25 Man
by mattyfrommo on Mar 15, 2009 7:11 PM EDT
47 comments
I thought it would be interesting to do a little roster projection. Who do you think makes the opening day 25 man roster? I know it is almost 3 weeks out, and things are bound to change, but this might be fun. The fan with the closest roster wins a dollar (choice of either real or internet). In case of ties, I will pick names out of a hat.
Here goes mine:
Starting 8 and bench:
C-Yadi
1B- APu
2B- Skip
3B-Bombs
SS- Khalil (with a name like that, who needs a nickname!)
LF-Dunc
CF-Ank
RF-Luddy
Bench:
Chesty, Barden, Ryan
Bench Shockers: Craig and Jay
Rotation:
Carp, WAGONMAKER, Lohse, Welley, Piniero
Pen:
Miller, Reyes, Motte, KMac, Kinney,Franklin, Thompson
I just think that they like pulling a shocker every year, and this year it is gonna be a big one. Crazy? Maybe, but it isn't like strange things haven't happened these last couple of seasons.
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My turn
C Yadi
1B Mang
2B Skip
3B Mather
SS Greene
LF Dunc
CF Ank
RF Luddy
Bench:
IF Ryan
IF Craig (I think he continues to hit too well to be ignored)
OF Rasmus (I know if he is on the ML roster he should start, but I think Tony will give him enough AB’s to keep him sharp and developing)
OF Barton
C (regrow the) Pornstache
Rotation:
Waino, Carp, Welley, Lohse, Pinhead
Bullpen:
Miller, Reyes, Thompson, Kinney, K-Mac, Franklin, Motte (Closer)
All 7 OF’s manage to make it. Ryan is your IF who can play SS/2B. Craig can play 3B/1B leaving no real need for another MIF. I think Skip becomes acceptable enough defensively to give Tony peace of mind w/ only 3 MIF’s. This is probably more optimism than realism.
Patiently awaiting the day Colby Rasmus does this: .275/.381/.551/.932, 29HR, in St. Louis...
by RunninRedbird on Mar 15, 2009 7:59 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Step aside ladies
Lineup:
C Yadi
1B Albert
2B Skippy
3B Mather
SS Greene
LF Razzums
CF Ankiel
RF Thudstick
Bench:
Thurston
Barton
Duncan
Pornstache
Freese
Rotation:
Wainer
Carp
Lohse
Welley
Pinata
Bullpen:
Perez
Miller
Reyes
Kinney
Kmac
Franklin
Motte
vivaelbeñsheets
by vivaelpujols on Mar 15, 2009 9:15 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
if razzums is going to be a starter
why not use him in CF? otherwise I don’t think he’d be a starter
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Mar 16, 2009 12:02 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I wan't him to be in center
but I still think that Tony likes Ankiel too much. Also, it would help to keep Ankiel in center to boost his trade level.
vivaelbeñsheets
by vivaelpujols on Mar 16, 2009 12:40 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
is Freese gonna come back to claim that roster spot?
* sarcasm might be involved in this comment
and....BEN SHEETS!!! **
**not that BEN SHEETS might be involved in this comment, just BEN SHEETS!!!
(BEN SHEETS might be involved in this comment)
by mattyfrommo on Mar 16, 2009 4:16 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Ok
Lineup:
C- Yadi
1B- Mang
2B- Schu
3B- Joey Bombs
SS- Spicoli
LF- Luddy
CF- Ank/Rasmus
RF- Rasmus/Ank
Bench:
IF: Craig, Lil Dunc, Ryan, LaRue, Jay Barton (although I think Jay should get the spot, he’s been tearing up Spring Training and Barton’s hitting .182.). If another infielder I’d go with Greene T.
Starting Pitching:
Waino, Carp, Wellemeyer, Lohse, Pineiro
Long Man: Kmac (hopefully not Thompson)
Middle Relief: Kinney and Perez
Middle Relief/Loogies: Reyes and MIller
Setup: Motte
Closer: Franklin
Another big question is who stays up when Glaus comes back. I know it would be largely influenced by the performance but I’d say Barton or the third backup infielder goes down, whichever ones on the team.
by JoeyBombs on Mar 15, 2009 10:03 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
After Glaus activation
There will be one less platoon position. Mather will spell Glaus once every ten games, Dunc can cover Albert’s day off a month and Ryan can cover SS once or twice a month. This should reduce the MIF to three, two of which are the platoon at 2B. Gives the team much stronger bats off the bench as compared to last year.
by ubeddie on Mar 15, 2009 10:15 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Opening Day 25
LHP starting three of first four games adds a twist to the opening day roster. Could mean Duncan starts the first week in Memphis. Here’s my guess.
IF – Yadi, Albert, Ryan, KGreene, Mather
OF – Ludwick, Ankiel, Barton
Bench – Schu, Duncan, LaRue, Barden, Thurston
Rotation – Adam, Lohse, Welley, Carp, Piniero
LH pen – Miller, Reyes
RH pen – Franklin, KMac, Thompson, Motte, Kinney
by ubeddie on Mar 15, 2009 10:08 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
March 17 Redo
I’m going with 13 pitchers to open the first two weeks.
IF – Yadi, Albert, Ryan, KGreene, Mather
OF – Ludwick, Ankiel, Barton Rasmus
Bench – Schu, Duncan, LaRue, Barden, Thurston
Rotation – Adam, Lohse, Welley, Carp, Piniero
LH pen – Miller, Reyes
RH pen – Franklin, KMac, Thompson, Motte, Kinney, Perez
by ubeddie on Mar 17, 2009 10:32 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I hope you are right
but I will be so amazed if Rasmus is a starter and Duncan is on the bench that I will have to stop complaining about TLR for at least a week or two!
Those Pilgrims ain't lookin' so proud now...
by giveml on Mar 17, 2009 10:07 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Here goes.
C- Yadi
1B- Albert
2B- Skip
3B- Mather
SS- K. Greene
LF- Ank
CF- Rasmus
RF- Luddy
Bench-
C- Larue
OF- Dunc
OF- Barton
IF- Thurston
IF- Barden
Starting 5-
Wainer
Carp
Loshe
Welly
Pinero
Pen-
Reyes
Miller
KMac
Franklin
Kinney
Thompson
Motte (closer)
My biggest question was Thompson vs. Perez. I’ve just never been a fan of B. Ryan, although it’s likely that it’ll be him instead of Barden in my little roster here. Either way, Glaus takes the Barden/Ryan spot. I’m excited.
by WyoCardsFan on Mar 15, 2009 10:25 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
i'm gonna be a renegade and invert the position player/pitcher balance
pineiro/carp/waino/lohse/welly
boggs (long man)
perez
motte
franklin
kinney
kmac
miller
reyes
that’d be 8 relievers.
molina
pujols
skip
k greene
mather
duncan
ankiel
ludwick
larue
ryan
barton
barden
i have real concerns about the number of games in the first month or so, and i doubt that carp or pineiro will go deep into games. i don’t see us going without a long man. both duncan and skip require right handed backup for platooning. carrying both ryan and barden allows a double switch to put mather in the outfield — look forward to some ugly boxscores (e.g., mather -3b-rf-lf-cf-1b).
by tom s. on Mar 15, 2009 10:57 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
I think that'd work
You’d have all the defensive subs you’d need. I think Perez’ll open the year in AAA, though, so could see LaRussa taking two longmen north, which would give Thompson a few more weeks in the organization.
by liam on Mar 16, 2009 1:40 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
The bench is all RH, too, so I think I’ll commit to your list, with Thompson swapped for Perez and Thurston for Ryan.
by liam on Mar 16, 2009 1:42 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
the biggest difficulty is the lack of an extra bat.
i’d rather see rasmus catching regular time, but I doubt it will happen till early summer. if you were to make this a 7-man bullpen and told me i couldn’t have rasmus, i’d put craig on there to split time with mather and pinch hit.
by tom s. on Mar 16, 2009 2:29 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
It's a solid lineup, though
You’ve got two defensive switches per game, so you’d need at most one pinch hitter in a nine inning game. Opening the season with 13 pitchers and Glaus on the DL wouldn’t be too shocking—the 13th pitcher won’t be needed once we get past that initial stretch and the starters get into their routines, Glaus will hopefully be making his return at the same time.
by liam on Mar 16, 2009 3:13 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Tackle's 25
as of 3/15:
c – Yadier Molina
1b – Albert Pujols
2b – Skip Schumaker
ss – Khalil Greene
3b – Joe Mather
lf – Chris Duncan
cf – Rick Ankiel
rf – Ryan Ludwick
Bench
c – Jason LaRue
of – Brian Barton
of – Colby Rasmus
if – Brendan Ryan
if – Joe Thruston
Rotation
r – Adam Wainwright
r – Chris Carpenter
r – Todd Wellemeyer
r – Kyle Lohse
r – Joel Pineiro
Bullpen
c – Jason Motte
r – Kyle McClellan
l – Dennys Reyes
r – Josh Kinney
l – Trevor Miller
r – Ryan Franklin
r – Brad Thompson
Getting two tickets to an execution is like getting two tickets to NASCAR, except you KNOW Jeff Gordon's gonna die.
by Tackle Box on Mar 16, 2009 1:24 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
no barton
he was cut today, but other than that, I agree with you.
by ultimatecardinalfan on Mar 16, 2009 8:41 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
he wasn't cut he was just sent to the minors
saying cut can be misread as released
by JoeyBombs on Mar 16, 2009 9:15 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Hmm...
c – Yadier Molina
1b – Albert Pujols
2b – Skip Schumaker
3b – Joe Mather
ss – Khalil Greene
lf – Rick Ankiel
cf – Colby Rasmus
rf – Ryan Ludwick
Bench
c – Jason LaRue
if – Joe Thurston
if – Brendan Ryan
of – Chris Duncan
of – Brian Barton
Rotation
sp – Adam Wainwright
sp – Chris Carpenter
sp – Todd Wellemeyer
sp – Kyle Lohse
sp – Joel Pineiro
Bullpen
rp – Brad Thompson
rp – Trevor Miller
rp – Dennys Reyes
rp – Kyle McClellan
rp – Josh Kinney
rp – Ryan Franklin
rp – Jason Motte
The only thing keeping Jon Jay out of the 25 in place of Barton is that he hits lefty. I think Tony will want Barton on the bench to bat lead off against lefty pitchers and to provide RH options late in games.
I think at this point Tyler Greene is taking advantage of Ryan’s injuries and giving the coaching staff something to think about. The thing that might keep him down is that the team don’t want to start his arbitration clock on a temporary assignment as fill in backup IF until Glaus recovers. However, if he has a good season in AAA then I think he will be in serious consideration for starting SS next year.
by realbrit70 on Mar 16, 2009 11:31 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
hmmm, I see them going with 13 pitchers and Rasmus being left out.
SP
The usual 5
C- Molina
1B- Pujols
SS- Khalil Greene
2B- Skip Schumacher
3B- Joe Mather
OF- Ryan Ludwick
OF- Rick Ankiel
OF- Chris Duncan
Bench
Joe Thurston
Brendan Ryan
Barton
LaRue
BP
Dennys Reyes
Trevor Miller
KMac
Franklin
Kinney
Thompson
Motte
Perez
Not the ideal Roster, but how I see it playing out.
by TheBirds on Mar 16, 2009 7:55 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Ohh, and the opening day lineup
Barton
Ankiel
Pujols
Ludwick
Mather
Greene
Molina
Wainwright
Ryan
If Greene is still clobbering the ball maybe flip him and Mather.
by TheBirds on Mar 16, 2009 8:08 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Barton got sent to minor leage camp so all these lineups have to be redone.
I was going to use the comment button but it applies to everyone’s post.
by JoeyBombs on Mar 16, 2009 8:28 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
I think this means Rasmus has a very good shot at making this team.
You can’t fill out the outfield with a bunch of guys that can’t hit lefties while Mather is at 3rd.
by TheBirds on Mar 16, 2009 8:41 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I don't see how Raz doesn't make it.
unless jay gets a spot, but that is highly unlikely
by ultimatecardinalfan on Mar 16, 2009 8:43 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Not gonna happen
Wouldn’t hate it, but not gonna happen.
The fact that he is still here is surprising though.
by TheBirds on Mar 16, 2009 8:44 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Well, if you guessed Barton or Boggs, you wrong
My guess:
P’s:
Wainwright
Carp
Lohse
Welemeyer
Pinerio
Franklin
Miller
Reyes
Motte
Perez
Kinney
KMacC
C- Molina
1b- Pujols
2b- Schumaker
SS- K Greene
3b – Mather
Lf- Rasmus
Cf- Ankiel
Rf- Ludwick
Bench:
LaRue
Duncan
Barden
Ryan
Thurston
hecanthithecanthithecanthithecanthit
by Alxfritz on Mar 16, 2009 8:30 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
this is a Tony LaRussa ran ballclub
a simple demotion isn’t going to keep someone off the opening day roster!
/only mostly kidding
* sarcasm might be involved in this comment
and....BEN SHEETS!!! **
**not that BEN SHEETS might be involved in this comment, just BEN SHEETS!!!
(BEN SHEETS might be involved in this comment)
by mattyfrommo on Mar 16, 2009 8:32 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
Why do you think Barden is going to make the team.
I don’t think he’s really been looked at seriously this spring so far.
by TheBirds on Mar 16, 2009 8:42 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Just a hunch
I’d prefer TGreene, but I don’t see it happening.
hecanthithecanthithecanthithecanthit
by Alxfritz on Mar 16, 2009 9:33 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
At this point I don't think T. Greene would really outperform anyone
And I think he’s the only MIF of the bunch with upside, so he could use the regular at bats.
by TheBirds on Mar 16, 2009 9:36 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
They (the MIFs)
are all really interchangeable at this point.
hecanthithecanthithecanthithecanthit
by Alxfritz on Mar 16, 2009 9:48 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
he's hitting well
but yeah, hmm
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Mar 17, 2009 3:29 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
i don't see the reason to carry FIVE middle infielders.
i’ll take your lineup, pull thurston and add thompson as a long man.
i just think that thurston doesn’t make sense on the 25-man as long as skip is going to be allowed to play 2b. if skip is playing, he can get a defensive replacement from ryan or barden; likewise he can be platooned with either, but not thurston, who is left-handed. if skip gets traded or ends up back in the outfield, then we might see thurston.
i’m sad to see both craig and barton removed — either would have made more sense in a platoon situation.although i think that rasmus’s platoon splits are not as bad as i had thought — he can probably play against lefties.
by tom s. on Mar 17, 2009 2:49 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
But the genius of it all
is that there are 5 MIFs and still 6 OFers!
hecanthithecanthithecanthithecanthit
by Alxfritz on Mar 17, 2009 10:40 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
What if
a RHP is on the mound and it is late in a close game that we are leading. Wouldn’t it make sense to take Duncan out, move Skip to LF, and insert Thurston at 2B?
Those Pilgrims ain't lookin' so proud now...
by giveml on Mar 17, 2009 10:09 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Depends
which is more valuable, the potential at bat that Duncan will have, or the potential play that Shumaker will have?
vivaelbeñsheets
by vivaelpujols on Mar 17, 2009 11:03 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Seems like if you are in a mode
where you are making defensive replacements late in a game you have already decided that the defense is more important. For the sake of the argument, let’s just say Duncan made the last out in the preceding inning.
In this case it would also be a little more complicated. You would be improving your defense at two positions and essentially swapping Duncan’s bat for Thurston’s.
Those Pilgrims ain't lookin' so proud now...
by giveml on Mar 18, 2009 1:13 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
actually, i take it back. thurston in fact had NO SPLIT against lefties.
minorleaguesplits has been acting up on me recently. but i finally checked his LH/RH split. so, leave thurston on there and bump ryan or barden — their skillsets are pretty redundant. i’d rather have barden, but you could make a ryan argument.
by tom s. on Mar 18, 2009 1:22 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I think we should start the year carrying Ludwick, Duncan, Ankiel and Rasmus all to play the OF..
with Ludwick in RF, Ankiel in CF, Duncan in LF, and Rasmus as a 4th roving OF. Rasmus can spell all 3 as needed and what with all of Anks nagging injuries, he would get alot of playing time at all 3 OF positions. Basically, every 4th day, each OF would have an off day. On days when Pujols needed to rest, Duncan would shift to 1B and Rasmus would also play LF.
If Rasmus was the 4th OF coming off the bench, TLR could put him in as a defensive replacement for Duncan in the 7th inning of every game. Its only too bad Rasmus isnt right-handed or else we would have a perfect platoon.
by Czechguardsman on Mar 18, 2009 2:52 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Craig
How is Craig getting so little attention? You either have to put stock in his solid spring training performance or ignore everyone elses. Personal I feel like he is a better hitter than Mather at 3B.
by TNCardsFan on Mar 20, 2009 12:23 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
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