The loss of Haerther, squeezed out by his uneven play, injuries and tougher competition, was all but assured when the Cardinals did not even protect him at the Triple-A level. He was taken by Toronto, also the “other” when they claimed Haerther off waivers one year ago, only to try to remove him from their roster a few days later – just before the 2007 Rule 5 Draft. Of course, as most know, the Cardinals took him back.

Cody is a class guy and as such, will be missed by The Cardinal Nation.

Perdomo’s loss was unnecessary, what with the Cardinals having enough roster space to keep him. As the draft demonstrated, he had value in the market, so why give it away? Taken by the San Francisco Giants, the reliever has to remain in the majors for the entire 2009 season, or be passed through waivers and potentially returned to the Cardinals.

Perhaps it is for the better, as any mention of Perdomo reminds me of the decline and eventual give-away of another ex-Cardinal, Anthony Reyes, as the two were swapped for one another in the days approaching the 2008 trade deadline.

Perdomo just reached Double-A this season, too, but his over-90 mph sinking fastball is why he didn’t last beyond the sixth pick in this Rule 5 Draft. The Cardinals now have just $50,000 to show for Perdomo, and therefore, for Reyes.

To put that into perspective, Albert Pujols makes roughly $30,000 per at-bat over the course of the season!

I am not going to raise my blood pressure rehashing the details of Reyes’ years with the Cardinals other than to again shake my head over what might have been. I can’t properly dish out blame in the proper proportion among player, coaches and front office, but I do firmly believe that somewhere, somehow, someone should have done more.

Best wishes to Perdomo and Haerther with their new organizations and same to Reyes with the Indians, for that matter.

To read more about the newest Cardinal, Haltiwanger, check out my free article on Scout.com.

Though the 2008 season had to be difficult for the 25-year-old California native, he pressed on, contributing at both Memphis and Springfield.

Haerther had been dropped from the Cardinals’ 40-man roster twice in the last year. The first was just prior to last year’s Rule 5 Draft, when Toronto grabbed him off waivers only to try to pass him back through a few days later. Their attempt to send Haerther down to the minors was thwarted by the Cards, who claimed him right back.

St. Louis then outrighted Haerther off their 40-man again this summer, followed by them assigning him to Springfield for Rule 5 purposes. That essentially meant the Cards were willing to give Haerther away for $12,000. With no waiver restrictions this year, the Jays grabbed him a second time. He seems likely to begin with the Jays’ Triple-A squad in the spring.

Haerther asked me to pass this message on to Cardinals fans:

“Thank you for the support all these years.  I can’t wait for a fresh start and a good opportunity with the Jays.  I always wanted to be a Cardinal but it was apparent this year I was not in their plan, which is fine and I understand.  But I’m very thankful that the Jays believe in my ability as do I.  Hopefully one of these years the Jays and Cards will play in interleague. Thanks again.”

For more info on all the Cardinals Rule 5 activity on Thursday, including the addition of minor league reliever Russ Haltiwanger, check out my article on Scout.com.