Even with Munoz AWOL, infielder depth forces tough decisions for St. Louis Cardinals
Yairo Muñoz took his ball and went home to the Dominican Republic because he didn’t believe there was sufficient playing time available to him with this version of the St. Louis Cardinals.
Setting aside the wisdom of that career decision, he was at least correct in his view of the depth chart that exists for the 2020 season.
The Cardinals placed Muñoz on unconditional relief waivers on Saturday morning after he left the team without permission, ending the St. Louis tenure of the utility player who was acquired as part of a humanitarian-driven trade of outfielder Stephen Piscotty to the Oakland A’s in December of 2017.
The other infielder acquired in that deal, Max Schrock, is part of the contingent now forcing the issue at the upper levels of the Cardinals system.
Schrock, 25, is 6-for-22 this spring with two doubles and a triple. He’s also added six walks and only five strikeouts while playing solid defense at both second and third base. While the club’s depth at shortstop has meant that he hasn’t gotten exposure at that position, he has played a limited amount of outfield for Triple-A Memphis in each of the last two seasons.
Perhaps most importantly, Schrock also bats left handed, adding another tool to his bag which the Cardinals may value should they need a fill-in off the bench. Though he doesn’t have the experience at shortstop, Schrock profiles somewhat similarly to former Cardinal Greg Garcia, who was roughly Schrock’s age when he first stuck in the majors.
One of the most impressive players in camp thus far has been Edmundo Sosa, who has made a cameo appearance with the Cardinals in each of the last two Septembers. Still just 24 years old, Sosa’s long-time presence on lists of Cardinal prospects is the result of having been a player who signed young as opposed to one who stalled out. He enjoyed a renaissance of sorts in 2019, registering a .466 slugging percentage for Memphis before a strong showing in the Dominican Winter League.
Sosa’s bat has always been the tool which has drawn questions from talent evaluators. His glove, however, is not in doubt.
A natural shortstop, Sosa has for years appeared to be the top defensive talent at the position throughout the entire Cardinals system. He’s since added the ability to capably play second and third, and in so doing, appears to be a player that could make consistent contributions from the bench starting on opening day.
Schrock and Sosa may begin the year as the starting double play combination at Memphis, but if they do, it won’t necessarily be because either of them had a misstep in spring. Indeed, even with the addition of a 26th man to major league rosters this season, the math works against either breaking camp with the club, assuming health for the infielders ahead of them on the depth chart.
Paul DeJong and Kolten Wong represent perhaps the strongest keystone combination in the majors, short of Houston’s Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa. The two are also reliable competitors who can be trusted to take the field every day; DeJong was second on the team in plate appearances and Wong fourth. With Wong likely to start the season as the club’s leadoff hitter and DeJong apparently penciled in the cleanup spot, the opportunities for backups may be few and far between.
Those opportunities which do arise are likely to be gobbled up by Tommy Edman and Brad Miller. Edman, who took over at third base for a struggling Matt Carpenter last season, is likely to begin this year in a super utility role which has drawn some comparisons to veteran MLB infielder Ben Zobrist. It may not be unusual, for example, to see Edman start five games in a given week spread over four positions.
Miller has been slowed by lower back inflammation and has not appeared in a spring game since the start of March. Assuming he’s able to regain his health by opening day, the late-hour addition to the roster will see at least some time at all four infield spots and perhaps, depending on health and performance, all three outfield spots as well. Miller’s versatility and lefty bat drew the club to him, and his steady performance prior to his injury seemed to acquit that decision.
Cardinals manager Mike Shildt is fond of saying that depth is about more than simply having players, but instead is about being able to count on those players to perform. Muñoz, though he struggled offensively in 2019, was a reliable player whose outcomes could be anticipated and who was trusted, to a certain extent, by the coaching staff.
Schrock and Sosa are earning that trust, and as they do, the Cardinals are gambling that their upside — and the surety already on the roster — is more than sufficient to fill in any gaps in the system which may have been created by Muñoz’s departure.
At a bare minimum, the Cardinals are at least able to identify the physical locations of the players remaining in camp. When seeking to fill out a roster, that’s an essential first step.
This story was originally published March 9, 2020 at 10:22 AM.
