photo: Lou Brock (USA TODAY Sports Images)
19 St. Louis Cardinals will be playing for 11 nations in the World Baseball Classic. Our weekly history feature highlights the club’s five best left fielders ever, led by Lou Brock.
19 Cardinals in World Baseball Classic
The full rosters for the teams representing the 20 nations participating in the 2023 World Baseball Classic were announced this past week. A total of 19 St. Louis Cardinals players, both major league and minor league, are on rosters for one of the WBC participating teams.
The WBC will begin on March 8 and continue through March 21. The tournament will be played in four locations – Miami, Phoenix, Tokyo, and Taichung in Taiwan. The following is the list of the Cardinals playing in the tournament and the team for whom they are playing.
| Nolan Arenado (USA) | Oscar Mercado (COLOMBIA) |
| Paul Goldschmidt (USA) | Guillermo Zuniga (COLOMBIA) |
| Adam Wainwright (USA) | Genesis Cabrera (DOMINICAN REPUBLIC) |
| Mile Mikolas (USA) | Joseph King (GREAT BRITAIN) |
| Tyler O’Neill (CANADA) | Matt Koperniak (GREAT BRITAIN) |
| Andre Pallante (ITALY) | Noah Mendlinger (ISRAEL) |
| Lars Nootbaar (JAPAN) | Ivan Herrera (PANAMA) |
| Tommy Edman (KOREA) | L..J. Jones (PANAMA) |
| Giovanny Gallegos (MEXICO) | Wilfredo Pereira (PANAMA) |
| JoJo Romero (MEXICO) |
The above players will be absent from spring training for the period their team remains in the tournament.
Former Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina is the manager of the Puerto Rican team.
One-Third of Cardinals 40-Man Roster to World Baseball Classic
News and Notes from the Offseason
- Single-game tickets for Cardinals 2023 Spring Training are on sale. The first game is on February 25 at Roger Dean Stadium against the Washington Nationals. There are 15 games on the home schedule, with the final contest on March 25 against the Marlins. Fans can buy tickets online at https://www.mlb.com/cardinals/tickets/spring-training
- Spring Training report dates have been announced. Pitchers and catchers will report to Jupiter by February 15. All other players must arrive by February 20.
- Single game tickets for the 2023 season are now on sale. Opening Day is March 30 at Busch Stadium against the Toronto Blue Jays. Tickets can be purchased online at https://www.mlb.com/cardinals/tickets/single-game-tickets
Trade and Acquisition Rumors
There are no trade and acquisition rumors.
Transactions
- 2/8 The Cardinals acquired LHP Anthony Misiewicz from the Kansas City Royals for cash.
- 2/8 The Cardinals designated RHP James Naile for assignment.
- 2/10 The Cardinals sent RHP James Naile outright to the Memphis Redbirds.
Injury Report
There are no new injuries to report.
Looking Ahead
Spring Training will officially begin on February 15 when pitchers and catchers report. All remaining players will report on February 20. The Grapefruit League will begin play on February 25 against the Nationals at Roger Dean Stadium starting at 12:05 pm CT.
Grapefruit League play will conclude on March 27 with a game against the Orioles at Ed Smith Stadium in Sarasota.
The regular season begins on March 30 with the Cardinals taking on the Blue Jays at Busch Stadium.
The World Baseball Classic will begin on March 8. The Cardinals have 19 players set to play in the WBC from both the major league and minor league rosters.
Four players from the major league roster are set to play for the USA team. They are Paul Goldschmidt, Nolan Arenado, Adam Wainwright, and Miles Mikolas.
Six additional major league roster players will play for other teams. They are Tyler O’Neill (Canada), Tommy Edman (Korea), Lars Nootbaar (Japan), Giovanny Gallegos (Mexico), JoJo Romero (Mexico) and Andre Pallante (Italy).
These 10 players will be absent from spring training for the period of time their team is in the tournament. The Championship game is scheduled to be played on March 21 in Miami.
Any of the remaining nine players who are either 40-man roster players or non-roster invites will also be absent for spring training during the time their team is playing in the WBC.
Blast from the Past
This week’s Blast from the Past is the sixth installment in a series looking back on the best Cardinals players in history by position. There isn’t enough time and space to go in depth on such a long list of great Cardinals, so this series focuses on five of the best players by position in the history of the franchise. The term “best” is subjective and can encompass an endless number of factors that one would choose to determine who is indeed the best.
This week we look at the five best left fielders in franchise history based on statistics. For this installment, WAR is the primary factor. The following list is not a ranking but a chronological list.
Stan Musial played the outfield as well as first base during his stellar career as a Cardinal. Because Musial was showcased in the earlier list at first, he will not be included in the outfield lists.
The following are the top five left fielders, minus Musial, in franchise history.
Tip O’Neill – The Canadian born O’Neill played for the Cardinals’ precursor St. Louis Browns from 1884-89 and then again in 1891.
O’Neill led baseball in runs, hits, doubles, average, slugging and OPS in 1887. He led the NL in triples, home runs and RBI that season as well.
O’Neill’s career slash line in St. Louis was .344/.406/.490 with 47 home runs and 625 RBI. His career WAR in St. Louis was 31.3, fourth in franchise history among left fielders.
Chick Hafey – The Cardinals signed Hafey as a free agent in 1923. He played for eight seasons in St. Louis. Hafey led the NL in slugging in 1927 and led the NL in average at .349 in 1931.
Hafey’s career slash line with the Cardinals was .326/.379/.568 with 127 home runs and 618 RBI. His career WAR in St. Louis was 23.4, sixth among left fielders in franchise history.
Hafey was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1971. As such, he was part of the 2014 inaugural class in the Cardinals Hall of Fame.
Joe Medwick – Medwick, nicknamed “Ducky”, was signed by the Cardinals and made his major league debut on September 2, 1932. He was with the Cardinals for 11 seasons in two separate stints.
Medwick’s best season was 1937. That year he was named the NL MVP. He led baseball in hits and doubles, and led the NL in runs, home runs, RBI, average, slugging, and OPS. He was a seven time All-Star while in St. Louis.
Medwick’s career slash line with the Cardinals was .335/.372/.545 with 152 Home runs and 923 RBI. His WAR with the Cardinals was 39.4, third in franchise history.
The Cardinals traded Medwick to the Brooklyn Dodgers on June 12, 1940. After seasons spent with the Dodgers and the New York Giants, the Cardinals signed him as a free agent in 1947. He finished his career in St. Louis in 1948.
Medwick was inducted in the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1968 and was part of the 2014 inaugural class of the Cardinals Hall of Fame.
Lou Brock – The Cardinals acquired Brock by fleecing the Chicago Cubs in the infamous “Brock for Broglio” trade on June 15, 1964. The rest is history.
Brock spent 16 seasons with St. Louis and was a six-time All-Star. Brock led baseball in runs twice, in 1967 and 1971. He led baseball in doubles, triples, and stolen bases in 1968. In fact, he led baseball in steals a total of six times, 1966, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, and 1974.
Brock finished second in the MVP voting in 1974. His career slash line with the Cardinals was .297/.347/.414 with 129 home runs and 814 RBI.
Brock’s career WAR in St. Louis was 41.6, second in franchise history among left fielders. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame on his first ballot in 1985 and was part of the 2014 inaugural class of the Cardinals Hall of Fame.
Matt Holliday – The Cardinals acquired Holliday in a trade with the Oakland Athletics on July 24, 2009. He had been traded by the Colorado Rockies to Oakland at the end of the 2008 season. Holliday re-signed with the Cardinals on a seven-year contract in 2010.
Holliday was a four-time All-Star as a Cardinal. He won a Silver Slugger Award in 2010 added to his three with the Rockies.
Holliday’s career slash line in St. Louis was .293/.380/.494 with 156 home runs and 616 RBI. His career WAR with the Cardinals was 26.4, fifth in franchise history for left fielders.
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