30-year old Skip Schumaker did a solid job for the Cardinals at 2B after converting from the outfield last spring. He played in 133 games at 2B for the Cardinals last season and he made 9 errors there while showing above average range. Schumaker played in 153 games for the Cardinals last season and he was 161 for 532 (.303 avg, .757 OPS) with 85 runs scored, 4 homers, 35 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. Look for him to build off his solid 2010 season as he will likely improve even more on defense while still hitting well.

34-year old righty swinging Julio Lugo will be the utility infielder for the Cardinals in 2010. He played in 51 games for the Cardinals last season and he was 41 for 148 (.277 avg, .783 OPS) with 24 runs scored, 2 homers, 13 RBIs and 6 stolen bases. Lugo played in 88 games overall last season with the Red Sox and Cardinals and he was 72 for 257 (.280 avg, .757 OPS) with 40 runs scored, 3 homers, 21 RBIs and 9 stolen bases. Lugo made 2 errors in 30 games at 2B for the Cardinals last season while showing above average range. It’s nice for the Cardinals to have a player like Lugo on the bench because he is a capable starting player at 2B, SS, 3B or the outfield.

27-year old righty swinging Ruben Gotay was brought in to compete for a spot on the bench in 2010 for the Cardinals. He played in 118 games in AAA-ball last season and he was 101 for 371 (.272 avg, .879 OPS) with 65 runs scored, 11 homers and 57 RBIs. But, he made 7 errors in only 41 games at 2B in the minors last season. He will need to improve defensively if he’s going to have any chance of making the Cardinals this season.

26-year old righty swinging shortstop Tyler Greene is a natural shortstop but he can fill in at 2B for the Cardinals if needed. He played in 7 error-free games for the Cardinals at 2B last season while showing above average range.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2B IN 2010: B

Lefty starting pitcher John Tudor was only with the Cardinals for five seasons but he made his mark. He played in 128 games (125 starts) for the Cardinals and he was 62-26 with a 2.52 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP. Tudor finished second in the voting for the Cy Young Award in 1985 for the Cardinals. He pitched in 36 games (all starts) in 1985 for the Cardinals and he was 21-8 with a 1.93 ERA and a 0.94 WHIP. He also threw 14 complete games with 10 shutouts in 1985. Tudor is #2 all-time in Cardinals’ history in ERA (2.52) and he is #2 in WHIP (1.08). Tudor was not in St. Louis too long but he was great for them.

30-year old righty swinging 1B Albert Pujols is the best hitter on the planet, period! He played in 160 games for the Cardinals last season and he was 186 for 568 (.327 avg, 1.101 OPS) with 124 runs scored, 47 homers, 135 RBIs and 16 stolen bases. Pujols has a nine-year career batting average of .334 with a 1.055 OPS for the Cardinals. He has averaged 119 runs scored, 40.7 homers and 123.6 RBIs per season for the Cardinals and there is no reason to think he won’t put up those same kind of numbers this year for the Cardinals. The only chink in Pujols’ armor is his defense as he made 13 errors in 159 games at 1B last season.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 1B IN 2010: A+

The Cardinals have signed 29-year old lefty starting pitcher Rich Hill to a minor league deal. Hill pitched in 14 games (13 starts) for the Orioles last season and he was 3-3 with a 7.80 ERA and 1.87 WHIP. Hill has now pitched in 78 games (70 starts) in his major league career and he is 21-20 with a 4.87 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP. Hill has good stuff as he has only allowed 359 hits in 395 1/3 career innings in the majors and he has whiffed 355 batters. It will be up to pitching coach Dave Duncan to get Hill to throw more strikes as he has walked 177 batters in his major league career. Hill will battle for the #5 job in the Cardinals’ starting rotation this spring.

Defense is the name of the game for the catchers on the St. Louis Cardinals. 27-year old righty swinging Yadier Molina will be the starter once again. He played in 140 games last season for the Cardinals and he was 141 for 481 (.293 avg, .749 OPS) wiht 45 runs scored, 6 homers, 54 RBIs and 9 stolen bases. His bat continues to improve but Molina’s calling card is his defense. Molina had 5 errors and 4 passed balls in 138 games behind the plate last season. Molina threw out 33% of the runners trying to steal against him last season and Cardinals’ pitchers loved throwing to him as they had a 3.48 ERA with him behind the plate.

35-year old righty swinging Jason LaRue will be the back-up for the Cardinals again in 2010. He played in 51 games for the Cardinals last season and he was 25 for 104 (.240 avg, .615 OPS) with 10 runs scored, 2 homers and 6 RBIs. LaRue has random power but he won’t likely be much of a asset with a bat in his hands this year. LaRue is also a outstanding defensive catcher as he only made 1 error and had 1 passed ball in 43 games behind the plate for the Cardinals last year. He also threw out 23% of the runners trying to steal on him last season and Cardinals’ pitchers had a 4.46 ERA with him behind the plate.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE CATCHERS IN 2010: B