Yes, there would be a ripple affect all the way down, with as many as 10 Double-A players playing a level up to replace the 40-man players locked out, for example. That means more High-A players will be with Springfield, etc. The Cardinals may also be more aggressive signing minor league free agents this fall to help fill the lockout gap.
Of course, this isn’t Cardinals specific. Every organization will have the same issues, but everyone may or may not go about dealing with it the same way. I spoke about this lockout gap a week ago on the podcast.
Since everything under the sun is now measured and analyzed I would like to know what Rainiel’s body fat percentage is. That might be something to monitor going forward.
I haven’t stood next to Rodriguez since spring training, but at that time, I had no trigger to be concerned about his weight. (I get you are saying body fat, but the closest surrogate I have is what I see.)
He could have gained weight during the season, but that would be unusual. Most players lose weight because of the long in-season grind, and if they put on pounds, it would be during the winter months.