St. Louis Cardinals 2003 Finish: 85-77, 3rd NL Central	Select Team Angels Astros Athletics Blue Jays Braves Brewers Cardinals Cubs Devil Rays Diamondbacks Dodgers Expos Giants Indians Mariners Marlins Mets Orioles Padres Phillies Pirates Rangers Red Sox Reds Rockies Royals Tigers Twins White Sox Yankees

Albert Pujols Elsa/Getty Images
Batting Order
2B	Marlon Anderson Gives the Cards a much-need left-handed bat at the top.
SS	Edgar Renteria Struck out only 54 times in 587 at-bats.
1B	Albert Pujols Has hit over .300 with 100-plus RBIs in first three seasons.
CF	Jim Edmonds Sore shoulder limited him to eight HRs and 16 RBIs after the break.
3B	Scott Rolen Had a career-high 49 doubles last season.
RF	Reggie Sanders Has fanned at least 98 times in a season nine times.
LF	Kerry Robinson Must improve his career on-base percentage (.301).
C	Mike Matheny .320 on-base percentage was best of his career.
Rotation
RHP	Matt Morris Will the velocity come back?
RHP	Woody Williams Among the best hitting pitchers in the NL; batted .243 last season.
RHP	Jeff Suppan Has thrown 200-plus innings five seasons in succession.
RHP	Jason Marquis Has talent, but does he have the head?
RHP	Chris Carpenter Toronto's Opening Day starter in 2002 did not pitch last season.
RHP	Danny Haren Showed promise, if lack of stamina, in 14 starts.
Bullpen
RHP	Jason Isringhausen Managed 22 saves in 25 opportunities.
LHP	Steve Kline Durable and versatile, can set up or close.
LHP	Ray King Acquired from Atlanta; similar attributes as Kline.
RHP	Cal Eldred Re-invented himself as late-inning reliever, with 67 Ks in 67.1 IP.
RHP	Julian Tavarez 63-48 in major league career that began in 1993.
RHP	Jason Simontacchi Starts or relieves; one of the toughest RHP in baseball to run on.
RHP	Kiko Calero 2.82 ERA in 26 games before season-ending knee surgery.
Prospects
RHP	Adam Wainwright 6'8" right-hander acquired from Atlanta in the J.D. Drew trade.
RHP	Blake Hawksworth Sky's the limit for the 22-year old who throws in the low 90s.
LHP	Chris Narveson 4-3 with 3.00 ERA after being moved up to Class AA Tennessee.

After scoring 89 more runs and winning 12 fewer games than the season before, the mission for the Cardinals was clear during the offseason -- improve the pitching staff. On paper, the success of that mission appears dubious at best. Winter acquisitions like Jeff Suppan and Jason Marquis don't exactly fall into the "ace" category, and may not be better than the arms they replaced. The bullpen will be better if for no other reason than closer Jason Isringhausen figures to be healthy from the beginning. The batting order needs to establish a point man to replace departed Fernando Viña, but the meat and potatoes of the lineup are still there, represented by Albert Pujols, Jim Edmonds, Scott Rolen and Edgar Renteria. The Cardinals were second in the National League in batting last season, and they also won four Gold Gloves for fielding excellence. So you see, it's quite simple, really. This team can hit and it can field. If it can pitch, it will be in the thick of the race for the National League Central title. If not, there will be more offseason missions to fulfill.

Matt Morris, who won a combined 29 games in 2001-02, must bounce back from an injury-interrupted season that limited him to 172.1 innings and 11 wins in 27 starts. The most disturbing trend of his injury-plagued season was the diminishing velocity on his fastball, which never really returned and bears watching this season. Woody Williams had a career-best 18 wins but probably threw too many pitches in his 220 innings. He finished 4-5 in his last nine decisions and allowed 24 earned runs in 34 2/3 innings in September. Suppan (13-11) pitched well with Pittsburgh before bombing out (3-4, 5.57 ERA) in Boston, where he was left off the postseason roster. The Cardinals are hoping the talented Marquis can find himself in St. Louis after disappointing in Atlanta. The staff would get a big boost if former Toronto starter Chris Carpenter has finally healed and is ready to pitch again. But once again the Cardinals will field a rotation that lacks a lefthander.

Until the return of Isringhausen on June 12, the Cardinal bullpen had the league's worst save percentage (56.5 percent). But things settled down after Izzy returned and should be better still in 2004. The addition of Ray King, with incumbent Steve Kline, gives the club two durable left-handers. Cal Eldred, who revived his career with 62 appearances and eight saves last season, returns as a setup man. The club hopes that Kiko Calero, a find early last season, will bounce back from a season-ending knee injury. Jason Simontacchi is a versatile swingman, and Julian Tavarez has arrived from Pittsburgh to add depth.

Renteria, who won his second consecutive Gold Glove and compiled one of the best offensive seasons ever by an NL shortstop, is an elite player. He established career highs in batting (.330), hits (194), doubles (47) and RBIs (100). But the middle infield did take a hit as the Cardinals allowed second baseman Viña, another Gold Glove caliber defender, to sign with Detroit. The Cards filled a need at second base by signing former Devil Ray Marlon Anderson to a one-year deal. Anderson, who will likely lead off, has played in at least 145 games in each of the past three seasons. Bo Hart, who shined after being promoted last May before a second-half slide, and Brent Butler will battle for infield at bats.

It doesn't get any better than this. Third baseman Rolen produced his third consecutive 100-RBI season despite struggling with runners in scoring position for most of the season's second half. Rolen also won his fifth Gold Glove and fourth in succession. Pujols will move to first base this season, his best position, after starting in left field in 2003. The best young player in the National League, Pujols won the batting crown last season by hitting .359 and finished second to Barry Bonds in the NL Most Valuable Player voting.

Surviving trade rumors during the winter, Edmonds returns to center where he hopes to be healthier. Edmonds aggravated a sore shoulder competing in the All-Star Game Home Run Derby and batted .197 after the break. Offseason surgery to correct the shoulder should help. After trading J.D. Drew to Atlanta, the Cardinals signed well-traveled Reggie Sanders to play right field. Sanders has been productive everywhere he has been and fits nicely into a robust batting order. The left field job will be a work in progress with speedy Kerry Robinson and So Taguchi sharing time.

Mike Matheny has no equal when it comes to blocking pitches and is widely respected for his leadership qualities. The Gold Glove winner batted a respectable .252 with eight homers overall, and was especially productive against left-handed pitchers (.340). Light-hitting Chris Widger returns as the backup.

A strength in years past, this area was hard hit by trades and free agent defections, with versatile veterans Miguel Cairo, Eli Marrero, Orlando Palmeiro and Eduardo Perez moving on. In their place are new faces and lots of uncertainty. Former Tampa Bay first baseman Steve Cox signed on after a year in Japan. Cox had 16 homers and 72 RBIs as a regular for the Devil Rays two seasons ago. Either Butler, who was added from Colorado, or Bo Hart could be dealt before Opening Day. The defensively slick Taguchi has been up and down the past two seasons but could stick as a reserve outfielder. Hoping to add sock, the club invited Ray Lankford, Mark Quinn and Greg Vaughn to camp.

Tony La Russa is considered one of the top managers in the game by some, overrated by others. La Russa's frequent tinkering and aggressive style always leave him open to criticism, and he is willing to take the heat. He's building a Hall of Fame résumé; his 2,009 managerial wins rank him seventh on the all-time list. But there's no doubt that a World Series appearance in St. Louis would solidify his Hall credentials. General manager Walt Jocketty has traded for players like Rolen and Edmonds in years past, but tied to a tight budget, he was unable to land the top-shelf starter the club needed over the winter.

It can't sit well with Cardinal fans that the Florida Marlins have won two World Series titles since the Cardinals' last visit to the Fall Classic, and it's tough to see the drought ending this year. The Cardinals' starting pitching doesn't really compare with that of the Cubs or the Astros. What's more, the addition of Sanders and the subtraction of left-handed swingers like Tino Martinez, Drew and Viña leans the batting order heavily to the right -- and we saw what those four Cubs right-handers did to the Braves last Fall. The bench is a concern, especially if the Cardinals have the type of injury problems they had last year. The everyday lineup should keep the club above water, but they will need some pleasant pitching surprises to make a postseason run.

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