St. Louis Cardinals: Carlos Beltran and 5 Key Players for 2012

The St. Louis Cardinals are going to have a lot of work to do if they want to repeat as World Series champions in 2012.

They need to replace the offensive and defensive production that Albert Pujols took with him to Los Angeles, and they’ll need to rework their bullpen after losing Octavio Dotel.

But, with newcomers like Carlos Beltran and J.C. Romero in the mix, the Cardinals are sure to be back in playoff contention again.

If they are going to actually make the playoffs again though, they’ll need strong performances from a few key players.

Let’s take a look at five key players now.

5. Lance Berkman

Berkman is going to switch to first base after primarily playing right field in 2011.

He is not only going to have to match his performance at the plate from last year, but also he’s going to have some big defensive shoes to fill at first base, since Albert Pujols was one of the best defensive first basemen in the league.

He’s going to have to work on his range and his aggressiveness this offseason if he’s going to be as effective as Pujols was at first.

4. J.C. Romero

Romero is going to be asked to be the second lefty reliever in the Cardinals bullpen in 2012.

Marc Rzepczynski has the potential to be a great setup man, so Romero will have to be the guy who comes in to retire batters like Prince Fielder, Ryan Howard and Joey Votto.

If he can be effective against slugging lefties, the Cardinals bullpen could be one of the better bullpens in the league next year.

3. Carlos Beltran

Beltran is going to have to replace a lot of Albert Pujols’ offensive production.

If he can hit 25 home runs, drive in 90 runs and hit near .300 again, the Cardinals offense won’t experience too much of a drop off.

He should also be an upgrade in the outfield defensively compared to Berkman.

He doesn’t have the speed or the range he used to, but he can still cover a lot of ground in the outfield.

2. Adam Wainwright

If Wainwright can come back and be as good as he was before Tommy John surgery, the Cardinals will have one of the best rotations in the National League.

Chris Carpenter, Adam Wainwright, Jaime Garcia and Kyle Lohse are all very good starting pitchers who can win 15 games apiece for St. Louis.

Wainwright has Cy Young potential when he’s on his game. If he can stay healthy, it means Kyle McClellan can stay in the bullpen and be a strong seventh inning pitcher when needed.

1. Allen Craig

Craig was one of the big heroes of the World Series, always coming through in the clutch with a big hit.

But, he’s probably going to start the 2012 season on the disabled list after undergoing offseason knee surgery.

The Cardinals will miss him while he’s gone, since they don’t have another player as versatile as Craig, who can play all three outfield positions, second base, third base and even first base when needed.

If he can pick up where he left off as a pinch-hitter and a bench player, the Cardinals will be in good shape for a playoff run in 2012.