Let's see what's in the winter meeting news today:

• Well, so it looks like Mo/rumor monkeys have been busy with reliever-related business for the Redbirds. So far, the Cards have been linked to: K-ROD, Fuentes, Beimel, Valverde, Capps, Putz, Rauch, and more! 
• rumors have been flying that Mo has an offer out to Zdurnieck(sp?) for Putz, consisting of Ank + prospect (Motte's name has been used here, recently). I just can't see Ank wearing any other uniform. It just seems infathomable
• So we're stuck with Kennedy. I guess that's decent if Greene is able to bounce back and we keep Miles around, but you never know...

Since the Hot Stove Post has reached 415 comments and is somewhat unwieldy, it seems we should make a new one that is a little easier to navigate.

So it seems as if the minute Mo hung up the phone with O'Dowd, nixing the holliday deal, Billy Beane had a deal worked out within minutes and it appears Holliday will be wearing green and yellow next season. I, for one, was for the deal, but only if Mo would have been able to extend Holliday.

Let's just hope that Peavy is dealt soon, so we can find out if the Braves will give us Yunel or not.

Does anybody actually believe Mo when he says that he nixed the Holliday deal due to the information leak by the media?

Update: I'm thinking that a new one should get made once this one hits 250 comments or so? how does that sound?

Well, well well. Yet again do Cardinal fans hear the question they have heard so often this past year that their ears start to bleed any time they hear it: "Do we trade Rasmus?"

Said question has probably come up over 500 times over the past year on this site alone. But, will Mo have the cahones to pull the trigger on trading the system's golden boy, or will he soon become the answer to a trivia question?

Argue away, folks. Let's just hope there will be plenty to talk about this coming week!

I just have a quick question Larry, so it can be deleted once it's answered. Does anybody know where I can find an all-time list of the Cardinals schedule and results? I want to find out the Redbirds' record Friday the 13ths throughout history, to see if there is a correlation, because it seems to me as that the last few Friday the 13ths, the birds have done poorly, so I just want some clarification. Thanks!

[UPDATE: there are conflicting rumors making the rounds. i hope they do call up perez, and there's a credible report out there ---- but it's not gospel truth yet. ----l.b.]

Ladies, gentlemen, Anti-Isringhausen faithful, I present to you, your new closer . According to a well-trusted source at Future Redbirds, the Cardinals have called up the fireballing righty Chris Perez from Memphis. It looks like after 5 blown saves and an ERA in the 7's, the big birds have finally found a temporary stopgap.

Through 17 games, his line looks like so: 1-1 record, 16.2 innings, 8 saves, 2 WP, 2.16 ERA, 12 hits, WHIP of 1.20, and a whopping 21 K's!

Chris, after going to the U of Miami, was drafted in the supplemental round (42 overall) of the 2006 draft. For those of you who remember way back in ST, he was one of the last players to be sent down to the MiLB camp. It seems to me that it was him, K-Mac, Jimenez, and a few darkhorse candidates.

So he is not on the 40-man roster, so it looks as if they will have to make some moves to get him on. Is it possible they put Clement on the 60 day DL? Did Mo find a trade partner dumb enough to give up a stud-of-a-prospect for Reyes (cough cough Brian Sabean cough cough)? Who knows, maybe Izzy will spend some time on the DL.

This has not been confirmed by a legit source yet , but for all of your avid FR readers, you know just how amazing cardsfan1's track record is. This has also been talked about on Cards Talk.

Recently, I posted a diary about how much it was going to suck having DWIII as the new team president. After rereading it, I realized how much of an ass I must have sounded, by judging DWIII and hypothesizing that he must be cheap just because his old man isn't so loose with money and that it had to be deleted. I'm sorry for these comments if they offended anyone. So I decided, why not try to be, what's that word....opti-something or other and list the positives of having DWIII in office. First, let me just clarify one thing after a little bit of confusion/uproar. Some of the things on this list (fan first, BPV is a priority, wants to usher in new era) are just speculative observations of mine. I am not saying that they are going to happen. In fact, I would be surprised if more than one of these was directly influenced by DWIII. I am just merely observing some things that he has said in an effort to look on the positive side and hope for the best. In fact, most fans probably just shrug this off with a simple "meh". So here it goes:

1. In a recent press conference, Bill DeWitt III stated how he is a fan first. This, if true, could be a great improvement. Who knows, maybe he will be able to convince “daddy” next off-season to spend a little bit more money if they are, in fact, god willing, "just one player away". A list of a few players who could be said person: Grudz, Hudson, Furcal, O-Cab, Burnett, Garland, Lackey, Lowe, Penny, Sabathia, and Sheets to name a few. He also may be able to use his status as son of the owner to get the team to make a big trade, one that would involve the team taking on a large amount of money for a studly, worthwhile player. Maybe he actually does know how it feels when the team doesn’t go out and spend some moolah.

2. Also in the press conference, Li'l DeWitt mentioned how enthused he was to usher in a new Era of Cardinal Baseball. By this, of course, he meant the oh-so-enticing youth movement. This may be just another sign that the team is moving forward with the youth movement. Not only the players are getting younger, but hell, even the front office is (Jocketty, 58, to Mo's 39. Lamping's 41 to DWIII's 40. Abbamondi's 37ish replaced Mo, who replaced Jocketty). Granted, the team didn't choose to replace the president, rather, the job was thrust on them. But nonetheless, let's hope that a move to someone younger who has been working for the organization for years with a fresh mind is better than someone who went to work with the Jets (come on, the Patriots didn't offer him enough to spy on other teams for them?!)

3. Again, this is tied in with the youth movement factor. Unbeknownst to many, he helped redesign the newish cardinal’s logo. Yeah, this is kind of a reach, being that it happened in 1998, but it still doesn't hurt that he tried to reshape and rejuvenate the BOB logo.

4. In college, Yale I might add, he studied architectural history, and went on to Harvard to get his business degree. So yes, it may be true that he most definitely got the job because he's the owner's son, but hey, he is no schlub. I mean, Harvard AND Yale! That's impressive.

5. Pop quiz! The two word combination that pisses off Cardinal fans as of late than any other combination of words in the English language:

A. Cubs fan

B. No postseason (who would have thought that "Cardinals" and "no postseason" over the last decade could even be used in the same sentence?)

C. Ballpark Village

D. minor injury (let's start a list of the players whose injuries have just started out as minor as of late, shall we?: Rolen, Jed, Carp, Mulder, Piniero, Clement, etc. etc.)

As persuading as just about all of the phrases listed above can be, I'm going to have to go with BPV. After months of us Redbird fans having to stare out at that ugly, vacant hole/parking lot/abyss outside of Busch, someone is trying to take an initiative. DWIII has mentioned how important it is that they get BPV up and running as soon as possible. Let's hope that DeWitt III truly thinks that this beast can turn into a beauty as soon as stated.

Well there you have it Cardinal fans. It looks like with the inauguration of Bill DeWitt III as the new team president, we all have hope that he will stay true to his word and usher in a new era; I was thinking along the lines of “Colb-ERAsmus” as the name of the next era.

http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20080314&content_id=2426718&vkey=spt2008news&fext=.jsp&c_id=stl

On a semi-unrelated note, Bernie hat-tipped Larry in his weekly tidbits column. Kudos!

http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/sports/columnists.nsf/berniemiklasz/story/B5B6C399D6006B928625740D000FF759?OpenDocument

Per MLBTR & Peter Gammons, the Florida Marlins have traded Miguel Cabrera to the Detroit Tigers for Cameron Maybin, Andrew Miller, catcher Mike Rabelo and three minor league prospects. Wow. It seems like the Fish could have gotten a lot more if they had tried to trade the 2 separately.

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2007/12/tigers-acquire.html

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/blog/index?entryID=3140986&name=winter_meetings

Does anybody know when MLB starts to announce all of the awards? I know that around this time, they usually set up a page specifying the exact date of the announcement, but I'm unable to find anything on it. I guess I'm kind of anxious to find out which (if any) of the Cardinals won Gold Gloves this year. Thanks!

Recently, there has been much speculation on MLBTR & several other places regarding the team's need of a righty bat in the outfield due to what appears to be the career-ending injury to Juan E. (it seems to me the last report about his eye was that his vision was something like 20/400-I'm sorry, but it sounds like he won't be his normal self if & when he returns).

In all of the recent trade speculation regarding outfielders, one name comes up often. Jason Bay, the Pirate's left fielder seems to fit the void in the outfield left by Juan. In 05 & 06, he had monster years.

05= .306/.402/.559 21 SB, 32 HR & 101 RBI 95 BB
06= .286/.396/.532 11 SB, 35 HR & 109 RBI 102 BB

Those were some amazing years he had at the plate. He has also proven that he can play both CF & LF, so he could play in LF/RF depending on whether or not Duncan/Ankiel are traded, and can replace Jimmy Baseball in center if need be.

I don't exactly know what the Bucs would be asking for in return & what they need, but watching their matchups against the Cards, I would say that their biggest necessity is the bullpen. Maybe they would take Garcia, TJ, & Mather in return, due to Bay's down season this past year.

07= .247/.327/.418 4 SB, 21 HR & 84 RBI 59 BB

Albeit just a rumor, but according to the LA Times, Selig would consider suspending HGH users, namely Glaus, Ank, Byrd, and Matthews Jr. With the little power we would have WITH him next year, I fear how little pop that the team would be without him.

This may sound bad, but with the speed that the Mitchell investigation & Selig's interviews with players have had, I kind of doubt that they would be able to get all of this taken care of by the beginning next season.

Even though he may not suspend Ankiel, just look how poorly he has played in the past under pressure like this (namely 2000 playoffs & after the HGH allegations in the media late last season).

http://www.latimes.com/sports/printedition/la-sp-seriesrep25oct25,1,7362229.story?coll=la-headlines- pe-sports&ctrack=2&cset=true

Apparently, Edgar Gonzalez is not on the Memphis roster anymore, and when you search his name on MiLB.com, it does not list what team he is on. Also, when La Russa was asked recently who was going to be called up, he said that he would not be calling up Gonzalez. I don't know why, because he hit close to .310, with a little power and speed at Memphis. Anyone know what happened? Is he the PTBNL for Piniero?

Between commercials during the game last night, I was flipping to the little league world series. I think it was Taipei and Japan, and I noticed the weirdest hat ever. Even weirder than anthony "iron bill" reyes.

http://www.littleleague.org/series/2007divisions/llbb/teams/japan/gomatsumori.htm

And of course, we can't forget The D-Train

http://mlb.mlb.com/images/2006/11/20/xXj5jWdl.jpg

It appears that just about all of the Japanese players wear there hats like this in the LLWS. So who do you think has the weirdest hat style in baseball, MLB or LLWS? Also, does anyone have any idea why it is only the Japanese kids who wear their hats like that? As far as I can remember, in the WBC the other year, team Japan didn't wear their hats like that.

As much as the rest of Cardinal Nation and I want, Colby Rasmus will NOT be in the Bigs next year. I don't care what you say, just look at the way he slumped after being sick. Plus, everyone wants him to develop as much as he can and get as many atbats as possible before being brought up.

In the meantime, I propose that they make Ankiel the starting centerfielder next year, and move Edmonds to left. This is the exact same thing the Reds did this year with Hamilton and Griffey. Griffey was an outstanding centerfielder all his career who has been injured the last several years, and Josh Hamilton is an up and coming star with a better arm. Just look at how it payed off for Griffey!

When I was at the game on Tuesday, I was amazed by the throws Rick was making. Several of the Marlins hit what would have been a double, but because of Ank's cannon, they didn't test it.

I truly think that with Edmonds in a less demanding position next year, than he can produce a lot better, while Ankiel gets plenty of playing time, and many chances to show off his arm.

I also think that LaRussa should keep Dunc his everyday leftfielder next year, and keep Ludwick & Skip (who is essentially a younger version of So) as backups, while letting Gooch go and packaging Juan for anything. Who nows? Maybe Jimmy Baseball can have a good year before he retires, and maybe we can actually get SOMETHING for Juan after a career year average-wise.

As much as I want to see the Cards be the first team to win back to back championships since 2000, I don't expect that to happen. In fact, I would be surprised that, if they get into the playoffs at all, that they would do that well.

Yes, I really shouldn't be saying that after they proved me wrong last year, but I doubt that they could do well with all of the injuries and players showing their ages this year.

But I think that the more games they win, and the closer they get to the playoffs, I think the cheaper DeWitt will get. Like last year, he is going to say that he doesn't think the team needs to spend money. The worse the team does, the more I think DeWitt will spend.

Also, the less they win this year, the higher spot in the draft that they will get next year. As it is, the Cardinals have very few prospects, and they have always been criticized as of late, saying they have made poor choices in the draft. If they stop winning, then they can redeem themselves in the draft next year and maybe actually pick a good player.

Again, I am not saying by any means that I don't want them to get in the playoffs, I just think the closer they get without making it, then the more they are hurting themselves. Let me clarify what I was trying to say. Read my lips. I WAS NOT SAYING THAT THEY SHOULD THROW GAMES. I was merely stating that in my opinion, I would rather see them not get into the playoffs this year. That may sound crazy, but I think that the team just needs a rest. Most of the players have been injured throughout the season, and I don't think that they need any more pressure and stress put on them. I think that they simply need a whole offseason off, which has not happened since 2003. Yes, I want to see them go all the way as much as the next guy, but I just think that if they get to the playoffs, that the chances that they play like they did last year are very slim, and that they have that many more chances to get injured. Look at the competition we would be up against. D-Backs, Pads, Mets/Phillies/Braves, BoSox, M's/Yanks, Indians/Tigers, & the Angels. The teams in the playoffs this year look a lot better than the teams last year, so I don't think that they have as good of a shot as they had last year without a healthy team. I think that the team started off so poorly this season was due to the fact that most of them played 16 long, stressful games in the playoffs, and some of them also played in winterball. Meaning that parts of the team really didn't get that big of an offseason. Again, I am NOT saying they should throw the rest of the season, I am just merely saying that I think the whole team needs rest.

Is it just me, or does it seem like LaRussa hasn't really used Gooch as of late? There was a while there when he was on fire, and as it is, his average is still hovering around .300. And also, what does LaRussa see in Ludwick? Granted, he has come through in the clutch moments this season, but still, the guy is only hitting .250. Over his career, he has a worse K/AB percentage (3.57) than Dave Kingman (3.7). Of course someone will get homeruns if they swing for the fences every AB, but what's the point if they never get hits? Am I the only one bothered by the fact that LaRussa always tries to "play the percentages with Dunc"? If Chris Duncan is your young budding star leftfielder, then why is he benched everytime a lefty starts? Sure, bench him once or twice a week to give him some rest, or if he has an atrocious record against the starter, but still it seems like he is only playing about 50 or 60 percent of the time. So what if he hasn't been great against leftys? At this rate, he won't be able to get to 30 homers, 100 rbis. As big of a fan as I am of LaRussa, he has been doing some stupid things as of late. It just seems that he is a little past his prime, and might want to think about retirement pretty soon.

I guess I am about to say what has been in everyone's mind for weeks. The season's over. Sure, they got everyones hopes up a week ago, being only 6 games back and just having taken 3 out of 4 from the brew crew, and had 6 games against 2 of the worst teams in the game. I kept on trying to convince myself throughout the season after every loss, "oh, it's just one more loss, they can make it up with a good game tomorrow." Boy, how many times was I wrong. Sure for parts of the season it seemed that there was still hope, but they still found ways to make the pitching staff worse and to make the team worse. No, I'm not blaming all of their losses on the cheap ownership. It's not their fault that the team was plagued with injuries to just about everyone but Albert & Izzy. During the offseason, most people seemed optimistic after they signed Kennedy. Great, some homegrown talent finally returning. Finally, 2nd base won't be a revolving door. I wish it still was. You can't blame Kennedy's inconsistency on DeWitt. But that's not to say that there aren't still things to blame on them (their stinginess in the offseason, for one). But as much as I hate to say it, the season is done. The only thing to look forward to, (besides Albert's finishing in the MVP race), are the September call-ups. You tried your hardest this season guys, but better luck next year. As much as I want to believe that DeWitt will stay true to when he said that if a good enough player showed up (Zambrano), they'd open up their wallet, they will still be outbid by a team willing to pay a little bit more. It looks like the next year or two might be similar to this year- fails to meet expectations.

With the recent signing of Ryan Franklin to a 2-year extension last month, where does Kinney fit into the picture? There was so much talk during spring training that he would be the setup man of the future. Even after he went down, it sounded like they were just going to use Franklin as a short term replacement, and Kinney would get his job back for 2008, baring another unforseen injury. But with Franklin's success and his signing of an extension, what happens to Kinney next year? Is he a trading chip? Do we try Franklin as a starter?

In his most recent game, Ank blasted 3 homeruns.
Since Ankiel is hitting .280 with 19 homeruns and 52 rbi's now, this shows that he is ready for the show...again. This drives me crazy, because even though Ludwick is starting to come around, he is still only hitting .230. How come Ankiel has not been given a shot yet at proving himself in the bigs? Even though he strikes out a fair amount, he still must be better than Ludwick, who strikes out alot as well. Am I the only one bothered my Jocketty's lack of movement with Ankiel?

http://www.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?t=g_box&gid=2007_06_16_mrbaaa_iowaaa_1&a mp;did=t235&sid=t235

http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/sports/stories.nsf/cardinals/story/01A7AC9CE98D888F862572CF00192B7F ?OpenDocument

"Sources close to the crash investigation told the Post-Dispatch on Tuesday that a small amount of marijuana, in a small tin, was recovered from Hancock's demolished vehicle. A Cardinals source said the club was made aware of the finding Monday night."

Is it only me, or has anyone else seen all of the stories about tigers OF marcus thames? the tigers keep on saying how they need left-handed bullpen help, and we have 2 excess (flores, rincon, johnson, narvie). Why haven't they made a trade yet? hes a hell of a lot better than encarnacion, and if they throw in PW or j-rod, maybe it would work

With Dave Duncan being known as one of the best if not the best at turning sub-par pitchers into outstanding pitchers, there is one name who comes to mind who would be a perfect project. Oliver Perez. There was a time when he was 12-10 with an ERA below 3. In that same year, he pitched almost 200 innings and had about 200 K's. The most important thing about that awesome season: he played with the PIRATES! But that's not all. Currently, he is competing for a rotation spot with the Mets, but why doesn't Walt Jocketty make a trade? We have a surplus of outfielders, and this could turn out to be one of the smartest trades of the year.