On paper, keeping fan favorite Brendan Ryan as a utility player seemed logical.
He offers exceptional range and a powerful arm at shortstop. He takes away hits to his right and left. He is a statistical hero according to advanced defensive metrics.
The projected 2011 starting shortstop, Ryan Theriot, is just an OK fielder. At worst, Ryan could have served as a late-inning defensive replacement, allowing Theriot to move to second base and Skip Schumaker to right field – where the Big Puma, Lance Berkman, will need regular relief.
The Cards could have given Ryan a year to regroup offensively. Perhaps he could have outgrown some of the eccentricities which irritated his teammates and coaches.
The organization could have protected an asset, a potential Gold Glove player, while warehousing prospect Tyler Greene for another season.
But the game isn’t played on paper. It’s played on the field by interacting humans. Team chemistry matters in baseball, whether fans choose to believe it or not.
New school statistical analysis gives fans plenty to discuss, but old-school player qualities still go a long way in Our National Pastime.
Last year’s Cards lacked grit, focus, perserverance and a variety of other attributes hard to quantify with a calculator. The team played fine against elite opponents, but struggled against lesser foes.
The team faded in the second half until some hungry September call-ups injected life into the flagging group.
Manager Tony La Russa had strong views about fixing the problems and GM John Mozeliak acted on them.
Keeping savvy pitcher Jake Westbrook was a big step. The addition of hard-core veterans Berkman and Theriot was another big step.
And so was the subtraction of Ryan, an energetic but flighty performer.
La Russa wants to return to postseason play in 2011. He may not manage past next year. He doesn’t know if Albert Pujols will play for the Cards past ’11, although he suspects he will.
The manager is locked in on next season. He is still eager to manage, but he wants to do it his way.
In that sense, La Russa is exactly like Whitey Herzog. He wants to take his kind of players into the 162-game grind. Period.
When Whitey had clout with the Cards, he retooled the roster to his liking. He got his type of ballplayers, over the objection of outraged fans.
Was Darrell Porter a better baseball player than fan favorite Ted Simmons? Of course not, but Porter fit what The White Rat was doing with this team. Porter was better defensively. He was a hard-nosed guy playing a leadership position.
Simmons could have stuck around after Porter arrived, but he wasn’t thrilled with the defensive shuffle planned for 1981. So away he went in a most unpopular trade.
Herzog did it his way and it worked. Fans missed Simba, but they eventually got over his trade. Everybody enjoyed the parade.
When Herzog lost the ability to shape the roster to liking, his team chemistry went bad. A divided clubhouse chased him out of managing for good.
Many fans dismiss the “C” word. They will keep La Russa under relentless chat room/message board assault until the ’11 Cards begin playing for real.
Some fans will demand La Russa’s firing even if the retooled team succeeds, given Ryan’s popularity.
Tony can live with that. What La Russa can’t live with is relying on players he doesn’t believe in, especially at critical positions.
Theriot will be steady in the field. He will hit for a good average and steal some bases. He will be a popular and respected teammate. He will show up for work on time, remember to take his glove into the field and let his play do most of his talking.
With Theriot and Berkman in the mix – and Ryan gone from it -- the Cardinals will be a more experienced and mentally tougher group.
Tony has his sort of team now. It’s on him to make it work, for sure, but these are the challenges he lives for.
