Mailbag: Mulder on surprising roster
01/30/2006
Remarkably, it's barely two weeks till Spring Training. Personally, it seems like the season just ended, but that's because it's been a busy winter -- check my blog for an update in the coming day or two that touches on the main highlight.
Anyway, baseball never really goes away, and we have plenty of good questions to get to this week. The coming week will actually feature two mailbags. The regular one will run on Monday as always. In addition, there will be a special edition focusing on questions relating to new Busch Stadium. I'll pose them directly to team president Mark Lamping, so if you have stadium questions, this is the week to send them in. It should be fun.
As always, if you have a question, use the link below to submit it -- and please be sure to include your first name, last initial and hometown. If you send a regular e-mail, rather than using the form, be certain to use the word "mailbag" in the subject header -- otherwise, your mail may be directed to the spam folder or otherwise ignored in an unbecoming manner.
I was checking out the WBC rosters and noticed that Mark Mulder is listed on the Netherlands preliminary roster. So I checked the Cards Web site, and it says he is from Thornwood High School in South Holland, Ill., and he went to college at Michigan State. So why is he playing for the Netherlands?-- Shaun L., Fayetteville, Ark.
First, greetings to Shaun, who is a regular over at Obviously, You're Not a Golfer. Now on to the question.
The Dutch team has, shall we say, aimed high -- as Danny Haren and MLB.com's Chris Shuttlesworth found out. Basically, the team included anyone who might have any kind of Dutch heritage on its provisional roster, in the hopes of landing one or two of them. It's not likely to happen, but you can't blame them for trying.
In Mulder's particular case, I don't expect him to be playing in the WBC.
I watch the Midwest Sports Report on FOX Sports Net and see reporters such as Brent Stover, Pat Parris, Dan Potash and others report on the Cardinals as though they favor the Cardinals over other teams. However, I have MLB Extra Innings and occasionally see Pirates games and these same men are reporting on the Pirates as though they are Pittsburgh fans. What gives? Are they located in St. Louis or Pittsburgh? Thank you.-- Chuck W., Newton, Kan.
The anchor desk is, in fact, located in Pittsburgh. The reporters who cover Cardinals games -- Jim Hayes and Joel Goldberg, for example -- are based in St. Louis.
As for being fans, I don't think they're necessarily fans of any team. They know their audience, though, and they know the teams they cover. So they do what they can to feature the teams that they're covering.
Do you think we will see a significant improvement in Yadier Molina's offensive production this season or in the near future?-- Sam R., St. Louis
In a word, yes. I'm pretty bullish on Molina offensively, and I have been for a while. That puts me in opposition to some people I respect quite a lot -- most stathead types seem pretty resigned to Molina never being much of an offensive force.
I like what I've seen from him, though, both tools- and performance-wise. Molina is still very young, and he showed some flashes of real ability after a rough start. I think Hal McRae has a plan for him, I think he's smart, and I think he has the physical ability. I don't expect he'll ever be a superstar offensively, and I don't expect he'll ever walk as much as I'd personally like to see. But I absolutely can see him developing into a guy who hits .270, puts up maybe a .330 OBP and slugs in the .450 range.
I think he'll progress this year, and I think his long-term prognosis is good.
In the "Around the Horn: Corner Infielders," it was mentioned that Albert Pujols had no backup other than moving Jim Edmonds from center field. Other teams have used pitchers occasionally in certain slots. Jason Marquis is probably one of the best athletes on the team, and he isn't all that bad a hitter or fielder. Could he possibly be plugged in at first base in an emergency situation, now that the team has six possible starting pitchers on the roster? I know this question is far-fetched, but has anyone thought of something like this? There is also another good athlete in the Minors, Rick Ankiel. Has any thought been given to using him at first base in emergencies?-- Jim C., Campbellsville, Ky.
I'd say in an emergency, it's possible. But I know Tony La Russa prefers not to use critical pitchers as position players, even in an emergency. A guy like Jason Simontacchi, when he was serving as a swingman on the staff, was more the kind of player La Russa likes having as his emergency position player. I think you are more likely to see Marquis getting continued pinch-hit at-bats than to see him ever playing a position in the field other than pitcher.
With the abundance of outfielders, especially with Juan Encarnacion in the mix, what happens to a good role player like Skip Schumaker? Why didn't the Cards move him this offseason? There seem to be some teams that could use his leadoff, speed and defensive skills. It seems to me that players like Skip are "trapped" in a no-win situation by talent-rich teams like the Cards.-- Mike S.
Schumaker has some skills; as you mention, he's speedy, and he's a pretty solid defender. I'm not sold on him as a leadoff man -- though he's had some seasons with nice OBPs, he's also had some times when he didn't get on base nearly enough (.330 at Memphis last year).
Ultimately, while I think he has the potential to be a useful Major League player, at this point I'm not sure his bat is where it needs to be. And honestly, there are lots of guys in the Minors who are speedy and play the outfield well. If Schumaker's bat comes around, he'll be an asset -- and I expect the Cardinals will find playing time for him.
I see Brendan Ryan on the 40-man roster. Does he have a shot at being the everyday shortstop or is he there just to see how far along he has come? Or is he just trade bait?-- Salvador A., Azusa, Calif.
Ryan definitely does not have a shot at starting at shortstop this year, and I'd say it's an extreme long shot that he could be the guy next year. But as in Schumaker's case, there is an in-between. It's not like the Cardinals have to start Ryan or trade him. He'll go to Springfield or Memphis and continue learning. It might take longer than that -- he could spend 2007 in Memphis and it wouldn't be the end of the world.
As for the specific question of why he's on the 40-man roster, it was done to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft.
I'm sure I speak for a lot of people when I say I'm excited to see baseball getting international attention in the World Baseball Classic. Here's what worries me, though: I know MLB has laid its terms out with the new drug policy. But only a handful at most from each country play for MLB. How are we going to know that the other countries have set the same standards? Are they going to go by Olympic standards? Your thoughts, please.-- Christina T., Fenton, Mo.
The answer is simple and straightforward. Because the event is sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation (IBAF), there will be drug testing. Per the FAQ page from WorldBaseballClassic.com, here's the official answer:
"All players on provisional and final rosters will be subject to Olympic-style drug testing in accordance with an Anti-Doping Agreement signed by MLB, the MLBPA and the IBAF."
Source: http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/
Remarkably, it's barely two weeks till Spring Training. Personally, it seems like the season just ended, but that's because it's been a busy winter -- check my blog for an update in the coming day or two that touches on the main highlight.
Anyway, baseball never really goes away, and we have plenty of good questions to get to this week. The coming week will actually feature two mailbags. The regular one will run on Monday as always. In addition, there will be a special edition focusing on questions relating to new Busch Stadium. I'll pose them directly to team president Mark Lamping, so if you have stadium questions, this is the week to send them in. It should be fun.
As always, if you have a question, use the link below to submit it -- and please be sure to include your first name, last initial and hometown. If you send a regular e-mail, rather than using the form, be certain to use the word "mailbag" in the subject header -- otherwise, your mail may be directed to the spam folder or otherwise ignored in an unbecoming manner.
I was checking out the WBC rosters and noticed that Mark Mulder is listed on the Netherlands preliminary roster. So I checked the Cards Web site, and it says he is from Thornwood High School in South Holland, Ill., and he went to college at Michigan State. So why is he playing for the Netherlands?-- Shaun L., Fayetteville, Ark.
First, greetings to Shaun, who is a regular over at Obviously, You're Not a Golfer. Now on to the question.
The Dutch team has, shall we say, aimed high -- as Danny Haren and MLB.com's Chris Shuttlesworth found out. Basically, the team included anyone who might have any kind of Dutch heritage on its provisional roster, in the hopes of landing one or two of them. It's not likely to happen, but you can't blame them for trying.
In Mulder's particular case, I don't expect him to be playing in the WBC.
I watch the Midwest Sports Report on FOX Sports Net and see reporters such as Brent Stover, Pat Parris, Dan Potash and others report on the Cardinals as though they favor the Cardinals over other teams. However, I have MLB Extra Innings and occasionally see Pirates games and these same men are reporting on the Pirates as though they are Pittsburgh fans. What gives? Are they located in St. Louis or Pittsburgh? Thank you.-- Chuck W., Newton, Kan.
The anchor desk is, in fact, located in Pittsburgh. The reporters who cover Cardinals games -- Jim Hayes and Joel Goldberg, for example -- are based in St. Louis.
As for being fans, I don't think they're necessarily fans of any team. They know their audience, though, and they know the teams they cover. So they do what they can to feature the teams that they're covering.
Do you think we will see a significant improvement in Yadier Molina's offensive production this season or in the near future?-- Sam R., St. Louis
In a word, yes. I'm pretty bullish on Molina offensively, and I have been for a while. That puts me in opposition to some people I respect quite a lot -- most stathead types seem pretty resigned to Molina never being much of an offensive force.
I like what I've seen from him, though, both tools- and performance-wise. Molina is still very young, and he showed some flashes of real ability after a rough start. I think Hal McRae has a plan for him, I think he's smart, and I think he has the physical ability. I don't expect he'll ever be a superstar offensively, and I don't expect he'll ever walk as much as I'd personally like to see. But I absolutely can see him developing into a guy who hits .270, puts up maybe a .330 OBP and slugs in the .450 range.
I think he'll progress this year, and I think his long-term prognosis is good.
In the "Around the Horn: Corner Infielders," it was mentioned that Albert Pujols had no backup other than moving Jim Edmonds from center field. Other teams have used pitchers occasionally in certain slots. Jason Marquis is probably one of the best athletes on the team, and he isn't all that bad a hitter or fielder. Could he possibly be plugged in at first base in an emergency situation, now that the team has six possible starting pitchers on the roster? I know this question is far-fetched, but has anyone thought of something like this? There is also another good athlete in the Minors, Rick Ankiel. Has any thought been given to using him at first base in emergencies?-- Jim C., Campbellsville, Ky.
I'd say in an emergency, it's possible. But I know Tony La Russa prefers not to use critical pitchers as position players, even in an emergency. A guy like Jason Simontacchi, when he was serving as a swingman on the staff, was more the kind of player La Russa likes having as his emergency position player. I think you are more likely to see Marquis getting continued pinch-hit at-bats than to see him ever playing a position in the field other than pitcher.
With the abundance of outfielders, especially with Juan Encarnacion in the mix, what happens to a good role player like Skip Schumaker? Why didn't the Cards move him this offseason? There seem to be some teams that could use his leadoff, speed and defensive skills. It seems to me that players like Skip are "trapped" in a no-win situation by talent-rich teams like the Cards.-- Mike S.
Schumaker has some skills; as you mention, he's speedy, and he's a pretty solid defender. I'm not sold on him as a leadoff man -- though he's had some seasons with nice OBPs, he's also had some times when he didn't get on base nearly enough (.330 at Memphis last year).
Ultimately, while I think he has the potential to be a useful Major League player, at this point I'm not sure his bat is where it needs to be. And honestly, there are lots of guys in the Minors who are speedy and play the outfield well. If Schumaker's bat comes around, he'll be an asset -- and I expect the Cardinals will find playing time for him.
I see Brendan Ryan on the 40-man roster. Does he have a shot at being the everyday shortstop or is he there just to see how far along he has come? Or is he just trade bait?-- Salvador A., Azusa, Calif.
Ryan definitely does not have a shot at starting at shortstop this year, and I'd say it's an extreme long shot that he could be the guy next year. But as in Schumaker's case, there is an in-between. It's not like the Cardinals have to start Ryan or trade him. He'll go to Springfield or Memphis and continue learning. It might take longer than that -- he could spend 2007 in Memphis and it wouldn't be the end of the world.
As for the specific question of why he's on the 40-man roster, it was done to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft.
I'm sure I speak for a lot of people when I say I'm excited to see baseball getting international attention in the World Baseball Classic. Here's what worries me, though: I know MLB has laid its terms out with the new drug policy. But only a handful at most from each country play for MLB. How are we going to know that the other countries have set the same standards? Are they going to go by Olympic standards? Your thoughts, please.-- Christina T., Fenton, Mo.
The answer is simple and straightforward. Because the event is sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation (IBAF), there will be drug testing. Per the FAQ page from WorldBaseballClassic.com, here's the official answer:
"All players on provisional and final rosters will be subject to Olympic-style drug testing in accordance with an Anti-Doping Agreement signed by MLB, the MLBPA and the IBAF."
Source: http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/
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