Post by Ex-Oakland GM on Jan 7, 2009 15:26:40 GMT -5
So we are here with the World Champions St. Louis Cardinals GM. First off congrats on winning it all. How does it feel to be the best team in baseball? It feels nice, especially after such a letdown last year, but now I'm just focused on going for a repeat and hopefully even building a dynasty. It's far fetched and unlikely, but I have to stay positive and create new goals.
You had the most runs scored per game in the NL last year. What do you think contributed to that? We got good contributions from every spot in the lineup, from 1-8. Edmonds, Pujols, and Beltre all had MVP caliber seasons while Edgar Renteria finished second in the NL batting race. Eli Marrero won the WS MVP. So, it was a team effort and everyone contributed nicely. Hopefully with Mike Piazza we can score over a thousand this year.
Last year you mixed veterans and youth. This season it appears you are trying to bring in more youth again. What do you have planned for the future of your team? Not much else is planned, we just want to have a stud player under the age of 30 at every position, and we've done pretty much exactly that except in a couple cases. Our young guys should continue to get better and continue to be a threat in the NL for years.
Looking back was there any players that you wouldve used differently during the season? I probably would've used the bullpen a little differently, as that was certainly the weak spot of the team this year. I wouldn't use Pat Neshek at closer again, that's for sure, and I also could've done well to find a platoon partner with Jack Cust, but other than that, I think everything fit perfectly.
Do you plan on making any off season moves? We've already made a couple in acquiring Mike Piazza and Jose Valverde. Piazza is quite posibly the best catcher in the game and should bolster our offense immensely, and Valverde is a power pitcher that came for a nice price and could be the solution to the closer problem. Other than that, it'd be nice to possibly upgrade at SS or get more help in the bullpen, but I don't really see anything happening until midway through next season.
Finally, do you have any predictions for the new season? Well, here are my season predictions:
AL East: Toronto
AL Central: Kansas City
AL West: Oakland
AL Wild Card: Minnesota
NL East: Atlanta
NL Central: St. Louis
NL West: San Francisco
NL Wild Card: Philadelphia
As for the winner of the World Series, I'll be a homer and say St. Louis over Kansas City in a Missouri World Series. Who knows what will actually happen, though.
You had the most runs scored per game in the NL last year. What do you think contributed to that? We got good contributions from every spot in the lineup, from 1-8. Edmonds, Pujols, and Beltre all had MVP caliber seasons while Edgar Renteria finished second in the NL batting race. Eli Marrero won the WS MVP. So, it was a team effort and everyone contributed nicely. Hopefully with Mike Piazza we can score over a thousand this year.
Last year you mixed veterans and youth. This season it appears you are trying to bring in more youth again. What do you have planned for the future of your team? Not much else is planned, we just want to have a stud player under the age of 30 at every position, and we've done pretty much exactly that except in a couple cases. Our young guys should continue to get better and continue to be a threat in the NL for years.
Looking back was there any players that you wouldve used differently during the season? I probably would've used the bullpen a little differently, as that was certainly the weak spot of the team this year. I wouldn't use Pat Neshek at closer again, that's for sure, and I also could've done well to find a platoon partner with Jack Cust, but other than that, I think everything fit perfectly.
Do you plan on making any off season moves? We've already made a couple in acquiring Mike Piazza and Jose Valverde. Piazza is quite posibly the best catcher in the game and should bolster our offense immensely, and Valverde is a power pitcher that came for a nice price and could be the solution to the closer problem. Other than that, it'd be nice to possibly upgrade at SS or get more help in the bullpen, but I don't really see anything happening until midway through next season.
Finally, do you have any predictions for the new season? Well, here are my season predictions:
AL East: Toronto
AL Central: Kansas City
AL West: Oakland
AL Wild Card: Minnesota
NL East: Atlanta
NL Central: St. Louis
NL West: San Francisco
NL Wild Card: Philadelphia
As for the winner of the World Series, I'll be a homer and say St. Louis over Kansas City in a Missouri World Series. Who knows what will actually happen, though.