several years.
He gives Goldschmidt and Arenado the occasional days off from the field to keep the fresh for the 162-game grind. Goldschmidt's nagging back issue is a factor in that as well. Marmol is just being smart.
As I was telling a Mizzou fan just yesterday, I really liked what little we got to see of Brady Cook last year. He can run and he can throw it. But I have no idea how any of these guys will bear up against SEC defenses. And if the coaches were being honest, they would likely say the same thing. We won't know until the winner of the preseason competition gets under fire for real.
Yeah, the Ozuna trade is a familiar topic in this chat. The price for that two-year rental proved to be beyond ridiculous.
Well, this guy can play in pain. He has done for years. He hates sitting out. And now he's sitting out, so we can only assume that after a few decades of catching that knee is killing him.
The Cardinals have dramatically outperformed their peer franchises on his watch. You keep pretending otherwise, but that's the reality. You hate the fact that the team has stayed in the division chase again while also stacking up promising young talent. The reality is the organization's talent base is stronger than it has been in some time. Given the number of expiring contracts, the Cardinals are set up to sustain this run of perennial contention for some time. To suggest that the president of baseball operations is the weak link in such a successful baseball operation doesn't make much sense.
No, I do not have Apple TV.
I love Jaccob Slavin and his $5.3 million cap hit for three more seasons is very team friendly. But Vladimir Tarasenko will be working under an expiring contract next season and I'd be surprised if he would embrace a trade to Carolina. And why would the Canes trade a defensive cornerstone for a rental forward?
The Cardinals have given away some runs this season while playing infielders in the outfield. It's OK to spot guys out there here and there, but when Tyler O'Neill is healthy there is no reason to do much of that. Nolan Gorman has held up OK at second base, but ideally he would log most of his time at DH.
Of course I agree. It's just a money grab. They can say that embracing gambling is just a way to enhance spectator enjoyment, but that is a money grab too.
It's June. Giving key everyday players a full day off or a day off from the field in June is an investment in the bigger games to come in August, September and October.
