Righty starting pitcher Joel Pineiro is the latest pitcher to be turned into a star by pitching coach Dave Duncan and manager Tony LaRussa. He has started 19 games this season for the Cardinals and he is 9-9 with a 2.95 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP. He has exhibited outstanding control so far this season walking only 13 batters in 128 1/3 innings for the Cardinals. There is absolutely no reason to think that Pineiro can’t keep up the good work as he has nasty stuff. The forecast here is that he will start winning more games now that the front office has gotten Albert Pujols some protection in the lineup.

The Cardinals have sent 23-year old righty reliever Jess Todd to the Indians to complete the Mark DeRosa trade. Todd was the #4 rated prospect of the Cardinals heading into this season according to Baseball America. Todd pitched in 41 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball this season and he was 4-2 with 24 saves, a 2.20 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP. Todd also made his major league debut for the Cardinals this season and the result wasn’t pretty as he worked 1 2/3 innings allowing 3 hits and 2 earned runs while walking 2 batters and whiffing 2. This was a trade the Cardinals made to attempt to win the World Series right now so it’s hard to fault them for giving up Todd and Chris Perez. But, down the line the Cardinals could regret giving up these two pitchers to Cleveland.

The Cardinals have acquired 33-year old righty swinging shortstop Julio Lugo from the Red Sox for 28-year old lefty swinging 1B/OF Chris Duncan and a player to be named later. Lugo will step right into the starting job for the Cardinals. He played in 37 games for the Red Sox this season and he was 31 for 109 (.284 avg, .719 OPS) with 16 runs scored, 1 homer, 8 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. He made his debut for the Cardinals last night and he was 2 for 5 with 2 runs scored and a solo homer. Before last night, Lugo had played in 1,186 games in his major league career in which he was 1,172 for 4,325 (.271 avg, .725 OPS) with 635 runs scored, 78 homers, 439 RBIs and 187 stolen bases.

Chris Duncan played in 87 games for the Cardinals this season and he was 59 for 260 (.227 avg, .687 OPS) with 25 runs scored, 5 homers and 32 RBIs. Duncan played five years for the Cardinals covering 389 games in which he was 295 for 1,147 (.257 avg, .806 OPS) with 164 runs scored, 55 homers and 175 RBIs. This move might upset Cardinals’ coach Dave Duncan but it was a move that had to be made.

The Cardinals have acquired 29-year old righty swinging outfielder Matt Holliday from the A’s for 22-year old lefty swinging 3B Brett Wallace, 21-year old lefty swinging outfielder Shane Peterson and 24-year old righty starting pitcher Clayton Mortensen. Holliday made his debut with the Cardinals last night and he went 4 for 5 with a double, a run scored and 1 RBI. He should provide great protection in the lineup for Albert Pujols making the Cardinals’ lineup much better. Holliday played in 93 games this season for the A’s in which he was 99 for 346 (.286 avg, .831 OPS) with 52 runs scored, 11 homers, 54 RBIs and 12 stolen bases. In his major league career, Holliday has played in 792 games in which he is 951 for 3,007 (.316 avg, .927 OPS) with 532 runs scored, 139 homers, 538 RBIs and 79 stolen bases.

It wasn’t cheap to get Holliday however. Brett Wallace was the #2 ranked prospect in the Cardinals’ system heading into this season. He has played in 94 games in AA+AAA ball this season and he is 101 for 350 (.289 avg, .797 OPS) with 44 runs scored, 11 homers and 35 RBIs. He will be in Oakland soon. Clayton Mortensen was the Cardinals’ #6 prospect heading into this season according to Baseball America. He made 1 appearance for the Cardinals earlier this season and he was 0-0 with a 6.00 ERA and a 2.00 WHIP. In 17 starts in AAA-ball this season Mortensen was 7-6 with a 4.37 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP. He will likely also be in Oakland soon. Shane Peterson played in 94 games in A+AA ball so far this season and he was 106 for 359 (.295 avg, .784 OPS) with 42 runs scored, 7 homers, 46 RBIs and 12 stolen bases. Although the Cardinals gave up a lot to get Holliday this was a move the Cardinals had to make.