The Rise of the Redbirds Pt. 2
Posted 03-30-2013 at 12:47 AM by CardsFan2006
We swept Toronto as well, and stayed at home to play the White Sox. We won in our first game against them, but George Leggett gave up three runs in the first inning of the next game, which we lost. This solidified one thing in my mind: we had to get rid of Leggett. He was a well-known player, he'd surely be good trade bait. I finally made a deal, with the Washington Nationals, after we won our next two games (including one on a walk-off walk in the ninth inning), the first still against Chicago and the next on the road against Pittsburgh. I'd trade Leggett and an infield prospect named Juan Gonzales (different from Juan Gonzalez, my center-fielder) for a minor league starting pitcher named Rob McCoy, along with outfield prospect Billy Wibberley. Leggett just hadn't been performing, and I thought McCoy would. Plus, we gave away an okay infield prospect and got a good outfield prospect - which was a place where we needed more depth.
My offense was still chugging along, though Sardini and Gonzalez were struggling, as ever. I began to search around for how to trade away Gonzalez (because Sardini had some potential). It was fairly easy. I gave Gonzalez to the Seattle Mariners for untested, but good according to my scout, outfielder Francisco Pueblo. When Sandoval got back from the DL, I decided, I'd sit Sardini and have a Pueblo-Castillo-Sandoval outfield. Benching Sardini might not be good for club morale though, because, .200 batting average and all, he was seen as a leader in the clubhouse. But I knew it would be right for the club for the far better Sandoval to start, while Sardini accrued experience through being a sub. And if Sandoval couldn't perform, I'd always have Sardini to put in to replace him.
As for McCoy, as soon as we met, I liked him. He was quiet, but also bitingly sarcastic (which of course I liked), and with a real will to learn. He seemed to be very, very skilled in practice. But in his first start, he gave up five earned runs in six innings. This was one of the losses we sustained when we were swept by the Nationals. It was the first series we'd lost all year. We lost our next game 12-11 to the Athletics, even more heartbreaking because Brown, our starter, had given up ten runs, and we had rallied to tie the score at eleven (home runs from Billings and Onelas, who I was using as DH, did the trick), but then Sato gave up a walk-off homer. We won the next game and snapped our streak, but then McCoy had another bad start - five earned runs in eight innings - and we lost that game.
I finished April on a 1-5 skid, 13-8, two games behind the Cubs. On the plus side, Tony Onelas was named NL Pitcher of the Month for his 4-0 record and 1.45 ERA. Castillo was also slumping a little bit - his batting average was down to .289, and since he'd had an amazing three home run game, he'd driven in just two runs. Billings, Pueblo, and Luna were all doing worse than they should have been, but Sardini was at least keeping his batting average above .200. McGrath, Cochran, and Dick Washington were all doing well. In the rotation, besides McCoy and Onelas, Hannah was doing well, Brown was doing horribly, and Stafford was actually doing better than I expected (2-1, 4.00). In my bullpen, Fernando Vega, the closer (who I'd had doubts about) and Sato were doing the best. Sanchez, Schneider, and Gonzalez were all underperforming, but it wasn't too awful.
After Jimmy Hannah tosses seven scoreless innings in a 5-0 win against Philadelphia - possibly the best-hitting team in the league - the amateur draft pool is published. The Cardinals, by virtue of last year's 62-100 record, would be drafting third. There were a number of players that caught my eye. Hopefully I could build up a farm system to keep the team strong for years to come. I had lots of hope for this team this year and in the next few years, but part of being a good GM is maintaining a good farm system. I couldn't do that if I couldn't draft well. A lot depended on this draft which would be in a month, and I knew I had to do well. The team also had to do well, and hopefully beat the Cubs, who I played for the first time about a week and a half from the beginning of April.
My offense was still chugging along, though Sardini and Gonzalez were struggling, as ever. I began to search around for how to trade away Gonzalez (because Sardini had some potential). It was fairly easy. I gave Gonzalez to the Seattle Mariners for untested, but good according to my scout, outfielder Francisco Pueblo. When Sandoval got back from the DL, I decided, I'd sit Sardini and have a Pueblo-Castillo-Sandoval outfield. Benching Sardini might not be good for club morale though, because, .200 batting average and all, he was seen as a leader in the clubhouse. But I knew it would be right for the club for the far better Sandoval to start, while Sardini accrued experience through being a sub. And if Sandoval couldn't perform, I'd always have Sardini to put in to replace him.
As for McCoy, as soon as we met, I liked him. He was quiet, but also bitingly sarcastic (which of course I liked), and with a real will to learn. He seemed to be very, very skilled in practice. But in his first start, he gave up five earned runs in six innings. This was one of the losses we sustained when we were swept by the Nationals. It was the first series we'd lost all year. We lost our next game 12-11 to the Athletics, even more heartbreaking because Brown, our starter, had given up ten runs, and we had rallied to tie the score at eleven (home runs from Billings and Onelas, who I was using as DH, did the trick), but then Sato gave up a walk-off homer. We won the next game and snapped our streak, but then McCoy had another bad start - five earned runs in eight innings - and we lost that game.
I finished April on a 1-5 skid, 13-8, two games behind the Cubs. On the plus side, Tony Onelas was named NL Pitcher of the Month for his 4-0 record and 1.45 ERA. Castillo was also slumping a little bit - his batting average was down to .289, and since he'd had an amazing three home run game, he'd driven in just two runs. Billings, Pueblo, and Luna were all doing worse than they should have been, but Sardini was at least keeping his batting average above .200. McGrath, Cochran, and Dick Washington were all doing well. In the rotation, besides McCoy and Onelas, Hannah was doing well, Brown was doing horribly, and Stafford was actually doing better than I expected (2-1, 4.00). In my bullpen, Fernando Vega, the closer (who I'd had doubts about) and Sato were doing the best. Sanchez, Schneider, and Gonzalez were all underperforming, but it wasn't too awful.
After Jimmy Hannah tosses seven scoreless innings in a 5-0 win against Philadelphia - possibly the best-hitting team in the league - the amateur draft pool is published. The Cardinals, by virtue of last year's 62-100 record, would be drafting third. There were a number of players that caught my eye. Hopefully I could build up a farm system to keep the team strong for years to come. I had lots of hope for this team this year and in the next few years, but part of being a good GM is maintaining a good farm system. I couldn't do that if I couldn't draft well. A lot depended on this draft which would be in a month, and I knew I had to do well. The team also had to do well, and hopefully beat the Cubs, who I played for the first time about a week and a half from the beginning of April.
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