Over the last two seasons, there has been a glaring problem with the St. Louis Cardinals. That issue has been the bench. With the exception of Nick Stavinoha early last season, the Cardinals have been lacking a late inning hero who could be counted on to give the Cardinals some “pop” when they needed it the most.

For example, think back to the (many) extra innings game against the Mets last year. The only thing the Cardinals needed was someone to come in off of the bench and get the “big hit”. Inning after inning, no one from the bench was able to deliver that knock out blow. It ended up costing the Cardinals the game, and in the end, their season.

It’s unwise to discount the need for solid bench players. Teams like the 2009 Rockies rode established, veteran bench players like Jason Giambi right into the playoffs. The 2006 Cardinals benefited from bench players like So Taguchi and Scott Spiezio. The former providing a key HR that helped push the NLCS to game 7.

Coming out of Spring Training in 2010, management decided to go with youth on the bench. Memphis all-stars Allen Craig and Nick Stavinoha were asked to play late inning roles along with Joe Mather and Tyler Greene. The results were mixed, at best.

As mentioned before, Nick “the stick” won some early games with late inning heroics in April. But the magic did not last. By season’s end, his .308 average fell to .256. More damaging was the power he displayed in April faded completely by May.

After having a magical Spring Training, Allen Craig struggled mightily at the plate. The role as a bench contributor did not play to Craig’s benefit. He struggled at the plate while not getting consistent playing time. The result was an atrocious .056 average by the end of April.

Joe Mather did not fare any better. By the end of May Joe was batting a paltry .191 off of the bench.

To the credit of management, they recognized the bench was not contributing. A decision was made to go after some veteran players to help give the bench a more seasoned flavor. Unfortunately, the veteran players Mozeliak went after were not much better.

Veteran cast offs Randy Winn and Aaron Miles were signed in June to improve the bench. It became clear as the long season wore on that these veteran back ups were not the answer. For me the worse of the two was Winn. He not only struggled to provide any spark at the plate, he also failed to provide any defense in right field. The epitome of his poor defense was against the Rockies during the brutal come from behind loss the Cardinals suffered in extra innings.

Needless to say, neither man was invited back to the Cardinals for 2011.

Which once again puts the pressure on the “baby birds” to fill the bench spots. The 2011 bench should include Jon Jay, Allen Craig, and Tyler Greene. All three of those players garnered major league experience last year. The Cardinals management is banking on all three to provide depth to the infield and outfield when needed. Of the three Jay’s defense is arguably the most important. Jay will more than likely be spelling newly acquired Lance Berkman in right field in late inning save situations.

Depending on young players like Craig, Greene, and Jay is risky, but may pay off. More than likely the Cardinals are going to have to sign a few available veteran players. There are players still available to fill that role. Players like Manny Ramirez, Vladimir Guerrero, Johnny Damon and Jim Thome remained unsigned. All are past their prime, but all could provide that veteran bat needed in critical PH situations.

The role the bench will play in 2011 is major. If Mozeliak is able to sign a few contributors to compliment the young bats, it could help push the Cardinals into the post season. If he settles for more “low hanging fruit”, we could see more of the same failures in critical situations.

Throughout the course of this off-season a lot of attention has been placed on upgrading the St. Louis Cardinals middle infield. And for good reason; the middle infield was a liability for the entire 2010 season. The positions were no longer hitting for average and the defense was leaky. In response, General Manager John Mozeliak signed SS Ryan Theriot this off-season, hoping to boost the offensive production of that position and address some chemistry issues.

A lot has been said about that signing, both good and bad. But, there is still a glaring problem the Cardinals are going to have deal with sooner rather than later; the third base quandary.

Everyone remembers the years of “MV3”. That trio consisted of 1B Albert Pujols, 3B Scott Rolen, and CF Jim Edmonds. That combination produced four division titles, two NL pennants, and one World Series championship. Cardinals fans look back longingly on those days. What that lineup had is what the Cardinals of the last four years have been missing tremendously; a threat at third base.

Since Rolen’s trade to Toronto, the Cardinals have floundered at the hot corner. The position has become a turn style for injuries, mediocre players and long shots. It’s been a chink in the armor of some otherwise good Cardinal teams. Without a quality anchor in the infield and at the plate, the Cardinals have struggled to reach the heights of the 2000’s.

In 2010, it was suppose to be different. The player who was dealt to the Cardinals in the Jim Edmonds trade was finally going to be given a shot. His bat and glove were supposed to stabilize the ship. For the first half of the 2010 season, it appeared this was the case. From April to June David Freese hit .296/.361/.404 with four homers, 12 doubles over 240 at-bats. More importantly, he hit for .324 with RISP. Because of that, he drove in 36 runs, providing some relief for the middle of the order.

His glove became a solid addition as well. Yeah, there was that brief melt down in Milwaukee on April 11th when he committed multiple errors that lead to runs (I remember vividly because I was at that game). However, David did a tremendous job of showing poise as he regrouped himself and became almost flawless in the field the rest of his season. That is, until tragedy struck at the position again.

Freese suffered a bone bruise on his right ankle in June. He went on the DL on June 29th. While on the DL he hurt himself again by dropping a weight on his left foot. His eventual rehab with Double-A Springfield only lasted a game as he suffered another ankle injury. The season was over for him when it was determined another surgery was required on his ankle.

Entering the 2011 season, Freese is again projected to be the starting third baseman. If Freese stays healthy and builds on his success from last year, this could be a great thing. A lineup with Pujols, Holliday, Berkman, and a healthy Freese could do a lot of damage to opposing pitchers. The key is if Freese stays healthy. Depending solely on the health of Freese is not the safest of options.

If Freese once again gets injured, what will Mozeliak & Tony LaRussa do? Their options are limited yet again. The organization does not have a lot of depth at the position, obviously. A veteran utility player would help on the bench in case of another injury to Freese. But, at the moment there is no one to fill that role. And coming out of winter meetings it is clear this is not a priority.

An opening at third base could help provide more playing time for Allen Craig. In his time at Memphis, Craig has torn the cover off of the ball. But in the big leagues he has suffered from spot duty playing time, which affected his plate performance. Playing regularly at third along with Freese could help Craig find his rhythm and provide more punch to the lineup.

Another option the Cardinals have is turning to a thin minor league system. Players like Ruben Gotay and Zach Cox are third basemen in the making. Both offer promise of someday filling in as the “anchor”. But at this time are they big league ready? Of the two, Gotay has the most experience. He hit .285 with Memphis but has not posted big league numbers since 2008.

Zackary Cox offers a lot of promise but needs growth. He was drafted by the Cardinals in 2010. After signing, he hit .400 at the plate and fielded 1.000 while playing with the Gulf Coast League Cardinals. He could be the future but he shouldn’t be rushed through the system to help in 2011.

Another option would be to play Daniel Descalso at third. In 2010 he played 11 games with the big league club. He hit .265 and drove in four runs. Though, I am not sure if I would classify him as a true third baseman.

That leaves adding a third baseman via the trade route. As Cardinals fans last year found out, the organization doesn’t have a lot to deal. Therefore, the prospect of gaining an impact player is small. Nothing exemplifies this better than the trade made last year for Pedro Feliz. The Cardinals gave up a live arm in reliever David Carpenter for the “bat” of Feliz. It was a desperate move done by a desperate team. Not surprisingly it didn’t pan out. Feliz hit an anemic .208, making third base a liability rather than a strength once again.

There is still a lot of time left before the season begins. “Mo” might once again turn to picking some “low hanging fruit” to give third base some stability should Freese not be able to stay healthy the entire 2011 season. Let’s hope something is done to provide depth to the position. Without a solid presence at the third base position, the Cardinals will find it difficult to field a productive lineup again.

	Tyrell Jenkins Starting Pitcher RK-Johnson City 18-years-old Bats: Right Throws: Right Height: 6’4″ Weight: 180 lbs Drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 1st round (50th) of the 2010 MLB June Amateur Draft.
Just like every Saturday here on i70baseball, the Cardinal Farm Report spotlights one of the prized Cardinal minor leaguers. This week, it is Tyrell Jenkins, the 18-year-old pitcher that has upside written all over him. The Cardinals organization has made it very clear that the club plans on taking baby steps when it comes to their supplemental first-rounder Tyrell Jenkins, and one of those steps was made Monday night in Johnson City. Jenkins is a 18-year-old right-hander out of Henderson HS in Texas. He’s 6’4″, a very tall, lengthy kid with tremendous upside. He was taken 50th overall by the Cardinals but some scouts had him in the top-25. Jenkins was also a football and track star in high school, and was considered by some to be the most athletic pitcher in the draft. The young fireballer was actually set to attend Baylor where he would probably start as their quarterback after Robert Griffin was through with his stint with the Bears. The delivery certainly needs refined. That is the only major flaw I can identify. Like most young pitchers, his follow-through and foot placement after the pitch are different from pitch to pitch. It’s not a glaring problem or a red flag of any kind, because it can easily be fixed, but it is noteworthy. The other thing I noticed when looking at video was the length of his arm. He’s 6’4″ so of course he has long arms, but it’s the way he “whips” his right arm while throwing that caught my eye. He is very raw and has a few small mechanical issues, but that should be taking care of quickly now that he has the right coaches. His fastball hovers around 90-92, but he has hit 96-97 several times over the summer. Jenkins also has a curve that he throws in the mid-70′s, a slider in the low-80′s, and an average changeup in his repertoire. Again, he is about as raw as they come, but certainly has all the tools. Jenkins will continue to improve his secondary stuff (much like Shelby Miller has done this season), and when that happens look for him to start making his way toward the big leagues. The other thing to think about when evaluating Tyrell is that he has always had to make time for three different sports. What’s going to happen now that baseball is his only focus? The newest Cardinal prospect to make my top-20 made his first professional start last Thursday. The Cardinals have him on a very strict pitch count, so he only pitched one inning. Let’s just say they are using this time to ”get his feet wet”. In that scoreless inning Jenkins struck out one and walked none. Last night, in Tyrell’s second professional start, he seemed to be just as good as advertised. In his two innings of work Jenkins struck out one, allowed no runs, two hits, and two walks. His control was a bit off (26 pitches/13 strikes), but a lot of that could have been nerves. His control was the main concern on Monday, and it had been before that start. But at 17-years-old, I’ll take the control problems. He has plenty of time to figure the flaws out. This was a GREAT selection by the Cardinals, and Jenkins will prove that to everyone in the years to come.
MiLB WEEKLY ROUNDUP
AAA-Memphis Redbirds
Record to date: 80-61, second place in the PCL American North, 1 game behind Iowa This past week: 5-2, including a sweep of Round Rock and a 3-1 series win over New Orleans Transactions: St. Louis Cardinals recalled RF Nick Stavinoha from Memphis Redbirds, St. Louis Cardinals recalled C Matt Pagnozzi from Memphis Redbirds, Tony Cruz assigned to Memphis Redbirds from Springfield Cardinals, St. Louis Cardinals optioned Allen Craig to Memphis Redbirds Coming up: The Redbirds will play a division-winner-deciding four-game series against Iowa.
AA-Springfield Cardinals
Record to date: 37-30 in the second half (75-62 overall), third place in the TEX North, 4 games behind NW Arkansas This past week: 4-3, including a sweep of Arkansas Transactions: Luis De La Cruz assigned to Springfield Cardinals from Palm Beach Cardinals, Geoffrey Klein assigned to Springfield Cardinals from Batavia Muckdogs,Springfield Cardinals placed C Charles Cutler on the 7-Day disabled list,Springfield Cardinals activated C Nick Derba from the temporarily inactive list, Tony Cruz assigned to Memphis Redbirds from Springfield Cardinals Coming up: The Cardinals will put an end to the season with a three-game set against Arkansas.
A-Palm Beach
Record to date: 34-33 in the second half (74-64 overall), fourth place in the FSL South, 3.5 games behind Bradenton This past week: 1-4, so I guess St. Louis isn’t the only team in the middle of a meltdown Transactions: C Geoffrey Klein assigned to Palm Beach Cardinals from Batavia Muckdogs, Luis De La Cruz assigned to Springfield Cardinals from Palm Beach Cardinals Coming up: The Baby Birds will finish up the season with two games against Jupiter on Saturday and Sunday.
POSITION PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Mark Hamilton, 1B, Memphis
.391 AVG (9-for-23), .440 OBP, .913 SLG, 1.353 OPS, 5 runs, 3 doubles, 3 home runs, 8 RBI, 2 walks
The average isn’t mind-boggling, but the rest of that line is. I thought the calculator was broken. On the season, Mark is hitting .291/.387/.560 with 50 runs, 18 home runs, and 59 RBI in 268 at bats.
PITCHER OF THE WEEK
P.J. Walters, SP, Memphis
W, 8 innings pitched, 5 hits, 0 runs, 0 walks, 5 strikeouts
It’s too bad Walters can’t figure things out in the Majors, because he sure does have some brilliant performances in AAA. In 18 starts at Memphis this season, Walters is 8-5 with a 3.79 ERA and 105 SO in 107 innings.

Justin Hulsey covers the Cardinals for i70baseball and his blogs, Cardinals Front Office and Rising Redbirds, that are also dedicated to Cardinals baseball and their minor league system.You may follow him on Twitter @JayHulsey by clicking here.