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3rd & 7 37yd

Carlos Rodon got a six-year deal despite his injury history. Jacob deGrom got five years of crazy money despite serious injury issues. So it goes. I'd like to see the team go into the season with a six-man rotation and the sixth man being an established veteran -- but the front office has not shared my view.

by Jeff Gordon 12/16/2022 7:14:11 PM
Word on the street is Arenado left $100 million on the table by not opting out. Seems reasonable in this market. What I don’t understand is why? At least make the Cards pick up half or 75% of the diff before agreeing to stay. Surprised that MLBPA didn’t step in on this Tom Foolery. MO/DeWitt have had 2 lucky breaks fall their way for stars while others are having to buy them. Seems unsustainable…

by Ryan P 12/16/2022 7:17:49 PM
The Cardinals are paying their top players big money deep into their 30s. Will they join the movement to pay top players into their 40s? That seems unlikely. If anything this latest trend will likely encourage the Cardinals to double down on their commitment to player development.

by Jeff Gordon 12/16/2022 7:20:40 PM
Happy Friday Gordo,

In your biased opinion was the Sheikh's territory in Detroit, better than the Sam Muchnick St. Louis territory?

by Bobo Brazil 12/16/2022 7:20:44 PM
The Original Sheik had a pretty good run in Motown/Michigan/Northern Iowa, especially when he was able to draw in NWA stars from other regions like Dory Funk Jr. to spice things up. And I loved Pampero Firpo, the Wild Bull of the Pampas. The Stomper and Ben Justice vs. the Kangaroos was tag team gold. Detroit aligned nicely with Toronto for talent crossover. But the Sheik did not have Bruiser Brody and Rick Flair in their heyday,, so I'll give props to Sam and the STL. The trouble with the Sheik was he was the booker and the star heel. His matches were often short and usually predictable with the fire tossing, the pencil jabs and some forehead gnawing. As he got older he couldn't work much and his cards got stale. God bless Bobo Brazil for propping him up for many years, but finally the promotion just aged out due to the lack of upcoming talent.

by Jeff Gordon 12/16/2022 7:28:29 PM
by Jeff Gordon via YouTube 12/16/2022 7:31:09 PM
Yepez, Gorman, Burleson, Nootbaar, Walker, O'Neill, Carlson, Winn, Donovan can't all play at the same time... or even be on the roster at the same time. So when will the team stop hoarding prospects and deal while values are high so they don't get caught holding another DeJong?

by South City Steve 12/16/2022 7:31:27 PM
Well, they can avoid getting stuck with a bad contract like DeJong by not signing them to a bad contract. Make sure they have staying power before making the commitment. Most of the Cardinals you listed could be on the roster at the same time, but, yes, at some point the DH-types must be sorted. And I have no doubt that some of those DH types have been made available in trades. If they all make it to spring, then there will he a heck of a competition for big league at bats.

by Jeff Gordon 12/16/2022 7:34:52 PM
Bernie Miklazs wrote the following It’s swell that speed-skating forward Jordan Kyrou has 10 goals this season … problem is, the Blues have been outscored by 20 goals when he’s on the ice at even strength. He doesn’t take care of the puck, and that’s an issue. After averaging 1.71 giveaways per 60 minutes at 5-on-5 last season, Kyrou has turned it over 3.13 times per 60 minutes this year. That’s the fifth-worst rate among NHL forwards that have played a minimum 400 minutes at 5v5 this season.

If you think Kyrou believes an acceptable work ethic is optional now, just wait until his new contract kicks in next season, when the Blues will be on the hook to pay him an average of $8.125 million per season through 2031. Related observation: there’s a lot of bad-contract baggage on this team, eh?

I know I am supposed to love this kid as the next coming of Brett Hull but I can't stand to watch him and I am a Blues fans from the early years.

by Liz 12/16/2022 7:35:24 PM
I guess you hated Kyrou's star turn Thursday night.

by Jeff Gordon 12/16/2022 7:35:48 PM
I see/hear the name Pablo Lopez surface a lot. He had a 4.97 second half ERA last year and if you factor in June/early July it was higher than that. He feels like an Ozuna 2.0 trade. I'd rather see them pay more for a rock-solid proven commodity.

by South City Steve 12/16/2022 7:37:00 PM
In his last four starts last season Lopez allowed just six runs in 26 1/3 innings. His second-half stars were skewed by really bad starts on July 31 and Sept. 10. He met the quality start metric is six of his last eight starts.

by Jeff Gordon 12/16/2022 7:41:37 PM
What's the plan for deyong? They won't cut bait with him even though he is below avg. Other teams move on from bad contracts

by Ron 12/16/2022 7:41:43 PM
The Cardinals moved on from a worse contract with Dexter Fowler. If Paul DeJong doesn't regain his stroke next season, he will hang on as a defensive replacement or get bumped off the roster if enough of the young guys are hitting well.

by Jeff Gordon 12/16/2022 7:43:57 PM
Contreras was not my first choice but I hope he does great and I feel the Cardinals marketing department is delighted because he should sell tickets. My question is do you know how much ticket sales are factored in when the Cardinals sign a player? Do they look at Contreras and think he will cost 87 million but we can subtract 20 million because he will sell that much in tickets and concessions? The management probably could of signed a true #5 bat and a gold glove Catcher like Roberto Perez or Tucker Barnhart for less money. Thank you very much as I find your articles and chats very informative.

by RacerX 12/16/2022 7:44:16 PM
The Cardinals use expected attendance as a gauge for spending. The team projected an attendance dropoff in 2022 from pre-pandemic norms because the world changed. That impacted spending. A late sales surge with Pujolsmania restored attendance, giving the team confidence to resume spending at the pre-pandemic level. So in a broad sense, business projections impact the payroll budget. But I believe the Wainwright Farewell Tour is expected to generate more money than the Contreras signing.

by Jeff Gordon 12/16/2022 7:47:16 PM
If DeWitt would engage in a win now approach, which is about as likely as a falling sun, who says no first? Jordan Walker and a pic choice between Carlson or Gorman to Miami for Sandy Alcantara? I would even add Liberatore to make the deal. Pure speculation, nonetheless, way off base from an even trade perspective? I’m not interested in Lopez. The Cards should aim higher.

by Jack 12/16/2022 7:47:53 PM
I'm not sure why the Marlins would deal arguably the NL' s top pitching asset, a guy under an affordable contract for at least four more year, for some offense. so the Marlins say no first unless they are stupid.
Jordan Walker has star potential, for sure, if Miami ever deal Alcantara the return would have to be epic.

by Jeff Gordon 12/16/2022 7:50:57 PM
That was a really good hockey game last night. It shows you how good a coach Chief is. He botched the line up thing yelled to the team"that's on me!" then instructed them or demanded from them to go play hard and compete. He's just good. The team never quit last night until they won. It was impressive. That said to play at that intensity night in and night out is just not realistic. Even if they tried by the end of the year half the roster would be injured. NHL is a ridiculously demanding league way to many games. Dig what I'm screaming?

by Roy Hobbs 12/16/2022 7:51:38 PM
Actually the Blues did play at that pace for half a season and into the playoffs. That's how they won the Cup. They stepped the gas and stayed on it.

by Jeff Gordon 12/16/2022 7:52:18 PM
As of right now, the Cards whole season comes down to Flaherty and O’Neill being their best and not getting injured. Good luck!

by Tackleberry 12/16/2022 7:52:32 PM
That's an odd observation. There are multiple outfield candidates with big offensive upside, although a couple of them are defensively limited. Flaherty is important to the pitching staff, but so are Matz (14-7 in 2021), Mikolas, Montgomery and Wainwright.
And, as always, the Cardinals will be prepared to make the sort of in-season adjustments they made last year if players get hurt or fall into prolonged slumps.

by Jeff Gordon 12/16/2022 7:57:02 PM
Would you be surprised if an extension of some sort is not worked out with Goldy by opening day?

by Nick N 12/16/2022 7:57:13 PM
No.

by Jeff Gordon 12/16/2022 7:57:18 PM
Jeff, having suffered through the left-wing lock, neutral zone trap, and today's age of massive goalies wearing oversized pads that make it look like the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man is in the net, did you ever think you'd see a player reach 800 goals again?

by Bobo's Pet Monkey 12/16/2022 7:57:48 PM
Russian Machine Does Not Break! I am surprised the the Great 8 is taking legitimate aim on Wayne Gretzky's record. The man is a freak to keep doing what he does at his age.

by Jeff Gordon 12/16/2022 7:58:49 PM
I was thinking that this Blues season was going to turn into the 1990 Cardinals, where a core with pending FA's suddenly hit the wall after a period of extended success. I don't think anything is going to come easy for them but now I don't see the wheels falling off either. What is your gut feeling on their outcomes between now until the trading deadline?

by Will 12/16/2022 7:59:24 PM
My best guess is that the Blues will hang around the playoff chase but not play so well that Doug Armstrong hangs on to all of his veterans with expiring contracts. Unless the Blues look like a legit Cup threat, I see at least one big move coming.

by Jeff Gordon 12/16/2022 8:00:36 PM
Parity is often cited as a good thing in sports, but is what we're seeing in the NHL this season, especially in the West, better described as mediocrity? Every team has a hole or an inability to cover for injuries due to a lack of depth, and while it's made for a bunch of teams close to each other in the standings, it's also generated some unappealing hockey to watch. Was the league's decision to maintain the cap following the pandemic a mistake from an entertainment standpoint?

by Bobo's Pet Monkey 12/16/2022 8:00:58 PM
Maintaining the cap is a matter of business survival. The NHL has paltry TV money compared to the other major leagues. As for the poor play in the Western Conference, that's just a case of some injuries (Colorado!) and lot of good players not playing especially well. What's Nashville's excuse? What's Calgary's excuse?

by Jeff Gordon 12/16/2022 8:03:11 PM
Gordo, joining late. Rodon’s contract did not seem as steep as I thought. The Cards could have matched that, no?

by Jake the Snake 12/16/2022 8:03:56 PM
Rodon's deal would have pushed the Cardinals payroll well over $200 million for 2023 and Bill DeWitt Jr. gave no indication that would happen. But could the team have afforded that without getting into financial duress? Yes.

by Jeff Gordon 12/16/2022 8:04:58 PM
Jeff, don't you think it would be fairer if the NHL awarded points for games this way?

Win - 3 points
Shootout Loss - 2 points
Overtime Loss - 1 point
Regulation Loss - 0 points.

Thanks.

by Roy Earl 12/16/2022 8:05:13 PM
In soccer the winning team gets 3 points and if tied both receive 1 point each. In hockey, with no ties allowed due to a short overtime period and then a shoot out each team still is guaranteed at least one point. Still don't get why the NHL does not award 3 points for an outright win in regulation?

by Nick N 12/16/2022 8:05:14 PM
A lot of people agree with that.

by Jeff Gordon 12/16/2022 8:05:23 PM
You see this Alexandrov kid is doing well on both his call up and AHL games. We might have another 20 goal scorer there. Now when they call him up play him top 9 not 4th line where he won't develop properly. I guess Neighbors confidence is a bit shaken?

by Roy Hobbs 12/16/2022 8:05:35 PM
Jake just need to adapt to the strength of the grown-man game and the speed of the NHL game. He can at least work on the former while in the AHL. He plays the game the right way, but he still needs to get stronger and a bit quicker on his skates.

by Jeff Gordon 12/16/2022 8:06:49 PM
You feeling it for Rolen to be getting that welcome call from a Cooperstown area code phone number in a few weeks?

by Nick N 12/16/2022 8:07:51 PM
His support has been trending that way.

by Jeff Gordon 12/16/2022 8:08:01 PM
Gordo, curious to hear what you think the return would be for ROR and Vlady. Are either worth a first rounder?

by Babych for Blues HOF 12/16/2022 8:08:19 PM
As noted earlier, the standard price for such assets is a good young player, a premium draft pick and another asset. The quality of the draft pick would tied to the quality of the young player.

by Jeff Gordon 12/16/2022 8:09:21 PM