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Well, April is gone and as we begin May what have we learned about our beloved home team? Some ideas, if I may?

1. Scott & Winn are exciting players who bring speed, defense, hitting, and enthusiasm to the table!

2. Burleson & Baker really don't belong on a decent MLB roster.

3. Libby can pitch! Who was our last decent Lefty starter?

4. Walker has made tremendous strides in the OF while still struggling to hit with consistency.

5. Our bullpen is not a team strength.

6. A healthy Noot is one helluva ballplayer.

7. Pages & Pozo are a decent catching tandem.

8. Herrera's bat plays...his arm behind the plate does not.

9. Saggese is a legit hitting prospect; still unsure where he may fit in defensively.

10. Oli is still a clown.

11. Gorman is now more suspect than prospect.

Feel free to add to the list....or to disagree (I can take it).

The small core of people pounding their chest at 3-0 sure got quiet

Absolut wrote: ↑01 May 2025 07:23 am The small core of people pounding their chest at 3-0 sure got quiet

We learned that the Cards can win a lot of games if the bullpen can close the door. The Cards rank in the top third in most offensive categories.

They need a productive DH. Numbers for that are terrible so far, 0 HR's and 2 RBI's. Herrera could fill that role when he is back. Send Baker down then.
Burleson still can't hit well enough, are they really going to continue to use him ? Some of the bullpen pitchers have come around, so have not . Starters over all look decent. Walker and Gorman will continued to be used, will they continue to fail ? Doesn't look like they will send them down.

TNRedbirdFan66 wrote: ↑01 May 2025 08:34 am They need a productive DH. Numbers for that are terrible so far, 0 HR's and 2 RBI's. Herrera could fill that role when he is back. Send Baker down then.
Burleson still can't hit well enough, are they really going to continue to use him ? Some of the bullpen pitchers have come around, so have not . Starters over all look decent. Walker and Gorman will continued to be used, will they continue to fail ? Doesn't look like they will send them down.

I've said it often.

Cards can win with a Pages/Pozo catching duo.
Let Herrera DH. Get rid of B & B. Team gets better!

The BP has been the biggest problem so far. If they close out the victories that were there for the taking, the team would be above .500. Gorman and Walker bats are still suspect to say the least. Unikkkorn indeed. Agreed that Burleson and Baker are clogging the roster. When IH returns Burley should not get many ABs. Yes, Oli is still a weakness and always will be until (hopefully), Bloom has the reins.

Well, there's quite a bit of potential there, would be my 1st month take.
Now, can it be harnessed, managed and built upon effectively?
Things that make you go ..... hmmmmm.

JDW wrote: ↑01 May 2025 09:29 am Well, there's quite a bit of potential there, would be my 1st month take.
Now, can it be harnessed, managed and built upon effectively?
Things that make you go ..... hmmmmm.

+1

Need a healthy Noot and for the guys to continue to show growth. At least there is even more upside if Gorman/Walker could ever figure it out.

The only things I’m concerned about are the bullpen and Burleson and Baker.

I have a little concern for Gorman and Walker, but it’s still early.

The starters give me hope. They had a really good second half of April.

It’s a reset. This is where we see who can play for the future. They are doing it well. After this year, add a stud ace. Next off season a stud 3B. Then compete.

The emergence of Scott has eliminated the need for a third stud, he is that stud. Now we can spend Scott money on a stud DH.

Cards are not even a 450 ball club. That's what we learned

Let's see after 60 games

That we have a losing record

I'm not sleeping on Gorman... he's showing a ton of improvement that isn't seen in his results quite yet, but I feel like they're coming.

Per Statcast -
Career chase rate: 29.0% (30.4% in 2024)
2025 chase rate: 21.4%... among players with at least 50 PA, he's above the 80th percentile (yes, still small sample, but promising)

Career zone contact rate: 77.2%
2025 zone contact rate: 86.1%

Career swinging strike rate: 16.6%
2025 swinging strike rate: 11.8%

It looks to me like he's sacrificing some quality of contact for improved plate discipline and contact rates, but he has such natural power that I'd expect him to start hitting the ball with more authority in the near future. Yeah, I'm being a little optimistic there... but there is a bunch of GOOD in his underlying metrics. He's also at 2 DRS at 2B in his 80+ innings. He's never had positive defensive runs saved in the past.

Regarding Jordan Walker... it's the opposite. There isn't anything in his underlying metrics to suggest any sort of breakout is coming.

An Old Friend wrote: ↑01 May 2025 09:47 am I'm not sleeping on Gorman... he's showing a ton of improvement that isn't seen in his results quite yet, but I feel like they're coming.

Per Statcast -
Career chase rate: 29.0% (30.4% in 2024)
2025 chase rate: 21.4%... among players with at least 50 PA, he's above the 80th percentile (yes, still small sample, but promising)

Career zone contact rate: 77.2%
2025 zone contact rate: 86.1%

Career swinging strike rate: 16.6%
2025 swinging strike rate: 11.8%

It looks to me like he's sacrificing some quality of contact for improved plate discipline and contact rates, but he has such natural power that I'd expect him to start hitting the ball with more authority in the near future. Yeah, I'm being a little optimistic there... but there is a bunch of GOOD in his underlying metrics.

Agreed. And he’s got a 59.5% Flyball% with a 4.5% HR/FB rate. His career numbers are 49.1% and 17.9%. LD rate is a solid 21.6%.

Absolut wrote: ↑01 May 2025 07:23 am The small core of people pounding their chest at 3-0 sure got quiet

On the contrary, the starters have been for the most part impressive. Some young hitters have shown they are fun to watch and can surprise to the upside. The bullpen has let us down early, but, some of that may be in the rearview mirror. Can't wait to see how Nootbaar, Winn, Scott, and Donovan put a whole season together. Walker has come on strong defensively....now if his offense would kick in.

With the pen we have right now, we should be a + .500 team.

Monsieur De Treville wrote: ↑01 May 2025 07:21 am Well, April is gone and as we begin May what have we learned about our beloved home team? Some ideas, if I may?

1. Scott & Winn are exciting players who bring speed, defense, hitting, and enthusiasm to the table!

2. Burleson & Baker really don't belong on a decent MLB roster.

3. Libby can pitch! Who was our last decent Lefty starter?

4. Walker has made tremendous strides in the OF while still struggling to hit with consistency.

5. Our bullpen is not a team strength.

6. A healthy Noot is one helluva ballplayer.

7. Pages & Pozo are a decent catching tandem.

8. Herrera's bat plays...his arm behind the plate does not.

9. Saggese is a legit hitting prospect; still unsure where he may fit in defensively.

10. Oli is still a clown.

11. Gorman is now more suspect than prospect.

Feel free to add to the list....or to disagree (I can take it).

I think this is a good roll up.