FanPost

What about the offense?


In 2013 the Cardinals scored an astounding 783 runs, 1st in the NL. Reversion to the mean along with Allen Craig's inability to get it going left the 2014 Cardinals scoring 619 runs, tied for 9th in the NL. The addition of Jason Heyward makes the outlook for 2015 much better, but as discussed much of his value is on the defensive front.

While building a lineup analyzer to try to determine the best lineup for the 2015 Cardinals, I took a look at 162 game averages for some of them. The seemingly consensus lineup of Carpenter, Heyward, Holliday, Adams, Peralta, Molina, Wong, Jay, Waino averaged 643 runs a season. The range of lineups that I've looked at have averaged anywhere from 625-651 runs per season. Those totals would have put the Cardinals anywhere from 6th to 9th (outright) in the NL in 2014. We've seen what breakout seasons, variations in hitting with RISP, and injuries can do though.

Where do you see the 2015 Cardinals ranking in terms of runs scored?