Highlights from Friday’s St. Louis Cardinals minor league spring training games from Jupiter, Florida.
On Friday, the St. Louis Cardinals minor leaguers faced off against each other as the top two minor league clubs, Memphis and Springfield met, as did Palm Beach and Quad Cities 1. Quad Cities 2 squad faced a traveling team, the Long Island Storm.
The Storm field travel teams of various age groups from the Long Island and New York City area. They compete in various invitational leagues and tournaments nationwide. Former Cardinals Minor League Player of the Year Reid Gorecki, now in the New York Yankees system, and his brother Ryan are among the Storm’s instructional staff.
Cardinals director of minor league operations John Vuch continues to share game highlights with this site and several others with interest in Cardinals prospects. As always, the raw data is his, but the comments mine.
Team summary: Palm Beach won while Quad Cities 1 and 2 both lost. Memphis and Springfield tied.
Team records: (1-2-2) on the day, (6-6-2) for the spring.
My Co-Pitchers of the Day: Memphis’ Gary Daley (pictured) and Springfield’s Shaun Garceau, two players with a lot to prove in 2010. If they can maintain control, look out!
My Hitter of the Day: Springfield’s Tommy Pham repeats from Thursday. On fire early in camp.
Saturday’s schedule: The Mets are the common opponent, with games in two locations. Memphis and Springfield entertain their New York counterparts in Jupiter, while Palm Beach and Quad Cities make the short bus ride to Port St. Lucie. (That is a short ride, not a short bus!)
Memphis (1-1-1) tied Springfield (1-1-1), 4-4 (5 innings)
Memphis Pitching
Gary Daley – two perfect innings, one strikeout – With results like this, he may continue to receive starting opportunities. Coming off uneven 2009 with 58 BB in 88 IP, while fanning 79. Also had Arizona Fall League stint with 8.03 ERA.
Kevin Thomas – 1.2 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 4 K’s
Marco Gonzalez – 1 IP, 1 H, 1 ER
Memphis Hitting
Brendan Ryan – 1-for-5 with a run scored – First official game action of the spring. Will be chomping at the bit to see action for St. Louis.
Shane Robinson – 1-for-3 – Went 4-for-11 with two doubles in major league camp earlier this spring.
Mark Hamilton – 1-for-2 with a run scored
Kevin Howard – 1-for-2 with a run scored and RBI – Newcomer infielder continues to stand out in the daily highlights.
Jose Martinez – game-tying 2-run double – Could be a force if healthy, but has Descalso ahead of him at 2B in Memphis.
Springfield Pitching
Shaun Garceau – two perfect innings, two strikeouts – Has all the talent. If focused on the game, could be the comeback player of the year.
Mark Diapoules – two innings, one hit
Jose Rada – one IP, 3 hits, 4 runs, 2 ER
Springfield Hitting
Tommy Pham – 2-for-3 with a double, run scored and RBI – On base eight times in three days. If I remember correctly, Pham was a fast starter in previous springs, too.
Charles Cutler – 1-for-2 with a triple, run scored and RBI – Could put pressure on projected returning Springfield catchers Tony Cruz and Steven Hill.
Francisco Rivera – 1-for-2 with an RBI
Andrew Brown – singled and walked in two plate appearances – Getting a tryout at third base. If he sticks, he can move up quickly.
Aaron Luna – RBI double and scored – Second base experiment is apparently over.
Palm Beach (1-2) defeated Quad Cities 1 (2-1), 4-1
Palm Beach Pitching
Scott McGregor – 2 IP, 3 hits, 1 unearned run, 2 BB
Aaron Terry – 2 IP, 1 H, 2 K’s – The 2009 42nd rounder was our Johnson City Reliever of the Year before moving up to Batavia at the end of the season.
LaCurtis Mayes – 1 IP, 1 K
Palm Beach Hitting
Alex Castellanos – solo HR – Now listed as an outfielder.
Devin Goodwin and Luis DeLaCruz – singled and walked in two plate appearances
Jared Bogany and Ryde Rodriguez – RBI singles
Rich Racobaldo – singled and scored – Our 2009 Johnson City Player of the Year had a 1.061 OPS there, but struggled after leaping over Batavia to Quad Cities.
QC1 Pitching
Justin Edwards – 1.2 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 3 BB
Michael Thompson – 2 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 2 K’s
Santo Maertz – 1 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB – 2009 New York-Penn League All-Star posted a 3-1 record with three saves and a 1.45 ERA. Fanned 36 and walked 11 in 31 innings for Batavia.
QC1 Hitting
Luis Mateo – doubled
Niko Vasquez, Devin Shepherd and Kevin Moscatel (RBI) – all 1-for-2
Edwin Gomez 1-for-2 with a run scored – Coming back after appearing in just six games between the Gulf Coast League Cardinals and Batavia in 2009 after suffering a broken hamate bone in his left hand.
Quad Cities #2 (1-1) lost to the Long Island Storm, 7-1
QC2 Pitching
The last four pitchers were taken in the June 2009 First-Year Player Draft. Rounds noted below.
Kevin Siegrist – 2 IP, 1 H, 1 unearned run, 1 BB, 2 K’s
Trevor Rosenthal (21st round) – 2 IP, 1 H, 1 unearned run
Cale Johnson (41st round) – 2 IP, 3 hits, 1 earned run, 1 K
Nick McCully (9th round) – 0.1 IP, 2 H, 3 BB, 4 ER
Chris Corrigan (30th round) – 1.2 IP, 1 H, 2 BB, 1 K
QC2 Hitting
Cesar Valera – 2-for-4 – Venezuelan shortstop signed for $500,000 in 2008 and debuted in the 2009 Gulf Coast League.
Rainel Rosario – RBI triple
Yunier Castillo, Romulo Ruiz, David Washington and Hector Alvarez – all singled
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Garceau has potential. Good idea to try Brown at 3B, I hope Gary Daley Jr. does NOT try starting again; he seems best served to keep it simple, one inning only.
Pham has a strong arm, speed, some pop. He may be under-estimated.
Pham just turned 22 a couple of weeks ago. This will be his fifth professional season since having been drafted out of high school in 2006.
That kid who got picked off in the ninth is doomed.
I’m wondering if Colby actually walks around with those gold-tinted mirror shades, or was it just a prop for the FSM interview.
Pham has progressed, though the Cards have not made it easy. He began at JC in 06, HS kid vs. college players. He was again young for the competition in the NYPa league in 07. In 2008, the Cards ridiculously assigned Pham to Palm Beach, a corporate mistake, not his, but he banged out 17 HRs when demoted to an apt level. In 09, Pham was back at PB, a tough hitting league; he improved and was not overmatched. Pham has made progress, despite being Peter principled, force-fed, rather than given easy assignments.
A key for Pham will be position. He played some CF at PB. He projects well there, 18 steals, plenty of pop for a right swinging CF. The Cards bonused him like a 3rd rounder to woo Pham from Cal Fullerton, IIRC. He is bigger than Shane or Ingram, can hit the ball harder, strong arm. He is going to need to continue to cut down Ks. Mark McGwire can probably give him some useful tips, be shorter to the ball, put it in play and run.
Joe Mather is still fighting to latch on in the majors, surmounting injuries and many years of toil in the bushies. Its a long road for many. Pham is doing fine so far, IMHO, a good draft day decision.
Pham helps illustrate that the Cards are pretty well stocked with CFs and it may be useful to look at the position within the minor league system.
At AAA, there will be 3 guys with some ability to play CF: Jay, Robinson, and Henley. Robinson’s ceiling is a So Taguchi right swinging CF to give Rasmus days off against southpaws. CFs can also field right and left, so make flexible extra OFs. Jay and Henley swing left. Its hard to assume any of this trio could develop into a front line ML starter, but they can hit for average, field, and and run. They are real OFs, not Gall, Duncan, Craig converted 1Bmen types.
At AA, there could be Darryl Jones, Aldron Chambers, and Pham. (also Rapoport and DeJesus.) Chambers played cornerback for the Mississippi State football team, before losing a scholarship and trying baseball. He was a 38th round pick. The Cards have given Chambers playing time and he has been able to lift his game. Jones was a star wide receiver in high school.
At lower levels, the Cards have Ingram, Parejo, Travis Mitchell, and Swinson. From the 2008 draft, Swinson made progress in 2009. He might have the most long-term potential of any of these guys. Overall the system seems well stocked with CFs.
Jumbo, there is a big difference between being able to play a position in a pinch vs. being out there every day. For example, as I saw with my own eyes in spring training, you can put Jay in CF, but he is not a CF. Of the group close to the majors in AAA and AA, only Robinson and maybe Rapoport could be a regular there defensively… but their bats are suspect.
Bottom line: I don’t see the Cardinals as being deep in CF at all. Another data point, in our top 40 Cardinals prospects this year, CF was the least represented position with Swinson and Pham squeaking in a #39 and #40, respectively.
It’s good to see Brendan out there, two weeks before opening day. Hasn’t missed a beat. Spanked one for a double, beautiful swing. He’s a stud. Nobody is taking his job. The stirrups look good. He’s the type of player I pay to see.
He could play himself into a contract by the time he’s arb eligible. He will be the lead-off man this year.
I agree Jay is not an elite defensive CF, but if he can play there, its like a pitcher adding a pitch. It improves his chances. Henley played CF at Rice U. The two men have similarities.
I agree Rapoport has an iffy bat, hence he only rated a parenthetical mention.
Robinson is a contact hitter who can hit for average, circa .350+ at AA IIRC.
Keith Law rated Chambers something like 8th in the Cards system, perhaps illustrating my point that there are quite a few ok players.
Carioca liked Pham more than Brian. These vertical rankings are little if not uncertain.
Swinson is low only because he has not had a chance to play much. Switch-hitting gives him a nice attribute.
It sounds like we have a different outlook regarding CFs. I am happy with the players at AAA/AA and expect several to improve their hitting as they gain more time at their levels. Skip spent about 3 years at AAA.
I like the system stocking of catchers and short-stops too! Its great to have depth up the middle.
The Cards have a well-established practice of playing top prospects at the most demanding position defensively that they can handle. If Henley was projected as an MLB CF, he wouldn’t have been in RF with Rapoport in center for Springfield. Same with Jay and Robinson at Memphis. Even mentioning Daryl Jones in a CF discussion is silly.
It is very simple to me. If Rasmus goes down, who would play center every day? There is no obvious answer.
bb, I agree with you that Ryan is looking very confident with glove and bat. Perhaps all the media hand-wringing over his wrist can finally subside. More than one source predicted he would not be ready for the start of the season.
Colby working a walk against the lefty is encouraging, nice job.
Glad to see Craig at first. Can’t have a Judy out there hitting a tater every 100 ABs.
Actually our best CF (AA or above) statistically is DeJesus. His bat has not been strong but if keeps up his .400 OBP as he progresses he may have a chance at the show.
Brian, I like the comments mixed in the report. I follow the minors fairly closely and find them interesting. For those who don’t, I’m sure they are even more welcome.
Jay moved into center in the seventh and promptly lost a fly ball in the sun for a “double” for the Mets. Same inning, Frank Catalanotto doubled over his head. Tough play to make, but this is the majors. I am not down on Jay the player, just Jay the centerfielder.
The next inning, Jay was moved to left with Mather deposited in center.
Thanks for the kind words, CC. We all try to differentiate our reports and I’d like to think having been on the back fields this spring offers an advantage.
Jay didn’t look spectacular in left just now on the foul. I like the comments too. I’ve never read anybody else’s minor league ST reports, but I’m sure they suck compared to BW’s.
Henley is a better prospect than Rapoport, why he got an NRI. Rapoport is a fine defensive CF, the reason he played CF over Henley, Jones, and DeJesus at AA last summer. Rapoport’s skill probably does not imply Henley and Jones have zero aptitude in CF.
If Rasmus is knocked out, alternative CFs include Ludwick or Jay/Robinson or Mather (or possibly Felipe Lopez or Tyler Greene).
Not long ago, the Cards had Shaun Boyd and Reid Gorecki as AA CFs. Today, the organization seems in stronger shape with 6 men under development at AAA/AA: Jay, Robinson, Henley, Jones, Pham, and Chambers.
Can anyone speak with authority on Chambers’ skills in the OF?
We do not know much about Chambers defensively. The Cards listed him as a right fielder when they drafted him from the same juco where Ingram played CF. At Quad Cities, he was listed for LF. For 09, Chambers and Pham were listed at CF. Chambers is rated at 5’10″, 185. Owing to speed, he is likely better with the glove than Duncan, Craig, Stavinoha, Hill, Brown, or Hamilton.
DeJesus may be a good on base man and CF, but is part of a numbers crunch for 2010.
Who is “we” Jumbo?
Shaun Boyd was a HS SS who the Cards moved to CF. They look to be trying the same route with Pham. Chambers, Jay, and Henley seem tweeners; enough speed to play center on a fill-in basis, but do not have as much defensive prowess as Rasmus, Robinson, Rapoport, and Mitchell.
Haven’t you heard of the imperial ‘we’ CC. Jumbo could be the Queen of England.
What is a little frightening…………………………..I know what he means……………
Ha…how about Prince Charlie, notorious Global Warmist and skeptic of modern architecture?
We is the general public, including Jumbo.
Even we outsiders know some flycatchers are better than others. Since Jay, Robinson, Henley, Jones, Chambers, and Pham can cover ground, this gives them some capacity to play in center. At AA, IIRC, the Cards had Jay in CF and Robinson in a corner, yet when these men were together at Quad Cities, Robinson played CF. This spreads out CF experience. One characteristic in recent years is to give minor leaguers more position flexibility. This is useful with these 6, because its a little hard to project any as an everyday ML OF.
Are there similarities between Ottavino and Pham? Ottavino moved up the system, 3.5 years including AAA. In 2008, his ERA at AA was above 5. Did he repeat? No, the Cards moved him up to Memphis anyway. He has been force-fed, but has been improving and looking good in relief this spring.
Pham too has been force-fed, young for the level of competition. Coming from high school, in 3.5 years he is through Palm Beach. Pham could spend the next 3 years at AA/AAA, putting him on track to be a ML candidate in 2013. His OPS at PB was around 675. He could get a bounce going to the Texas League and register an OPS around 750, acceptable for a CF.
Pham’s OPSes: 2006 Johnson City 664 (not bad for HS vs. college kids)
2007 Batavia 588
2008 Quad Cities 727 (better than Darry Jones at this level) 18 steals
2009 PB 691 (tough league for hitters) 18 steals
2010 Springfield? OPS 740?
Brian asked a good question higher in this thread about the backup CF. I forgot one good answer: Schumaker. His presence on the roster gives a lot of flexibility and can impact the bench choices.
I had been thinking one of Jay or Mather had to make the team, to backup Rasmus. However, now I remember Skip, this would not be so. The Cards could go with an April bench of catcher (LaRue), Felipe Lopez (backing up 3B, SS, 2B), Lugo (unless traded), Craig (backup 1B, LF, and RF), and a 5th player (from among Jay, Mather, Greene, Gotay, Stavinoha). That would be a pretty good bench. And it hinges on the useful flexibility of Skip as 2B/backup CF and an abundance of IFs.
Skip is the starting second baseman. La Russa isn’t going to mess with him by having him play any OF on a regular basis. Last season, Skip started just four games in the OF despite all the problems with Ankiel and Duncan. Further, Skip his lefty as does Colby and has considerably more trouble hitting from that side than Colby.
I’m with Jumbo on this one, as you know. Skip did play (not start) one-third of last year’s games in the outfield. They wouldn’t platoon Skip and Rasmus, but I wouldn’t see a spot start to rest Rasmus or a short-term injury replacement to be unlikely. Certainly, the team has a couple of other solid options at second base and Ludwick is not an ideal CF. As you’ve said, most of the other options can’t hit and I don’t know that Mather is ideal for the position, either.
What people want vs. what Tony does are often two different things. How many spring innings has Skip played in the outfield to get ready for the season? Now that he is firmly established at second, I predict his outfield appearances will become few and far between.
If I remember correctly he didn’t play any in the OF last Spring. He promptly played the OF in one of the first few games and made an error.
When Skip was moved to the OF late in games early last season, it was to put a better glove man at second base. Here is a link to last April 13 when I referenced that.
Mather is playing CF in Kissimmee.
Oh, Mather will be the backup CF. However, I’d bet that Skip sees a bit of time there. More than a bit if Rasmus or Mather get hurt.
LaRussa almost has to play Lopez against righties whenever Rasmus or Schumaker isn’t in the lineup, right? His head would probably explode to have only one lefty in the lineup. Mine would.
TLR will do the right thing to further the cause of winning. Like when he recruited the batting coach. Some people were concerned about hiring McGwire, but Tony just chose the guy on his merits and refused to be scared off by nay-sayers.
Just like he likes McGwire, TLR likes Skip. Skip works out with McGwire in the off-season. So does Holliday. And Holliday voluntarily re-signed with the Cards. These men seem to get along. The Cards gave Skip a 2 year deal this winter, to give Skip a little more security. They ate the last year of Kennedy’s contract when they boldly decided last spring to gamble Skip could shift to 2B. This helped promote Rasmus and having a 2B/OF gave TLR a neat flexibility.
Of course TLR does not want to jerk Skip around, willy nilly, alternating him at 2B or in the OF. However, if Rasmus were injured and if there are not acceptable alternatives, the Cards are unlikely to forget they have an elite defensive CF stationed at 2B.
Jay had some hits today, Mather a long ball. If they heat up, either could be backup CFs. But if they do not, there are still 2010 alternatives for CF (Robinson, Ludwick, Lopez, Greene) plus moving Skip (backfilling him with alternatives for 2B such as Lugo, Lopez, Gotay, Greene).
Skip’s a loyal warrior. And he is getting paid $1MM bucks, so he is is unlikely to whine about being asked to contribute in CF, in the event of a Rasmus injury.
Jumbo, isn’t it a flying leap of faith to call Skip “an elite defensive CF stationed at 2B”. My opinion, if Colby goes down for a length, we’re screwed.
Gotay proved to be mediocre both offensively and defensively. Sort of a Lugo wannabe.
I hope Lopez heats up at some point. Otherwise, he’s going to be that guy that Tony plays all the time even though he sucks.
bling: Jim Edmonds called Skip a gold glove calibre defender. Schumaker is good with the glove and has a strong arm. He does not have the power of Langford or Edmonds or Ankiel or Rasmus, the reason Skip moved to 2B.
Lopez is temperamental BB. He will produce when crowds get big. Question is, will Holiday and Pujols ever play together? Anti inflams this early isn’t so good. There isn’t going to be any physical rhythms to go along with the mounting pressure. The real issue here is, no one is feeding or leading the young ones. Who knows, it could be just what they need. Its not what AP needs though.
Jumbo, Jimmy thinks he’s still a gold glover.
As I see things, the only roster question is if T Green or Mather makes it. Green continues to prove he is overmatched by MLB pitching, so Mather has the edge. Garcia will make it, that’s 12 pitchers. Craig makes it. Freese of course.
They are pulling muscles carrying around those fat wallets Westy. Big money guys showing up out of shapes really rubs me the wrong way. My son thinks they are alergic to each others wallet. May be something to that.
Albert was ripped when came to camp BB. This is mental. Its going to be an exciting April me thinks.
I meant baseball playing shape as opposed to getting ripped lifting weights. Albert has played with various pains and aches for about 6 or 7 years. He’s 30 now. It gets harder to stay on the field like that. I agree about April. The whole season will be exciting on a lot of levels.
The Joe M. contract is very nice for moment for him. A bone crushing reality for the Twins. Variables:
Posada’s contract ends and he is aging.
Martinez/Varitek is in transition.
Biggest variable of all……… he is signed before the new park fiasco begins. He adds ballast to the public pressure that will quickly mount from both MLB and local fan base. Selig helped Pohlad for years to get that ball park built. Opponents didn’t figure they would go ahead when the funds for the retractable roof fell through……… They did anyway. The Twins went in 20 million more this year in players salaries………..just an investment. I believe the Twins get their Roof within 3 yrs. Selig will lead the charge until his tenure is over.
After reviewing Albert’s at bats so far this year……….. Factoring in the MM influences and the MH influences, I smell smoke. I mention this as it applies to the topic of contracts. BD, bless his heart, has a very strong position at the moment. Most scenarios favor his wallet above Albert’s expectation to break records concerning mega contracts. I mention this because the extra pressure from said position is the exact opposite of last years posture at this time which Albert found so stimulating………no support at all. Albert is not a player that can go out and hit 23 hr and 79 rbi’s………. he will be go out with injuries like a wild animal chewing its own leg off to get out of a trap before that happens. All failure scenarios favor BD. If Albert goes down or becomes chronic, BD makes the insurance money at the same time he gains leverage in the Albert sweepstakes…………..and that’s allot of money.
Do I think that’s where this is going? I don’t know. Albert just might start hearing God again.
That makes a nice story in my book even though that doesn’t look promising.
Do I think the Cardinals can win with Craig at 1st base? Your damn right they could win. They might even dominate if we can avoid the tantrum and distraction that seems headed our way.
Bottom line…………there is going to be some pressure on Albert to end his posturing and except the 200/8yr deal before the season starts……..that would go into effect immediately and would end a very large number of negative future possibilities. If you asked my advice Albert, I would say, ” its just baseball big guy”, 200 pays your rent”. Lets put the legend based on the validation of your spirituality to bed. Play ball…….have fun………that’s the pathway to all your dreams anyway.” Stop posing for statues before your time.”