Standing Pat: Offseason Maneuvers

Pardon me as I wipe the dust from a report that hasn't seen any action since late last season. As some of you will notice, your Cardinals Correspondent has kept pretty busy with his NFL Weekly Column (Out On a Limb) and his early season looks at the pitching staffs around the league in his MLB Weekly Column (The Hook) but that's no excuse. From now on, we will be releasing a new Cardinals report each Monday, continuing next week with an in-depth look at the infield.

For a Sneak Preview as to my feelings on the Cardinals pitching situation, check out The Hook's NL Central Breakdown, and be sure to check out our hitter's column next week when our Dodgers Correspondent, Chris Wang, previews the hitters throughout the NL Central team by team, including his in-depth look at the Cardinals in his column, On Deck

Preseason Schedule
February 17 -- Standing Pat: Offseason Maneuvers
February 24 -- Infield Report
March 3 -- Outfield Report
March 10 -- Starting Pitching
March 17 -- Bullpen
March 24 -- Team Overview/Predictions/Sleepers
March 31 -- Opening Day!!!!

Standing Pat: Offseason Maneuvers

It was a relatively quiet offseason for GM Walt Jocketty, as he never really acquired the third front-line starter that this team may need to compete for its first World Series crown in 21 years. With some of the moves that the Cubs and Astros made within the division, the Cards may be hard-pressed to come through and defend last season's division title. The #2 offense in the National League will remain virtually unchanged, but the pitching looks very suspect, particularly in the rotation. Dave Duncan will have to pull yet another miracle or two with an underachieving veteran.

Best Moves

1. Re-signing SP Woody Williams - Despite the fact that he hit the DL twice last season, Williams' signing was a must. After Matt Morris, this rotation gets very shaky, and Williams is the glue that could hold the rest together. Not only is he a great veteran clubhouse leader, but Williams has arguably been the Cardinals best starter when healthy since he was acquired in August of 2003.

2. Acquiring SP Brett Tomko for RP Luther Hackman and a Player to be named later) - Tomko wasn't the #3 that the Cardinals will need to challenge for the series, but he's an effective #4 or #5 starter who should help the team compete through the regular season. Formerly touted as a bigtime prospect in the Reds organization, Tomko suffered through several awful seasons with the Mariners before posting a solid three-quarters of a season last year in San Diego. His stuff is far from overpowering, but he chews up innings nicely and keeps his infielders involved. With the best defense in the league behind him (and I am backed up there, with four Gold-Glovers on the squad), he could see his numbers improve a bit this season. Busch isn't the pitcher's park that Qualcomm was, though, so don't expect too much. He's had trouble keeping the ball in the yard throughout his career.

3. Signing Free Agent RP Al Levine - Levine should solidify the right-handed setup role and should split some save opportunities with Steve Kline if/when (technically, it's already happened) closer Jason Isringhausen hits the DL. Levine was the Angels primary setup man through 2001 and most of 2002 before shoulder fatigue knocked him down late last season.

4. Signing Free Agent SP Chris Carpenter to a cheap incentive laden deal with an option for 2004 - Carpenter will be lucky to reach the big league club as he rehabs for most of 2003, but could be that #3 starter the Cards are looking for if he's ready for the stretch drive. The fact that he was signed for the league minimum before the incentives means that he does nothing to hurt a payroll that the Cards weren't willing to raise, so there's little risk here. It's a much better signing for 2004, but could end up paying dividends late this season.

5. Signing Free Agent P Dustin Hermanson - His role is undefined, but Hermanson will have every opportunity to win the fifth spot in the rotation this season. The former Expos ace was solid, but unspectacular in his first go-around with the Cardinals, and was awful with the Red Sox prior to his season-ending injury last year, but he clearly has the best stuff of any of the potential starters behind Morris and Williams. There are a lot of question marks, but Hermanson could end up being the true #3 starter the Cardinals needed so badly to acquire this offseason.

Worst Moves

1. Failing to re-sign Chuck Finley (may be revisited) - Finley remains on the free agent market as he seemed unsure of whether or not he wanted to retire because of a custody battle with his ex-wife Tawny Kittaen. The Cardinals offerred him arbitration, which he declined, and are now unable to sign him until early May. Chances are that Finley will try and stay out west if he does return, but he would stabilize an otherwise weak rotation if he were to return to St. Louis.

2. Failing to trade either 2b Fernando Vina or RF J.D. Drew - Some of you just might sense a theme at this point. Both Vina and Drew were rumored in many deals involving (you guessed it) starting pitching coming the Cardinals' way. Vina may be fantastic defensively, but has watched his numbers rapidly decline over the past three seasons, particularly in the areas where they need to be holding steady for a leadoff man (OBP, SB%). Drew was rumored to have been on the block as well, and the Cardinals could easily have gotten a ready-made #2 starter for the oft-injured (to put it mildly) potential superstar.

3. Signing Free Agent Catcher Joe Girardi to a one year deal - Admittedly, the deal is cheap, so it's not really hurting the ball club. It just makes little sense that the Cardinals needed another defensive-minded catcher who can't hit his weight in camp for when starter Mike Matheny takes a day off. The $750,000 could have been used to help the club sign a true #3.

4. Signing Free Agent P Cal Eldred - The speculation truly seems like nothing but hype, but Pitching Coach Dave Duncan has already all but anointed Eldred as his #4 starter entering camp. Though he hasn't pitched in two seasons, Eldred adds experience to the rotation. While many are high on this signing, yours truly is not. Eldred has a long and cloudy history of elbow trouble and has never pitched a full season (or, in his case, usually two-thirds of a season) where he's maintained an ERA below four.

5. Signing Free Agents Alex Ochoa and Orlando Palmeiro - In retrospect, these could be great moves if they open up a trade of Drew, but Ochoa and Palmeiro were basically signed to add bench depth. Although Palmeiro finally put together a decent season average-wise last year, neither he nor Ochoa provide any pop off the bench, and neither is really an upgrade over fourth OF Eli Marrero or fifth OF Kerry Robinson. On the positive side, both were cheap, but it seems the money could have been spent better elsewhere.

Be sure to check back next week when we take a look at the Cardinals infield. I'll also be coming up with my own individual chat schedule for next week, which will be posted both here and in our Cardinals Forum. Feel free to send me any specific questions at royalcards@fantasyinfocentral.com as well.