If I were Manager...

[GOOCH]

My Roster would be:

1B: Albert Pujols (R)
2B: Adam Kennedy (L/R)
3B: Scott Rolen (R)
SS David Eckstein (R)
C: Yadier Molina (R)
CF: Jim Edmonds (L)
LF: Chris Duncan (L)
RF: John Rodrieguez (L)

OF: Juan Encarnacion (R)
OF/IF: Scott Speizo (R/L)
IF: Brendon Ryan (R)
C/OF: Eli Marrero (R)
CF: Skip Shumaker (L)

SP: Chris Carpenter (R)
SP: Adam Wainwright (R)
SP: Anthony Reyes (R)
SP: Kip Wells (R)
SP: Chris Narveson (L)

RP: Jason Issringhausen (R)
RP: Bradon Looper (R)
RP: Brad Thompson (R)
RP: Tyler Johnson (L)
RP: Dennis Dove (R)
RP: Blake Hawksworth (R)
RP: Troy Cate (L)

Youth, baby! D.GOOCH

[cabby7588]

Narv isn't ready yet. If you were GM, you could change your #5 starter, but since you're only the manager, you can only pick guys on the Cardinals, so your #5 is Looper. I doubt Dove, Cate, and probably Hawksworth are ready either. I like the offense though, I would platoon JRod and Encar in RF.

[JohnnyJay]

Are you basing this on Spring Training?

[Richie Allen]

Are you basing this on Spring Training?

And game one!

[GOOCH]

Spring Training, upside, and very much on the well-established downside of the craptastic players we are currently employing. When there are better contributors in your minors, why waste cash on the following:

So Taguchi
Preston Wilson
Gary Bennett
Aarron Miles
Russ Springer
Ryan Franklin
Ricardo Rincon
Josh Hancock

Ugh, ugh, and more UGH! Hancock has a little value as an innings eater (so does Franklin...but you choose one). The rest have ready-to-go younger, better, faster, less injury prone, and more upside replacements in the minors. We're wasting ab's, roster space, and cash on guys who are going to cost us games in the standings. D.GOOCH

[cabby7588]

Correction on my first post: No Ryan, no Eli, didn't see them...Sorry

[Richie Allen]

So Taguchi
Preston Wilson
Gary Bennett
Aarron Miles
Russ Springer
Ryan Franklin
Ricardo Rincon
Josh Hancock

PW's lifetime 162 game averages are 28 HRs, 99 RBIs and a .471 Slg%. No, those numbers aren't what we're going to get from him this year but who's going to outhit him from our system?

Bennett...what do you expect from a backup catcher that he's not going to provide for us? Who do you replace him with?

Miles...reserve middle infielder that hits close to .300. Who else?

Rincon's gone...that should make you happy.

[GOOCH]

PW hasn't had an offensive season like that since 03. When he was playing in Coors. Pre-humidor.

As for who will out hit him, I already told you: J-Rod. His superior OBP skills simply cannot be ignored. I don't care if he's a butcher in the field. PW is a butcher in the field. PW's only added value right now is a bit of pop and the fact he hits righ-thanded. I hit right-handed. That doesn't mean I should be playing in front of J-Rod.

Even if Miles could hit .300 consistently (he can't and he doesn't...his highest finish was .293 at, you guessed it, Coors), he still doesn't walk enough.

And Gary Bennett might be the backup catcher. But that meant 157 ab's last season. Why not Marerro? He provides more positional versatility *and* he's got some pop. Bennett's OPS last season .605

.605

D.GOOCH

[GOOCH]

And yes, I'm thrilled Rincon is gone! (one down...)

I'm less thrilled about the 2.5 million we paid him to play in Spring Training for us the last two years.

Argh. D.GOOCH

[Richie Allen]

And when did J-Rod ever put up better numbers? The guys has never had more than 200 ABs in a season so it would be a little premature to compare his numbers to someone like Preston. If you took John's numbers in 06 and tripled them (549 ABs) he's have had 135 strikeouts with only 6 HRs. You're going to take that just to get his .301 BA and 63 walks? And 27 DPs. Wouldn't that be close to leading the league?

I agree with you that our OF is going to need an infusion of offense by the time Edmonds retires, if not sooner, but I'm looking forward to somebody that can provide more than John Rodriguez can.