Today's MLB Street Office introduces you to the St. Louis Cardinal, a powerful member of the Central District of the League of Nations.
Team: St. Louis Cardinals
Division: League of Nations Central District
World Series winners: 11
Last season's record: 30-28
Second in the division, advance to the wild card round
Team Attack Index: .694 (League 26th)
Team SELF-RESPONSIBILITY Score: 3.90 (League 9th)
Head coach: Mike Shildt
Last season in review
The Cardinals were the team most affected by the pandemic last season, and at the end of July, several series were postponed due to the coronavirus infection of several players and staff, and it was not back on track until August. Although they made up for some progress in the second half of the season by a one-day doubles, they still did not play 60 games like most other teams, playing only 58 games. However, after playing 58 games, they have locked up a playoff spot, and their opponents have no hope of advancing to the playoffs, so these two games were eventually cancelled. In the wild card round, they were reversed by the padress after winning first and did not qualify for the next round.
Star players
Nolan Arenado: Sending five players back to Arenaldo is undoubtedly the Cardinals' biggest move this winter, with the vast majority of players sent out as potential stocks without major league experience, with little impact on the Cardinals' strength this season, while the introduction of this former All-Star third baseman is expected to provide a qualitative improvement to the Cardinals' playing line, which ranked last season at the bottom of the league. The problem is that in addition to a strong revival from last season's .253 career worst, Arenaldo also needs to prove that he still has all-Star-level strikes after leaving the high-altitude Rockies home.
Paul Goldschmidt: Time has left its mark on this 33-year-old first-baseman, who has no way of delivering double-digit bases every season as he did four or five years ago, and his long-range playing ability has declined significantly last season, but he is still a good batter. Last year, his batting percentage bottomed out and returned to more than 30% of the level, and it is believed that after getting the protection of Arenado, Goldschmidt will also get more direct pitchers and good chances to play.
Adam Wainwright: After last season, the Cardinals renewed their contract for another year with the 39-year-old veteran, who hasn't left the team since he was traded as a minor league player in 2003. Last year, Wainwright shot a 3.15 ERA in the 65.2 innings, but even so, this season is likely to be the end of his brilliant major league career. When asked what the star's final goal is, fans and friends may be surprised, his current career batting rate is .199, and the 2017 Silver Stick Winner hopes to increase his batting rate to more than 20% before retiring honorably.
Dark Horse player
Dylan Carlson: The 22-year-old outfielder is the highest-ranked rookie player in the Cardinals system this season, and in 35 games in the major leagues last season, the performance of playing a .200 strike rate is not outstanding, and it is not unforgivable considering that last season's one-day doubles due to the epidemic must have had a negative impact on this young player. More importantly, after his second promotion to the major league in mid-September, his performance has improved significantly from the beginning of the season, and in 12 games, he hit a .278 batting percentage, showing a far better form than in the first half of the season. In the new season, we deserve to continue to watch whether this young player can further cash in on his talents.
Offseason changes
In this offseason, in addition to trading into Arenaldo, the Cardinals' main job is to renew players, in addition to Wainwright, but also to give the old Yadier Molina a one-year contract extension. Aside from giving up infielder Kolten Wong's team pick, the comings and goings of other players don't have much of an impact on the team's strength, and it's worth mentioning that they sent seasoned outfielder Dexter Fowler to the Angels, but given his age and performances over the past few seasons, it won't be a deal they'll regret either.
Team outlook
For the Cardinals, they upgraded their team's attack power in the offseason and hope that in the new season, their pitcher base will be able to maintain the excellent output of last season. If everything goes according to their expectations, in the new season, rivals in the same district, the Cubs and Reds have lost their ace pitchers, and the Prospects for the Cardinals to win the division title are optimistic, and they also hope to be able to compete for the World Series trophy with this offseason operation.
Friends from the audience, how much do you think Arenaldo can help the team after joining the Cardinals? Can the Cardinals go further in the playoffs? Welcome to leave a message and discuss with us!