After a tough end to the weekend on Sunday night in Philadelphia, the Cardinals rebounded nicely a day later and haven’t let up yet. The club pulled off its first series sweep of the season against the Washington Nationals in DC, wrapping it up against their ace Stephen Strasburg on Wednesday afternoon. It was the club’s first return back to DC since the improbable end of their Division Series matchup in the city last October. All in all, the longest road trip of the season ended with an impressive 6-3 record, with one game lost to rain. And as the club returns back home a half game ahead in the NL Central, here are three things to take from tilt with the Nationals.

1.Fear the Koz: Clearly Nationals fans have not forgotten the last time Pete Kozma made an appearance in their city. Kozma was routinely booed through the series each time he stepped to the plate, as an after effect of the two run single he plated to complete the Cardinal comeback in the decisive game of the 2012’s Division Series. Kozma, who is rather stoic even on a regular day, was also unflappable at the plate for the series. Despite the constant outpour of boos, he had four hits in nine at-bats for the series, and played his usual hard nose style on the basepaths. On the year, he’s turned in a respectable .262/.306/.675 effort thus far, and has been one of the most consistent everyday performers on the club.

2. Missing in Action: Jon Jay, who has been knees deep in a major slump, was sat down the last two games of the series. With lefty Ross Detwiler on the mound on Tuesday, it seemed to be a matchup move, yet when he sat again versus Strasberg on Wednesday, it became clear that the intention perhaps is to let him get all the way relaxed and back in Busch Stadium (where he is a career .329 hitter, yet only .250 in 2013) before putting him back in the mix again. His prolonged slump has dropped his season total at the plate to .205, which is tough to stomach out the leadoff spot. While a drop down to seventh didn’t help him much to start the series, he did manage a crucial sliding grab in the 8^th inning of Monday’s victory.

3. Mujica makes a way: For now, the Chief is in charge. Edward Mujica, who was really turned to as the last reasonable resort in the bullpen for the closer position, turned in series that has (for the time being) fanned the flames on much maligned closer role. He saved each game in the series, without surrendering a hit in the process. He pitched to contact, striking out only one batter, but has maintained the impeccable control that’s made him the exception in the late inning mix all year (one walk in nine appearances). While he doesn’t have the track record or the stuff that Boggs and Rosenthal boast, there’s nobody else that’s even gotten close the effectiveness he’s shown thus far.

The St. Louis Cardinals announced today that shortstop Rafael Furcal would require Tommy John surgery, ending his season before it starts.

During the announcement, General Manager John Mozeliak seemed to throw his support behind young Pete Kozma as the immediate solution.  Fans took to Twitter to beg the team to make a trade and acquire someone immediately to fill the void.

Calm down, Cards fans.

Keep in mind that in the grand scheme of things, the Cardinals were not relying on Furcal as much as many fans felt they were.  They signed Ronny Cedeno to be the back up at that position due to the fear that he would not be able to patrol the field.  As Matt Whitener pointed out on last night’s UCB Radio, Cedeno was most likely signed as a back up no matter what.  Furcal’s news does not thrust him into the starting role, it simply means that he will be the backup to someone else.

That someone else, at least for now, is Pete Kozma.  Honestly, doesn’t he deserve the chance?

We all know the Kozma story: first round pick that couldn’t figure out how to hit in the minors, given multiple chances at different levels but never seemed to “click”, then suddenly figured something out on the biggest stage down the stretch in St. Louis last season.

Small sample size aside, those 72 at bats at the major league level last year should, at the very least, earn Kozma the opportunity to prove that it was a fluke.  His defense was suspect last year, but barely below league average, and his offense was suddenly solid with a ..333/.383/.569 slash line.  His strikeouts were high while his walks were low but that is a trend we see with many young players.  Patience comes with experience and experience comes with opportunity.

So far this spring, again small sample size, Kozma has proven that he can hit well, play decent defense, and he is showing an increased level of patience at the plate.  He looks like the first round pick that the Cardinals had so much faith invested in 2007.

Ultimately, we’re talking about the number eight hitter in the Cardinals lineup.  A position that will not be relied on for strong offensive numbers and be looked at to simply handle the position on the field.  The production in this lineup will come from left field, right field, catcher, first base, and third base.

Kozma is showing patience at the plate and the Cardinals are showing that patience with his development might just pay off.  Gaining experience requires an opportunity to present itself.

The opportunity is here.

Bill Ivie is the editor here at i70baseball.
You can follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

I keep changing my mind on whether the Kansas City Royals should or should not trade Billy Butler. I think there are valid points for both sides of the argument whether to trade him or not. I am a big fan of Butler. He has been one of the few consistent players for Kansas City for his four and a half seasons as a Royal. However, I think the Royals front office is not doing their jobs if they are not at least shopping Billy around to see what the market could be for him.

The soon to be 26-year-old designated hitter can be counted to hit for around a .300/.360/.460 (average/on-base %/slug %) slash line, 120 OPS+, 17-22 homeruns, 85-100 rbi, and 45-55 doubles. Those are nice numbers to count on coming from the middle of your lineup.

Some of the biggest complaints with Butler are that he is essentially only a designated hitter and a poor base runner which really hurts his overall value in terms of sabermetrics. Another minus for Billy is that this is as a DH/1B, he really is not that special of a player. He is essential a 2.0-2.5 WAR player and when you have no positional value you have to be a very good hitter to make an impact, and thus far, Butler has not hit at that level. Also as an exclusive DH, Butler is hurting the team’s overall roster flexibility. If someone other than Hosmer needs a day off, you simply can’t put Butler anywhere else in the field.

Freneau from Royals Review had a great article on this topic and summed it up nicely saying:

“The Royals are in a tough position. As a small market team, they need some long-odds bets to payoff. Obviously, trading Butler and then watching him blow up would be devastating to the Royals. But you can’t manage a team based on fear. Butler is a nice player for the Royals, but he isn’t pushing them to a championship right now. If Eric Hosmer was an outfielder, this might be a different discussion, but he’s not. And as such, Butler is just short of being in the way. He’s not there yet, but he’s closer than you think.

So we come to a rather obvious and not so bold position, but one that nevertheless no one is making: the Royals should be shopping Butler.”

The Royals are in a position where they could use Butler as a trade chip to help land a frontline starting pitcher which is what they are really lacking if they want to become a serious contender. Like I said in my previous post there are a few pitchers that I would be targeting if I was running the Royals, Shields (Rays), Garza (Cubs), and Rodriguez (Astros). The price for these starters might be too high for Kansas City but I would offer Butler plus a few prospects for one of them.

If the price to bring in an ace level starter is too high then the Royals should not trade Billy just to make a trade. The Royals do have a really fair contract with Butler having him locked up for the next three seasons at $8 million per year and a $12.5 million option with a $1 million buyout in 2015. Kansas City could keep Butler to see if he develops his power more.

Regardless, the Royals have options to improve this team into a consistent division winner sooner rather than later. 2012 and beyond is definitely looking better for Royals fans. Oh and by the way, only 41 days until pitchers and catchers report on February 19^th. Baseball is right around the corner folks!

Throughout the month of August, Todd Fertig will be bringing fans a look at a few of the Northwest Arkansas Naturals players. The Northwest Arkansas Naturals are the Double-A Affiliate of the Kansas City Royals.

Danny Duffy, Mike Montgomery, John Lamb and Chris Dwyer got all the publicity coming into the season, but another pitcher is quickly establishing himself as perhaps the Royals’ top pitching prospect.

Each of the aforementioned lefthanders was rated highly coming into the season. But while each has had his struggles, Jake Odorizzi, the best righty in the system, has been lights out.

After dominating at the Single-A level for his first 15 starts of the season, Odorizzi is finding Double-A to his liking as well.

Many prospects call the jump to Double-A one of the most challenging steps on the path to the big leagues. That makes Odorizzi’s first month with the Northwest Arkansas Naturals all the more impressive.

The 21-year-old recorded victories in three of his first five starts at Northwest Arkansas, striking out nearly a batter per inning and posting a WHIP of about 1.2. His early returns at Double-A are quickly putting to rest any fear that his success was due to the pitcher-friendly nature of the lower level.

Thus far, Odorizzi has been roughed up just once at the Double-A level – the Springfield Cardinals notched five earned runs off him in just four innings on July 17. But the Illinois native quickly took his revenge on the St. Louis affiliate by holding them to just two hits in seven innings just five days later.

In a third meeting, the Cardinals handed Odorizzi his first loss at the Double-A level last night, but he gamely battled in a 1-1 tie into the sixth. A couple of singles and a walk finally chased him from the game on a smothering Ozarks evening.

Acquired as part of the Zack Greinke sweepstakes, Odorizzi attracted the least amount of attention in the trade. But those in the know recognized he was more than just a throw-in. He was rated the #37 prospect in the minors prior to the season. His physique, style and demeanor on the mound have even drawn comparisons to Greinke.

Like the Royals’ Cy Young winner from 2009, Odorizzi is an excellent all-around athlete. He turned down a scholarship to play football and baseball at Louisville when he was drafted by the Brewers in the first round in 2008.

Odorizzi doesn’t possess the blazing fastball Greinke can muster. Odorizzi works his fastball at around 89-91 miles per hour, mixing in a solid curveball and an advanced changeup for his age.

With Norhtwest Arkansas jockeying for a playoff spot again this season, Odorizzi will gain a lot of experience and should enter next season as one of the highest rated pitchers in the minors.

Royals fans can look forward to an all-star rotation in Omaha which should include Dwyer, Lamb and Odorizzi. Kansas City, desperate for starting pitching, can see help on the horizon.