The sudden departure of St. Louis Cardinals long-time pitching Dave Duncan leaves the defending World Series Champions in quite a hole. With their manager Tony La Russa and first baseman Albert Pujols gone, many believed that the Cardinals would rely on Duncan's experience and his pitching staff to lead the charge in 2012 as the Cardinals try to repeat as World Series Champions.
While many believe the pitching staff that will be bolstered by the return of former Cy Young Award runner-up Adam Wainwright will be a strenght in 2012, it does not mean that new pitching coach Derek Lilliquist's job will be easy this upcoming season.
Lilliquist has big shoes to fill in trying to replace Duncan.
Lilliquist takes over a staff full of mature, veteran starters and a bullpen that has explosive, but youthful arms. Despite the talent and depth on the Cardinals pitching staff, Lilliquist will have a challenge in 2012 and here are a few reasons why.
1. Nobody truly knows what to expect from Adam Wainwright. Many Cardinals fans feel that Wainwright will return to his Cy Young caliber self after undergoing Tommy John surgery last spring.
But those who believe that Wainwright will be hurling shutouts right away may be sorely mistaken. Tommy John surgery is still not an easy thing to come back from. It could take Wainwright time to build up his endurance and stamina on the hill, two of the ace's trademark characteristics.
So what can Cardinals fans expect from Wainwright in 2012? Should expectations be lowered?
Wainwright will likely be good for five to six innings a start during the first half of 2012. His return is a positive for the Cardinals rotation for sure, but he could tax the bullpen early in the season as he gets back into game shape.
2. Chris Carpenter threw more innings in 2011 than in any year in his career. When the Cardinals won the World Series in 2006, Chris Carpenter made just one start the following season in 2007. If history matters and is any indication of the future, 2012 could be trouble for the Cardinals bulldog and staff ace.
While leading the Cardinals to the World Series Championship in 2011, Carpenter was worked like never before in his career, logging a total of 273.1 innings in 2011.
How will Carpenter bounce back from that workload at the age of 36? Will Carpenter be healthy or will 2012 look like 2007? The Cardinals may not be able to count on Carpenter for the innings he provided in 2011, which again, will tax the young bullpen.
3. The bullpen is still young an inexperienced. Cardinals closer Jason Motte grew up and matured right before our eyes in the post-season last year. There is little reason to believe that Motte won't come back firing fastballs past hitters in 2012 again.
That being said, the rest of the bullpen, while talented and explosive, may not be able to repeat such a performance.
Fernando Salas was outstanding in 2011, but the 26 year old appeared in 79 games last season and appeared to wear down as the season progressed. Many of those appearances were high pressure situations as Salas did log 24 saves in 2011 and was used in various pressure situations throughout the playoffs. How good will Salas be in 2012 and can he recover from that workload?
The other right-hander the Cardinals will be depending on will be Eduardo Sanchez. Sanchez was electric in his rookie campaign, striking out 35 hitters in 30 innings in 2011. But Sanchez was injured for nearly the entire second half of the season with a shoulder injury. Will Sanchez be healthy in 2012? Will hitters finally adjust to Sanchez's devastating slider?
Lilliquist is stepping into a good situation with the Cardinals. His rotation is experienced and deep and his bullpen is beyond talented.
But Lilliquist has big shoes to fill and a big job in front of him in 2012. A lot will be riding on Lilliquist and the Cardinals pitching staff if they hope to repeat in 2012.
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While many believe the pitching staff that will be bolstered by the return of former Cy Young Award runner-up Adam Wainwright will be a strenght in 2012, it does not mean that new pitching coach Derek Lilliquist's job will be easy this upcoming season.
Lilliquist has big shoes to fill in trying to replace Duncan.
Lilliquist takes over a staff full of mature, veteran starters and a bullpen that has explosive, but youthful arms. Despite the talent and depth on the Cardinals pitching staff, Lilliquist will have a challenge in 2012 and here are a few reasons why.
1. Nobody truly knows what to expect from Adam Wainwright. Many Cardinals fans feel that Wainwright will return to his Cy Young caliber self after undergoing Tommy John surgery last spring.
But those who believe that Wainwright will be hurling shutouts right away may be sorely mistaken. Tommy John surgery is still not an easy thing to come back from. It could take Wainwright time to build up his endurance and stamina on the hill, two of the ace's trademark characteristics.
So what can Cardinals fans expect from Wainwright in 2012? Should expectations be lowered?
Wainwright will likely be good for five to six innings a start during the first half of 2012. His return is a positive for the Cardinals rotation for sure, but he could tax the bullpen early in the season as he gets back into game shape.
2. Chris Carpenter threw more innings in 2011 than in any year in his career. When the Cardinals won the World Series in 2006, Chris Carpenter made just one start the following season in 2007. If history matters and is any indication of the future, 2012 could be trouble for the Cardinals bulldog and staff ace.
While leading the Cardinals to the World Series Championship in 2011, Carpenter was worked like never before in his career, logging a total of 273.1 innings in 2011.
How will Carpenter bounce back from that workload at the age of 36? Will Carpenter be healthy or will 2012 look like 2007? The Cardinals may not be able to count on Carpenter for the innings he provided in 2011, which again, will tax the young bullpen.
3. The bullpen is still young an inexperienced. Cardinals closer Jason Motte grew up and matured right before our eyes in the post-season last year. There is little reason to believe that Motte won't come back firing fastballs past hitters in 2012 again.
That being said, the rest of the bullpen, while talented and explosive, may not be able to repeat such a performance.
Fernando Salas was outstanding in 2011, but the 26 year old appeared in 79 games last season and appeared to wear down as the season progressed. Many of those appearances were high pressure situations as Salas did log 24 saves in 2011 and was used in various pressure situations throughout the playoffs. How good will Salas be in 2012 and can he recover from that workload?
The other right-hander the Cardinals will be depending on will be Eduardo Sanchez. Sanchez was electric in his rookie campaign, striking out 35 hitters in 30 innings in 2011. But Sanchez was injured for nearly the entire second half of the season with a shoulder injury. Will Sanchez be healthy in 2012? Will hitters finally adjust to Sanchez's devastating slider?
Lilliquist is stepping into a good situation with the Cardinals. His rotation is experienced and deep and his bullpen is beyond talented.
But Lilliquist has big shoes to fill and a big job in front of him in 2012. A lot will be riding on Lilliquist and the Cardinals pitching staff if they hope to repeat in 2012.
Sources:
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