2008 MLB Season in Preview

[QUOTE="murlow12"][QUOTE="Senor_T_Dub"]

Very little love for the New York Yankees on the board huh? BeanTownBrown86

[QUOTE="BeanTownBrown86"][QUOTE="murlow12"][QUOTE="Senor_T_Dub"]

Very little love for the New York Yankees on the board huh? B05T0N

[QUOTE="B05T0N"][QUOTE="BeanTownBrown86"][QUOTE="murlow12"][QUOTE="Senor_T_Dub"]

Very little love for the New York Yankees on the board huh? BeanTownBrown86

[QUOTE="murlow12"][QUOTE="Senor_T_Dub"]

Very little love for the New York Yankees on the board huh? BeanTownBrown86

Minor note- the Phillies signed 3b Pedro FelizPadrepride

Good pickup, very underrated player.

I'll introduce you guys to my 2008 St. Louis Cardinals! Lineup should be as follows:

1. Cesar Izturis SS :cry:
2. Adam Kennedy 2B :(
3. Albert Pujols 1B :D
4. Troy Glaus 3B :roll:
5. Chris Duncan LF
6. Rick Ankiel CF/RF :question:
7. Colby Rasmus CF/RF :question: (good prospect 21 yrs old, 29 homers in AA)
8. Yadier Molina
9. Pitcher's spot

The Rotation should look something like this

1. Adam Wainwright (good pitcher but not an ace)
2. Joel Piniero (not a good number two)
3. Mark Mulder :( (past his days of glory)
4. Matt Clement :question:
5. Anthony Reyes :evil: (automatic loss every five days)

Pen

1. Isringhausen: closer
2. Flores, Johnson, Wellemeyer (possibly in rotation)

Why the Cardinal's will not win: Despite playing in possibly the weakest division in all of baseball, the Cardinals just simply don't have enough. Outside of Pujols, I think the lineup is sub-par at nearly all positions. Also, not having a formidable hitter to bat behind Pujols may dampen his numbers a bit (sort of happened last year). Additionally, the Cardinals are also in need of defensive help. Pujols, Izturis, and Molina are great defenders (and Ankiel has a monster arm) but all other positions are lacking. Duncan is a 1B turned outfielder and is terrible defensively. Also in terms of defense, Glaus is a considerable downgrade over Rolen.

However, the main reason the Cards won't win is because of their rotation. Adam Wainwright would be a great number two or three starter, but he is simply not an ace. The hope is for Carpenter to return at mid season in Cy Young form. Simply put, don't count on it. He is recovering from tommy john surgery and there is no way he will be dominant enough to lead to Cards to a division title. Thank god Kip Wells is gone (Kip Wells + Anthony Reyes = 2 losses every 5 games). However, the rest of the rotation is still a question mark. Clement has the potential to be a steal, but I wouldn't expect much if anything from Mulder or Reyes, though they have nowhere to go but up from last season.

I'll introduce you guys to my 2008 St. Louis Cardinals! Lineup should be as follows:

1. Cesar Izturis SS :cry:
2. Adam Kennedy 2B :(
3. Albert Pujols 1B :D
4. Troy Glaus 3B :roll:
5. Chris Duncan LF
6. Rick Ankiel CF/RF :question:
7. Colby Rasmus CF/RF :question: (good prospect 21 yrs old, 29 homers in AA)
8. Yadier Molina
9. Pitcher's spot

The Rotation should look something like this

1. Adam Wainwright (good pitcher but not an ace)
2. Joel Piniero (not a good number two)
3. Mark Mulder :( (past his days of glory)
4. Matt Clement :question:
5. Anthony Reyes :evil: (automatic loss every five days)

Pen

1. Isringhausen: closer
2. Flores, Johnson, Wellemeyer (possibly in rotation)

Why the Cardinal's will not win: Despite playing in possibly the weakest division in all of baseball, the Cardinals just simply don't have enough. Outside of Pujols, I think the lineup is sub-par at nearly all positions. Also, not having a formidable hitter to bat behind Pujols may dampen his numbers a bit (sort of happened last year). Additionally, the Cardinals are also in need of defensive help. Pujols, Izturis, and Molina are great defenders (and Ankiel has a monster arm) but all other positions are lacking. Duncan is a 1B turned outfielder and is terrible defensively. Also in terms of defense, Glaus is a considerable downgrade over Rolen.

However, the main reason the Cards won't win is because of their rotation. Adam Wainwright would be a great number two or three starter, but he is simply not an ace. The hope is for Carpenter to return at mid season in Cy Young form. Simply put, don't count on it. He is recovering from tommy john surgery and there is no way he will be dominant enough to lead to Cards to a division title. Thank god Kip Wells is gone (Kip Wells + Anthony Reyes = 2 losses every 5 games). However, the rest of the rotation is still a question mark. Clement has the potential to be a steal, but I wouldn't expect much if anything from Mulder or Reyes, though they have nowhere to go but up from last season.

guitarman89

I'll introduce you guys to my 2008 St. Louis Cardinals! Lineup should be as follows:

1. Cesar Izturis SS :cry:
2. Adam Kennedy 2B :(
3. Albert Pujols 1B :D
4. Troy Glaus 3B :roll:
5. Chris Duncan LF
6. Rick Ankiel CF/RF :question:
7. Colby Rasmus CF/RF :question: (good prospect 21 yrs old, 29 homers in AA)
8. Yadier Molina
9. Pitcher's spot

The Rotation should look something like this

1. Adam Wainwright (good pitcher but not an ace)
2. Joel Piniero (not a good number two)
3. Mark Mulder :( (past his days of glory)
4. Matt Clement :question:
5. Anthony Reyes :evil: (automatic loss every five days)

Pen

1. Isringhausen: closer
2. Flores, Johnson, Wellemeyer (possibly in rotation)

Why the Cardinal's will not win: Despite playing in possibly the weakest division in all of baseball, the Cardinals just simply don't have enough. Outside of Pujols, I think the lineup is sub-par at nearly all positions. Also, not having a formidable hitter to bat behind Pujols may dampen his numbers a bit (sort of happened last year). Additionally, the Cardinals are also in need of defensive help. Pujols, Izturis, and Molina are great defenders (and Ankiel has a monster arm) but all other positions are lacking. Duncan is a 1B turned outfielder and is terrible defensively. Also in terms of defense, Glaus is a considerable downgrade over Rolen.

However, the main reason the Cards won't win is because of their rotation. Adam Wainwright would be a great number two or three starter, but he is simply not an ace. The hope is for Carpenter to return at mid season in Cy Young form. Simply put, don't count on it. He is recovering from tommy john surgery and there is no way he will be dominant enough to lead to Cards to a division title. Thank god Kip Wells is gone (Kip Wells + Anthony Reyes = 2 losses every 5 games). However, the rest of the rotation is still a question mark. Clement has the potential to be a steal, but I wouldn't expect much if anything from Mulder or Reyes, though they have nowhere to go but up from last season.

guitarman89

Minor note- the Phillies signed 3b Pedro FelizPadrepride

[QUOTE="guitarman89"]

I'll introduce you guys to my 2008 St. Louis Cardinals! Lineup should be as follows:

1. Cesar Izturis SS :cry:
2. Adam Kennedy 2B :(
3. Albert Pujols 1B :D
4. Troy Glaus 3B :roll:
5. Chris Duncan LF
6. Rick Ankiel CF/RF :question:
7. Colby Rasmus CF/RF :question: (good prospect 21 yrs old, 29 homers in AA)
8. Yadier Molina
9. Pitcher's spot

The Rotation should look something like this

1. Adam Wainwright (good pitcher but not an ace)
2. Joel Piniero (not a good number two)
3. Mark Mulder :( (past his days of glory)
4. Matt Clement :question:
5. Anthony Reyes :evil: (automatic loss every five days)

Pen

1. Isringhausen: closer
2. Flores, Johnson, Wellemeyer (possibly in rotation)

Why the Cardinal's will not win: Despite playing in possibly the weakest division in all of baseball, the Cardinals just simply don't have enough. Outside of Pujols, I think the lineup is sub-par at nearly all positions. Also, not having a formidable hitter to bat behind Pujols may dampen his numbers a bit (sort of happened last year). Additionally, the Cardinals are also in need of defensive help. Pujols, Izturis, and Molina are great defenders (and Ankiel has a monster arm) but all other positions are lacking. Duncan is a 1B turned outfielder and is terrible defensively. Also in terms of defense, Glaus is a considerable downgrade over Rolen.

However, the main reason the Cards won't win is because of their rotation. Adam Wainwright would be a great number two or three starter, but he is simply not an ace. The hope is for Carpenter to return at mid season in Cy Young form. Simply put, don't count on it. He is recovering from tommy john surgery and there is no way he will be dominant enough to lead to Cards to a division title. Thank god Kip Wells is gone (Kip Wells + Anthony Reyes = 2 losses every 5 games). However, the rest of the rotation is still a question mark. Clement has the potential to be a steal, but I wouldn't expect much if anything from Mulder or Reyes, though they have nowhere to go but up from last season.

murlow12

True, Izturis is a great defender as I stated in my first post, however, his career batting average is .259 and .295for OBP. Also it's worth noting that he has never hit more than four homers or had more than 62 RBI in a season. These would be great batting lines for a starting pitcher, but not for an everyday shortstop. Even if he does rebound, his offensive numbers will still be much worse than those of David Eckstein. No matter how great of a defender he is, I don't think that his defense can make up for such appalling batting statistics. Also, I just don't think that he integrates well into the Cards lineup. The Cardinals don't need any more players with low batting averages and low OBPs. They already have Adam Kennedy (.219 BA last year), Chris Duncan (.259 last year), Troy Glaus (.262 BA last year), the pitcher's spot, and Yadier Molina (.275). IMO Pujols is the only batter in the lineup capable of posting a .300+ BA and a high OBP. If noone can get on base regularly for Pujols, nobody will pitch to him and he therefore won't be able to drive in runs regularly.

Sorry, you're right I probably should lay off Izturis, but I'm just a VERY angry fan. It's just frustrating that this team is only a year removed from a World Championship and yet management has done absolutely nothing in the past two offseasons to improve it. The NL Central is definitely a winnable division and even small, marginal improvements could possibly put the Cards ahead of the Brew Crew or the Cubs. Oh well, I guess it could be worse. At least they won it all only 2 years ago and not 100.

[QUOTE="Padrepride"]Minor note- the Phillies signed 3b Pedro FelizB05T0N

In contrast to the recent dealings with johann, it's kind of minor.And btw, the Mets and Santana get some more time to figure out their outrageous deal. I heard on the radio this morning that he was looking for a 6 year 128 million dollar contract or something like that. That is crazy!

I'll introduce you guys to my 2008 St. Louis Cardinals! Lineup should be as follows:

1. Cesar Izturis SS :cry:
2. Adam Kennedy 2B :(
3. Albert Pujols 1B :D
4. Troy Glaus 3B :roll:
5. Chris Duncan LF
6. Rick Ankiel CF/RF :question:
7. Colby Rasmus CF/RF :question: (good prospect 21 yrs old, 29 homers in AA)
8. Yadier Molina
9. Pitcher's spot

The Rotation should look something like this

1. Adam Wainwright (good pitcher but not an ace)
2. Joel Piniero (not a good number two)
3. Mark Mulder :( (past his days of glory)
4. Matt Clement :question:
5. Anthony Reyes :evil: (automatic loss every five days)

Pen

1. Isringhausen: closer
2. Flores, Johnson, Wellemeyer (possibly in rotation)

Why the Cardinal's will not win: Despite playing in possibly the weakest division in all of baseball, the Cardinals just simply don't have enough. Outside of Pujols, I think the lineup is sub-par at nearly all positions. Also, not having a formidable hitter to bat behind Pujols may dampen his numbers a bit (sort of happened last year). Additionally, the Cardinals are also in need of defensive help. Pujols, Izturis, and Molina are great defenders (and Ankiel has a monster arm) but all other positions are lacking. Duncan is a 1B turned outfielder and is terrible defensively. Also in terms of defense, Glaus is a considerable downgrade over Rolen.

However, the main reason the Cards won't win is because of their rotation. Adam Wainwright would be a great number two or three starter, but he is simply not an ace. The hope is for Carpenter to return at mid season in Cy Young form. Simply put, don't count on it. He is recovering from tommy john surgery and there is no way he will be dominant enough to lead to Cards to a division title. Thank god Kip Wells is gone (Kip Wells + Anthony Reyes = 2 losses every 5 games). However, the rest of the rotation is still a question mark. Clement has the potential to be a steal, but I wouldn't expect much if anything from Mulder or Reyes, though they have nowhere to go but up from last season.

guitarman89

The offense looks pretty good. Some guys like Reyes are going to really have to step it up this year to have a chance at the playoffs. Also, when are the Cards projecting Carpenter be back?

The offense looks pretty good. Some guys like Reyes are going to really have to step it up this year to have a chance at the playoffs. Also, when are the Cards projecting Carpenter be back?

Carpenter is expected to be able to pitch after the All-Star break (recovering from tommy-john surgery)