What they did in 2009: 91-71, first in the division, laid an egg in the NLDS. 10-5 against the Pirates.
How they spent the off-season: Dropping a huge amount of cash on Matt Holliday to keep King Albert happy. Also, they signed Brad Penny.
Lineup: Pujols/Holliday/Ludwick should be enough to make up for the big question mark at third base, where David Freese will take over for Mark DeRosa, who left via free agency. Colby Rasmus, who had a huge second half swoon in his rookie season, will probably be the guy they look to to make up some of the offense if Freese struggles.
Pitching: Adam Wainwright and Chris Carpenter make one heck of a duo, even if they can’t completely match what they did last season (both out-pitched their FIPs and xFIPs by quite a bit, but both would’ve still had outstanding seasons if they hadn’t). Brad Penny, who pitched decently for the Giants after leaving Boston last year, is an interesting acquisition that Dave Duncan may be able to help re-gain some of his old form.
What they can expect in 2010: I heard someone say the other day that the NL Central is wide open. Uh, really? I’m frequently wrong about these sorts of things, but the Cardinals have what seems to me to be far and away the most complete team in the division. They have the best hitter on this side of Krypton and if Penny and Jaime Garcia perform, they’ll have a rotation that’s both incredible at the top and very deep. As much as I hate to say nice things about the Cardinals, I think they’re a really, really good team this season and I’d be pretty surprised if someone else from the NL Central can topple them in 2010.
Blogs: C70 at the Bat, Pitchers Hit Eighth, Cardinals Diaspora, Viva El Birdos
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