That's what I've heard from various people and I heard it on ESPN last night. The Cardianls would send Placido Polanco, pitching prospect Jimmy Journell, and probably Bud Smith to the Phillies for Rolen. This is trouble for the Astros.
Oh crap!!! Alright, if we want to stay in the race, we HAVE to change something. CRAP!! I wanted to get Rolen to H-Town. By the way, ever since the Randy Winn to Houston rumor has started, he has been on FIRE. Maybe we should go after him.
I heard on ESPN that the Phillies wanted a major league 3b in return for Rolen, but that Polanco in no way interested them. There's speculation today that a deal may get done before the night is through, but the Cards may have to offer up more to get Rolen. He would be a vast improvement for their offense, though, even though Rolen hasn't performed quite up to the levels he's capable of in Philly this season.
The last thing we need is Scott Rolen. He is currently underachieving and he is a congenital malcontent. You don't want to cause clubhouse/management problems.
Its only towards the Phillies. They hate him, so he hates them back. He is underachieving because he doesnt want to be there. Before last year, he never caused problems in the clubhouse. Even now, he isnt a distraction to the team.
Trouble? This deal would be incredibly stupid by St Louis. Rolen is a fine player, but who will pitch. Morris is good, Chuck Finley is decent, Simontacchi is going to likely have the wheels fall off soon, Travis Smith? Woody Williams is decent i guess but isn't expected back for a few weeks. Same with Garrett Stephenson. Ankiel is done for the year, and if they trade Smith and Journell, their two brightest young pitchers, they have no depth. And one real quality guy they can count on with two decent vets if Woody gets back. That's not enough. Pitching wins in baseball, and if the Cards do this they have very little. If this is a half season rental, this will look even dumber.
If this trade goes through, it should be interesting to see how the Cardinals will be able to survive with absolutely no farm system.
The Cardinals are getting scared. That's what I think. I think the exact opposite. This move means they expect to make the postseason. In the post-season, you only really need 3 good SP's and one decent one, which they've got. Morris and Woody Williams (who's been lights out since moving to STL) are a great 1-2 combo, and they have Simontacchi and Finley as their 3/4 guys. Bud Smith is worthless for them <I>this year</I> -- you can find plenty of #5 scrub starters with a 7.0 ERA. This is a move to get over the hump in the playoffs rather than worrying about pitching depth at the #5 spot. That defense improves considerably with Rolen at 3rd and Pujols in the outfield. Add Rolen to a lineup with Edmonds and Pujols, and that middle of the lineup is outstanding. The Cards have all the pieces for the playoffs - offense, defense, speed, and pitching. We have a stronger bullpen and better depth at SP, which is how we're going to have to catch them if we pull it off.
A playoff rotation of Morris, Williams, Finley, Simontacchi scares nobody and would not beat the Braves or DBacks.
A playoff rotation of Morris, Williams, Finley, Simontacchi scares nobody and would not beat the Braves or DBacks. The same was probably said about Kevin Brown, Woody Williams, & Sterling Hitchhock, yet they made the World Series... Same with Livan Hernandez, Al Leiter, and Kevin Brown who made and won a World Series. I'd put the STL bunch with either of those two groups. Matt Morris can go up against anyone, and Williams is as good a #2 as any contender outside of ATL/ARI has. All you need are good pitchers who have great days to make the series. Obviously, great pitchers make it easier, but since that's not an option for STL, improving your offense & defense at the cost of a Bud Smith who does nothing for the team is the next best thing.
Scott Rolen or not, the Cards will not contend for a World Series. They can go to the 1st round of the playoffs and go home. Rolen will not bring them a World Series, neither will 60 year old Chuck Finley. Imagine trying to throw a rotation of Morris, Woody, and Finley against Schilling and The Unit. Or, better yet, put em up against Clemens, Mussina, Weaver, Pettitte, and El Duque. No comparison. I don't even think that the Cards could take Oakland or Seattle, they're just not that good. Hell, I think as long as the DBacks have the 2 best pitchers in baseball, they'll win the NL title again. The Astros can bring in Randy Winn or Kenny Rogers, but it won't help.
On any given day, Matt Morris can be as good as anyone in the league. If he goes up against Curt or Randy, its basically a draw. The DBack offense can struggle at times, so whose to say they wouldnt be shutout against Morris and Williams? Also, its not like Randy and Curt are immortals. They can have a bad night just like Morris and Williams could have a bad night. The acquisition of Rolen will improve the Cards offense and defense. At this point, it cant hurt them. If anything, it will help.
<B>Scott Rolen or not, the Cards will not contend for a World Series. They can go to the 1st round of the playoffs and go home. Rolen will not bring them a World Series, neither will 60 year old Chuck Finley. Imagine trying to throw a rotation of Morris, Woody, and Finley against Schilling and The Unit. Or, better yet, put em up against Clemens, Mussina, Weaver, Pettitte, and El Duque. No comparison. I don't even think that the Cards could take Oakland or Seattle, they're just not that good. Hell, I think as long as the DBacks have the 2 best pitchers in baseball, they'll win the NL title again. The Astros can bring in Randy Winn or Kenny Rogers, but it won't help.</B> No one thought San Diego or Florida could beat teams like Houston and Atlanta either... Any team that makes the playoffs and can legitimately win the WS (unlike the NBA, etc) because it just takes a couple of players having great days. The Cards are just trying to increase their chances as much as possible.
Stupid Cards, they have a gold glove 3rd baseman in Pujols. Rolen isn't even a premiere hitter, he's just good for a 3rd baseman these days. If I were them, I'd look for an outfielder. Randy Winn is a CF, but he could play left and he's cheaper.
Albert Pujols will never get within ten feet of a Gold Glove unless Edmonds or Viña show him their trophy cases. Also, I'm afraid I still don't understand the fascination with Winn or Wilson that you would feel comfortable giving up Ward and Saarloos for them. I suppose Wilson would be a decent swingman out of the pen pulling the occassional spot start, and Randy Winn a decent 4th outfielder, but most definetly not worth Ward or Saarloos since those components of a team are pretty readily available. Yeah, I know thats from another trade, but the point is still applicable here too.
Brown, Leiter, and Hernandez is a pretty damn good starting 3...especially back then, when Hernandez was a better pitcher. Now, I do somewhat agree with you that the current Cards rotation can get them to some point in the playoffs, but I doubt they'd get to the series with it. They'd probably be lucky to get out of the first round.
