Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Sorting out the Cardinals NLDS Roster

Tonight we will find out who the Cardinals play in the NLDS as the Reds and Pirates square off in their Wild Card game.  But, before the Cards square off against the winner on Thursday, Mike Matheny and company need to set the roster.  To help him out, I've put together my own analysis of who should be included on the postseason roster.

The Locks

These guys are definitely on the roster.

Adam Wainwright
Shelby Miller
Lance Lynn
Joe Kelly
Trevor Rosenthal
Kevin Siegrist
Randy Choate
John Axford
Edward Mujica
Michael Wacha
Seth Maness

Yadier Molina
Tony Cruz
Matt Adams
Matt Carpenter
Daniel Descalso
David Freese
Pete Kozma
Carlos Beltran
Matt Holliday
Jon Jay
Shane Robinson

Note:  Allen Craig's injury will keep him out of the NLDS

That's 22 players, which brings us to...

The Decisions

First, the team needs to fill one more bullpen spot.  The candidates are Sam Freeman, Carlos Martinez, Fernando Salas and Jake Westbrook.

I think Westbrook is probably out.  Matheny gave him the start on Sunday, out of respect for all he's done for the team, but he doesn't do well out of the pen.  Freeman, Martinez and Salas all have their merits, but I think that, based on how he was used in high leverage situations down the stretch, Martinez is Matheny's man.

Finally, the team needs two more bench players.  The choices are Brock Peterson, Adron Chambers, Ryan Jackson or Kolten Wong.  Jackson is likely out, as he was seldom used down the stretch and the combo of Descalso and Kozma should be adequate enough for short and utility.  So, it basically comes down to Peterson, who provides right handed power, Chambers, a lefty outfielder who can play all 3 spots, and Wong, who provides the Cards with some speed.

I think the Cards will go with Peterson and Wong, as it would give them a good combo of right/left and power/speed.  Chambers would give the Cardinals another outfielder, in case Beltran or Holliday is banged up, but Peterson is capable of playing a corner outfield spot and the Cards will already have Robinson, who is capable of playing all 3 spots.  In any case, I don't see these guys seeing much action than the usual pinch hitting/pinch running situations.

Tomorrow, I will take a look at the matchups versus tonight's Reds/Pirates winner.

12 comments:

  1. Youre probably right, but its obvious Mo has sliced the baloney too thin on the bench if its Peterson and Wong. according to the stats, Matheny would be better off pinchhitting Wainwright or Westbrook than those two.

    Whitey had people like Jorgensen, Lindeman, and Dan Driessen off the bench for playoffs.

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    1. Craig's injury really hurts the Cardinals bench, as they would then have Matt Adams on the bench, but I hear what you're saying.

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  2. brock peterson could still be a huge surprise and really help us out

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  3. peterson can't hit a beach ball from a major league pitcher and jackson is non factor. so chambers because of speed and the fact he has been there before along with wong who needs to stop trying to hit a homerun every swing are the best choices.

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    1. Neither Peterson or Chambers hit a lick this season, so its a tough call between them. With Craig out and Adams starting as a result, Peterson at least gives the Cards some potential power off the bench.

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  4. I see Martinez as more of a lock than Mujica. I also think Chambers will be on the roster.

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  5. I LIKE THE IDEAL OF ADAM AS A PINCH HITTER AND THEN CARRY FREEMAN AS A RUNNER AND LEAVE MUJICA AT HOME HE IS KILLING US NOW THAT HE'S IN DOWN FALL

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  6. Why do we need 12 pitchers for a 5-game series? Whitey used 8 pitchers for the 7-game World Series vs. the Brewers ... and won!

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    1. True, but just because he only used 8 pitchers doesn't mean that's all he had on his roster.

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  7. I'd keep Chambers, Martinez and Wong. Speed could play an important role in a lot of situations.

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    1. Yes, speed can be important. But so can having someone who is at least a threat to hit a homer. The Cards haven't stolen many bases this year (or hit many homers either), so it will be interesting to see which direction Matheny goes.

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  8. Looks like Matheny is listening to you--he's going with Chambers over Peterson.

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