Good evening…

And a rough one, thanks to an 11-inning game and tougher deadlines for the print edition because of Election Night.

(Say, isn’t it Election Night every evening in the sports department? Hmmm…)

Anyway, rather than pound on Jason Isringhausen and the bullpen again (I did that in the print column), let’s take a look at the newest Cardinal, enigmatic infielder Felipe Lopez, who was picked up late Tuesday night.

The switch-hitting Lopez was released by the Washington Nationals late last month. He had played pretty poorly for them over the last two seasons.

In 928 at-bats covering the 2007-2008 seasons, Lopez hit .241 with a .307 onbase percentage and a .338 slugging percentage. Bad numbers, there.

And never an elite shortstop defensively, the Lopez fielding skills have eroded, at least if you go by the Zone Ratings at STATS. In 927 innings at shortstop in 2007, Lopez had a ZR of .787, which ranked 23rd among MLB starters at shortstop. This season, the Nationals hardly used Lopez at shortstop; he made only seven starts there. He started more games (69) at second base. He also saw action in left field, playing eight games.

Lopez’s offense, his play in the field and his demeanor continued to disappoint Nationals GM Jim Bowden, who traded for Lopez twice. Once as the GM in Cincinnati, then getting him to Washington from Cincinnati in the summer of 2006.

When he cut ties with Lopez, an exasperated Bowden said:

“I love Felipe. We just couldn’t get the talent out on the field. And it’s time for us to go in a different direction…I’m rooting for him. I hope he gets it together, ’cause he sure has a lot of physical talent.”

And that cuts to the heart of the matter … namely Lopez’s heart.

His reputation isn’t very good.

Once upon a time, Lopez did produce at a level that seemingly matched his talent.

In 2005, while with Cincy, he was an NL All-Star who slammed 23 homers with 85 RBIs and a .291 average. (It should also be pointed out that 16 of the homers came at Cincy’s shooting-gallery home stadium; on the road Lopez hit only 7 homers. And his slugging percentage was 100 points less on the road (.435) than at home.

Even in the 2006 season split between Cincinnati and Washington, Lopez posted some fine numbers for a middle infielder, batting .274 with 11 homers and 52 RBIs.

So what happened to this guy, who was making $5 million a year for the Nationals? At the time of his release, Lopez was batting .234. And his effort and dedication was questioned by some in the D.C. media. When Bowden dumped Lopez and catcher Paul Lo Duca, Bowden said: “We want players here that are going to hustle, that are going to play the game hard, and play the game right.”

When asked by his lack of hustle by an MLB.com reporter, Lopez said: “For people who play this game, it’s hard when you struggle. You roll over a ball and you cuss yourself out down the first-base line. It might seem like I’m not hustling to other people. It’s just frustration.”

Perhaps Cardinals manager Tony La Russa can push Lopez, who needs a jump start, a kick start, or maybe just a kick … something.

At 28, Lopez is young enough to rescue his career. Maybe he needs an intense manager and a hard-driving star such as Albert Pujols to set a higher standard for Lopez and insist that he try to reach it instead of coasting. Maybe coach Jose Oquendo, a fellow native of Puerto Rico, can help adjust the Lopez attitude.

Lopez has a lot to prove here: That he still wants to play, and play hard. That he can be a good teammate. The last thing the Cardinals need is trouble in the clubhouse.

Lopez gets a fresh start. He has a chance to play for a winner. That’s new. He has a chance to clean up his awful reputation. And if this guy doesn’t bust his tail for the Cardinals, then I hope La Russa gets him out of here, ASAP. La Russa has enough dogs to worry about at ARF. He doesn’t need one in his clubhouse.

-B