During recent St. Louis Cardinals spring training weeks, the Opening Day lineup was pretty much set.
You could write down the likes of Pujols, Rolen, Edmonds and Eckstein and here come the Cardinals.
Not so this season, as the Redbirds will have a new look on the field and on the mound.
Or will they?
The Cardinals acquired power-hitting Troy Glaus to play third and Cesar
Izturus was signed as a one-year free agent to play shortstop. Second base and centerfield are open to competition. I throw in second base because it was not a productive position when Adam Kennedy was playing there last year. So far while it is quite early, things have not changed. Kennedy is struggling to say the least. He will have to step it up soon.
Skip Schumaker, Rick Ankiel and the young and rising Colby Rasmus are in the mix for centerfield.
If it just came down to defense, Rasmus would be in this thing, but he needs to improve his offense.
As for Rule 5 player outfielder Brian Barton, he must improve quickly to stay in the organization.
Pay attention to Juan Gonzalez. So far so good with Gonzalez. He looks sharp in the batting cages, now if only his body would hold up.
The pitching will be the main question.
Matt Clement will be ok. The early spring training scare was a false alarm. He will be ready when called upon.
The rotation could set up with Adam Wainwright, Braden Looper, Joel Pinero and Clement – in no specific order.
The Cardinals will not need five starters early in the season because of off days and probable rainouts. They will need depth in the bullpen, which might be the team’s strong suit.
Final Chapter
Today (Feb. 28) is the scheduled sentencing day for former Vashon basketball coach Floyd Irons. It’s a sad day for many.
I have refrained from saying a lot about this subject because I readily admit that I was not a fan of how Coach Irons handled some things once he was ousted as coach.
It was personal and I feel like this was not the place to air out personal issues.
So be it, Floyd and I disagree on some thing. We can still co exist.
The reason why this is a sad day is because the government built such a solid case against him that he said “uncle.” Many people thought he would put up a fight. He admitted guilt and he will now pay for it. I think that is obvious. He let a lot of people down who looked up to him.
That is where the hurt comes in. With that comes a few questions that no one seems to have an answer for.
Isn’t rather odd that, in order to get a lighter sentence, the government wanted to know what improprieties took place while he was a coach? When it was determined that there was enough of a case to pursue Irons, the piling on started. Or did it start when Irons started to pour it on teams in the state tournaments? While Irons gave it up on other coaches, it is interesting how some of the ones in question have never been mentioned in the press.
By no means would I ever condone what Irons did; be it the fraud conviction or what he admitted to while he coached. It was wrong and he should pay.
I am not on the Floyd Irons bandwagon. I have other issues with him that are not as important as fairness. It will be interesting if he gets a lighter sentence than the norm for a crime of this nature. His sentence could hinge on what he did as a coach compared to as a felon.
It makes you wonder what this was really all about. Irons is no saint. He disgraced his school it what it stood for. He has embarrassed his players, his community and certainly his family and friends
It is a severe price no matter what punishment the government hands down. Now, the book must close.