that we have to cut bait with Iz2 and Kennedy. Izturus has been great defensively…but his OPS is getting scary close to .600 (.628)- isn’t that like the Mendoza line for OPS..you know where no matter how good the defense is you just can’t afford the black hole in the lineup?. Kennedy’s OPS has ballooned a little over the weekend, but it was a paultry .602 as of last Thursday. I’d like to see both of these guys released and Barden called up to start at 2nd or backup 2nd, 3rd and SS with Miles as the everyday 2 bagger.

I reckon that’s when we will stop “playing over our heads” and “fall back to earth.”

but who could he be traded for that would be an upgrade? Unless he goes as part of a package deal.

I never understood that…Why is a slight increase in our chances at the playoffs this year worth sacrificing a larger increase in our chances next year or the year after. Consistently making the most of your resources strikes me as the more sound policy. Is it not best to always try for the best value moves for the team overall?

If one could say with certainty “we are” or “we aren’t” going to make the playoffs this year or that year… then logically you could try to “timeshift” talent from year to year to create more years with the requisite talent to make the playoffs. Since baseball almost never works that way (ie it is always a matter of chances and probabilities) I fail to see how making moves that intentionally underperform for the sake of competitiveness now does anything but drag down the team.

I understand it’s not so simple as being “a little more willing to give Cleveland a prospect so we can send Barton down to AAA.” I don’t see how a send-down is possible if he has to pass through every other team’s clutches first..

agreed. duncan is not blocking barton. i do see value for barton as a schumaker platoon, though. schumaker hits .826 OPS against RHP but only .513 against LHP. ludwick has a reverse split, but he’s still .868 against RHP and a much more palatable .751 against LHP. ankiel is precisely .785 against both!

every 2 weeks, and more pinch-hitting opportunities. Or, in the unfortunate event one of our OFs goes down with an injury, you give Barton that player’s PT.

I’m sure there are other possibilities, but the point is that he just isn’t getting enough PT right now.

I cant and dont because Jills point of view always comes down to believing a developing players situation on a team is defined by how management treats them or deals with them on a personal level vs. the talent and skill they posses to play the game.

Gosh I wish it was that easy! Put a hand on Reyes shoulder and say a kind word and everything will be alright? There is no disrespect in questioning perspective, but theres a little more involved here.

The needs of the team today, tomorrow and who can be signed two years from now have so much more to do with it, its a BIG business and we have a winning team.

Barton is caught in a bad situation, theres no room…and yes Rasmus, Stavinoha, and Mather and Jay etc etc are all out there along with Ludwick, Ankiel, Schumacher and Duncan and there are three positions.

Who (in the OF) would we give up to get a LH reliever or a 2nd baseman…..? And what team has what we want and wants what we have to offer in return and who’s going to be a Cardinal next year and the year after….

La Russa does as good a job “infuriating” us with player positioning as anybody managing in baseball without a multi-billion dollar payroll. Larue, Schumacher, Miles and Kennedy were huge in the Boston Red Sawks series, go figure.

is that, in this thread, we’ve discussed sending Barton back to the Indians because he can’t get enough playing time, and yet he has 8 more PA’s than Brendan Ryan, the best SS on our team defensively.

Who is also outperforming the starting SS offensively.

Sure, being out for the first 2 weeks of the season hurt him a bit with playing time, but it is just ridiculous that Ryan can’t get more PA’s.