Results tagged ‘ Skip Schumaker ’
2009 Season Outlook: Second Base
The second base job was originally slated to go to Adam Kennedy, but after his surprise release from the Cardinals, second base has become one position that will not be filled until Opening Day.
Brendan Ryan is front-runner heading into spring training as he played in 80 games while hitting .244 with no homeruns and only 10 RBIs. For the games that Ryan did play in, it was usually giving starters like Troy Glaus, Adam Kennedy, or any of the outfielders a day of rest as he was the backup for practically every position on the field.
However, this does show his versatility and that he can be an every day player. He is considerably one of the younger guys on the team, but has shown that he has good fielding ability to off-set his sometimes poor batting.
This season will probably be make or break for Ryan as he competes for the open second base job. If he does not get it, then he will probably play the same role as last season, which was only filling in for guys that were injured or needed rest. If that is the case, then Ryan could be trade bait come next offseason.
Skip Schumaker can’t seem to make enough headlines for the Cardinals this spring. Even though he is almost guaranteed a starting outfield job, he is listed second on the depth chart for second base.
Last year, Schumaker was one of the surprises as he worked his way into the lineup and played in 153 games while hitting .302 with only 8 homeruns and 46 RBIs. His numbers show that he doesn’t hit for power as much as he hits for average. Comparisons could be made to David Eckstein, as he’s able to put the bat on the ball wherever it is thrown.
As I said in the first base post a few days ago, Schumaker is very versatile and it is very rare that he will get injured. There are at least five positions on the diamond that he could potentially play which could be good news for La Russa if he doesn’t feel comfortable placing an unexperienced rookie into the lineup quickly.
Last but not least, there is Joe Thurston. Thurston played for the Boston Red Sox last season, but only played in 4 games with 8 at-bats. He didn’t record any hits, but his on-base percentage was .111, with only one strikeout. This shows that he can put the ball in play and if he has any speed, he might be able to beat out some slow rollers.
– John Thomas
2009 Season Outlook: First Base
This is the second in a series of posts previewing each position and the pitching staff before the start of the 2009 St. Louis Cardinals season.
Albert Pujols. There’s not much else that can be said for the two-time NL MVP who won the coveted award last year. With first base another position that the Cardinals already have set, Pujols looks to have an injury-free season and improve even more on his already gawdy numbers from last year.
Last year, Pujols played in all but 14 games, hitting .357 with 37 homeruns and 116 RBI’s. These numbers are amazing given the fact that Pujols practically played with a sore elbow all year and only missed those 14 games due to a knee injury.
However, being the workhorse that he is, Pujols always works as hard as he can to stay healthy and help his team as much as possible.
Along with being considered by other Major Leaguers as one of the most feared hitters in baseball today, Pujols has shown he is not just a one-dimension baseball player. He showed throughout the 2008 season that he can play a heck of a first base. Look for Albert to make a case for a second Gold Glove of his career.
Basically, the biggest question with Pujols is his health. With his sometime troublesome knees and elbow, having him out of the lineup can be the difference in contending for the NL Central and not even being in the conversation for making the playoffs. With Pujols in the lineup, the Cardinals can count on him to carry them on his back and be playoff contenders all year long.
According to the depth chart, Chris Duncan is the second string first-baseman behind Albert Pujols. Even though he endured a rough year in 2008 playing in only 76 games while hitting .248 with only 6 homeruns and 27 RBI’s, the son of Cardinals pitching coach Dave Duncan looks to rebound and show he can still hit for power and average which is what he showed in 2007.
Duncan will be someone that will get limited playing time at first base if Pujols stays healthy, but with his ability to also play outfield, it will be tough for him to get playing time there as well with the Cardinals plethora of outfielders. Unless Duncan has an amazing spring, don’t look for him to get much playing time granted the majority of the team stays healthy.
It is also possible that Skip Schumaker could get some looks as first base. Even though he will be working this spring for the open second base job, his versatility shows that he could almost play anywhere on the diamond. If the second base job doesn’t work out for Schumaker, he could easily become Albert Pujols’ backup in a heartbeat.
- John Thomas
Video Blog Update: 2/12/2009
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