When news of the Cardinals' trade for shortstop Ryan Theriot reached incumbent Brendan Ryan on Tuesday, it came via text message and mostly in the form of questions. Friends and family first wanted to know if he had heard about his team's move, and then they asked the obvious follow-up.
What does it mean for him?
Ryan wondered the same thing.
"You want to be where you're wanted," Ryan said Wednesday from his native Southern California, where he spends the offseason. "I owe everything to the Cardinals. It's my home. They made my dreams of being in the major leagues come true. They gave me a shot. ... As for projecting what this means, I'm keeping quiet for the first time in my life, and let's see how things unfold."
The Cardinals acquired middle infielder Theriot from the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for reliever Blake Hawksworth on Tuesday. General manager John Mozeliak positioned Theriot as the Cardinals' probable starting shortstop for 2011. That bumps Ryan from the job he won in 2009 but lost his grip on with a dismal 2010. One of the best defensive shortstops in the league, Ryan hit .223 last summer and never had a month with an on-base percentage better than .290.
The Cardinals have let other teams know Ryan is available, and they'll look to trade him during next week's winter meetings in Florida, if not sooner.
"I think he still has some ways that he can help the Cardinals," Mozeliak said. "But if there is a deal out there that makes sense for us, we should pursue it. We need to be open to having those discussions."
The deadline to present contracts to roster players is 11 p.m. (St. Louis time) today, and the Cardinals will tender offers to all three arbitration-eligible players: Theriot, Ryan and reliever Kyle McClellan. Players not offered contracts will become free agents Friday, creating a second wave of available players.
This is the first time in his career that Ryan, 28, is eligible for arbitration, though he reaches it with a case weakened by a down season and perhaps a utility infielder profile.
Ryan described himself as "adamant about staying a Cardinal," redirecting a question about benefiting from a relocation. The Cardinals sought to upgrade their middle infield offensively but also to rewire the clubhouse chemistry, and Theriot has the ability to do both.
Whether Ryan's extroverted personality and occasional antics still fit the team is now uncertain. Ryan has gained a reputation for being flighty, one that he's overcome with some teammates but hasn't helped with memorable gaffes, such as being late to the field this past season in Cincinnati with Chris Carpenter on the mound.
Manager Tony La Russa has, in the past, described how Ryan had to prove his reliability and maturity to his teammates before establishing himself as an everyday player.
"I think I give him gray hairs," Ryan conceded, "but we get along. Maybe it's something I do in the clubhouse, maybe I need to be less out there, or maybe it's a ball he doesn't want me to throw from that deep in the hole. I'm able to salvage things though by making a play up the middle. I think he respects my passion for the game and the energy I bring.
"From the other side of it, though, I get why they'd like to see more consistency from me," Ryan continued. "They want more consistent quality at-bats. I know I need to let my success on the field speak the loudest."
After a few initial hiccups in the field, Ryan finished strong at shortstop, leading the majors with a plus-31 rating in Baseball Info Solutions plus-minus grades. The stat measures plays an infielder makes outside a prescribed zone and subtracts misplays within the position's defined zone, and Ryan is at plus-56 during the previous two seasons.
An asset in the field, Ryan wrested the starting job in 2009 with a .292 average and a .340 on-base percentage. He had wrist surgery shortly before spring training this year, and he never clicked with a new swing he and hitting coach Mark McGwire fashioned last offseason. Ryan was hitting .197 at the end of May and buried himself. He spent the rest of the year groping for a misplaced swing. Ryan described himself Tuesday "as just trying to survive" and labeled last summer "an abomination, just a nightmare scenario."
This offseason, Ryan has kept a list of things he wants to do at the plate, sometimes waking up in the middle of the night just to jot a note on the back of a business card. He wants to try choking up, maybe use a bigger bat. When he starts hitting later this month, he's going to keep two hands on the bat for the follow-through on 1,000 swings "to see how it feels."
Ryan's glove and experience at second and third put him in the mix for a utility role, and the Cardinals are not completely resistant to his return in that capacity. One team source said a trade of Ryan was made possible but not mandated by the addition of Theriot.
Ryan would like the chance to give them a reason to keep him.
"I know this is a what-have-you-done-for-me-lately game," Ryan said. "A repeat of 2009 is more likely than a repeat of 2010. Sure, that is looking at things from my point of view, my believing in myself, but it's also looking at it realistically. I know the player I can be, and last season that wasn't me. I'm doubling-down on that."
