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Health & Fitness

Are You Comfortable with the Cardinals' Starting Rotation?

Cardinals rotation

With snow on the ground, it’s reassuring to know that spring training has arrived and baseball is once again under way.  As the Cardinals fine tune their opening-day roster in the next several weeks, observing what players emerge from the exhibition season as pleasant surprises, it’s disconcerting at the moment to consider their potential starting rotation for the 2013 season.

To put it mildly, the starting situation is very much in limbo at this moment.  The veteran leader of the staff, Chris Carpenter, will most likely miss the entire season and, in fact, may not play in the Major Leagues again due to his arm problems.

Further, the Redbirds’ bellwether performer, Adam Wainwright, is now in the final year of his current contract.  For the third year in a row (Albert Pujols in 2011, Yadier Molina in 2012), the Cardinals enter the season with a star player on the verge of playing out his contract.

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 Sure, negotiations between owner Bill DeWitt and general manager John Mozeliak with Wainwright’s agent have been cordial to date, and both sides hope for a new contract to be forthcoming soon.  But, until such an event actually happens, it’s certainly possible that Wainwright will become a free agent after the season and potentially sign with another team.

 The Cardinals continue to invest hope and funds in lefthander Jaime Garcia.  When Garcia is concentrating and when his health is fine, he can be formidable.  Too many times, however, history has shown us that his fragile psyche can unravel after a fielding error or a questionable call by a home-plate umpire, not to mention arm problems that have occurred and left him unable to perform.

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 What about Jake Westbrook?  Sure, he’s been relatively consistent for the Redbirds and has stayed healthy more often than not.  However, facts are facts, and Westbrook’s career statistics are those of a .500 pitcher, one who loses nearly as often as he wins.  He may be good at piling up innings and having an occasional outstanding game, but historically Westbrook is more suited to the ‘filler’ kind of role in a starting rotation.

So what about the Cardinals’ heralded crop of young, speed-balling hurlers?  Trevor Rosenthal was particularly impressive last year, especially out of the bullpen, but the Redbirds are intrigued with the prospect of his 100-mile-per-hour fastball being added to their starting arsenal.  He could be terrific, or maybe not so much.

Likewise, Joe Kelly has some solid credentials behind his name, and handled himself admirably for much of last season when called upon in an emergency.  Can he replicate that effort in 2013?  What about Lance Lynn?  Does the slimmed-down version of the hard-throwing right-hander figure to be as fearsome as he was in the first half of 2012?  And can highly touted prospect Shelby Miller seriously vie for a spot in the rotation after just a couple of seasons in the minors?

All of which leads us to the curious case of Kyle Lohse.  One of the very best pitchers in the National League last year, Lohse finds himself rather surprisingly available as the calendar approaches March.  A big reason for that is that any team other than the Cardinals to sign the free agent would need to relinquish a first-round draft choice to the Redbirds, which apparently is quite the deterrent.

Additionally, Lohse is represented by the abrasive and hard-bargaining agent, Scott Boras.  The Redbirds know full well the frustrations of attempting to negotiate with Boras, who also represented Pujols two years ago and played a part in Albert defecting to the Los Angeles Angels in Anaheim.  And, in 2006, Boras convinced Cardinals’ World Series hero Jeff Weaver to leave the Redbirds for a bigger contract elsewhere.

Still, the Cards could sign Lohse at a very reasonable cost, especially if no other team steps forward and is willing to give up a high draft choice for him.  Lohse has been absolutely terrific in the Cardinal rotation when healthy, and signing him for one year would seem to be a prudent move at this point.

The season hasn’t even started, but the strategic wheels are moving surely forward, both on the field and in the front office.  To be continued.

Evan Makovsky
HOST, THE E-MAK SHOW
Weekdays 6AM-9AM Central
KXFN 1380 AM St. Louis, MO

http://twitter.com/followemak
www.emakshow.com
www.sportsradio1380.com

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