St. Louis Cardinals MLB News - Cardinals Baseball Blog http://www.cardslocker.com St. Louis Cardinals Sat, 14 Jan 2012 22:51:14 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=wordpress-mu-1.2.5 en The St. Louis Cardinals have not made many changes for 2012 http://www.cardslocker.com/2012/01/14/the-st-louis-cardinals-have-not-made-many-changes-for-2012/ http://www.cardslocker.com/2012/01/14/the-st-louis-cardinals-have-not-made-many-changes-for-2012/#comments Sat, 14 Jan 2012 22:51:14 +0000 chinmusic http://www.cardslocker.com/2012/01/14/the-st-louis-cardinals-have-not-made-many-changes-for-2012/ The St. Louis Cardinals lost Albert Pujols as a free agent to the Angels since winning the World Series. The Cardinals seem pretty content with the team that won it all last year as they have not made many changes for 2012. Here is a look at the new faces they have brought in so far:

In the field: The biggest player the Cardinals have brought in over the winter is outfielder Carlos Beltran. This will allow the Cardinals to move Lance Berkman to 1B to replace Albert Pujols. Beltran won’t be able to replace the offensive numbers that Pujols put up, but the Cardinals have a very solid offensive team and he’s going to fit right in. The Cardinals also recently signed veteran catcher Koyie Hill who will battle it out with Tony Cruz in spring training to see who will back up Yadier Molina in 2012.

On the mound: The Cardinals wanted another lefty for the pen so they have signed J.C. Romero and R.J. Swindle to compete for the job in spring training. Romero is almost a lock to make the Cardinals’ opening day pitching staff.

Overall: The Cardinals might wind up being even better in 2012 without Albert Pujols. That is because they are going to have an outstanding starting rotation that will welcome back Adam Wainwright, who is one of the best pitchers in the league. If Beltran stays healthy in 2012, he will cushion the loss of Pujols a little bit.

]]> http://www.cardslocker.com/2012/01/14/the-st-louis-cardinals-have-not-made-many-changes-for-2012/feed/ The Arizona Cardinals sign catcher Koyie Hill http://www.cardslocker.com/2012/01/11/the-arizona-cardinals-sign-catcher-koyie-hill/ http://www.cardslocker.com/2012/01/11/the-arizona-cardinals-sign-catcher-koyie-hill/#comments Wed, 11 Jan 2012 05:01:52 +0000 chinmusic http://www.cardslocker.com/2012/01/11/the-arizona-cardinals-sign-catcher-koyie-hill/ The Cardinals have signed 32-year old righty swinging catcher Koyie Hill to a minor league deal. Hill played in 46 games for the Cubs last year and he was 26 for 134 (.194 avg, .545 OPS) with 15 runs scored, 2 homers, 9 RBIs and 1 stolen base. He has now played in 302 games in his first 8 years in the majors and he is 176 of 833 (.211 avg, .573 OPS) with 75 runs scored, 8 homers, 75 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. Hill will battle Tony Cruz this spring for the right to see who will back up Yadier Molina in 2012.

]]> http://www.cardslocker.com/2012/01/11/the-arizona-cardinals-sign-catcher-koyie-hill/feed/ The St. Louis Cardinals sign Carlos Beltran http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/22/the-st-louis-cardinals-sign-carlos-beltran/ http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/22/the-st-louis-cardinals-sign-carlos-beltran/#comments Fri, 23 Dec 2011 02:25:31 +0000 chinmusic http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/22/the-st-louis-cardinals-sign-carlos-beltran/ The Cardinals have signed 34-year old switch-hitting outfielder Carlos Beltran to a 2-year, $26 million dollar deal. Beltan played in 142 games for the Mets & Giants last year and he was 156 of 520 (.300 avg, .910 OPS) with 78 runs scored, 22 homers, 84 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. He has now played in 1,768 games in his first 14 years in the majors and he is 1,917 of 6,767 (.283 avg, .857 OPS) with 1,184 runs scored, 302 homers, 1,146 RBIs and 293 stolen bases. Beltran will likely start in RF when the 2012 season begins for the Cardinals and then shift to CF when Allen Craig is ready to return from injury. This was a great move for the Cardinals.

]]> http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/22/the-st-louis-cardinals-sign-carlos-beltran/feed/ The St. Louis Cardinals sign R.J. Swindle http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/22/the-st-louis-cardinals-sign-rj-swindle/ http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/22/the-st-louis-cardinals-sign-rj-swindle/#comments Thu, 22 Dec 2011 13:48:46 +0000 chinmusic http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/22/the-st-louis-cardinals-sign-rj-swindle/ The Cardinals have signed 28-year old lefty reliever R.J. Swindle to a minor league deal. Swindle pitched in 39 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball last year and he was 2-0 with 1 save, a 2.37 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP. He last pitched in the majors back in 2009 for the Brewers. He has pitched in 9 games (0 starts) in his first two years in the minors and he is 0-0 with a 12.71 ERA and a 2.38 WHIP. The Cardinals might give Swindle a chance to make the team next spring as a situational lefty in the pen.

]]> http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/22/the-st-louis-cardinals-sign-rj-swindle/feed/ The St. Louis Cardinals sign Eugenio Velez http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/22/the-st-louis-cardinals-sign-eugenio-velez/ http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/22/the-st-louis-cardinals-sign-eugenio-velez/#comments Thu, 22 Dec 2011 13:41:56 +0000 chinmusic http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/22/the-st-louis-cardinals-sign-eugenio-velez/ The Cardinals have signed IF/OF Eugenio Velez to a minor league deal. Velez played in 34 games for the Dodgers last year and he was 0 for 37 (.000 avg, .075 OPS) with 5 runs scored, 1 RBI and 1 stolen base. He has now played in 259 games in his first five years in the majors and he is 160 of 663 (.241 avg, .654 OPS) with 89 runs scored, 8 homers, 72 RBIs and 31 stolen bases. The Cardinals will likely stash Velez in AAA in 2012 and give him another chance at the majors to make up for 2011, if the need arises and he deserves to be recalled.

]]> http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/22/the-st-louis-cardinals-sign-eugenio-velez/feed/ The St. Louis Cardinals sign J.C. Romero http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/16/the-st-louis-cardinals-sign-jc-romero/ http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/16/the-st-louis-cardinals-sign-jc-romero/#comments Fri, 16 Dec 2011 13:24:34 +0000 chinmusic http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/16/the-st-louis-cardinals-sign-jc-romero/ The Cardinals have signed 35-year old lefty reliever J.C. Romero to a 1-year deal. Romero pitched in 36 games (0 starts) for the Phillies & Rockies last year and he was 1-0 with a 4.01 ERA and a 1.74 WHIP. He has now pitched in 664 games (22 starts) in his first 13 years in the majors and he is 34-28 with 7 saves, a 4.07 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP. Romero will be the Cardinals’ situational lefty reliever in 2012.

]]> http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/16/the-st-louis-cardinals-sign-jc-romero/feed/ The St. Louis Cardinals non tender Ryan Theriot http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/13/the-st-louis-cardinals-non-tender-ryan-theriot/ http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/13/the-st-louis-cardinals-non-tender-ryan-theriot/#comments Tue, 13 Dec 2011 19:19:16 +0000 chinmusic http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/13/the-st-louis-cardinals-non-tender-ryan-theriot/ The Cardinals have decided not to tender a contract for the 2012 season to 32-year old righty swinging shortstop Ryan Theriot. Theriot played in 132 games for the Cardinals last year and he was 120 for 442 (.271 avg, .662 OPS) with 46 runs scored, 1 homer, 47 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. He has now played in 795 games in his first 7 years in the majors and he is 816 for 2,894 (.282 avg, .697 OPS) with 401 runs scored, 17 homers, 229 RBIs and 108 stolen bases. The Cardinals had no real need for Theriot anymore after deciding to bring back Rafael Furcal.

]]> http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/13/the-st-louis-cardinals-non-tender-ryan-theriot/feed/ The St. Louis Cardinals re-sign Rafael Furcal http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/10/the-st-louis-cardinals-re-sign-rafael-furcal/ http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/10/the-st-louis-cardinals-re-sign-rafael-furcal/#comments Sat, 10 Dec 2011 22:17:24 +0000 chinmusic http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/10/the-st-louis-cardinals-re-sign-rafael-furcal/ The Cardinals have re-signed 34-year old switch-hitting shortstop Rafael Furcal to a 2-year, $14 million dollar deal. Furcal played in 50 games for the Cardinals last year and he was 50 for 196 (.255 avg, .735 OPS) with 29 runs scored, 7 homers, 16 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. He played in 87 games overall for the Dodgers & Cardinals last year and he was 77 for 333 (.231 avg, .646 OPS) with 44 runs scored, 8 homers, 28 RBIs and 9 stolen bases. Furcal has now played in 1,484 games in his first 12 years in the majors and he is 1,685 of 5,965 (.282 avg, .756 OPS) with 990 runs scored, 108 homers, 536 RBIs and 302 stolen bases. This was a good move for the Cardinals as Furcal played pretty well for them last year.

]]> http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/10/the-st-louis-cardinals-re-sign-rafael-furcal/feed/ The St. Louis Cardinals picked OF Erik Komatsu in the Rule 5 Draft http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/08/the-st-louis-cardinals-picked-of-erik-komatsu-in-the-rule-5-draft/ http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/08/the-st-louis-cardinals-picked-of-erik-komatsu-in-the-rule-5-draft/#comments Thu, 08 Dec 2011 20:18:51 +0000 chinmusic http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/08/the-st-louis-cardinals-picked-of-erik-komatsu-in-the-rule-5-draft/ The St. Louis Cardinals have selected 24-year old lefty swinging outfielder Erik Komatsu in the Rule 5 Draft from the Washington Nationals. Komatsu came into last year as the Brewers #14 prospect according to Baseball America. Komatsu played in 124 games in AA-ball for the Brewers & Nationals last year and he was 124 of 448 (.277 avg, .749 OPS) with 60 runs scored, 7 homers, 48 RBIs and 21 stolen bases. He has now played in 348 games in his first four years in the minors and he is 390 for 1,290 (.302 avg, .823 OPS) with 218 runs scored, 24 homers, 166 RBIs and 57 stolen bases. Komatsu is going to have a great shot of winning a job on the Cardinals’ bench next spring.

]]> http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/08/the-st-louis-cardinals-picked-of-erik-komatsu-in-the-rule-5-draft/feed/ Allen Craig might not be ready for the start of the 2012 season for the St. Louis Cardinals http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/07/allen-craig-might-not-be-ready-for-the-start-of-the-2012-season-for-the-st-louis-cardinals/ http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/07/allen-craig-might-not-be-ready-for-the-start-of-the-2012-season-for-the-st-louis-cardinals/#comments Wed, 07 Dec 2011 13:42:21 +0000 chinmusic http://www.cardslocker.com/2011/12/07/allen-craig-might-not-be-ready-for-the-start-of-the-2012-season-for-the-st-louis-cardinals/ 27-year old righty swinging OF/3B/1B Allen Craig is going to be out of action for 4-6 months after having knee surgery right around Thanksgiving. This is a big loss for the Cardinals as Craig could be out until May. He played in 75 games for the Cardinals last year and he was 63 for 200 (.315 avg, .917 OPS) with 33 runs scored, 11 homers, 40 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. Craig has now played in 119 games in his first two years with the Cardinals and he is 91 for 314 (.290 avg, .842 OPS) with 45 runs scored, 15 homers, 58 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. Craig is in line for a bump in P.T. this year, so the Cardinals hope he heals up quickly.

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