First, the Brewers swept the Cardinals in a three game series with their win on Sunday in St. Louis.  Then the Cards did some sweeping of their own, taking all three games from the visiting Chicago Cubs.  And now, there’s a pile of broken glass somewhere under Big Mac Land at Busch, thanks to a first inning blast off the bat of Albert Pujols.  Somebody’s got to clean that up.

Pujols’ home run was measured at 418 feet, and shattered the “I” in the illuminated Big Mac Land sign on the upper deck in left field.

Pujols knows there’s no “i” in team, and at least for now, there isn’t one in Big Mac Land, but there are three in starting pitching.  Joel Pineiro, Chris Carpenter, and Adam Wainwright.  Okay, that’s dumb.

But seriously, it’s been the starters who’ve gotten the Redbirds back on track.  After Pineiro’s complete game shutout on Tuesday, Carpenter threw five scoreless innings in his first game off the disabled list to earn a win last night.  Tonight, it was Wainright’s turn to keep the streak going.

Waino pitched brilliantly. He gave up just one run on five hits in 8.2 innings, while striking out seven, against only one walk.  Ryan Franklin picked up the one out save, his eleventh of the season.

Colby Rasmus had a two out RBI in the third, and Brian Barden added a solo homer in the fourth.  3-1 was the final.  Here’s the complete box score.

The Cards improve to 24-17 overall, and 15-8 at home.  Keep your brooms out.  The Royals are coming to town.

Surviving the cut, and making the big league roster are top prospect Colby Rasmus, third base stand-in David Freese, and utility infielders Brendan Ryan, Joe Thurston, and Brian Barden.

I can’t remember a Cardinal team filled with so many versatile players.  Of the five outfielders (counting Skip Schumaker), four are capable of playing all three outfield positions, and of course Skip is the starting second baseman.  The three utility infielders should see time all over the diamond, as well as a few innings in the outfield.  With the way Tony La Russa likes to shuffle players around on his way to breaking his own record for different lineups in a season, we’ll need some much bigger scorecards if we’re going to try to keep up.  I think the only question remaining is which non-pitcher is going to see an inning or two on the mound this season.

Although I think it’s possible to have too many soft hitting middle infielders on a ball club, I can’t disagree with the Mather cut.  He’s had a poor spring, and could use some more regular at-bats to get his swing right.  Just like the last previously cut Chris Perez, we’re sure to see this one in St. Louis fairly soon.

For more on the Mather story, check out the latest from Rick Hummel.

Up next for the Cards is a two game exhibition stop in Memphis, followed by an off day before the games officially count.

[Photo credit:  Doug Benc]

First and foremost, welcome to the new site.  And don’t worry about missing out on any of the over opinionated content that you’re used to reading at Mike on the Cards.  Aptly named Redbird Rants will give you all that and more.  I’ve teamed up with another blogger, David Frissell, to help give more ranting and raving about the Cardinals than you can probably stand.  We hope you enjoy the new digs, and visit and comment often.

Now on to baseball.  With just one week of Spring Training remaining, the Cardinals still have several questions concerning the makeup of their 25-man roster.  As David pointed out last week, the starting rotation is about the only area of the ball club that’s set in stone.  Who else breaks camp with the big club?

Let’s start with the infield.  Of course Albert Pujols and Yadier Molina are entrenched at first and catcher.  Newcomer Khalil Greene is the starting shortstop.  The Skip Schumaker experiment is no longer that.  He will be, at least, the semi-regular second baseman.  Which brings us to third base.  With Troy Glaus’ recent rehab setback, the Cardinals are still looking for his fill-in.  From the looks of things right now, David Freese seems to have the upper hand at the open hot corner.

I’ve got to agree with giving the job to Freese, although I think Brian Barden has been pretty impressive in his limited time.  Hopefully Glaus won’t miss too much time, and we can enjoy his good glove and streaky bat by May. Now that Skip is an infielder, the surplus of outfielders has been whittled down to five.  Tony La Russa should have a ball mixing and matching Rick Ankiel, Ryan Ludwick, Chris Duncan, Colby Rasmus, and Joe Mather into the lineup.

I think the case for Rasmus making the club depends on what you think of Duncan.  I can understand the idea that Colby needs to play everyday, and if that means in Memphis, then so be it.  Personally, I hope the kid gets the glut of the playing time because we all know that Dunc’s a liability out there.

The competition for the remaining bullpen spots continues.  Certainly making the cut are the new lefties, Trevor Miller and Dennys Reyes.  Ryan Franklin is a lock.  Flamethrower Jason Motte has been impressive, although the staff is naming him the closer.  I assume Kyle McClellan makes the team after his 2008 campaign.  That leaves Josh Kinney, Brad Thompson, and Chris Perez fighting for two spots.  Kinney has had a good spring, Thompson is valuable as a swing man, and Perez has a live arm, although he missed some time recently.

In Rick Hummel’s latest article, he mentions Perez as the possible odd man out.  I’d rather do without Thompson, but I can understand the case against Perez.  Even if he’s sent down, we’re sure to see him with the big club sometime soon.

Finally, who makes up the bench?  Well, we know the backup catcher is Jason LaRue, and two of the five outfielders will at least start the game on the pine.  The Cardinals need to carry two reserve infielders, with the possibilities including Brendan Ryan, Joe Thurston, and Brian Barden.

I see Ryan and Thurston making the team, simply because of Major League experience.

So what’s your roster prediction?

That’s it for now.  Bear with us as we fine tune the new site, and remember, feedback is appreciated.