St. Louis Cardinals set sights on holding Cubs in 2016

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Sep 30, 2015; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright (50) pitches against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the eighth inning at PNC Park. The Pirates won 8-2. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 30, 2015; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright (50) pitches against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the eighth inning at PNC Park. The Pirates won 8-2. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports /

1. Is there enough rotation depth?

This is my number one concern with the St. Louis Cardinals at the moment, even after acquiring starter Mike Leake.  With the departure of John Lackey and Lance Lynn undergoing Tommy John surgery, the Cardinals’ have to replace 40 percent of the 979 2/3 innings covered by their starters in 2015.

Getting Adam Wainwright back will go along way in doing that, but is that enough?  As always every year, there are perpetual injury concerns with Jaime Garcia, and Carlos Martinez is working his way back from a shoulder injury that prematurely ended his season.

I will go ahead and answer my question from the above paragraph and say that Adam Wainwright will be the National League leader in wins this season with 20+.  The competitive drive that Wainwright posses will mark for an epic comeback seaso

The St. Louis Cardinals did make their first significant free-agency splash in late December as they agreed to terms on a deal with Mike Leake who would help fill that innings gap.

Leake has made at least 30 starts in four straight season.  With injuries and setbacks inevitable, the Cardinals will also most likely need contributions from their young talent in Tim Cooney, Tyler Lyons and Marco Gonzales at some point during the season.

Next: Where will an uptick in offense come from?