The Chris Moeller Archives

A simmering stove

I'm still waiting for the Cardinals to make their splash in baseball's Hot Stove League. Some minor adjustments have been made to the roster: Urbana, IA native Cal Eldred is literally putting himself out to pasture; John Mabry heads to the Cubs with this free advice, from me to them-- don't use him as a pinch-runner; Abraham Nunez flees to the Phillies for full-time employment; and the Cardinals nearly overpaid for free agent flamethrower A.J. Burnett, before the Blue Jays mercifully swept in and overpaid by even more.

It's been a mixed bag for the division rival Cubs. The ideal solution for their gaping holes at shortstop and lead-off hitter (Rafael Furcal) spurned them, though I like their new bullpen with Scott Eyre and Bob Howry. The Reds have finally dealt All-Star-- and overall good guy-- Sean Casey (after almost 8 years of trade rumors,) and Roger Clemens has forced the Astros into inactivity by waiting until at least late January to let them know whether he plans to return. The division's relative inactivity should favor the Cardinals, but first they've got to settle their own problems at second base and set-up relief, while making themselves much younger in the outfield.

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The 2006 World Cup of Baseball in March is going to be spectacular. I hope they plan to televise it somewhere. Cy Young winner Chris Carpenter declined an invitation to join the U.S. team, but you'll find NL MVP Albert Pujols batting third in the Dominican line-up. Cards' thirdbase coach Jose Oquendo was asked to manage the Puerto Rican entry, and he lassoed Yadier Molina to be his catcher.

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My enthusiasm for St. Louis' new ballpark is tempered by the team ownership's unwillingness to give the payroll a bump. The mind twirls at the amount of money they must have pocketed last year, and twirls some more at their financial prospective for '06.

I wouldn't rule out a sale of the team in the not-too-distant future. The general partners seem to enjoy their involvement with the team, but chairman Bill DeWitt pulled a similar stunt with the Texas Rangers-- buy the team, get taxpayers to foot the bill for a large portion of a new ballpark-- substantially raising the value of the club. Then cash out. I'm just saying-- don't be surprised.

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The wife of Mets pitcher Kris Benson, Anna, is ripping the team for shopping their husband around, (To the Cardinals?) and thinks her on-going negotiations to pose for Playboy is the catalyst.

"We would have never, ever signed with New York if they had said they were going to trade us," she said, "I was Miss (I can't find the actual published word) for the Mets the entire time I was there. I have no deal with Playboy."

She continued, "How are they going to sit there and say it's so controversial, when they sign someone like (Carlos) Delgado, who turns his back on our flag? (See last Monday's post.) Playboy is all-American. Everyone from Marilyn Monroe to Cindy Crawford has posed. They didn't turn their back on our flag."

True enough, but as St. Louis Post columnist Jeff Gordon points out, they did wear their skirts at half mast.

posted by CM @ 9:35 PM