FanHome - View Single Post - Winter Warmup Report (Saturday) from Cranny

BleacherBum593 · January 14th, 2007, 01:16 PM

When I got home from the Xavier-SLU BB game last night, I had the following email from Cranny on his trip to the winter warmup Saturday. His comments to Scout.com follows.

Mike -

I was reading the paper this morning when I noticed that Mozeliak had a session on the 2007 Cards that started at 11:00am. I decided to go. It turned into a full blown session on both the major league team and minor league prospects. Either Jeff Luhnow or his assistant was also a presenter. I made the most of the opportunity and made a nuisance of myself.
You can read my comments on The Birdhouse board. Please feel free to use all my comments on Fanhome and expand on them with other questions when you are down there on Monday. Hope it helps.

Cranny
-------------------
bccran
(AA) Springfield Cardinals
Posts: 714
(1/13/07 2:54:17 pm)

WW with Moseliak This Morning JScott, Brian, and all -

I was fortunate to have time to attend Mo's session this morning - especially fortunate because they were willing to field both major league and minor league questions. I think it was Jeff Luhnow (or his assistant) who fielded the minor league questions. Hope I wasn't too much of a pest, dominating the questions.

Here goes:

Q: When will Mulder be ready?
A: Conservatively, if all goes well, by the end of June or the All-Star break. There is a possibility it will be sooner - by as early as the end of May. The biggest mistake we can make, however, is to bring him back too soon.

Q: Why didn't we sign Jeff Suppan?
A: We simply got outbid by Milwaukee. We try to keep
the term to 3 years for a pitcher, while we are willing to go longer for a position player. We were in the running and willing to raise our offer as long as it stayed at 3 years, but when Milwaukee went to 4 years it put it into a different realm. We went heavy after Burnett last year and it taught us some lessons on what a long term contract for a pitcher can do, if it doesn't work out, to the overall payroll structure of a team.

Q: Are you still trying to sign Weaver?
A: Yes, but remember during much of 2006 he really wasn't that good. He had a terrific playoff. He hasn't had a good 200 inning year with us yet, so we are only willing to sign him for so much. Again, we probably will want to stay in the 3 year window or less as we try to sign him. We wont compete if there are teams who offer him a 4 year deal.

Q: What is the status of So Taguchi.
A: So is back.

Q: Is Kip Wells healthy?
A: He had a foot problem, not an arm problem. His health should be fine. He wanted to pitch for the Cardinals and
Duncan to re-establish his middle to top part of the rotation capabilities. He had better offers on the table, but wanted to come here. He should be fine for around 200 innings this year

Q: Are you interested in signing Preston Wilson?
A: Actually, I had a call from his agent yeaterday.
We will see what we can do.

Q: Is there any FA you really wanted badly that you tried to sign and couldn't get?
A: We spent a great deal of time trying to do a deal with Soriano.

Q: How is the development schedule of Colby Rasmus coming?
A: He's a 5 tool player that is on a fast track. One of the reasons we signed Edmonds to a two year extension is because we think Colbey could be ready by 09. Many minor leaguers go backward a little or plateau for awhile when they are promoted, as they adjust. Everytime we have promoted Colby, after a week or so he adjusted and has been able to excel at the higher level right away.

Q: How do you feel about the signing of Franklin?
A: He came to us and said that he wanted to reestablish
himself as a starter. He felt the Cardinals and Duncan would be the best place to do that. He had more money on the table from several other teams. We are delighted when players want to play for us. When we beg players to consider our offer, it never works out. Frankin can do a lot of things, but right now he is "our bridge to Mulder returning". Bottom line is, he simply wanted to be a Cardinal.

Q: Are you going to try to sign Eckstein to an extension now that Kennedy is signed for 3 years?
A: I'd better be careful with this one because Joe Strauss is in the room. The answer is "we will be talking to Eck's agent during Spring Training".

Q: Are there any minor league players who could break through and play for the big club at any time this year?
A: The two players that are closest are Troy Cate and
Andy Cavazos. Cate has done an extraordinary job openning our eyes and we are looking at him as both a starter and reliever. Cavazos is a big strong kid who is close to being ready for the major league bullpen. We are very also very pleased about the Cabrera signing - he can do a lot of things that give us flexibility. He has been in Japan for the past 2 years and is anxious to re-establish himself in MLB.

Q: Are there any specific players on a fast track we should be watching this year.
A: Mitch Boggs, Jaime Garcia, and John Jay. Boggs is very solid. Garcia has been a real delight. He was overweight and out of shape when we drafted him. Went to the Dominican League, got into a conditioning program, and looks great now. Fastball is in the 92-93 range and he has an outstanding breaking pich. He is the real deal. John Jay is an outstanding prospect. We may do the same thing with Jay that we did with Stavinoha - jump him right to Springfield this year.

Q: Can you rate our 3 best closing prospects - Worrell, Sillman, and Perez?
A: Worrell has a very unorthodox, goofy delivery. We don't know whether it will relate to success at the major league level. Sillman is kind of the same way with an unortodox sidearm delivery. Both of them might make it some day, but probably not as closers. Perez is a different story. He has electric stuff and hits 95. Big, strong kid. He should come through the system very fast. He could be 2 years away at the inside. 3 years is a good bet.

Q: What about the following prospects - Chris Lambert,
Stuart Pomeranz, Mark McCormick, Jordan Pals, Tyler Greene, Adam Ottovino, and Trey Hearne.
A: Lambert was a hockey player and is still learning how to be a professional pitcher. He's coming along. He will be given a chance to make the Memphis rotation. Pomeranz was signed at a very young age and has needed to mature as both a pitcher and a person. He will also be given at shot at Memphis. McCormick has a great fastball and has shown progress gaining command. He has had some health problems that have delayed his development a bit, but has excellent potential. Jordan Pals doesn't have terrific tools, but is a solid prospect who has developed on schedule. He will be in the mix to make the Memphis rotation. Ty Greene has some great tools. He struggled at Palm Beach because the FSL is more og a pitcher's league and his hitting frustrations affected his fielding. If we can, we may jump him over Palm Beach this spring and send him straight to Springfield. Ottovino is a very good prospect who should progress nicely through the system. Trey Hearne just keeps getting people out, even though he doesn't have great speed or stuff. He just keeps hitting his spots and changing speed. Good kid.

Q: What about Yarbrough and Anderson as prospects.
A: Anderson is a special kid who has a real shot at moving through the system. Yarbrough isn't as talented as a catching prospect and we may give him a shot at some other postiions.

Q: Are you still looking for an impact outfielder and another starter?
A: We are always trying to improve our team. We have some more moeny to spend, so you can anticipate that we will add some people that will upgrade our overall team between now and the summer deadline.

Okay JScott - the ball is yours on Monday. Still lots of questions to ask.

January 14th, 2007, 01:16 PM	#1 (permalink)
BleacherBum593 Moderator Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: St Louis (LF Bleachers) Posts: 1,903	Winter Warmup Report (Saturday) from Cranny When I got home from the Xavier-SLU BB game last night, I had the following email from Cranny on his trip to the winter warmup Saturday. His comments to Scout.com follows. Mike - I was reading the paper this morning when I noticed that Mozeliak had a session on the 2007 Cards that started at 11:00am. I decided to go. It turned into a full blown session on both the major league team and minor league prospects. Either Jeff Luhnow or his assistant was also a presenter. I made the most of the opportunity and made a nuisance of myself. You can read my comments on The Birdhouse board. Please feel free to use all my comments on Fanhome and expand on them with other questions when you are down there on Monday. Hope it helps. Cranny ------------------- bccran (AA) Springfield Cardinals Posts: 714 (1/13/07 2:54:17 pm) WW with Moseliak This Morning JScott, Brian, and all - I was fortunate to have time to attend Mo's session this morning - especially fortunate because they were willing to field both major league and minor league questions. I think it was Jeff Luhnow (or his assistant) who fielded the minor league questions. Hope I wasn't too much of a pest, dominating the questions. Here goes: Q: When will Mulder be ready? A: Conservatively, if all goes well, by the end of June or the All-Star break. There is a possibility it will be sooner - by as early as the end of May. The biggest mistake we can make, however, is to bring him back too soon. Q: Why didn't we sign Jeff Suppan? A: We simply got outbid by Milwaukee. We try to keep the term to 3 years for a pitcher, while we are willing to go longer for a position player. We were in the running and willing to raise our offer as long as it stayed at 3 years, but when Milwaukee went to 4 years it put it into a different realm. We went heavy after Burnett last year and it taught us some lessons on what a long term contract for a pitcher can do, if it doesn't work out, to the overall payroll structure of a team. Q: Are you still trying to sign Weaver? A: Yes, but remember during much of 2006 he really wasn't that good. He had a terrific playoff. He hasn't had a good 200 inning year with us yet, so we are only willing to sign him for so much. Again, we probably will want to stay in the 3 year window or less as we try to sign him. We wont compete if there are teams who offer him a 4 year deal. Q: What is the status of So Taguchi. A: So is back. Q: Is Kip Wells healthy? A: He had a foot problem, not an arm problem. His health should be fine. He wanted to pitch for the Cardinals and Duncan to re-establish his middle to top part of the rotation capabilities. He had better offers on the table, but wanted to come here. He should be fine for around 200 innings this year Q: Are you interested in signing Preston Wilson? A: Actually, I had a call from his agent yeaterday. We will see what we can do. Q: Is there any FA you really wanted badly that you tried to sign and couldn't get? A: We spent a great deal of time trying to do a deal with Soriano. Q: How is the development schedule of Colby Rasmus coming? A: He's a 5 tool player that is on a fast track. One of the reasons we signed Edmonds to a two year extension is because we think Colbey could be ready by 09. Many minor leaguers go backward a little or plateau for awhile when they are promoted, as they adjust. Everytime we have promoted Colby, after a week or so he adjusted and has been able to excel at the higher level right away. Q: How do you feel about the signing of Franklin? A: He came to us and said that he wanted to reestablish himself as a starter. He felt the Cardinals and Duncan would be the best place to do that. He had more money on the table from several other teams. We are delighted when players want to play for us. When we beg players to consider our offer, it never works out. Frankin can do a lot of things, but right now he is "our bridge to Mulder returning". Bottom line is, he simply wanted to be a Cardinal. Q: Are you going to try to sign Eckstein to an extension now that Kennedy is signed for 3 years? A: I'd better be careful with this one because Joe Strauss is in the room. The answer is "we will be talking to Eck's agent during Spring Training". Q: Are there any minor league players who could break through and play for the big club at any time this year? A: The two players that are closest are Troy Cate and Andy Cavazos. Cate has done an extraordinary job openning our eyes and we are looking at him as both a starter and reliever. Cavazos is a big strong kid who is close to being ready for the major league bullpen. We are very also very pleased about the Cabrera signing - he can do a lot of things that give us flexibility. He has been in Japan for the past 2 years and is anxious to re-establish himself in MLB. Q: Are there any specific players on a fast track we should be watching this year. A: Mitch Boggs, Jaime Garcia, and John Jay. Boggs is very solid. Garcia has been a real delight. He was overweight and out of shape when we drafted him. Went to the Dominican League, got into a conditioning program, and looks great now. Fastball is in the 92-93 range and he has an outstanding breaking pich. He is the real deal. John Jay is an outstanding prospect. We may do the same thing with Jay that we did with Stavinoha - jump him right to Springfield this year. Q: Can you rate our 3 best closing prospects - Worrell, Sillman, and Perez? A: Worrell has a very unorthodox, goofy delivery. We don't know whether it will relate to success at the major league level. Sillman is kind of the same way with an unortodox sidearm delivery. Both of them might make it some day, but probably not as closers. Perez is a different story. He has electric stuff and hits 95. Big, strong kid. He should come through the system very fast. He could be 2 years away at the inside. 3 years is a good bet. Q: What about the following prospects - Chris Lambert, Stuart Pomeranz, Mark McCormick, Jordan Pals, Tyler Greene, Adam Ottovino, and Trey Hearne. A: Lambert was a hockey player and is still learning how to be a professional pitcher. He's coming along. He will be given a chance to make the Memphis rotation. Pomeranz was signed at a very young age and has needed to mature as both a pitcher and a person. He will also be given at shot at Memphis. McCormick has a great fastball and has shown progress gaining command. He has had some health problems that have delayed his development a bit, but has excellent potential. Jordan Pals doesn't have terrific tools, but is a solid prospect who has developed on schedule. He will be in the mix to make the Memphis rotation. Ty Greene has some great tools. He struggled at Palm Beach because the FSL is more og a pitcher's league and his hitting frustrations affected his fielding. If we can, we may jump him over Palm Beach this spring and send him straight to Springfield. Ottovino is a very good prospect who should progress nicely through the system. Trey Hearne just keeps getting people out, even though he doesn't have great speed or stuff. He just keeps hitting his spots and changing speed. Good kid. Q: What about Yarbrough and Anderson as prospects. A: Anderson is a special kid who has a real shot at moving through the system. Yarbrough isn't as talented as a catching prospect and we may give him a shot at some other postiions. Q: Are you still looking for an impact outfielder and another starter? A: We are always trying to improve our team. We have some more moeny to spend, so you can anticipate that we will add some people that will upgrade our overall team between now and the summer deadline. Okay JScott - the ball is yours on Monday. Still lots of questions to ask.