31-year old righty swinging Ryan Ludwick had a decent year in 2009 but the Cardinals are hoping that he gets back to his 2008 production. Ludwick played in 139 games for the Cardinals last season in which he was 129 of 486 (.265 avg, .775 OPS) with 63 runs scored, 22 homers, 97 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. Ludwick only made 1 error in 133 games in RF last season but he showed poor range. Ludwick has a good arm as he had 9 assists out of RF last season. The Cardinals are hoping for big things out of Ludwick in 2010.

27-year old righty swinging Joe Mather is running out of time as he will try to make the Cardinals as a backup outfielder in 2010. He played in 59 games in Rookie+AA+AAA ball last season in which he was 38 of 202 (.188 avg, .573 OPS) with 21 runs scored, 4 homers, 28 RBIs and 7 stolen bases.

25-year old righty swinging Shane Robinson could win a backup job for the Cardinals in 2010. He played in 6 error-free games in RF for the Cardinals last season while showing poor range.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE LF IN 2010: B

23-year old lefty swinging Colby Rasmus will have the starting job all to himself in 2010. He played in 147 games for the Cardinals last season and he was 119 of 474 (.251 avg, .714 OPS) with 72 runs scored, 16 homers, 52 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. Rasmus is just scratching the surface of his potential so look for his offensive numbers to improve in 2010. Rasmus made 5 errors in 124 games in CF last season while showing below average range. Rasmus had 3 assists from CF as he has a decent throwing arm. I look for Rasmus to improve defensively as well as offensively in 2010.

25-year old righty swinging Shane Robinson will likely be the backup in CF for the Cardinals in 2010. He played in 11 games for the Cardinals last season and he was 6 of 25 (.240 avg, .511 OPS) with 1 run scored, 1 RBI and 1 stolen base. Robinson also played in 100 games in AAA-ball in which he was 82 of 345 (.238 avg, .657 OPS) with 46 runs scored, 5 homers, 40 RBIs and 16 stolen bases. Robinson played in 2 error-free games for the Cardinals in CF last season.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE CF IN 2010: B

30-year old righty swinging Matt Holliday will be entering the first year of a seven year deal with the Cardinals that will make him a very rich man. Now he will be Albert Pujols protector in the lineup for a full year and it will be interesting to see what kind of outstanding numbers he can put up. Holliday played in 63 games for the Cardinals last season after coming over from the A’s in a trade and he was 83 of 235 (.353 avg, 1.023 OPS) with 42 runs scored, 13 homers, 55 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. Holliday played in 156 games overall for the A’s and Cardinals last season in which he was 182 of 581 (.313 avg, .909 OPS) with 94 runs scored, 24 homers, 109 RBIs and 14 stolen bases. Holliday played in 155 games in LF last season and he made 5 errors while showing average range. Holliday has a pretty good throwing arm as he had 7 assists last season. Look for Holliday to put up huge numbers in 2010 as long as he can stay healthy.

27-year old righty swinging Nick Stavinoha will likely back up Holliday in LF. He played in 27 games for the Cardinals last season and he was 20 of 87 (.230 avg, .621 OPS) with 6 runs scored, 2 homers and 17 RBIs. Stavinoha didn’t make any errors in 13 games in LF last season while showing pretty pathetic range.

24-year old lefty swinging Jon Jay is the Cardinals’ #13 rated prospect coming into this season according to Baseball America. Jay played in 136 games in AAA-ball last season and he was 142 of 505 (.281 avg, .732 OPS) with 72 runs scored, 10 homers, 54 RBIs and 20 stolen bases. He will have a legit shot to make the Cardinals this spring as a backup outfielder.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE LF IN 2010: A

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