- This topic has 1,013 replies, 37 voices, and was last updated 5 years, 2 months ago by
.
-
Posts
-
The Cardinals ended up last in Major League Baseball in home runs and last in doubles. It’s time to get that offense going to take a little pressure off the pitchers. The Padres have Tatis, Mercado, Myers, Hosmer, etc. in their lineup, and are probably going to score a few runs.
2020 final OPS+ results
142 Goldschmidt
120 Miller
111 Bader92 Fowler
87 Wong
87 Edman84 DeJong
81 Molina
77 Carpenter68 O’Neill
66 Carlson
48 Wieters
45 RaveloThe STL team OPS+ of 90, was tied at 21st, with the CHC (mlb avg of 100)
The STL team BAbip was 16th at .290, mlb avg was .292
Those numbers are not promising, but playoffs are a small sample size event, so anything can happen — especially if pitching and defense hold solid.
Check the MLB OPS individual player rankings for 2020. The Cardinals had one player in the top 125 this season – Goldy was at #28. That’s the problem. No pop. Very weak MOTO.
I assume this thread will continue unabated until we trade for that big bat at the winter meetings in December 2022??
It won’t happen this winter because of our payroll problems and we will probably hold off an additional year since there might be a work stoppage in 2022.
You got 26 more months to discuss this bcran.
It’s actually a very current topic looking at trades for arbitration guys and possible FA signings with older guys who may be able to contribute, and don’t cost an arm and a leg. Shorter term fixes.
I’d appreciate it if you’d expand your search bcran. We have one everyday player, one maybe (Carlson) and the rest are platoon bats. 26 months will be a challenge to finish.
I posted this in another thread. Marcell Ozuna hit .338 with 18 homeruns and 56 rbi’s.
In a full season that equates to 45-50 homeruns and around 140 rbi’s.
How did this happen?????
r/Esteemed Rat
There’s a certain excitement a few players generate when they step up to the plate. A certain aura of confidence and a powerful swing. It was there with Albert.
It was there with Edmonds. It was there with Rolen. It was there with McGwire. It was there with Beltran. It was there with Berkman. It’s somewhat there with Goldy, although not quite as much as in prior years. And it was there with Ozuna. He passed the eyes on test. And he’s crushing it this year. As he did several years ago. It’s an element we’re missing in our lineup right now.….and it was there for Barry Binds.
Ozuna was crushing it in 2017 and won a GG. In 2018 and 2019 with the Cardinals, he was not ‘crushing it’ nor was he playing good defense. Amazing how a player can turn it on, the turn it off, then turn it back on again. IMO, the organization that hands him a long term, megacontract runs the risk that Ozuna will turn it off again.
That is ridiculous.
Fact. Ozuna was just 7% better than an MLB-average hitter in his two years with the Cardinals. To suggest he was in the same class as those others mentioned in team history is just not accurate.
He wasn’t even anywhere near the best hitter on his own Cardinals teams.
In 2018, his 106 OPS+ was tied for fifth-best on the Cardinals with Harrison Bader. Ahead of them were Matt Carpenter, Jose Martinez, Yairo Munoz and Jedd Gyorko.
In 2019, his 109 OPS+ was third on the team after Edman and Goldschmidt, with Wong right behind at 108.
His defense was awful and he had no place to play other than the outfield. His “eyes on test” for most Cardinals fans for two years was predominantly negative.
Cardinals OPS+
McGwire 180
Pujols 170
Berkman 159
Edmonds 143 (plus 6 Gold Gloves)
Beltran 127 (at age 35/36)
Rolen 127 (plus 4 Gold Gloves)
….
Ozuna 107 (minus poor defense)Be upset that the Cardinals are lacking offense. I get it. On the other hand, these after the fact attempts to make Ozuna into something he wasn’t just aren’t right.
It’s actually a very current topic looking at trades for arbitration guys and possible FA signings with older guys who may be able to contribute
We actually have a thread towards the top of the page called Trade Ideas/Acquisition Ideas. Few people seem to use it for whatever reason.
He was in the top 3 in home runs and RBIs for the Cardinals in 2019. And if you couldn’t tell the difference at the plate between he, Thomas, O’Neill, and Bader I can’t help. There’s a certain aura among good power hitters. Sure it’s eyes on. But lots of posters can tell the difference. Some players have it and some don’t. Did he have a monster year while here? No, but his power and bat speed were evident. The ball shot off his bat. His nickname was the “Bear”. Glad he’s doing great for Atlanta. Just wish he was still here. Playing for a team that ranks at the very bottom of MLB in power.
And Pablo Sandoval’s nickname is Panda. So what? This rear-view mirror build up of Ozuna has gotten silly.
Well, since this thread is about offense, maybe it’s appropriate to talk about possibilities for the future as well as possible mistakes in the recent past. Mistakes, that you know, BW, we can learn from and not make again (which have put us in such dire straights offensively). Isn’t studying history somewhat important re improving future considerations and actions?
I find it stunning how all these players are middling while here and then suddenly become sluggers when they find themselves in bandbox stadiums. It’s quite the surprise. Almost as surprising as the groaning from others teams’ fans when the Cards take a pitching prospect that the prospect gurus aren’t high on and he becomes a star. It’s almost like the stadium tilts extremely toward pitching over offense or something.
I’ll keep rooting for the Cards, thanks…not gonna demean or belittle the guys we have and pine for the ones who refused to come back over a pittance.
I will offer another thought on the Ozuna trade and would be curious if bc is willing to comment on it. These are the guys we traded to get him:
Zac Gallen 3-2, 2.75 ERA 1.11 WHIP
Sandy Alcantara 3-2, 3.00 ERA 1.19 WHIPBoth are 25 years old. Would you consider this a good trade, based on Ozuna’s time in St Louis?
I look at it this way…. each transaction is unique and perhaps a roll of the dice since you cannot predict the future. There have been some good pickups (Kim has been a heaven-sent) but they don’t make up for the transactions that turned out to be very sour and very expensive. Those poor performances and injuries have been killers.
It seems that Mo’s magic-eight ball is flawed and has been wrong more than right. The system has also failed him for the most part. What that leaves us with is a very mediocre team. And for whatever reason it keeps the Cards in status quo mode.
I will precede my following statements by agreeing with gscottar that this thread is a bit overdone, but…
Fact. Ozuna was just 7% better than an MLB-average hitter in his two years with the Cardinals. To suggest he was in the same class as those others mentioned in team history is just not accurate.
Ozuna’s exit velocity last year was elite, to the point that many predicted his breakout this year no matter where he played.
I find it stunning how all these players are middling while here and then suddenly become sluggers when they find themselves in bandbox stadiums.
Ozuna played in Marlins park prior to coming to St. Louis. Marlins park is every bit the pitchers park Busch Stadium is.
Would you consider this a good trade, based on Ozuna’s time in St Louis?
The flaw in the trade was that Mozeliak traded for an injured player, who he knew to be injured. That DID affect his plate performance in St. Louis, and given that he injured his shoulder diving for a ball, undoubtedly affected his defense. His exit velocity last year (and some of his throws) suggested his shoulder was returning to normal. Though some of his reads in the OF were downright comical.
This is a question for the upcoming 2021 rankings…. which young players have lost their prospect status this season? I’m asking it it here because this is a very active topic.
25 – yes, the Cards gave up good pitching prospects to get Ozuna. They have been making trades like that for years. Emphasize pitching in the draft and use some of them for trade chips if necessary to get good position players. They didn’t do that last off season and are enduring the consequences.
LA – Thanks for your insightful comments.
Some folks on here haven’t considered the injury factor. Which might have been significant. It’s going to be too bad if he puts up 2020 type offensive numbers for years to come and returns to gold glove type defense.
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.