Carpenter’s leash will probably be shorter because we already know Shildt believes Edman can replace him if needed. However, for the Cards to match last year’s success with the current roster, I believe they’ll need Carp to bounce back, plus have Edman also produce somewhere in the lineup.
Not specific to Carpenter, but on a related note, Shildt might be one of the league leaders in varying his lineup this year. Due to a few too many question marks, I think it’s likely he’ll need to try different combinations and change up the order more than you’d like during the year.