New Baseball America list of top 10 Cards prospects

[dmarx114]

I can't wait for that #1 farm system ranking championship parade. Come on Bloom, get on this!

That was pretty funny.

All joking aside, the full re-build is the only option.

Don't need to see our aging players lead us to 75 wins again.

FWIW, I think this year's team could be surprisingly competitive.

[Magneto2.0]

Good to have a good farm system. Now that needs to be converted into actual good major leaguers.

I think the Cardinals will ultimately win about 72 games this year. I could see us starting off strong and then falling off a cliff in June because our pitching won't hold up for a full season.

[mikechamp]

I wish I had your optimism.

[heyzeus]

I wish I had your optimism.

Like others have said before, the rebuild strategy is good on paper. The piece that is missing and unknown is whether this ownership group will actually spend the necessary money in future seasons to augment the core with whatever it needs to compete for a championship. That could require signing an actual nine figure starting pitcher or bat.

There's reason for pessimism, but we won't know for maybe 2 more years.

[go birds]

unfortunately the FA market for the foreseeable future is pretty grim. i think the path to a middle of the order bat is either hope or trade

[phins]

I wish I had your optimism.

Like others have said before, the rebuild strategy is good on paper. The piece that is missing and unknown is whether this ownership group will actually spend the necessary money in future seasons to augment the core with whatever it needs to compete for a championship. That could require signing an actual nine figure starting pitcher or bat.

There's reason for pessimism, but we won't know for maybe 2 more years.

++

[dmarx114]

unfortunately the FA market for the foreseeable future is pretty grim. i think the path to a middle of the order bat is either hope or trade

Regarding middle of the order, the path is draft and develop, and possibly trade.

FA is only going to be used to supplement the roster, as has always been the case with this franchise. The key is more Berkman and Beltran acquisitions and fewer Holland and Cecil acquisitions.

[Magneto2.0]

unfortunately the FA market for the foreseeable future is pretty grim. i think the path to a middle of the order bat is either hope or trade

MLB having a season after this year is looking pretty grim too.

[WAR God]

Is it fair to say MoGirsch played a significant part in rebuilding the system that is now top three?

Or is Bloom just magic? Improving the development processes and tweaking the player acquisition criteria that quickly.

[Lesson]

Regarding middle of the order, the path is draft and develop, and possibly trade.

FA is only going to be used to supplement the roster, as has always been the case with this franchise. The key is more Berkman and Beltran acquisitions and fewer Holland and Cecil acquisitions.

I disagree here. Pujols was a major reason why the team had a sustained period of dominance, sure, but it’s not reasonable to expect the team to draft someone like they. They also got incredibly lucky at some pro-personnel acquisitions (Rolen, Holliday, Carpenter).

I think the pathway to success is developing pitching, draft more guys like Donovan, Burleson, etc. and bring in big guns akin to Harper, Freeman, etc when they become available to supplement the team.

Is it fair to say MoGirsch played a significant part in rebuilding the system that is now top three?

Or is Bloom just magic? Improving the development processes and tweaking the player acquisition criteria that quickly.

I think the FO’s moves the last 2 off seasons and regular season in general (pre-Bloom) placed the team in a better position to be successful long-term. Additionally, the unplanned 2023 season also helped the team draft Wetherholt. But their failure to develop and supplement the roster effectively forced them to be in the position to needing to rebuild substantially in the first place.