| Team History: Been with the league since the beginning. Had a pretty good draft, but could've done a little more research on prospects. Lineup(B)---- Good and young. Should be set for a while with Pujols and Kearns anchored in the middle and Spivey at the top to get on base. Need to either upgrade one of the outfield spots or 3rd base. 1. Juan Pierre---CF 2. Junior Spivey---2nd 3. Austin Kearns--- RF 4. Albert Pujols---3rd 5. Sean Casey---1st 6. Jason Varitek---C 7. Rollins---SS 8. John Mabry---LF Bench(B)--- Franco had a breakout year this year, and will be a good bat off the bench next year and a DH during interleague play. Robinson has great speed and can get on base. There is very little power, which is why Buchannon could be replaced by Eduardo Perez next season. 1. Matt Franco 2. Kerry Robinson 3. Michael Barrett 4. Brian Buchannon 5. Lou Merloni Defense(B-)---Pujols is better suited for first, but Casey is there for a while. Varitek is very underrated, and I believe the best defensive catcher in the AL. Rollins could win a gold glove, but Spivey is erratic at times. Rotation(A+)---Oswalt is an ace in the making, and had an ERA of 3 this year. Garcia had an off year, but is should produce pretty well this year. Hernandez will be the carry over man, with his 2.60 or so ERA, he was almost unhittable this year in the sim. Both Dessens and Redman had career years, but they should provide a big boost to the end of the rotation next season. They were of little help this year. 1. Roy Oswalt 2. Freddy Garcia 3. Carlos Hernandez 4. Elmer Dessens 5. Mark Redman Bullpen(B+)---A good, young crew. Koplove's arm angle is tough to pick up. Hackman and Kline are both workhorses. Both Looper and Pollite could be closers on some teams, but will be the set up men for us. Graves is an All-Star caliber closer. 1. Mike Koplove 2. Cliff Pollite 3. Steve Kline 4. Braden Looper 5. Lou Pote 6. Luther Hackman 7. Danny Graves Minors(A)--- Some immediate help for the bench and pen in Perez and Cook. Both are proven veterans that can fill in well for anyone. Myers is a future ace, and is often compared to Schilling. German was the 2nd baseman of the future until Spivey came to town, but he's now a possible utility man, or could move to 3rd. Johnson was nearly unhittable in high A ball this year. Duff was dominating in AA New Haven, and did a serviceable job in his callup to the Cardinals. Wallace could be the situational lefty for the team if he ever gets healthy. Floyd is doing well in the Phillies system, and Bedard is the O's top pitching prospect. John Buck is the catcher of the future in Houston and in St. Louis. He will probably start for us year after next. 1.Eduardo Perez 2.Esteban German 3.Brett Myers 4.Tyler Johnson 5.Dennis Cook 6.Jeff Wallace 7.Matt Duff 8.John Buck 9.Gavin Floyd 10.Erik Bedard Strengths/weaknesses Our main strength is our pitching. We have 2 aces, and some people that are future aces. The minors are also a big strength, though I've released some guys I shouldn't have. A big weakness is the position Pujols doesn't play, either 3rd or LF. May have some pitching on the block this offseason to upgrade at those positions. The bench could use some power, but it isn't a necessity. Over/under (who overperformed, who underperformed) Over--Hernandez--2.60 ERA in sim, 4.18 in real life. When he went on the DL, it effectively ended our season. Under---Pujols hit around .240 until we were out of the race, then decided to catch on fire. Kearns didn't reach the Mendoza Line for the season, so a Robinson/Buchannon/Perez platoon had to be used most of the season. Dessens had a 6+ ERA in the sim. What you feel you did right or wrong. Right--- Had a good draft. Grabbed Brett Myers in the 3rd round of the expansion draft(don't know how he slipped under the radar). Made some good trades. Grabbed Looper for Lance Davis, Oswalt for Kile and Durazo, Redman for Terrence Long and Graves for Trot Nixon. Wrong--- Made a couple of bad moves. Threw Mike Crudale in a trade with LA to get Glavine(who I dealt a week later). Cut Andy Benes, Brandon Larson, and a few others that did well as soon as I dropped them. Missed out on Scott Strickland and Cory Koskie being on waivers(I blame school). Didn't draft a closer till the end of the first day, when I took Flash Gordon. I cut him because of the injury, and my pen blew at least 10 games for me. The Future looks bright for my team. I have some very good, young players. Pujols could win a Triple Crown someday, and Oswalt will anchor the rotation for years to come. I'll be fighting with Cincy and his amazing lineup and Pitt and his well-balanced team for the division crown. With Fariz(or Gabe, as y'all know him) taking over the Cubs, we can now get even deeper into our Cards fan vs. Cubs fan rivalry. Houston has a much improved team since he took over, and the Brew Crew may supprise a few people next year and finish near .500 |
| ST LOUIS CARDINALS *NOTE - This analysis is strictly the opinion of the Red Sox GM, and was done as objectively as possible and strictly for the fun of it |
| GM Aaron RECORD 82-80 4th NL Central |
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