St. Louis Cardinals: Stephen Piscotty is the key to the future

The St. Louis Cardinals may buy or sell in the coming weeks and one of the outfielders currently on the roster holds the key to the future.

The St. Louis Cardinals need to decide to buy or sell. We are all saying this. Heck, every single person who knows and/or watches the Cardinals can see this to be true. Having admitted that, I hadn’t actually thought of the key to this decision being on the roster already but, after reviewing things, I am now sold that it is.

Enter Stephen Piscotty. Piscotty is the key to the future. What do I mean by that? Piscotty, to me, is the current cog blocking any future moves.

If the St. Louis Cardinals are actually considering a trade with Miami for an outfielder, Stephen Piscotty is the most likely to be displaced, right? Certainly we all know that the Cardinals will cut Randal Grichuk over Tommy Pham and it makes sense then that Piscotty will need to slot elsewhere in the outfield to land a Marlin.

If Giancarlo Stanton is indeed the target, his natural position is right field, and Piscotty (when he returns from injury) cannot play the same position at the same time. Piscotty would then move to left field… or first…

Let’s take a quick look at Piscotty’s defensive numbers in his career at each position:

If another Marlin outfielder is the target, then Piscotty could indeed remain in right field.

This morning, Tina wrote about a few solutions for Matt Carpenter and this immediately got my gears turning. It was in her article that she mentioned that Piscotty could move to first base if Carpenter is moved to another team.

I hate to admit that I forgot that Piscotty had appeared at first in the minors and a few games in the Midwest city. Piscotty, then, offers a strong indication to me of what might be coming for the St. Louis Cardinals.

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Here’s what I’m thinking: when Piscotty returns, he will either sit in RF and show that he will likely remain here (thus indicating a less likely approach for a RF from the Marlins or anyone else), Piscotty will get a game or two at first (indicating that Carpenter is likely gone), or Piscotty will play a few games in LF (indicating that Stanton might be a real target).

Of course, knowing the ineptitude of Mike Matheny, none of these potential indicating moves for Piscotty will likely happen. Also, noting the ineptitude, should Piscotty actually play in any of these positions, we fans shouldn’t read too much into it as Matheny could just be tossing poop at the wall to see what sticks without any further thought.

I hadn’t considered Piscotty as much of a key to the future, but the more I put thought into this, the more I see the flexibility that Piscotty provides and the reasons behind his extension. Let’s just hope that he can rebound from this season’s injuries and return to the wow player that he once was.

Next: Updated trade rumors

What do you think? Where should Piscotty play and why? Tell me on Twitter and thanks for reading!