Here at STLToday.com, we see lots of naysaying about the Cardinals. We see some positive chatter, too, although optimism remains unfashionable on the Internet.

Expert opinion on the Cardinals, as you would expect. Some experts are talking the Cards up:

Jon Heyman, SI.com: “No team with Albert Pujols can really be considered a sleeper team. And that probably goes for Tony La Russa, too. They always outperform and have proved that they can overcome mediocrity to win the World Series, which isn’t an easy thing. It doesn’t hurt that they had a great spring, either.”

Joel Sherman, New York Post: “Injury-plagued Chris Carpenter, zero wins the past two years, wins 15 this year and young Jason Motte saves 30, and the Cardinals chase the Cubs all the way to September before falling short.”

Richard Justice, The Sporting News: “Chris Carpenter has made four starts the past two years, but if he’s healthy, the Cardinals might be good enough to win the N.L. Central and make a run through October.  They can’t do it without him. Few players — Manny Ramirez, Mariano Rivera, Carlos Zambrano — are as important to their teams as Carpenter is to his. So far, so good. He has passed every test.”

And other pundits are running them down:

Jay Jaffe, Baseball Prospectus: “The Cards are dragged down by a truly awful defense whose outlook isn’t helped by the conversion of Skip Schumaker to the keystone.”

David Brown, Big League Stew: “I was looking at the Cardinals lineup. Never heard of the third baseman. SS can’t hit. Second basemen is actually an outfielder. What the heck are they doing to the Cardinals fans?”

It could be worse. The Cardinals could have brought back Mike LaValliere to back up Yadier Molina:

MYSTERIES OF THE UNIVERSE

Questions to ponder while wondering where spring ran off to:

• So how many of you had Brendan Ryan leading off on Opening Day and Brian Barden playing third?
• Can Kyle Boller revive his career as a Ram? And what happened to Gus Frerotte?
• Do the Red Wings really believe they can win another Stanley Cup with Chris Osgood playing this way in goal?
• What took the other Jeff Gordon so long to win a race?
• So what, exactly, is Tyler Hansbrough thinking these days?

LOOKING OUT FOR WHITE KIDS

UConn coach Geno Auriemma rallied behind them Saturday, while chatting with scribes before his team’s practice at Scottrade Center:

“White kids are always looked upon as being soft. So Stanford’s got a tremendous amount of really good players who for whatever reason, because they don’t look like Tina Charles or Maya Moore, the perception out there is going to be, well, they must be soft.

“Well, I think that’s a bunch of bull. I watched them play and nobody goes harder to the boards. Nobody takes more charges. Nobody runs the floor as hard. Those kids are as tough as any of the kids in the country. But people on the sports world like to make judgments on people by how they look. And it’s grossly unfair.”

Tipsheet couldn’t agree more. We shouldn’t judge people by their appearance. For instance, some people — especially pro athletes — believe all sportswriters are dorks just because we often dress poorly. That’s just not fair.

ST. LOUIS CAN HANDLE BIG EVENTS

We’ve got the hospitality thing down, as visitors can see.  A scribe from Hartford had fun at the reception, although our toasted ravioli didn’t win him over.

DOUBTING THE MAN RAM

Manny Ramirez was sure glad to join the Dodgers last season. He showed this by hitting .396 with 17 homers and 53 RBI in 53 games down the stretch.

Diamondbacks pitcher Brandon Webb assured the Arizona Republic that Ramirez won’t do that again.

“He’s a great hitter, but having to worry about slowing that guy down? I don’t think he’s going to be doing the same thing he did last year, to be honest with you,” Webb sniffed. “He’s not going to be the person we’re going to let beat us.”

Is Webb sure that the ManRam won’t keep it up?

“No, I honestly don’t think so - unless it’s a video game,” Webb said.

Something tells us that ManRam won’t let this get him down. He is already in midseason form.

QUIPS ‘R US

Here is what some of America’s leading sports pundits have been writing:

Greg Cote, Miami Herald: “With the Final Four in Detroit, Michigan State being in it had police on high alert should the home favorites somehow win the championship. Remember that people in Detroit have a tendency to react by rioting and setting everything on fire. And that’s just on a normal day.”

Mike Bianchi, Orlando Sentinel: “Too many college games are in the 50s or 60s because the players don’t have enough talent and the officials call too many fouls. During one juncture in the East Regional final between Villanova and Pitt, a whistle blew on nine consecutive trips down the court. That’s about as much fun to watch as Al Gore giving a speech on how America is perilously close to using up its zinc supply.”

(Yeah, the NBA is fan-tastic. Geesh.)

Ray Ratto, San Francisco Chronicle: “The Diva era is at an ebb. Not an end, necessarily, but a definite ebb. Over the last nine months or so, and for wildly different reasons, a number of high-ticket athletes in several sports have found themselves banished by their employers for, among other reasons, having irritated the boss one too many times. Brett Favre. Manny Ramirez. Stephon Marbury. Sean Avery. Terrell Owens. In the last two days alone, Jay Cutler, Allen Iverson and Plaxico Burress. All exiled despite their gifts because the boss decided they simply no longer were worth the trouble.”

Dan Daly, Washington Times: “The bankruptcy judge was none too pleased with Michael Vick’s plan to repay his creditors - which, from what I understand, involved ‘building hotels on Boardwalk and Park Place’ and ‘landing on Community Chest.’”

Cote again: “Beleaguered Detroit hosting such a big event is a needed boost for the economically depressed city suffering from its failing auto industry. Here’s how bad it’s gotten: The Pistons were just replaced by a Japanese team.”

Bill Simmons, ESPN.com: “With the post-(Tim) Donaghy hangover gone, we’re back to that star system again. Kobe, LeBron and Wade are officiated differently than everyone else. And you know what else? They know it. Watch LeBron at the end of games now — he barrels toward the basket, bounces off guys and knows he’ll get a call. Here’s the shame of it: LeBron, Wade and Kobe are playing at the highest level of any three stars since Jordan, Barkley and Hakeem in 1993. They would be great with or without the help. I don’t blame them — they play hard every night and do whatever it takes to win. But if you don’t think we’re headed for a Kobe-LeBron Finals, you’re insane. As your gambling accountant, I suggest you investigate those 6-to-5 odds on a Cavs-Lakers Finals. And no, this isn’t a reverse jinx. Just watch what happens.”

MEGAPHONE

“I like college basketball, but certainly don’t think it’s a better game than the NBA. The NBA has the greatest players in the world. You’ll see more great plays in one NBA game than you’ll see in the entire March Madness.”

Magic coach Stan Van Gundy, to the Orlando Sentinel.