JUPITER, Fla. — One of the St. Louis Cardinals first forays into the Asian free-agent market, pitcher Hyang-Nam Choi, was one of nine cuts from the minor-league camp this morning. Choi, a righthander, was signed this past winter and brought to camp with the idea that he would at least make the Class AAA Memphis bullpen. At 37, Choi had to move fast to make the signing matter, and when it became clear that he…

JUPITER, Fla. — There is little doubt that Mark McCormick has the arm that merited a big signing bonus and early selection in the 2005 draft. He just hasn’t been able to do much with it. Injuries have hurt his development, but so has his inability to rein in that right arm.

Last season was billed as a pivotal one for the righthander. This one just better be a productive one.

McCormick, a starter since his days…

JUPITER, Fla. — Although his team was eliminated from the World Baseball Classic earlier this week, St. Louis Cardinals lefty reliever Dennys Reyes will not report to spring training until Sunday for a handful of reasons he cleared with the team just this afternoon.

Reyes, signed to a two-year deal a couple weeks into spring training, requested a few days to address what GM John Mozeliak called a “personal matter.” Needing time to do that delayed…

CLEARWATER, Fla. — Pity Pete Kozma. Through no fault of his own he’s spent the first few years of his professional career doing exactly what was expected. Good glove. Consistently improving bat. Agility in the field that portends of a major-league shortstop with the potential for a reliable, average-oriented bat. That’s why the St. Louis Cardinals drafted him with their first pick in 2007.

The trouble is … He’s not Rick Porcello.

The story has now lapsed…

JUPITER, Fla. — With the first off day of spring training here for the St. Louis Cardinals, there’s time to ride some tangents — when you’re not riding the birthday boy’s “tsunami,” that is.

While working on a blog entry that you will see up in this space shortly about outfielder Colby Rasmus and how to read the recently released Baseball America Top 100 Prospects, I was intrigued by how BA took the depth charts us correspondents file…

JUPITER, Fla. — The St. Louis Cardinals all-time leader in saves has yet to throw a pitch in a game for his new club, the Tampa Bay Rays, but manager Joe Maddon said Jason Isringhausen already feels like a fit for his bullpen.

“I’ve known him for about two weeks now, and you feel like you’ve know this guy for 10 years,” the Rays manager said this morning at Roger Dean Stadium before the Rays played…

JUPITER, Fla. — Every time St. Louis Cardinals pitching prospect Adam Ottavino would toe the rubber to deliver a pitch there were so many thoughts buzzing between his ears. His arms needed to swing here. His hands needed to be placed there. His shoulder positioned this way. His foot sure that land that way. Not too far back on that back leg. Not too far forward on the release. Don’t do it that way. Be…

JUPITER, Fla. — They had already survived the ridicule of their teammates for dressing in their home whites on a day there was clearly no game to be played, but wait until the clubhouse gets a look at the picture below. Four Cardinals sporting game-ready jerseys and pants as white as they will be on Opening Day and each wearing a straw hat.

Hey, they could have been the ones who had to wear the fake…

JUPITER, Fla. — There’s one every spring training. Unless there are two.

One of the time-honored traditions of spring usually happens huddled around the batting cage as we watch live batting practice for the first time. Passing the time while they work on pickoff throws and mechanics, the media plays simple parlor games — all about predictions. Today there were questions about the starting outfield in Triple-A Memphis, the potential lineup for the 2010 St. Louis…

JUPITER, Fla. — Young righthander Fernando Salas was throwing his first round of live batting practice this spring and some of the veterans stepping in against him were taking swings as if they had seen him dozens of times before. Catcher Jason LaRue was in the group that hit off Salas, and after drilling a fastball over the fence in left field he explained why as he stepped out of the cage.

“That’s what happens when you…

JUPITER, Fla. — What with its keystone combination of Rogers Hornsby and Ozzie Smith leading the way — batting .346 and .325, respectively — and center fielder Jim Edmonds topping the team with 10 home runs and 47 RBIs, the St. Louis Cardinals would appear to be a virtual juggernaut in the virtual world of Seamheads.com’s (simulated) Historical League.

And, yet, the ‘Birds are struggling. Could be that injury to Stan Musial.

Hall of Famer Rick Hummel is at…

JUPITER, Fla. — Back when Triple-A Memphis used to be a depot for depth and journeymen minor leaguers, the list of non-roster invitees read like a Who’s Who of Who Was Who. Previous NRIs* made good included Scott Spiezio, Bill Pulsipher, and, most recently, Ron Villone. And then there were the NRIs who didn’t have the staying power — Juan Gonzalez, Greg Vaughn, Quinton McCracken, Jeff Nelson, and so on.

Now that the Cardinals have transitioned…

DOWNTOWN — Brad Thompson said he was too nervous at his wedding to think twice about the unorthodox choice he and his wife-to-be had made when choosing someone to preside over their nuptuals.  He had other things on his mind and no time for smirking as he stood there, beside his bride and exchanged vows under the guidance of the “reverend” Randy Flores.

He was however concerned about Jason Isringhausen.

“Izzy was the only one I couldn’t look…

DOWNTOWN — The first wave of St. Louis Cardinals players have had their moments behind the media room podium here Sunday in Day 2 of the Winter Warm-up, and the Twitter feed (dgoold) has been the quickest way to get out the comments and the news (such as it is). But many are worth repeating here, like a shotgun look at what’s been said and who’s saying it here:

Snippets from the feed — the Warm-up in…

DOWNTOWN — Cardinals’ closer candidate Chris Perez came to St. Louis this winter to have a scan taken of his achy ankle, and while the joint doesn’t hinder the work he’s trying to do on his delivery it has made his other offseason goal a tad trickier.

Perez said an MRI taken in November of his left ankle revealed a bone spur and bone inflammation. Surgery was considered, but because it doesn’t bother him when he…