Musings from an Optimistic Redbird Fan – 2013

All of a Sudden – The St. Louis Cardinals have a bona fide “battle” going on for starting second baseman. Matt Carpenter, Daniel Descalso and Pete Kozma. Carpenter who was asked to start working out in the off season to challenge for the second base position was done to get his potent bat into the lineup on a daily basis. But, lo and behold, Descalso; who has made it clear that he plans to work hard to get the starting position has come alive offensively. In fact, as of today, Daniel D is batting .357, Kozma is batting .373 and Carp is hitting .273. I wonder how things will look in a few weeks? I still think Carp will win out but, I hope Descalso’s bat stays alive. Whether either player starts or not, the bat will be nice coming off the bench.

Spring Training games – The Cards are 4-2 so far in spring training games; they tied the Houston Astros Friday 8-8. The good news is that, they are looking very good; the offense in particular. The bad news is that Jake Westbrook and Carlos Beltran each sustained what appears to be minor injuries. It does not appear to be serious and will probably only miss a couple games. Meanwhile, Oscar Taveras is looking very good and the talk of spring training is pitcher, Michael Wacha. The Cards are suddenly “rich” with pitching and when you consider Wacha will most likely be in the minors when the season begins, having such depth is a welcome change for the Redbirds.

Who Goes..Who Stays – The Cardinals are in an enviable position during spring training. While most teams hope to find a “diamond in the rough” in spring, the Cards have a team full of diamonds. Take your pick; Taveras, Matt Adams, Matt Carpenter, Michael Wacha, Kolten Wong, Pete Kozma, Trevor Rosenthal, Shane Robinson, Adron Chambers are all performing like veterans. Whoever the Cardinals send back to the minors, you can bet they will not be there for long. You could almost field a team of just those promising players and Cardinal fans may be impatient for them to make the major leagues but, it will be worth the wait.

Thanks for reading.