2017 St. Louis Cardinals Top 10 Insider
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Talent Infusion: Draft Report Card
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SEASON IN A SENTENCE: St. Louis won 14 fewer games than it had in 2015, but unlike the last time it dropped off that severely—in 2006, when its 83-win team won the World Series—these Cardinals couldn’t even make the playoffs, falling short of a wild-card berth.
HIGH POINT: The Cardinals never won more than five games in a row, but when they had longer streaks like that, they came on the road, where the team went 48-33. Such a peak came June 20-22, when the Cardinals had just lost five in a row at home, scoring just 10 runs, but then went to Wrigley Field and swept the first-place Cubs. Rookie shortstop Aledmys Diaz had three hits, including a homer, in the 7-2 victory that sealed the sweep.
LOW POINT: Losing five of six games in a tight wild-card race is never good, but having two of those losses come in desultory fashion at San Francisco when the Cards were chasing the Giants proved too much to overcome. Former Reds nemesis Johnny Cueto shackled them in a complete-game 6-2 victory on Sept. 15, and the next day the Giants put up six runs in the third off rookie Luke Weaver en route to an 8-2 victory. Another low point arrived in July when former scouting director Chris Correa was sentenced to 46 months in prison in the hacking scandal involving the Astros.
NOTABLE ROOKIES: Diaz, signed out of Cuba in 2014, stunned offensively with a .300/.369/.510 season including 17 homers. His defense at shortstop impressed less. Korean import Seung Hwan Oh lived up to his nickname, as the Final Boss emerged as St. Louis’ closer in the second half and converted 19 of his 22 save tries. Older rookies Greg Garcia (.393 OBP) and Jeremy Hazelbaker (12 HRs) contributed in reserve roles.
KEY TRANSACTIONS: The Cardinals relied on their offseason moves, such as signing Oh and Jedd Gyorko, as well as their farm system.
DOWN ON THE FARM: While Cards affiliates finished 10th in winning percentage at .520, five of them made their league playoffs. St. Louis swept its lower levels, with the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League and Appalachian League (Johnson City) titles as well as short-season State College claiming the New York-Penn League. Weaver had a breakthrough season in the minors before breaking into the big league rotation, while top prospect Alex Reyes also made his big league debut, flashing 100 mph heat in a bullpen role.
OPENING DAY PAYROLL: $143,053,500 (9th)
| BEST TOOLS | |
| Best Hitter for Average | Eliezer Alvarez |
| Best Power Hitter | Paul DeJong |
| Best Strike-Zone Discipline | Tommy Edman |
| Fastest Baserunner | Magneuris Sierra |
| Best Athlete | Magneuris Sierra |
| Best Fastball | Alex Reyes |
| Best Curveball | Alex Reyes |
| Best Slider | Dakota Hudson |
| Best Changeup | Marco Gonzales |
| Best Control | Luke Weaver |
| Best Defensive Catcher | Carson Kelly |
| Best Defensive Infielder | Edmundo Sosa |
| Best Infield Arm | Patrick Wisdom |
| Best Defensive Outfielder | Magneuris Sierra |
| Best Outfield Arm | Magneuris Sierra |
| PROJECTED 2020 LINEUP | |
| Catcher | Carson Kelly |
| First Base | Matt Carpenter |
| Second Base | Kolten Wong |
| Third Base | Aledmys Diaz |
| Shortstop | Delvin Perez |
| Left Field | Randal Grichuk |
| Center Field | Dexter Fowler |
| Right Field | Stephen Piscotty |
| No. 1 Starter | Carlos Martinez |
| No. 2 Starter | Alex Reyes |
| No. 3 Starter | Luke Weaver |
| No. 4 Starter | Jack Flaherty |
| No. 5 Starter | Mike Leake |
| Closer | Sandy Alcantara |
| TOP PROSPECTS OF THE DECADE | ||
| Year | Player, Pos. | 2016 Org |
| 2007 | Colby Rasmus, of | Astros |
| 2008 | Colby Rasmus, of | Astros |
| 2009 | Colby Rasmus, of | Astros |
| 2010 | Shelby Miller, rhp | Diamondbacks |
| 2011 | Shelby Miller, rhp | Diamondbacks |
| 2012 | Shelby Miller, rhp | Diamondbacks |
| 2013 | Oscar Taveras, of | Deceased |
| 2014 | Oscar Taveras, of | Deceased |
| 2015 | Marco Gonzales, lhp | Cardinals |
| 2016 | Alex Reyes, rhp | Cardinals |
| TOP DRAFT PICKS OF THE DECADE | ||
| Year | Player, Pos. | 2016 Org |
| 2007 | Pete Kozma, ss | Yankees |
| 2008 | Brett Wallace, 3b | Padres |
| 2009 | Shelby Miller, rhp | Diamondbacks |
| 2010 | Zack Cox, 3b | Marlins |
| 2011 | Kolten Wong, 2b | Cardinals |
| 2012 | Michael Wacha, rhp | Cardinals |
| 2013 | Marco Gonzales, lhp | Cardinals |
| 2014 | Luke Weaver, rhp | Cardinals |
| 2015 | Nick Plummer, of | Cardinals |
| 2016 | Delvin Perez, ss | Cardinals |
| LARGEST BONUSES IN CLUB HISTORY | |
| J.D. Drew, 1998 | $3,000,000 |
| Shelby Miller, 2009 | $2,875,000 |
| Rick Ankiel, 1999 | $2,500,000 |
| Chad Hutchinson, 1998 | $2,300,000 |
| Delvin Perez, 2016 | $2,222,500 |
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