April 17, 2002

LATEST TEAM INFO: 9-6, 2nd place NL Central

Rotation:

Despite the fact that no starter has won outside of ace Matt Morris (4-0), the Cards are off to a strong start, having taken 2 out of 3 twice from division rival Houston and sweeping the Brewers at home. The rotation, thought to be among the strongest in the leagues has posed some questions. Woody Williams hit the DL with a strained oblique muscle in his first start... Garrett Stephenson was pulled from his last start due to back spasms.... Andy Benes has gone on the DL and is expected to announce his retirement, mainly due to poor performance and partially due to a bum right knee.

Darryl Kile has had some hard luck in two no-decisions. He’s pitching well, but they’re still “babying” him back from off-season rotator cuff surgery, so he has yet to approach his normal workload... 22-year-old lefty Bud Smith looks to be back in the rotation to stay after Benes’ announcement today, and has looked pretty solid despite a few rocky patches vs. the Brewers and Diamondbacks.... Lefty phenom Rick Ankiel still appears to be another month away from being ready to join the team. AAA starter Josh Pearce is expected to be called up and possibly asked to start on Friday, and rookie Travis Smith is also expected to get an opportunity to start if both Benes and Stephenson are done.

Bullpen:

Steve Kline has returned to the team after taking 3 days off as his wife had their first child. The man with the rubber arm and dirty hat should be key to the team’s success until late May, as the Cards may have to go with a 4-man rotation until they’re healthy, and that should mean more innings for the bullpen. Kline has led the NL in appearances 3 years in a row.

New closer Jason Isringhausen (2-0, 2 SV) has been nothing short of spectacular in the early going, having posted a 0.90 ERA and a 0.60 WHIP in his first 8 appearances while striking out 16 in 10 IP. In his first save opportunity, he electrified Busch Stadium by striking out the side on 10 pitches after entering the game with a 1 run lead and a runner on second. It appears that the Cards have finally found a guy who can close the deal in the 9th.

Infield:

New 1b Tino Martinez has struggled in the early going, and is batting only .176 with 0 HR and 6 RBI. The Cards current 13-game trip may help him to relax a bit, as he may have been too anxious at the plate in front of his new fans.... SS Edgar Renteria has been hitting the ball well to all fields, but continues to get robbed by stellar defensive plays. One would think it might just be a matter of time.

The most noteworthy player offensively this season for the Cardinals has been utility man Eli Marrero, who’s hitting .500 with 1 HR and 4 steals so far. He’s already played 1b, 2b, SS, LF, and C this year. A catcher by trade, he was moved to the utility role when the Cardinals signed Mike Difelice to backup starter Mike Matheny in the off season. He should continue to see time all over the field, as Larussa showed last year that he loves having that “super-utility” guy in his lineup.

Outfield:

Jim Edmonds has been on fire to start the season. Perhaps it’s the absence of Mark McGwire, but he’s shown the leadership skills that he’d hinted at in his first season in St. Louis in 2000. He’s crushing the ball, with 6 HR, 14 RBI, and 14 runs in 14 games to go along with his .375 Avg. so far this year, and has led by example.

J.D. Drew continues to build his profile as a 5-tool stud. He started sluggishly with his power numbers, but has homered 3 times in the last 6 games, and has 3 steals through 14 games as well. This may be the year that he breaks through with his first 30/30 season. He’s also been hitting the ball well (.345) and hasn’t complained once of an injury so far this season (crossing fingers).

For those of you who have Albert Pujols in keeper leagues, smile. While you may have cringed when you heard that he’d be the Cardinals starting LF this year instead of their 3b, he’s actually already started 8 games at third, and should be eligible there for you next year. He’s been tattooing doubles all over the place so far this season, and more and more of those will start turning into homers down the road.

RUMOR MILL:

Well, by the time this report is posted, it may no longer be a rumor, but RHP Andy Benes is being placed on the disabled list, and most think he’ll never wear the Cardinal uniform again. He has been shelled for 17 hits and has walked 12 in 10 innings through 3 starts this year, and he’s just not effective anymore. Cardinals TV Analyst and former Reliever Al Hrabosky reported Wednesday afternoon on KFNS that Andy Benes was going to be placed on the DL until they could finalize a buyout of his contract, at which point Benes plans to retire. Congrats Andy.... It’s nice to see what $6.8 million gets you nowadays....

INJURIES:

Benes - From a Fantasy perspective, who cares. If you had him on your team, you were destined to finish last anyway. His career’s now over.

Woody Williams - Williams remains on the 15 day DL, and shouldn’t be able to return to the team until late May with a strained oblique muscle. For now, Bud Smith’s filling his spot in the rotation.

Garrett Stephenson - Stephenson left his start against the Astros in the third inning, complaining of back spasms. He suffered setbacks while throwing on the side at Busch Stadium on Wednesday and (surprise) appears to be headed to the DL along with the rest of the Cards rotation.

ON THE FARM:

Since you’re about to see him up close and personal, this week we’ll look at Josh Pearce. Pearce was 10-12 with a 4.00 ERA between AA New Haven and AAA Memphis last season. He posted quality K numbers in AA (96 in 115 IP) but slipped down a notch with his strikeouts when he arrived in Memphis, posting about a k every 2 innings (36 in 70 IP). The 24 year old 2nd round pick in 1999 hasn’t really shown much more than average control so far (3 BB/9 IP) in his career. The Cardinals consider him their #1 pitching prospect, slightly ahead of their Minor League Pitcher of the Year last season, Jimmy Journell. Pearce is expected to be called up to fill Andy Benes’ spot in the rotation and should get the start this Friday night.

QUICK VIEW:

Add:

Eli Marrero - He’s probably gone in most leagues at this point, and is killing the ball right now, as well as contributing on the base paths. What’s best about him? He’ll qualify at catcher for you.

Bud Smith - He’s looked shaky in his first couple of starts, but he’s back up with the big club to stay, and should contribute 12 wins this season when all is said and done.

Mike Matthews - If either Pearce or Travis Smith bomb in their first starts, Matthews made 10 starts last year, and Larussa won’t hesitate to throw him into that role again.

Edgar Renteria - He may actually be available to those of you in thin leagues, and he’s looked as good to start this year as he did to close out the second half last season. He’s hitting the ball well to all fields.

Mike Difelice - He’s looked fantastic in the early going, and has taken over Marrero’s job from last season... He’s now Matt Morris’ personal catcher, but won’t start more than 3 times a week.

Drop:

Andy Benes - If you had him, you were hurting anyway. And now that he’s done, he’d actually help your fantasy team more than he had been, since he’s not putting up those gaudy ERA and WHIP numbers for your team anymore.

Garrett Stephenson - Place him on your DL when whichever site you use allows you to or just drop him. Honestly, he’s looked a lot like the pitcher he was in 2000.... However, that guy who won 17 games had a 4.49 ERA.

Mike Timlin - Why Larussa gave Timlin the save opportunity in Houston when Isringhausen needed a day off is beyond me... Then again, a lot of the things he does blow my mind.

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Cardinals & Royals Lead Correspondent