St. Louis Cardinals best/worst case 2016: Matt Carpenter

Worst Case: Carpenter can’t get comfortable anywhere in the order, see’s dip in power and OBP

The worst thing that could happen in 2016 would involve Mike Matheny forcing Carpenter into a middle of the order position for too long, much to the detriment of Carpenter and the Cardinals offense.

Say that out of stubbornness, Matheny moves Carpenter to the third spot in the order and is unwilling to give up on the idea, even though it is clear that it is hurting the club.

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Hypothetically, that move ends with Carpenter losing all feel for the leadoff spot once he moves back. He starts flying open against left-handed pitching, loses his stellar plate discipline, and takes a major hit to his power production and on-base abilities.

Without their star producing at the top of the lineup, the Cards’ offense goes into free fall mode, and everybody in the lineup follows suit with Carpenter’s struggles.

I’m having an extremely hard time picturing anything like that happening, but you have to come up with some kind of doom-ish scenario, right?

Next: My Prediction: A Complete Season from #13