St. Louis Cardinals

Arrivals and Departures | Spring Training Schedule | Regular Season Schedule | Team Page
2001 Finish: 93-69, 1st place, NL Central	2001 Payroll: $77,270,855 (9th)

Projected Lineup 2B Fernando Vina LF Placido Polanco RF J.D. Drew 3B Albert Pujols CF Jim Edmonds 1B Tino Martinez SS Edgar Renteria C Mike Matheny Projected Rotation RHP Matt Morris RHP Darryl Kile RHP Woody Williams LHP Bud Smith LHP Rick Ankiel CL Jason Isringhausen

By John Donovan, CNNSI.com

There's something to be said for a team that loses one of the best home run hitters of all time and remains one of the best teams in baseball. Truth be told, the St. Louis Cardinals may be better off this year without Mark McGwire.

The reason is simple: The Cardinals were pretty darn good last year, even as injuries ravaged McGwire and sidelined him for most of the year. Once he announced he was hanging up his cleats for good, Cardinals general manager Walt Jocketty made sure the Cardinals wouldn't buckle, signing free-agent first baseman Tino Martinez from the Yankees (who will step nicely into McGwire's spot) and adding a solid closer in Jason Isringhausen (34 saves) from Oakland.

Those two signings, almost alone, should assure the Cardinals (who won 93 games last season as the National League wild card) of a trip to the playoffs again.

The Cardinals are deep, deep, deep, with about as good a starting lineup as there is in baseball. Last year's Rookie of the Year, Albert Pujols (.329, 37 homers, 130 RBIs) returns and will be given a home at third, according to manager Tony La Russa. Martinez, with six 100-RBI seasons in his last seven, will be anchored at first, which immediately takes care of two spots that were a little iffy last season.

The outfield boasts Jim Edmonds (.304, 30, 110) in center and J.D. Drew (.323, 27, 73 in just 109 games) in right. Pujols, Martinez, Edmonds and Drew make up one of the most formidable middle-of-the-lineup foursomes in baseball.

The pitching may be even better than that.

Matt Morris is the ace (22-8, 3.16 ERA), with Darryl Kile (16-11, 3.09), Woody Williams (7-1, 2.28 in 11 starts after arriving in a trade from San Diego) and young Bud Smith (6-3, 3.83 and a no-hitter last season) backing him up. Isringhausen solidifies a bullpen that includes lefties Steve Kline (a 1.80 ERA in 89 appearances) and Mike Matthews (1.08 in 41).

There are questions with the Cards, but they are all icing stuff. Can Rick Ankiel overcome his control problems to make it back to the bigs as a No. 5 starter? Can Placido Polanco do the job as a full-time left fielder? Can Drew stay healthy?

They are legitimate questions. But given the overall strength of this team, they may not be as legitimate as this one: Who's going to stop the Cards?

Up for grabs: The left field job is Polanco's, right now, but the Cards are going to take a look at So Taguchi. He reportedly is speedy and is good defensively, which he'll have to be to overcome just O.K. numbers at the plate (.277 career in Japan). Polanco hit .307 in 144 games in 2001, playing second, third and short. But he's never had a start in a regular-season game in left.

Spring chicken: St. Louis is a solid team with plenty of maneuverability, so don't look for another Pujols or Bud Smith this season. The name that keeps popping up is Josh Pearce, a 6-foot-3 right-hander who split time in the minors last season, going 4-4 with a 4.26 ERA in Class AAA and 6-8 with a 3.75 in Class AA. He's a possible filler in the bullpen later in the season, if necessary.

Arrivals
Pos.	Player	From	Via
C	Mike DiFelice	Diamondbacks	Waivers
RHP	Jason Isringhausen	Athletics	Free Agency
OF	Al Martin	Mariners	Free Agency
1B	Tino Martinez	Yankees	Free Agency
OF	So Taguchi	Japan	Free Agency
Departures
Pos.	Player	To	Via
RHP	Alan Benes	Cubs	Free Agency
OF	Bobby Bonilla		Retired
RHP	Dustin Hermanson	Red Sox	Free Agency
RHP	Mike James	Rockies	Free Agency
RHP	T.J. Mathews	Astros	Free Agency
1B	Mark McGwire		Retired
3B	Craig Paquette	Tigers	Free Agency

St. Louis Cardinals Spring Training Schedule
Home games at Roger Dean Stadium, Jupiter, Fla.
Date	Opponent	Time	Site
Feb. 28	N.Y. Mets	1:05 p.m.	Jupiter
March 1	N.Y. Mets	1:05 p.m.	at Port St. Lucie
March 2	Montreal	1:05 p.m.	Jupiter
March 3	Montreal	1:05 p.m.	at Jupiter
March 4	Baltimore	1:05 p.m.	Jupiter
March 5	Los Angeles	1:05 p.m.	at Vero Beach
March 6	Baltimore	1:05 p.m.	at Fort Lauderdale
March 7	Philadelphia	1:05 p.m.	Jupiter
March 8	Minnesota	1:05 p.m.	Jupiter
March 9	Montreal (ss)	12:05 p.m.	at Jupiter
March 9	Houston (ss)	1:05 p.m.	at Kissimmee
March 10	N.Y. Mets	1:05 p.m.	Jupiter
March 11	Atlanta	1:05 p.m.	at Disney
March 12	Boston	1:05 p.m.	Jupiter
March 13	N.Y. Mets	1:05 p.m.	at Port St. Lucie
March 14	Montreal (ss)	12:05 p.m.	Jupiter
March 14	Los Angeles (ss)	1:05 p.m.	at Vero Beach
March 15	Houston	1:05 p.m.	Jupiter
March 16	Baltimore	1:05 p.m.	Jupiter
March 17	Florida	1:05 p.m.	at Viera
March 18	Atlanta	1:05 p.m.	Jupiter
March 20	Minnesota	1:05 p.m.	at Lee County
March 21	Boston	1:05 p.m.	at Fort Myers
March 22	N.Y. Mets	7:05 p.m.	Jupiter
March 23	Baltimore	1:05 p.m.	at Fort Lauderdale
March 24	Los Angeles	1:05 p.m.	Jupiter
March 25	Montreal	1:05 p.m.	at Jupiter
March 26	Florida	1:05 p.m.	Jupiter
March 27	N.Y. Mets	1:05 p.m.	at Port St. Lucie
March 28	Montreal	1:05 p.m.	Jupiter
March 29	Memphis (AAA)	6:05 p.m.	at Memphis
March 30	Memphis (AAA)	2:05 p.m.	at Memphis
ss - split squad      All times local.