(Those conversations also occurred before the lockout, which includes a prohibition on contact between team staff and players on the 40-man roster).ĭeJong’s contact rate and overall average exit velocity have each dipped over the past couple seasons. According to Goold, Cardinals executives also privately expressed confidence in DeJong’s ability to right the ship and reclaim the shortstop job in 2022. Not only was he not the subject of any trade rumors of note, Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak and general manager Mike Girsch gave DeJong a public vote of confidence at November’s GM Meetings.
#Cardinals shortstop free#
While it’s possible the team ignites free agent discussions after the transactions freeze - Carlos Correa and Trevor Story remain available - it seems likelier shortstop will be DeJong’s job to lose. Louis made much effort to move DeJong in the early stages of the offseason, and Derrick Goold of the Post-Dispatch now writes that the Cardinals “were not active in discussions with any player in this marquee class of free-agent shortstops” prior to the lockout. The free agent shortstop class was loaded with stars, and the Cardinals don’t have many obvious areas of need on the position player side.
The Cardinals did not lose much when Furcal went down for the season and do not need to go outside the organization in order to find the solution at short, but should stand pat with Kozma as the starter and hold their top prospects.With how the second half of the season played out, it seemed like DeJong could wind up as a trade candidate this winter. Because most of Adams’s success this spring has come as a pinch-hitter, I believe he will make the 25-man roster and Cedeno will likely be released. I think if the Cardinals choose to keep Cedeno then he will be the backup at shortstop, but with Matt Adams putting up good numbers this spring, the Cardinals may cut ties with Cedeno in order to make run for Adams on the 25-man roster. I believe that Kozma will be the starting shortstop for the Cardinals barring any new acquisitions at the position, and I do not expect any deals for a shortstop. While Kozma has not had much success in the minor leagues, he should be able to post an above replacement level performance.
#Cardinals shortstop full#
If Kozma and Cedeno can make similar contributions for a full season, they will likely surpass Furcal’s 2012 production of a 1.2 WAR. Pete Kozma posted a 1.1 WAR in 26 games last season and Cedeno posted a 1.1 WAR over the past two seasons. Neither of these players seem like excellent options for a team hoping to reach the postseason, but they are not replacing much.
/https://www.thestar.com/content/dam/thestar/sports/baseball/2013/11/24/mlb_cardinals_sign_freeagent_shortstop_jhonny_peralta/jhonny_peralta.jpg "cardinals shortstop")
Cedeno’s spring has not been as productive as Kozma’s spring as Cedeno is batting. However, Cedeno is only an average defender at best. 247/.290/.357 slash line and is a fairly versatile player with experience all across the infield and outfield. The other option is new arrival Ronny Cedeno, he has a career. Kozma was almost removed from the Cardianls’ 40-man roster last season, but was left on the roster and went on to be the starting shortstop when Furcal went down with his elbow injury. Many scouts regard Kozma as a defense-first shortstop, but the advanced defensive metrics suggest he is a below average fielder. Pete Kozma is a 24-year-old former first round pick, who has never made the active roster out of spring training and has a career. However, the options within the organization to replace Furcal are very underwhelming as the Cardinals will look for Pete Kozma or Ronny Cedeno to take over at short. Also, the Cardinals have made the postseason each of the past two seasons without great production from their shortstops and so this really is not as big of a loss for the Cardinals as many have made it out to be. This level of production is certainly replaceable without having to sacrifice any top prospects. In Furcal’s season and a half with the Cardinals he posted a combined 2.0 WAR and only batted. However, at the moment the Cardinals seem prepared to maintain their current roster as all four of those prospects are Major League ready and shortstop has never been a key position for the Cardinals. Such an acquisition would certainly help the Cardinals overcome the Reds as division favorites, but it would also come at the cost of some of the Cardinals top prospects such as: Shelby Miller, Oscar Taveras, Trevor Rosenthal or Matt Adams. The biggest name that has come up in these discussions is Elvis Andrus, the shortstop of the Texas Rangers. With the Cardinals having lost Rafael Furcal for the entire 2013 season due to Tommy John Surgery, many experts have suggested that they pursue a player from outside the organization.
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