The Cardinals have signed 29-year old switch hitting SS/3B/2B Felipe Lopez to a 1-year, $1.75 million dollar deal with incentives. Lopez played in 151 games for the Brewers and D-Backs last season and he was 187 of 604 (.310 avg, .810 OPS) with 88 runs scored, 9 homers, 57 RBIs and 6 stolen bases. In his 9 years in the majors, Lopez has played in 1,024 games in which he is 1,025 of 3,805 (.269 avg, .738 OPS) with 536 runs scored, 80 homers, 391 RBIs and 115 stolen bases. Lopez will likely start at 3B if David Freese is not ready to handle the starting job or shortstop if Brendan Ryan is not ready to start the year due to injury. Regardless of where he plays I see Lopez getting at least 450 at bats for the Cardinals in 2010 and I love the signing for them.

26-year old righty swinging David Freese and 25-year old righty swinging Allen Craig have waited patiently in the minors for their big chance and they will battle this spring for the starting job at 3B for the Cardinals in 2010. Freese has a slight edge in this competition heading into spring training. Freese played in 17 games for the Cardinals last season and he was 10 for 31 (.323 avg, .837 OPS) with 3 runs scored, 1 homer and 7 RBIs. Freese also played in 74 games in Rookie+AA+AAA ball last season and he was 71 for 227 (.313 avg, .931 OPS) with 39 runs scored, 12 homers and 48 RBIs. Freese didn’t make any errors at 3B for the Cardinals last season while showing below average range.

25-year old righty swinging Allen Craig is also a player on the rise. Craig played in 126 games in AAA-ball last season and he was 152 for 472 (.322 avg, .921 OPS) with 78 runs scored, 26 homers, 83 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. Craig is slightly behind Freese as spring training starts but he’s not too far behind to catch up quickly.

27-year old righty swinging Joe Mather is a big longshot to win the job at 3B. He played in 59 games in Rookie+AA+AAA ball last season and he was 38 for 202 (.188 avg, .573 OPS) with 21 runs scored, 4 homers, 28 RBIs and 7 stolen bases. Mather did play in 54 games with the Cardinals in 2008 and he was 32 for 133 (.241 avg, .780 OPS) with 20 runs scored, 8 homers and 18 RBIs.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 3B IN 2010: C

27-year old righty swinging Brendan Ryan stepped up last season when the Cardinals had a hole at shortstop and he heads into spring training as the starter for 2010. He is rehabbing from wrist surgery so he will get a late start this spring but he should be ready by opening day. Ryan played in 129 games for the Cardinals last season and he was 114 for 390 (.292 avg, .740 OPS) with 55 runs scored, 3 homers, 37 RBIs and 14 stolen bases. Ryan also played great on defense for the Cardinals last season as he only made 8 errors in 105 games at SS while showing out of this world range. The Cardinals hope that Ryan can maintain his bat and defense over a whole 162 game season.

34-year old righty swinging Julio Lugo will backup Ryan at SS in 2010. He played in 56 games for the Red Sox and Cardinals at SS last season and he made 8 errors while showing average range.

26-year old righty swinging Tyler Greene will battle for a backup job this spring. Greene played in 48 games for the Cardinals last season and he was 24 for 108 (.222 avg, .594 OPS) with 9 runs scored, 2 homers, 7 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. Greene also played in 89 games in AAA-ball last season and he was 99 for 340 (.291 avg, .851 OPS) with 70 runs scored, 15 homers, 42 RBIs and 31 stolen bases. Greene played in 30 games at SS for the Cardinals last season and he made 3 errors while showing good range.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE SS IN 2010: C+

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