Redbirds Clubhouse

Be back soon......

STL_Cardinals, originally uploaded by Spydawebb.

Back when I was a kid, there were five TV Channels and they would usually shut down for the night at about 1 am. They'd play the National Anthem with some patriotic scene on the screen and then...... nothing. The station would go dark until 6 am when the news came on.

Well boys and girls, the clock has hit 1 am here at the Redbirds Clubhouse. It's time for me to do some other things for awhile. I'll still follow the Redbirds religiously and you'll still find me at the games.... I just won't be posting for awhile.

In the meantime, I'd value your comments and suggestions about what you like about the site, what you don't like, and features you'd like to see here at the Clubhouse once the clock hits 6 am again.

Thanks for visiting!

Cardinals Contracts 2009

2009 Cardinal Player Contract Status

Below is an up to date 2009 contract matrix. Contract numbers for Rick Ankiel, and Ryan Ludwick have been entered as the player figure submitted for arbitration.

Total team salary projected to be $100 M.

Current Contract Commitments - $93.925M

Rotation	Bullpen	Infield	Outfield	Bench
Carpenter $14M	Franklin $2.5M	Pujols $16M	Ankiel Arb $3.3M	LaRue $.925M
Lohse $7.125M	Thompson $.650M	Kennedy $4M	Ludwick Arb $4.25	Duncan  $.825M
Wainwright $2.6M	Kinney $.400M	Glaus $11.25M	Schumaker $.400M	Ryan $.400
Pineiro $7.5M	McClellan $.400M	Greene $6.5M		Mather $.400M
Wellemeyer $4.05	Perez $.400M	Molina $3.25M		Rasmus $.400M
	Miller $2M
	Motte $.400M
Rotation $35.275M	Bullpen $6.75M	Infield $41M	Outfield $7.95M	Bench $2.95M

St Louis Cardinals Winter Warm Up 2009

This weekend marked the unofficial start of the 2009 season with the annual Winter Warm Up at the Millennium Hotel in downtown St. Louis.

Virtually every Cardinal player made an appearance at this weekend's event.

Click HERE here to see photos from my Saturday trip to the 2009 Winter Warm Up.

Predictions for 2008

**Exclusive Content**

Tomorrow is Opening Day so now is the time to polish our crystal ball and make some predictions for 2008. This exercise is for entertainment purposes only. Please....no wagering.

1. With 18 of 29 April games at home, the Cardinals will get off to a fast start finishing April with a record of 18-10 (1 rainout).

2. Skip Schumaker will also get off to a fast start and will entrench himself as a solid leadoff hitter who will serve as a catalyst for the Cardinals offense.

3. The pitching staff will start the season much better than expected and challenges will develop in June and July when the team has an overabundance of quality starters. Expect a trade involving one or more Redbird pitchers before the All-Star break.

4. The Cubs will get off to a fast start but will not be able to pull away. Expect two of the best Cards/Cubs series in recent memory when they meet in St. Louis Sept 9-11 and in Chicago Sept 19-21.

5. As always, this team (actually ANY team) will be successful ONLY if they stay relatively healthy. An injury to a starting pitcher will be easier to absorb with the abundance of starters on this club, but an injury to a key player (Pujols, Molina, Glaus) could be devastating.

6. A Redbird pitcher will hurl a no hitter this year - you heard it here first!

7. Adam Kennedy will rebound to have a solid year and will possibly flirt with a .300 average. 

8. Cesar Izturis will NOT be the starting shortstop by the end of the season.

9. Yadier Molina will win his first Gold Glove.

10. The Cardinals will sqeak in to win the NL Wild Card by a game over the Dodgers with an 88-74 record. The NL Central will prove to be a much improved division this year and the Cubs will win it with a 91-71 record. The Mets will win the East at 98-64. The Diamondbacks will win the West, edging the Dodgers by two games at 89-73.

11. In the playoffs, The Cardinals will sweep the Mets and then win a thrilling series with the Cubs to advance to the World Series for the 3rd time in 5 years where they will beat the Yankees in 6 games.

12. Mark Mulder will win game 6 with a 2-0 shutout. Jason Isringhausen will get the save, be named Series MVP, and will retire a few days after the Series.

So there you go! Are you ready for some baseball?

What we had - what we've got

**Exclusive Content**

Today we'll take a look at three departed starters from 2007 and their replacements in 2008. How do their respective springs compare?

CF - Jim Edmonds (**Currently on 15 day DL - Calf**)

AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	AVG
6	1	1	1	0	0	1	.167

CF - Rick Ankiel

AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	AVG
74	10	26	4	0	4	11	.351

 

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3B - Scott Rolen (**DL until late April - Broken finger**)

AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	AVG
29	5	10	3	1	1	1	.345

3B - Troy Glaus

AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	AVG
55	7	20	7	0	1	9	.364

 

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SS - David Eckstein

AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	AVG
49	4	11	4	0	1	8	.224

SS - Cesar Izturis

AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	AVG
56	10	11	0	2	0	5	.196

 

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The Cardinals aren't in such bad shape, are they?

Statistics courtesy of the MLB.com website.

Red Schoendienst

One of the greatest Cardinals of all time, Red Schoendienst returns from home plate at Roger Dean Stadium in March, 2008 after taking out the lineup card prior to a game against the Washington Nationals. Red turned 85 in February and he looks great!

To put his Hall of Fame career in perspective, he has worn the birds on the bat since Harry Truman became President in 1945! He played in 10 All Star games and managed the Cardinals to the 1967 World Series title.

CLICK HERE to visit the Baseball Reference website where you can see his playing statistics and learn more about Red's great career as both a player and a manager.

The 5th Starter - Conclusion

**Exclusive Content**

In a discussion about the Cardinals 5th starter for the upcoming season, we took a look at the stats of 2 Cardinal pitchers. Both are well known. One is a retired Cardinal - one is a current Cardinal. They both have approximately the same number of appearances in their careers up to the point detailed below. The question was "Based upon statistics alone, who would you choose as your 5th starter?"

The point of this exercise? In my opinion, a 26 year old pitcher is still a "pup" and most likely will NOT set the world on fire his first few seasons. If a kid has a good arm and has made it to the big leagues, give him the ball & let him earn his stripes. 43 games in the big show does not tell the full story.

Who would YOU choose? We've added another pitcher for even more comparison:

Pitcher #1 - Bob Gibson

G	GS	W	L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	HR	ERA
40	21	6	11	162.3	174	96	82	87	117	11	4.55

Pitcher #1a - Greg Maddux

G	GS	W	L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	HR	ERA
36	32	8	18	186.7	225	121	116	86	121	20	5.59

Pitcher #2 Anthony Reyes

G	GS	W	L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	HR	ERA
43	38	8	23	206	198	129	124	81	158	35	5.42

Statistics courtesy of the Baseball Reference website.

The 5th Starter

**Exclusive Content**

As the Cardinals continue their search for a 5th starter to begin the 2008 season, it might be interesting to look at the following stats. Listed below are 2 Cardinal pitchers. Both are well known. One is a retired Cardinal - one is a current Cardinal. They both have approximately the same number of appearances in their careers up to the point detailed below.

Pitcher #1 is a year younger, has a better W-L record, a better ERA. K/BB ratio is average and he gave up more H than IP.

Pitcher #1 - RHP - 25 years old - 6'1", 195 lbs - Career Stats:

G	GS	W	L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	HR	ERA
40	21	6	11	162.3	174	96	82	87	117	11	4.55

Pitcher #2 has a better K/BB and H/IP ratio, but the W-L record is poor, the ERA is higher and he gave up more HR.

Pitcher #2 - RHP - 26 years old - 6'2", 215 lbs - Career Stats:

G	GS	W	L	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	HR	ERA
43	38	8	23	206	198	129	124	81	158	35	5.42

Based upon statistics alone, who would you choose as your 5th starter?

Answer tomorrow.