Around the horn: Starting rotation
01/04/2006
ST. LOUIS -- It sounds like a lottery game. Play the "big six," spend a little and take your chances at winning big.
The Cardinals hope their starting pitching situation, however, is just the opposite. The idea is to have the kind of depth that ensures solid security all year long. General manager Walt Jocketty has assembled a group of six starters for five spots. It's up to manager Tony La Russa and pitching coach Dave Duncan to use them appropriately.
The front of the rotation is not a matter for concern: ace Chris Carpenter won the Cy Young Award, while lefty Mark Mulder found his way quite nicely after some rough going early in his first year in the NL. The middle is just fine too: neither Jeff Suppan nor Jason Marquis is what you'd call an ace, but there's a host of teams that would love to have the two right-handers as their third and fourth starters.
The intrigue comes at the back of the rotation, where there looks to be an open competition for a spot for the first time since 2003. Anthony Reyes, the team's top prospect, was slotted to move into the fifth spot after Matt Morris departed as a free agent, but then the Redbirds signed former Baltimore Orioles pitcher Sidney Ponson.
Upon signing Ponson, Jocketty declined to frame the rotation in those terms, with four pitchers set and two for one spot. But by any reasonable math, that's how it adds up.
"I think it's a big six," Jocketty said. "I think, obviously with Carpenter, Mulder, Marquis, Suppan and Reyes and now Ponson, we've got six starters for five spots. I think the idea is to go to Spring Training and have a competition and see.
"What it does is, it does provide some insurance if we feel that Anthony's not ready, but I think that Anthony Reyes will be a part of our, should be a part of our pitching staff at some point this year."
La Russa is a firm believer in competition in spring, and he'll have one on his hands. Reyes has done nothing but impress during his time with the big club, whether it was at Spring Training in 2005, in a spot start in July of last year or after a September callup. He throws hard and with capable command, offers a change of speeds and carries himself with poise.
Then there's Ponson, whose ERA has been north of 5.00 for two years running but who had a big year in 2003. He has more to prove than anyone in the mix, including Reyes, but the Cardinals love his ability -- particularly his proclivity to induce ground balls.
"I think Sidney is a perfect example of the type of pitcher that we feel Dave Duncan can help get better and bring him to the next level," Jocketty said.
If Ponson beats out Reyes, the youngster will probably head back to Triple-A Memphis for additional experience. If it's Reyes in the rotation, Ponson might make an intriguing bullpen option.
Whoever wins the competition, though, will need only to be a complementary piece. Rotation depth has been St. Louis' greatest strength for two years running, and that should be the case again in 2006. The Cardinals feature four durable, effective starters locked into spots. The four returning starters have totaled 1,645 innings over the past two years -- that is, more than 200 frames per pitcher per season.
It starts with Carpenter, who was outstanding in 2004 but made the leap to dominating in '05. He's a ground ball machine who can also overpower hitters, which basically makes him Duncan's dream pitcher. Carpenter started Game 1 of both the Cardinals' postseason series, and it would be a shock if he were not named the Opening Day pitcher as well -- unless he's tapped to open new Busch Stadium a week later instead.
After a relatively slow start, Mulder took beautifully to the pitch-to-contact style of National League baseball. His declining strikeout rate would be more of a concern if he hadn't developed into an even more extreme ground ball pitcher than he'd ever been before. Among NL pitchers, only Brandon Webb and Derek Lowe got a higher percentage of their outs on the ground.
Marquis endured a lengthy losing streak in mid-'05, but still ended the year with 207 innings and a respectable 4.13 ERA. He has the stuff to be better than respectable, though, and at 27, he's still learning to pitch.
Once something of a forgotten man in discussions of the St. Louis staff, Suppan simply continues to pitch effectively. Blessed with better stuff than he gets credit for, Suppan's smarts and command have meshed well with Duncan's preparations. He improved across the board in '05, a year after putting up what was at the time the best year of his career.
Source: http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/
ST. LOUIS -- It sounds like a lottery game. Play the "big six," spend a little and take your chances at winning big.
The Cardinals hope their starting pitching situation, however, is just the opposite. The idea is to have the kind of depth that ensures solid security all year long. General manager Walt Jocketty has assembled a group of six starters for five spots. It's up to manager Tony La Russa and pitching coach Dave Duncan to use them appropriately.
The front of the rotation is not a matter for concern: ace Chris Carpenter won the Cy Young Award, while lefty Mark Mulder found his way quite nicely after some rough going early in his first year in the NL. The middle is just fine too: neither Jeff Suppan nor Jason Marquis is what you'd call an ace, but there's a host of teams that would love to have the two right-handers as their third and fourth starters.
The intrigue comes at the back of the rotation, where there looks to be an open competition for a spot for the first time since 2003. Anthony Reyes, the team's top prospect, was slotted to move into the fifth spot after Matt Morris departed as a free agent, but then the Redbirds signed former Baltimore Orioles pitcher Sidney Ponson.
Upon signing Ponson, Jocketty declined to frame the rotation in those terms, with four pitchers set and two for one spot. But by any reasonable math, that's how it adds up.
"I think it's a big six," Jocketty said. "I think, obviously with Carpenter, Mulder, Marquis, Suppan and Reyes and now Ponson, we've got six starters for five spots. I think the idea is to go to Spring Training and have a competition and see.
"What it does is, it does provide some insurance if we feel that Anthony's not ready, but I think that Anthony Reyes will be a part of our, should be a part of our pitching staff at some point this year."
La Russa is a firm believer in competition in spring, and he'll have one on his hands. Reyes has done nothing but impress during his time with the big club, whether it was at Spring Training in 2005, in a spot start in July of last year or after a September callup. He throws hard and with capable command, offers a change of speeds and carries himself with poise.
Then there's Ponson, whose ERA has been north of 5.00 for two years running but who had a big year in 2003. He has more to prove than anyone in the mix, including Reyes, but the Cardinals love his ability -- particularly his proclivity to induce ground balls.
"I think Sidney is a perfect example of the type of pitcher that we feel Dave Duncan can help get better and bring him to the next level," Jocketty said.
If Ponson beats out Reyes, the youngster will probably head back to Triple-A Memphis for additional experience. If it's Reyes in the rotation, Ponson might make an intriguing bullpen option.
Whoever wins the competition, though, will need only to be a complementary piece. Rotation depth has been St. Louis' greatest strength for two years running, and that should be the case again in 2006. The Cardinals feature four durable, effective starters locked into spots. The four returning starters have totaled 1,645 innings over the past two years -- that is, more than 200 frames per pitcher per season.
It starts with Carpenter, who was outstanding in 2004 but made the leap to dominating in '05. He's a ground ball machine who can also overpower hitters, which basically makes him Duncan's dream pitcher. Carpenter started Game 1 of both the Cardinals' postseason series, and it would be a shock if he were not named the Opening Day pitcher as well -- unless he's tapped to open new Busch Stadium a week later instead.
After a relatively slow start, Mulder took beautifully to the pitch-to-contact style of National League baseball. His declining strikeout rate would be more of a concern if he hadn't developed into an even more extreme ground ball pitcher than he'd ever been before. Among NL pitchers, only Brandon Webb and Derek Lowe got a higher percentage of their outs on the ground.
Marquis endured a lengthy losing streak in mid-'05, but still ended the year with 207 innings and a respectable 4.13 ERA. He has the stuff to be better than respectable, though, and at 27, he's still learning to pitch.
Once something of a forgotten man in discussions of the St. Louis staff, Suppan simply continues to pitch effectively. Blessed with better stuff than he gets credit for, Suppan's smarts and command have meshed well with Duncan's preparations. He improved across the board in '05, a year after putting up what was at the time the best year of his career.
Source: http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/
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