Looking Ahead to 2009: Predicting the Cardinal Future

Happy New Year!  I hope everyone had a fun and safe evening and were able to sleep in today before doing whatever it is you do on the first day of a new year.  For lots of people, that's football.  Me, I think I'll start focusing in on spring training. 

Only 45 more days until pitchers and catchers report, people!  Games start on February 25 and we get the World Baseball Classic this year to look forward to.  If only I was getting the new MLB Network on my cable package, everything would be perfect.

I thought I'd kick off the new year by doing the traditional columnist/blogger filler idea of predicting 2009.  The United Cardinal Bloggers will probably take on more traditional predictions of divisional winners and award winners closer to the beginning of the season but for now, some ideas on what might happen to the Cardinals this year. 

• Chris Duncan has a strong rehab during the offseason and comes to spring training healthy.  He struggles some, though, trying to get his timing back.  This leads message board fans to wail that Duncan will get a slot over Colby Rasmus just because he's the coach's son.  The griping is for naught, though, as Duncan goes to the minors to continue working while Rasmus is in the Opening-Day lineup.
• An outfielder is traded in spring training.  With Joe Mather, Duncan, Rick Ankiel, Rasmus, Ryan Ludwick, Brian Barton, and Skip Schumaker all in the mix, something will have to be done.  Barton will likely be sent to Memphis to get some at-bats and, as above, I think Duncan might too (assuming he still has options), but that still leaves a lot of players for not a lot of slots.  If an outfielder isn't traded, you have to wonder what John Mozeliak's plan is.
• Chris Carpenter is healthy all year, save a trip to the 15-day DL in late July with a "tired arm" which gets bloggers and others into a tizzy.  Turns out, for once, it really is a tired arm and he comes back in mid-August and goes the rest of the way.  Carpenter has a tolerable year, though is not that close to his Cy Young form.
• Brett Wallace continues to tear up minor league pitching and gets a September call-up to the big club.  In a mid-September game, Albert Pujols takes the day off and Colby Rasmus and Brett Wallace hit 3-4 in the lineup, thus fulfilling Erik Manning's Christmas wish.
• Jason Motte and Chris Perez bounce back and forth from setup to closer role, depending on who has the hot hand.  TLR won't commit to either young pitcher and will occasionally stick Ryan Franklin into the ninth inning.  That experiment will not last very long, however.
• Rasmus will start slow in the majors, prompting speculation that he'll be demoted back to Memphis.  However, once May rolls around, he'll heat up, become Rookie of the Month in June, and win the ROY trophy in November.
• LaRussa will get so mad after a mid-June loss that he'll think about having a steak.
• The All-Star Game will be a huge success and the National League will finally pull off a win, thanks to Albert Pujols's third-inning HR.  The day before, Josh Hamilton will hit one out of Busch that comes feet from the Arch during the Home Run Derby.  His pitcher?  Joel Pineiro.
• Khalil Greene will wear No. 11 to continue to compare his situation to Ozzie Smith.  His glove will compare well to early Ozzie (though, of course, won't be as good) but thankfully his bat won't.  He'll wind up around .250 with 15 HR, good enough to make the deal for him worth losing Mitchell Boggs as the other PTBNL.
• Adam Wainwright, Pujols, and Glaus are the Cardinal representatives to the All-Star Game.  Stan Musial is honored at the game in a similar fashion as Ted Williams at Fenway, with the added bonus of seeing him stand next to Pujols and both of them strike their batting stances.
• Ryan Ludwick will show that 2008 was not a total fluke, pounding 20 HR before the All-Star Break.  He will tail off down the stretch, though, and finish with just 32.
• Easiest prediction of them all: Pujols's line.  .345/36/114.  Or somewhere real close.

(This article originally ran at C70 At The Bat)