Post by Matt on Nov 13, 2020 13:40:23 GMT -5
From down on the farm -
The Cardinals are ready to make their move. "We're getting some guys healthy and we've got a couple of guys that have improved greatly recently, so here we go!" said GM Carpenter. The injury returnees are starting pitcher Fernando Valenzuela and 1B Lornezo Gray. Valenzuela looks ready to return to the rotation from an elbow injury and Gray is a week or so away from returning to the big club after his fractured hand. "Fernando will jump right back into the rotation, although it's not clear on who'll get the bump out right now," said Carpenter. "We've debated a couple of different options, but we've not fully decided." The odd man out probably would have been rookie Darryl Kile, but he's showed some great strides the past few appearances after a bullpen demotion. "I feel really great right now, I know I gave up 10 hits my last outing, but I feel like my stuff has gotten better this season," said Kile. Also options for a bullpen stent are struggling starters Morris Madden and Mike Walters. "Both of them have had a rough outing or two lately, so we're looking at all possibilities to get us back into the race." Another bright spot in AAA has been reliever Ravelo Manzanillo. "Ravelo has found his control, so we'll give him a look soon as well."
On the offensive side, it's been kind of offensive at times. "We just can't find a groove of consistency." We'll put up a nice offensive day and then struggle the next day." Felix Jose has been a disappointment for the Birds on the Bat this season up to this point. "He know what we need from him and he's trying to find it, we thought he was coming around in June, but July has been a little struggle for him. Hopefully getting Lorenzo back will help the depth of our lineup and some bats will start to get going again," said Carpenter.
Adding arms back to the staff and bats back to the lineup should help things down the stretch. "Even with those guys coming back, we still know that we need to add a bat somewhere," quipped Carpenter. "Hopefully we can strike a deal to get another dependable bat into the lineup for the playoff run, it might shakeup the clubhouse, but maybe that's what they need, the realization that the organization wants to win, and if they aren't going to do their part they'll find the bench or a different team," said a frustrated GM. "We'll see if anything happens."
