2018 STL Cardinals Thread

[BigRedChief]

Opening day lineup

Fowler RF
Pham CF
Carpenter 3B
Ozuna LF
Martinez 1B
Molina C
Dejong SS
Wong 2B
Pitcher

Edit:
Matheny fired 07/14/2018




Opening Day Roster

Spoiler!

St. Louis has opted to carry 12 position players and 13 pitchers to begin the new season, with a four-man bench and eight-man bullpen.

Outfielders:
Dexter Fowler
Tommy Pham
Marcell Ozuna

Infielders:
Matt Carpenter
Paul DeJong
Kolten Wong

Catchers:
Yadier Molina
Francisco Pena

Utility:
Jose Martinez
Greg Garcia
Yairo Munoz
Jedd Gyrko

Starters:
Carlos Martinez
Michael Wacha
Luke Weaver
Miles Mikolas
Jack Flaherty

Relievers:
Dominic Leone
Tyler Lyons
Bud Norris
Brett Cecil
Sam Tuivailala
Matt Bowman
Jordan Hicks
Mike Mayers

On the DL:
Adam Wainwright
Luke Gregerson

[BigRedChief]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

3.

Williams is a lefthanded hitter who profiles defensively in the corner and appears to have the physical tools to hit for more power than he does. He probably needs some tinkering but the tools appear to be there. He could end up a nice part of a platoon kind of situation with Bader or O'Neill and is something this organization simply doesn't have - a projectable lefthanded bat in the high minors.

Cabrera is intriguing as a smallish lefty with plus stuff. I really like that strikeout rate since he's doing it as a starter. Looks like there are some scouting concerns over his size staying in the starting rotation but I'd imagine he'd be a hammer lefty out of the 'pen if need be. Command is a little iffy but it's always iffy on young lefthanders.

Ramirez is a JAG; a fungible righthanded reliever who might give you 3-4 decent years in a middle relief role; think John Brebbia and you probably won't be disappointed.

It's not a bad return for someone who likely never had buy-in leaguewide given his eye issues. I hate having to pull the cord on him but he's been pretty abysmal for 3 months. I'm certain it's an eye issue but I suspect he is as well. If they haven't figured it out, you have to start to wonder if they ever will. It was time to move on and 2 of those guys probably have 3 win upside with the third being pretty likely to pitch in the majors at some point (though not in any kind of high leverage role).

It's not the kind of trade that changes a teams long-term fortunes greatly but at least it continues to build the organizational depth. My concern is that the 40 man is gonna get real crowded, real fast. I believe both Cabrera and Williams need to be on the 40 next year.

Originally Posted by Marco Polo

Rays acquired OF Tommy Pham from the Cardinals for LHP Genesis Cabrera, OF Justin Williams and RHP Roel Ramirez.

The Rays are getting $500,000 in international bonus money in the deal. This comes a bit out of nowhere, but it seems lots of Tampa Bay deals come out of nowhere. Pham was sensational in 2017 with a 23 homers, 25 steals and a .931 OPS, but he hasn’t been close that player in 2018 with a .248/.331/.399 line over 396 at-bats. He has hit 14 homers and 10 steals, however, so the power/speed combination is still readily apparent in the 30-year-old outfielder. He should be an everyday player for the Rays, and he’s still capable of helping you in redraft leagues. You just shouldn’t ever expect to see the player you saw in 2017, because that version (probably) isn’t coming back.

Cardinals acquired LHP Genesis Cabrera from the Cardinals in a four-player deal for OF Tommy Pham.

Cabrera is a left-hander whose fastball can get up to 97 mph, and his slider gives him another potential out pitch. His command is well behind his stuff at this point, and he’ll need to improve his change if he’s going to be a starter at the highest level. He could be a very effective reliever, but expect the Cardinals to give the 21-year-old a chance to develop as a starter, knowing the bullpen is a safe fallback option.

Cardinals acquired OF Justin Williams from the Rays in a four-player deal for OF Tommy Pham.

Williams received a small cup of coffee with the Rays this year, and he’s hit .258 this year over 356 at-bats with Triple-A Durham in 2018. A second-round pick by Arizona that was acquired in the Jeremy Hellickson trade in 2014, Williams flashes five solid tools, but his below-average approach at the plate has made it tough for him to tap into his offensive potential. He’s just 22-years-old, and he could be a late bloomer in the right development system. The Cardinals have proven to do well with these type of prospects, but there’s just as much risk as reward.

Cardinals acquired RHP Roel Ramirez in a four-player deal from the Rays for OF Tommy Pham.

Ramirez was an eighth-round pick by the Rays in 2013 who struggled as a starter as a professional, but he’s pitched better since being converted to relief; particularly in the ability to miss bats (60 over 53 1 / 3 innings at the High-A and Double-A levels. He projects as a middle reliever, and won’t have much fantasy value in that role.

Originally Posted by 'Hamas' Jenkins

Think about the Cardinals' problem: a roster jammed with two win players. Now, what did they do: they traded a guy with a career average of 4.5 WAR/600 PA for two guys that have 2-3 WAR ceilings and a scrub reliever. This is the exact opposite of what they should be doing, but Mo seems determined to have a 40 man filled with guys that project as average starters.

I’d rather get lottery tickets with high upside but may never make it to the majors than JAG projection at the MLB level players.

[BigRedChief]

As Cras references here, the tension never really abated between Tommy and the front office. Recently he asked for an expensive piece of exercise equipment and became unhappy when the team didn’t provide it. Many small clashes, I’m told by source. TB has been on him a long time. https://t.co/L9FiZ49Rt7

— Mark Saxon (@markasaxon) July 31, 2018

[jd1020]

So what's an "expensive piece of exercise equipment" cost an organization like the Cardinals? ****ers could probably get it for free if Pham promoted it on a damn youtube clip.

[ChiefsCountry]

Cardinals turned a blind eye on Pham.

[Marco Polo]

Originally Posted by BigRedChief

As Cras references here, the tension never really abated between Tommy and the front office. Recently he asked for an expensive piece of exercise equipment and became unhappy when the team didn’t provide it. Many small clashes, I’m told by source. TB has been on him a long time. https://t.co/L9FiZ49Rt7
— Mark Saxon (@markasaxon) July 31, 2018

Unless you are a superstar because you can back it up, diva attitudes have no place in the clubhouse. GTFO.

[O.city]

Training camp has started. Are the Cardinals still playing?

[dls6501]

Cant believe we traded Pham for nothing. Not sure whats going on with this team right now.

[Pasta Little Brioni]

Traded nothing for three nothings at least. Last year was a fluke. But, but, but 20/20 again!!!/Dan

[Marcellus]

Originally Posted by Pasta Giant Meatball

Traded nothing for three nothings at least. Last year was a fluke. But, but, but 20/20 again!!!/Dan

I doubt last year was just a fluke as his performance goes beyond last year.

That being said his days in Stl were numbered as its obvious he and the front office were never going to mesh. Starting with that interview for SI he did after not getting a long term deal their relationship has been shit.

Personally because of his eye issues, I wouldn't give him big $ either.

[BigRedChief]

Originally Posted by dls6501

Cant believe we traded Pham for nothing. Not sure whats going on with this team right now.

its transitioning to more younger and better players.

He seems to have a little diva in him. Someone who hasn’t even made an All-Star team should not be a diva in the locker room or with the club.

what exactly has Pham done with his career? He’s 30. He is what he is at this point. With his eyesight issues and prolonged slumps, we need more consistentcy in CF. If it’s not Bader or O’neill Then we need to find someone else.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by BigRedChief

this crowded outfield situation is Mo’s making. They have to do something. They can’t trade Fowler for shit. Maybe we can make a run in 2019. Having the Ozuna of late on that team means your not trading low on him now. We need to see if O’neil’s power plays in MLB or he’s Grichuk 2.0.

I saw an interesting tweet - pretty short: "It seems the Cardinals are always 'making room in the outfield...."

They're exactly right. I mean go back to dumping Craig to clear space for Oscar. We've been hearing about how stacked our outfield is throughout the system for seemingly a decade now and yet we never seem to have any OFers that actually matter.

I mean hell - go take a look at Lane Thomas. Who? Right - nobody has any idea who that guy is but he's actually had a really good season and you can make an argument that he should be considered as highly as Arozarenas and higher than Jose Adolis Garcia. He's played a strong CF while hitting 20+ bombs already in AA before wrecking AAA. He may be the #2 or #3 OF prospect in the whole system but it doesn't really matter because just like the rest of them, he's probably a fairly fungible guy when all is said and done.

We just build this organization full of guys that are pretty easy to swap out and never seem to come across anybody truly irreplaceable. All the talk now is about Elehuris Montero and yeah he's hitting damn well at 19 in A ball right now. But I'll bet you even money he just ends up another guy who plays solid baseball in AAA with strikeout issues and/or defensive deficiencies that keep him from amounting to anything more than a 2 win player.

And we never seem willing or capable of separating the wheat from the chaff before the word gets out and bundling them for guys that can actually matter long-term. And in a world where the corpse of James Shields netted Fernando Tatis Jr, why the hell do we sit on assets like Lynn and not go scooping up more guys that might become breakout players?

There's just a lot wrong with this team and the 40 man is gonna be damn interesting in a few months when we have to start protecting this giant assortment of misfit and redundant parts.

[Prison Bitch]

Tommy Pham: 1.5fWAR, 396 PA, three yrs control
Bryce Harper: 1.6fWAR, 450 PA, free agent in two months

[jd1020]

Originally Posted by Prison Bitch

Tommy Pham: 1.5fWAR, 396 PA, three yrs control
Bryce Harper: 1.6fWAR, 450 PA, free agent in two months

Pham could be a really good player if he just hits 120+ more HRs before he reaches 25 years old.

[raybec 4]

Originally Posted by Prison Bitch

Tommy Pham: 1.5fWAR, 396 PA, three yrs control
Bryce Harper: 1.6fWAR, 450 PA, free agent in two months

In by far the worst season of Harper's career.

[Marcellus]

Originally Posted by Prison Bitch

Tommy Pham: 1.5fWAR, 396 PA, three yrs control
Bryce Harper: 1.6fWAR, 450 PA, free agent in two months

That really nothing more than a good indicator of how bad a season Harper is having.