Cornering the market

Redbirds move another step ahead of NL Central foes

The inevitable happened late Monday afternoon when the Philadelphia Phillies traded third baseman Scott Rolen and a minor league pitcher to the St. Louis Cardinals for infielder Placido Polanco, left-hander Bud Smith and reliever Mike Timlin. CNNSI.com spoke with Sports Illustrated's Tom Verducci about the deal.

CNNSI.com: A couple of years ago Rolen seemed like he'd be a Phillie for life. What happened, and how did his relationship with the club sour so quickly?

Tom Verducci: It really fell apart last year when Phillies manager Larry Bowa and senior advisor Dallas Green made negative comments about Rolen. It think the problem in Philadelphia was that management always expected Rolen to be a leader and franchise player, and he just didn't have that take-charge personality. He reminds me a lot of Don Mattingly, who was criticized in the early '90s for not being enough of a leader. But that's not who these guys are.

CNNSI.com: Did the Phillies get maximum value for Rolen, or were they hurt by waiting so long to deal him when every team knew he wanted out of Philly?

Verducci: The Phillies probably should've moved him in the offseason. His value would've been higher at that point. But the franchise was encouraged by the season it had last year and thought by keeping Rolen it could contend this year. It was a miscalculation that cost the Phillies. But I still think given where they were at at this point with Rolen -- a guy who clearly wasn't coming back -- the Phillies did OK. They didn't get equal value, but based on the corner they put themselves in, they came out OK.

CNNSI.com: St. Louis has already built up a nice lead in the NL Central. How much does this trade help the Cards in the division -- and in closing the gap against the Braves and Diamondbacks?

Verducci: The Cardinals were already the team to beat in the Central, and Rolen just solidifies that. He's going to love playing in St. Louis. He's the perfect player for that town. The club is not going to expect him to be its franchise player, and the fans will provide support like he never saw in his Philly days. Rolen gives the team -- besides an all-out effort every day and a great bat -- great defense at third base, which has been a problem for the Cards. The pitchers are going to love this guy, and so will the fans. This puts St. Louis a step or two ahead of everyone else in the Central. It definitely closed the gap against Atlanta and Arizona, but with regard to starting pitching, I don't think the Cardinals can match up with those two teams -- and that's usually what decides winners in the postseason. But there's no doubt St. Louis added an All-Star player without taking away from the core of what already was a first-place team. So you'd have to say the Cardinals really made up ground on the Braves and Diamondbacks.

CNNSI.com: What are the chances Rolen signs a long-term deal with St. Louis?

Verducci: The nice position the Cards are in is that they have a really good history of acquiring players and keeping them in St. Louis long-term. They did it with Mark McGwire, they did it with Jim Edmonds. It's the kind of place players love to play. It's the polar opposite of what Rolen experienced in Philadelphia. There, he was playing for a bad team in a hostile market. Now he goes to a team with a recent history of success and market that gets behind its players no matter what happens. It wouldn't surprise me to see Rolen sign an extension very quickly. He could wait until the offseason, but I think he'll stay a Cardinal.

CNNSI.com: Are the Phillies done dealing, or was this just a case of them trading a disgruntled player?

Verducci: Philadelphia would love to move a couple more players. The Phillies would like to get something for Dan Plesac, even though the Phils have already told him they'd like to re-sign him as a free agent. But the team would like to deal him now and get something for him. I think the Phillies would also like a team to take Travis Lee off their hands. By no means do I think the Phils are done trying to make a deal, but it's a matter of whether they could find another fit. They may have another deal or two left.

Sports Illustrated senior writer Tom Verducci covers the baseball beat for the magazine and is a regular contributor to CNNSI.com.

 

Related information

Multimedia

Visit Video Plus for the latest audio and video