***Offical 2012 STL Cardinals World Champions Thread ***
 

St. Louis Cardinals: 7 reasons fans should feel good about 2012

Posted Wednesday, October 24, 2012, at 9:26 PM

St. Louis Cardinals fans are likely feeling deflated after the collapse that put an end to the team's dreams of a World Series repeat, but there is good reason to be excited.

With all of the odds against them, the Cardinals managed to push their 2012 season beyond any anticipated boundary.

Given all of the season's changes and the adversity the team had to fight through, the fact that they played in October at all was an anomaly in itself. On paper, it made sense for the Cardinals to be in the playoffs, but few saw them as a true threat.
As the season continued, even fans began to doubt as they watched the team seemingly crumble in June and July. When the Cardinals finally came to life in September they went 11-5 in the last 16 games of the season to lock up the second Wild Card position in its inaugural year.

That run, despite it's crushing end in Cincinnati in Game 7 of the National League Championship Series, lots of good came from the Cardinals' season and playoff run.
Following in no particular order are 10 reasons Cardinals fans have to be excited about the 2013 season.

Trevor Rosenthal
When rookie fireballer Trevor Rosenthal made his first trip to St. Louis, it was obvious almost instantly that he was something special.
Between his 100 mph fastball and the general inability for almost anyone to hit off of him, he became a huge part of the Cardinals playoff run.

He pitched in a total of 19 regular season games before the 22-year-old rookie from Lee's Summit, Mo. got his first taste of postseason baseball and he put on quite a show.
In 8.2 IP over seven postseason appearances, Rosenthal held opponents to only two hits and no runs.
It's possible that down the stretch he may have already earned his spot in the rotation for 2013.

Shelby Miller
The long-coveted fastball pitching prospect Shelby Miller also made his first trip to St. Louis in 2012 and put on a good show.
In 13.2 IP over six regular season games, Miller surrendered only two runs on nine hits. His postseason performance was more of the same with two runs on four hits in 3.2 IP.

Despite a dismal first half of the season in Memphis, Miller got himself together and still managed to make one major league start before the end of the season -- a very impressive start at that.
Against the Cincinnati Reds in the final game of the regular season, Miller posted 5.2 hitless innings. He gave up no runs and collected his first major league win.

Expect to see a lot more of Miller in St. Louis early in 2013.

Joe Kelly
When Joe Kelly made his major league debut on June 10, few could have guessed the importance he would play throughout the remainder of the 2012 season.
Kelly started 16 games for the Cardinals this season filling in for Jaime Garcia and Lance Lynn, but it was the postseason when he really came through for his teammates.

When starting pitchers struggled time and again in October, it was Kelly who came to their rescue.
In seven postseason appearances, Kelly threw 7.2 innings and surrendered only two runs on six hits. Kelly came through for the Cardinals from the bullpen.
There's a good chance that could be his home in the future.

Mike Matheny
When the Cardinals hired Mike Matheny to take over for Tony LaRussa, many question bringing in a manager with no experience to such a storied franchise.

He had a few hiccups and growing pains along the way, but for a rookie manager to get his team where Matheny did this year speaks volumes.
His players have a strong respect for Matheny and credit his positive style with being a driving force behind their 2012 success.
True, he didn't get them through the NLCS, but the team made it to an all or nothing Game 7. That's good experience for the players obviously, but also for Matheny. Not only did he learn a lot about managing in the media pressure cooker that is postseason baseball, he also got a taste of what it felt like to win as a manager.

NLCS loss means more drive to win
While the NLCS loss was a good lesson for a young manager, it's an even more important lesson for a young player.
The 2011 championship lit a fire under young players like Lance Lynn and Jon Jay. That fire helped drive them to extremely successful sophomore seasons.

What happened in 2012 will likely do the same for Rosenthal, Miller and Kelly. Their 2013 season may not be like Jay or Lynn's 2012, but now they've gotten a little taste of what it feels like to be a winner.

Both the excitement and the public humbling can be a great experience for any young player.

The run was without several key components
In a season riddled with injuries, none were as crucial as those late in the season.
The loss of Lance Berkman and Rafael Furcal significantly weakened the team's bench. Instead of having Pete Kozma, Allen Craig and Matt Carpenter to pinch hit, the team wound up having to use them in the lineup.

The loss of Jaime Garcia and Jake Westbrook also rocked the Cardinals. Instead of having Lynn and Westbrook also available from the bullpen, Lynn was pushed back into the rotation after a very successful NLDS bullpen stint.

Having gotten as deep into the playoffs as the Cardinals did in spite of the injuries is quite the accomplishment.

They did it without Pujols, LaRussa and Duncan
Few in the world of sports gave the Cardinals a fighting chance when Albert Pujols left the team to play on the west coast. Surely this team couldn't be as good as they were?

Few gave them a chance after longtime manager Tony LaRussa decided it was time to retire.
Few gave them a chance after pitching coach Dave Duncan left the team.
The Cardinals did it despite all of that. That's something any fan should be proud of.

No, they didn't hoist a trophy. There will be no parade or tickertape.
What there is, though, is hope for next year and that will come sooner than you may think.
After all, pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training in just four short months.

From a blog I was sent on twitter: http://www.dailystatesman.com/blogs/...es/entry/50051

Duncan to leave Cardinals to be with his wife while she battles cancer.

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/baseb...9bb30f31a.html

No thanks to Jackson.


We have Miller and Martinez coming on. No thanks.

I'll gladly take Oswalt for a year, though.

I've had my fill of Jake Westbrook.

Yes to Oswalt.

Why not? I'm sure it will be cheap. He can't expect to be handed a starting job but will have to earn it. Maybe a good long reliever? Spot starter?

Its gonna be weird to see the dugout and not see Tony or Pappa Dunc.

Pappa Dunc being gone is gonna impact far more than the absence of TLR.

That being said, thoughts and prayers to the wife.

I want Oswalt!

or dave mckay coaching 1st.
sec

The St. Louis Astros!

Yes! :thumb:

Was surprised to see that Duncan was staying in the first place. He needs to be with his wife. I do agree that the dugout will be much different.
Lets hope Matheny knows what the hell he is doing...

Just actually read the linked story about Duncan - just glancing at the headline, I thought it was temporary. Apparently not.

This worries me more than Pujols leaving, and much much more than LaRussa leaving.

ROFL @ Jackson
:( @ Duncan

I can see the comparison for Jackson...no I don't. WTF is Boras talking about?

I guess the latest is "at least a year" ... really hope its just he decided to spend more time with the fam and not his wife getting worse.

He's selling BS. No way Jackson should get $15 million.:shake:

Starting to remind me of the offseason after the last Cards championship where he tried to oversell the hell out of Weaver and the market wanted nothing of it. Jackson is a very nice #3 with good enough stuff and durability. Also amusing that Boras has cited a few of the worst contracts in the game as examples of what Jackson is worth (Burnett, Lackey and Lowe).

How he was used in the WS tells you all you need to know that he is no ace and doesn't deserver ace money.

Even though I was against the trade I'm glad we made the trade of Rasmus. Obviously without that trade we don't make the playoffs or win any series's in the playoffs. Jackson was a part and I'd go as far as to say without him as a 5th starter we wouldn't have made the playoffs. So, he deserves some credit, but just a little. ;)

Anyone going to spring training? Anyone ever been? Got some tips and tricks? Any special days to attend?

I just saw on the ESPN crawl that the Cards are signing Roy Oswalt. The Astrofication continues, but I am not complaining. I like the signing a lot.

Go the 2nd to last week of ST; you'll get the most 'regular' playing time. This year they also have a bunch of home games over that stretch as well as a couple of really close road games.

I dunno if there are any 'tricks', but the feel may be a little more relaxed this year. I enjoyed going to the back fields to watch the minor leaguers play in the mornings. You could sit right up against the fence, it felt like watching a softball game at the local rec.

Eh, I'm sure there are vets that have more insight than I do, we just went down there every morning, brought a ball and a bat and watched 'em practice until the games started.

Just about to sign Oswalt, impending him passing a physical.


Putting together a solid pitching staff if everyone is healthy.

Carpenter, Waino, Garcia, Oswalt, Lohse

Even better maybe this means we are done with Westbrook.

The Astrofication of the Cards continues!

I really like what Mo has done this offseason. If Beltran and Oswalt can stay healthy, they are upgrades.

He's probably a good pick-up. I'll take him over that douche Westbrook any day.

But I'd feel better about signing him if we still had Duncan.

Yeah, i'd love to have Duncan. But it is what it is. Show must go on.


Who is the pitching coach this season?

Whoever the bullpen coach was. Can't remember his name.

Yeah I can't remember his name off the top of my head.

Derek Lilliquist.

Liliquist did a great job with the staff during his interim run last season - he'll be fine. He's worked under Duncan for awhile and will have plenty of knowledge to offer.

I have no idea if Matheny will be a good manager, but I'm confident we'll continue to have one of the better pitching coaches in baseball.

I saw rumors the Cards were perhaps shopping Lohse. Wonder who they were going to replace his spot in the rotation with? Couldn't be Westbrook. He hasn't been anywhere near as advertised. Trade Westbrook to some lower team that needs a starter to eat innings.

Thanks for the info guys.

Hope you are right DJ.

Westbrook has been exactly as advertised.

Anyone that expected him to be anything other than what he was last season simply didn't pay attention to his career. The trade and subsequent extension for that clown rank up among the dumbest things Mozeliak's done.

Westbrook was a mediocre pitcher at his apex. Now he's just an old pitcher that used to be mediocre.

thinking of going down March 25th for a couple of games and go see them on the road a couple of times. Its only about a 1/2 drive from where I work. I'm assuming that not many regulars travel on the road.

Latest from http://www.mlbtraderumors.com

SATURDAY,1:39pm: The Cardinals insist that there's no deal in place with Oswalt, according to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via Twitter). General Manager John Mozeliak also denied that the club is near a deal with Oswalt, writes Matthew Leach of MLB.com.

He is still completely mediocre at best which is not a total loss as the 5th starter. The trade was confusing as hell at the time but not nearly as bad as the money thrown at Westbrook for the extension. Really hope that it doesn't cause the Cards to sign more interesting guys like Oswalt.

Ken_RosenthalKen Rosenthal

Source: #Rangers have not made offer on Oswalt. Interested in him, but as with #STLCards, not an obvious fit. #MLB

I could see the Cardinals wanting Oswalt, Loshe and Westbrook to battle for the two spots. One gets hot, ride him.One flaters, give the other a chance.

If we get back to the playoffs having those 3 experienced arms out of the bullpen would be invaulable.

Now, why would Oawalt come here other to play with a possible playoff contender and his buddy Berkman for one more year???? No way the Cardinals are going to gaurantee him a starting spot. But, whatever his personal reasons, I just don't see the downside in signing Oswalt.

Reports in the last week or so seem to suggest that he may be willing to take a little less to pitch for the Cards. Apparently Beltran took a tad less than his highest offer as well.

It may be memories of what he used to be but I really want Oswalt. I have no problem with the idea the he is at least guaranteed the back end of the rotation unless he pitches himself out of it. The Cards rotation going into this year isn't exactly a model of good health and 6 deep could be more than just a luxury.

Yeah, the Cardinals would absolutely guarantee him a starting spot.

You think they're gonna offer him 6+ million to be a setup guy? C'mon - if he signs in STL it will be because we guaranteed him a slot in the rotation. We'll have Lohse and Westbrook battle for 5, but only after WW proves himself healhty, Carpenter proves to have bounced back from a heavy workload and Garcia proves he's ready to take the next step as a starter.

We could definitely guarantee Oswalt a starting spot and probably still not end up with too many arms.

Westbrook was advertised as someone Duncan could fix, a replacement for Suppan. He hasn't come close to getting back to his numbers early with Cleveland and certainly hasn't come close to Suppan numbers. He's going to be a guy who can't fill any spot in the playoffs except perhaps in a game where the starter blows up in the 2nd.

Lohse had a much higher WAR than Oswalt and Westbrook. Lohse is also on a contract year so I expect a big year for him. Westbrook could be moved to the bullpen for spot starts and extended innings in the BP.

What is this baseball thing you speak of?

I think really what you're going to have to hope for if they sign Oswalt is that they can deal KMac. Which reminds me, why the **** did we sign a replacement level KMac to a $2.5M deal if we could sign Oswalt to something less than $8M to bump the dead money that is Westbrook into a lesser role in the pen? Plus there is the potential that moving him to the pen is enough to get Westy to lift his NTC so they can possibly get out from some of that dead money.

So I've been wondering, how are they gonna set the lineup this season?

Furcal
Craig
Holliday
Berkman
Beltran
Freese
Yadi
Descalso
P

?

Ah. You're going by the BS that the post-disgrace was peddling to justify LaRussa shipping out a fan-favorite that wasn't happy about being a part-time player.

Yeah, he was 'sold' by the PD as someone that Duncan could fix. Afterall, the Cardinals may as well sign the checks for the Cards beat-writers.

Anyone that actually looked at the guy knew better.

Who did we ship out for Westbrook, i've forgotten.

Ludwick

Oh yeah. Thanks.

I like it, as long as Matheny doesn't bat the pitcher 8th. :shake:

Craig isn't starting and can't even play for a month.


Furcal
Beltran
Holliday
Berkman
Freese
John Jay
Yadi
Shumaker/Delcasco/Greene
Pitcher

I still think Jay should be leading off against RH pitching.

Furcal isn't a leadoff hitter anymore. Jay's capable of giving you a .350 OBP and nice doubles power. He's not a perfect leadoff hitter since he's not really a base-stealing threat, but he gets on base well and can put himself in scoring position more often than most leadoff men w/ the doubles pop.

The team will be better off with him at 1 than Furcal, IMO.

I'm in Iowa, don't read the STL paper. Pretty much everyone in the media had it pegged that Duncan could fix Westbrook. It was obvious at the time the team didn't have the offensive pop behind Pujols. It was a big risk shipping out Ludwick, but I think its been pretty well shown he had hit his ceiling.

@JoeStraussJoe Strauss
Cards fans may start paying attention to the Baltimore Orioles. #Developing



So i know my O's wanna trade adam jones do you all need a cf?

Is he good?

Well...yeah, sorta. Though it would create a hell of a logjam unless Craig was going back in the deal. I presume Jay/Beltran will be splitting the CF role, with Craig/Beltran playing RF and Berkman/Beltran playing 1b. If you throw Jones in there, Jay is essentially done and you've cut out a spot where Beltran can play (as Jones is an everyday player). And if Beltran isn't playing much CF, Craig's not going to get nearly as much time in RF either. So by bringing in Jones, you've really limited the use utility of Jay and Craig, who are very nice players in their own right.

Frankly, Jones is going to cost someone like Miller or Martinez and I'm not willing to give them up. I'm still not convinced that Jones isn't overrated as hell.

Honestly, I'd rather have JJ Hardy. Better still, you guys feel like trading Zach Britton?

Maybe the O's are just entering the Oswalt fray or something. More likely - Edwin Jackson.

Yes

They better not trade Zach Britton

Maybe just a reference to ex-Card Edwin Jackson?

He's not bad.

He's a plus defensive CFer with good power that hasn't ever seen a pitch he won't swing at. The kid draws 30 BBs/season and is likely to put up on OBP around .320.

Even his power is somewhat suspect; Camden Yards is a nice hitters park and he only hits about 25 2bs/season to go with his 20-25 HRs; so it's not like he's hitting a shitload of balls hard - he just happens to end up with a disproportionate number of HRs on the balls he does hit hard.

The best thing about him is that he's going to be 26 next year. I guess he could take another small step forward and become a 30 HR/30 2b guy, in which case you can live with his bad on-base skills because his power is legit at that point.

But it's equally likely that he's just another Nick Markakis, but with a little bit more power and a lot worse batting eye.

Maybe they'll take Westbrook if he'll waive his clause.

It's all online. :rolleyes:

Maybe his AOL cd ran out of time.

off topic nugget of information:

Those orginal AOL CD's are worth money now. Collectors will collect anything.

I get most of my Cards info from their website. As bad as the Chiefs articles are from KC writers, I have little wish to get the same from STL writers for the Cards.

There are several good Cardinals websites out there with good info. Maybe everyone should nominate sites and I'll put them up in the opening posts?

I realize this is all joke/speculation, but I think Britton would be a hell of a lot more valuable in the NL, because the kid can really hit.

Ken_RosenthalKen Rosenthal

Sources:,#Orioles pursuing #Rangers' Uehara as well as #STLCards' McClellan. Could complicate Cardinals' plan to clear $$$ for Oswalt. #MLB

They can have McClellan.

Here are a few good Cardinals sites that I follow:

http://www.vivaelbirdos.com/

http://www.futureredbirds.net/

Strauss and Goold are actually pretty good.

Strauss was the one that broke the Rasmus trade news.

keep em coming. I'll put them in the OP.

I heard about Baseball America making Shelby and Martinez in the top 30 prospects in all of baseball. Googled and found this. Agree or not?

<TABLE style="BORDER-BOTTOM: rgb(206,17,65) 1px solid; BORDER-LEFT: rgb(206,17,65) 1px solid; MARGIN: 0px 0px 2px 2px; BORDER-TOP: rgb(206,17,65) 1px solid; BORDER-RIGHT: rgb(206,17,65) 1px solid" class=small border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=2 width=275 bgColor=#ebebeb align=right><TBODY><TR><TD bgColor=#ce1141 align=center>TOP TEN
PROSPECTS
</TD></TR><TR><TD><TABLE class=small border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=1 width="100%"><TBODY><TR vAlign=top><TD>1.</TD><TD>Shelby Miller, rhp</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>2.</TD><TD>Carlos Martinez, rhp</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>3.</TD><TD>Oscar Taveras, of</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>4.</TD><TD>Zack Cox, 3b</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>5.</TD><TD>Kolten Wong, 2b</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>6.</TD><TD>Tyrell Jenkins, rhp</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>7.</TD><TD>Lance Lynn, rhp</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>8.</TD><TD>Eduardo Sanchez, rhp</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>9.</TD><TD>Matt Adams, 1b</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>10.</TD><TD>Jordan Swagerty, rhp</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR><TR><TD bgColor=#ce1141 align=center>BEST
TOOLS
</TD></TR><TR><TD><TABLE class=small border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=1 width="100%"><TBODY><TR vAlign=top><TD>Best Hitter for Average</TD><TD noWrap>Oscar Taveras</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>Best Power Hitter</TD><TD noWrap>Matt Adams</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>Best Strike-Zone Discipline</TD><TD noWrap>Matt Carpenter</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>Fastest Baserunner</TD><TD noWrap>C.J. McElroy</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>Best Athlete</TD><TD noWrap>Tyrell Jenkins</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>Best Fastball</TD><TD noWrap>Shelby Miller</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>Best Curveball</TD><TD noWrap>Carlos Martinez</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>Best Slider</TD><TD noWrap>Jordan Swagerty</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>Best Changeup</TD><TD noWrap>John Gast</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>Best Control</TD><TD noWrap>Boone Whiting</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>Best Defensive Catcher</TD><TD noWrap>Tony Cruz</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>Best Defensive Infielder</TD><TD noWrap>Ryan Jackson</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>Best Infield Arm</TD><TD noWrap>Pete Kozma</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>Best Defensive Outfielder</TD><TD noWrap>Shane Robinson</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>Best Outfield Arm</TD><TD noWrap>Tommy Pham</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR><TR><TD bgColor=#ce1141 align=center>PROJECTED 2015
LINEUP
</TD></TR><TR><TD><TABLE class=small border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=1 width="100%"><TBODY><TR vAlign=top><TD>Catcher</TD><TD noWrap>Yadier Molina</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>First Base</TD><TD noWrap>Allen Craig</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>Second Base</TD><TD noWrap>Kolten Wong</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>Third Base</TD><TD noWrap>David Freese</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>Shortstop</TD><TD noWrap>Ryan Jackson</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>Left Field</TD><TD noWrap>Matt Holliday</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>Center Field</TD><TD noWrap>Jon Jay</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>Right Field</TD><TD noWrap>Oscar Taveras</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>No. 1 Starter</TD><TD noWrap>Adam Wainwright</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>No. 2 Starter</TD><TD noWrap>Shelby Miller</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>No. 3 Starter</TD><TD noWrap>Jaime Garcia</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>No. 4 Starter</TD><TD noWrap>Carlos Martinez</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>No. 5 Starter</TD><TD noWrap>Tyrell Jenkins</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD>Closer</TD><TD noWrap>Jason Motte</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

I'd be surprised if Jay is still around as a starter in 2015.

BA makes it known that their 'projected starters' lineups are based only on the guys on the roster and what they're doing right now. It's mostly an academic exercise.

Jay, of all the people presently on the roster, probably is most likely to be the starting CFer in 2015. Granted, we'll have probably imported a replacement (for reasons I don't understand; Jay's capable of being an asset as a starting CFer), but unless you're comfortable projecting McElroy or Tillson, guys that haven't played past short-season rookie ball yet, as starting CFers in 3 years, you kinda have to go with Jay by default.

I don't even expect Molina to be here in 2015, but given the options in the system, he's the guy that BA is going to put in there.

As for his prospect list, I'd put Jenkins, Wong, Adams and Swagerty all ahead of Cox. I'd probably put Rosenthal ahead of him as well. I have Cox as a fringe top-10 prospect at best and actually think Matt Carpenter is a better bet to produce at the big-league level. Lynn and Sanchez have to come off the list as 'graduates', though I don't think Sanchez is nearly as hot a prospect as they do because I don't see any way he stays healthy with that delivery.

http://insider.espn.go.com/blog/the-...e/post?id=3352
5. St. Louis Cardinals trade RHP Shelby Miller, OF Jon Jay and 3B Zack Cox to the Baltimore Orioles for CF Adam Jones

New Orioles GM Dan Duquette has made it clear to rebuild the Orioles he needs to start with the rotation. Miller gives the Orioles a potential front-of-the-rotation starter to go with Zach Britton, top pitching prospect Dylan Bundy and Brian Matusz (should he recover from his disastrous 2011 season). Jay can take over for Jones in center field, and Cox could become their long-term solution at third base, eventually playing next to shortstop Manny Machado, the Orioles' best position-player prospect.

The Cardinals get the pure center fielder they’ve been looking for in Jones and continue to help offset the loss of Pujols. Their starting rotation depth is good, and the farm system is loaded with arms, so giving up Miller, though painful, is the price to pay for player of Jones’ caliber. He will be a free agent following the 2013 season, so it's possible the Cards wouldn't have to part with so much quantity for his services; however, they would need to give up Miller, one of the game's top pitching prospects, and the key to this trade

That would be, absolutely, without question, the dumbest thing I've ever seen a general manager do.

In fact, I will immediately discount anything I ever see, hear or read from the author of that article because of it.

Christ that would be stupid. Just staggeringly stupid. "Hey, the Cardinals have a bunch of arms - how 'bout they give up the best one of them for less than he's worth AND include a couple of decent players with him for a guy they will have plenty of payroll space to just sign in 2013!" Oh yeah, and the reason they'll have that payroll space? Because Chris Carpenter and Carlos Beltran, 2 guys that are going to account for $22 million in payroll in 2012, will be off the books and replaced with Shelby Miller and Jon Jay in 2013.

What an absolute jackass.

EDIT:

Oh wait - it's Jim Bowden. No !@#$ing wonder it's stupid. I take it all back - I never gave any credit to anything he ever wrote or said anyway.

There's a reason that moron is out of baseball.

Doesn't make a lot of sense to me either. You're sending the Orioles the replacement for the player they lost, your best pitching prospect and 3rd base prospect for a non-star player who has averaged 108 k's in the last 4 years.