Cardinals Starting Rotation: It's Waino's World

The 2009 season is before us. The Cardinals have a few question marks on their roster. Who will play left field? How will Skip Schumaker handle second base? Who will be the first position player to throw a pitch in a blowout game (note: It will not be Ankiel, not matter how much EVERYONE wants it to happen)? But the most significant linchpin for the team's success is the starting rotation. Let's take a look at who is in the projected to pitch in it:

Adam Wainwright: Waino or "Wagonmaker," as the clever folks at Viva El Birdos have dubbed him, is the undisputed ace. His first start will be preceded by a ceremony involving Corvettes and Clydesdales. God bless St. Louis. He was acquired in 2003 along with Jason Marquis and Ray King in exchange for J.D. Drew and Eli Marrero. Marrero is retired, Drew avoids tripping down stairs in Boston, Jason Marquis currently serves up home runs in a purple uniform, and Ray King has changed his name to Dennys Reyes and still pitches for the Cardinals. He has a career ERA of 3.48, averages over six strikeouts per nine innings, under three walks per nine innings, and is the league leader in making Carlos Beltran look foolish. A finger injury forced Waino to miss two and a half months in 2008, but he pitched over 200 innings in 2007 and is one of the National League leaders in ERA since 2007 (200 innings minimum). Not much to worry about here, as it should be for teams that are going to compete.

Kyle Lohse: Lohse is coming off a career year with a 3.78 ERA, which is well below his career ERA of 4.67. To reward him for such an positive anomaly, the Cardinals invested $41 million in him over the next four years. He is the type of average pitcher that the Cardinals organization loves. According to Baseball Reference, of the 10 most similar pitchers through the age of 29, five have pitched or currently pitch for the Cardinals. Jeff Suppan, Jason Marquis, Joel Piñeiro, and Todd Stottlemyre all had some success and Sidney Ponson got a World Series ring with the team, despite his horrible, sweaty pitching. While Wainwright's and Carpenter's health get most of the attention, the real question will be how long before the real Lohse shows up.

Article Author: Brian_Kist

Brian Kist is a writer in Southwest Missouri. He listens to punk music and enjoys baseball. He mashes those together at Punk on Deck.

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