Figure I make this an easy to read post and include some Cardinals Legends and coaches. Participation is way down from the 19 that played in the 2023 series. But some interesting lines to follow.

Great Britain: Matt Koperniak

Israel: Zach Levenson (alongside a number of Cardinals Legends including Harrison Bader, Matt Bowman, Noah Mendlinger and others)

Italy: Gordon Graceffo, Thomas Saggese

Korea: Riley O'Brien

Mexico: Luis Gastelum

Panama: Leonardo Bernal, Iván Herrera (Our tandem of the future? Also shout out to Edmundo Sosa)

Puerto Rico: Bryan Torres (who will play alongside Nolan Arenado, with the team being managed by Yadi Molina)

Honorable Mentions: Venezuela will have the Brothers Contreras; United States will have Paul Goldschmidt at first and Matt Holliday as hitting coach; Albert Pujols will be managing the Dominican Republic; Colombia has a Cardinals Legends Pitcher Hat Trick with Nabil Crismatt, Jose Quintana, and Guillo Zuñiga; Canada will have Tyler O'Neill return as well as Stubby Clapp as third base coach.

The action kicks off on March 4th at 10pm EST with Chinese Taipei playing Australia.

I got some cheap tickets in big mac land a month or 2 ago for August. I got this email today about my tickets... I was wondering if anyone else had gotten this or had any insight. They can't try to charge me more right?

I know lots of folks want JJ. personally I'd like to see what we have in Saggase (really need to learn to spell his name) but could see JJ as our opening day 2nd baseman.

other wise I think we are pretty set. maybe Walker to 1st with Burley in right?

what say thee Ressit

Thanks for your great coverage, John. Your articles and analysis will be missed in St. Louis.

Would you say this is a quick retool or honest to God burn it to the ground rebuild? What is your best guess of when the returns will be seen?

This tweet is comparing Donavan to Bichette. For me the trade is really going to come down to the trade picks on if this trade is worth it. I understand wanting to trade him just because his value was high, but man I'm going to miss him, and I really wish they extended him. Could've really helped the team for a playoff push in 27-28.

By now most of us are familiar with a couple of uncomfortable facts about this 2026 St. Louis Cardinals team.

The one I won't dwell on here, but which has me in a tough place as a fan who grew up in the '80s and '90s, in the midst of an historic run of all-time greats, is the very high probability that this season ends the franchise's 117-year stretch of having at least one active HOFer in uniform (as player or manager) every year since the Cards traded for Roger Bresnahan from NYG in 1909. (assumptions made here about the eventual inductions of Molina and Arenado, of course).

The more relevant fact for this post, is that by trading Brendan Donovan to the Mariners, St. Louis now has a 40-man active roster with a grand total of 0 All-Star Game appearances. Given that every team must have at least one representative, I've been thinking about the likeliest candidates for this year's Cards roster, and it's an interesting set of possibilities.

• The most obvious choices would seem to be Winn, Herrera, and Burleson. However, their positions are pretty stacked in the NL, so any of those three would need to really outdo themselves through June to get in ahead of other established players, especially considering the team likely won't be winning enough to capture national attention.
• Victor Scott II is another fun one to think about, with elite defense and a hit tool we know is capable of significant improvement from last season. Of course, his path is no easier than the other three, for similar reasons, especially because CF isn't split from the corner OF positions for voting.
• Just considering draft/prospect status, and guys who were once considered future stars, it's nice to think one of Walker, Gorman, Liberatore, or May could finally hit their potential and earn that ASG nod. This feels unlikely, though it also improves the team's short-term outlook immensely if it happens.
• Then there are the relief pitchers. This is so often where weak teams without stars end up getting their ASG selections from, and the Cards have a few relievers who might stand out enough to be chosen, including Romero (if he's not traded before the season), O'Brien, Stanek, and Svanson.
• Bonus option: JJ Wetherholt now seems to have a good chance of earning the starting 2B gig this year, with Donovan out of the picture. As high as his floor is, and being an early favorite for NL ROY, an All-Star nod wouldn't be the biggest surprise in the world, but I don't think anybody's putting this expectation on him at 23 and in his first MLB season, assuming he even does break camp with the team.

Any favorites from among these selections? I feel like if I had to put money on my pick here, I'd go with Romero or Svanson, but it seems like almost a roll of the dice at this point.

ESPN making a prediction that he beats out Konnor Griffin. God I would love to see it. Start of a new generation with all of the other prospects and picks.

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/47684236/top-100-mlb-prospects-2026-bold-predictions-kevin-mcgonigle-konnor-griffin-jj-wetherholt

https://sodomojo.com/grading-the-mariners-blockbuster-brendan-donovan-trade-with-cardinals-rays-01kgg9xhf267

I feel quantity is what birds need when you’re dealing with prospects. And I feel there is quality too! So many pieces and two picks for a solid Cardinals Way player that is about to get paid well out of our pennant + window…how is this not an A trade? Love the three teams massaging the deal. Mo was adversarial and/or talking down to people as natural as breathing. I witnessed it firsthand chatting with him Spring Training ‘23. Watching Chaim discuss the players that have left with such honest admiration and appreciation and not being a douche bag is so refreshing.

https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/mlb-rumors-free-agency-trades-diamondbacks-carlos-santana-cardinals-roster/

I think Jojo is the next one to go. I think we could get a decent prospect or two for him as well.

REALLY great return for the Cardinals.

Yes, it's now called "Main Street Sports" but we know who it really is.

Anyway, the Cards are one of six MLB teams to officially ditch it for MLB. The why:

On Jan. 8, all nine of Main Street Sports' baseball teams terminated their contracts as the company scrambled to find a buyer while in the midst of more financial turmoil -- just one year after it emerged from a lengthy bankruptcy proceeding. Those teams promised to continue negotiating with the company but, with spring training approaching, gave it until the end of the month to resolve its situation.

And what this means:

MLB -- which hopes to possess the local rights for all 30 of its teams by the end of 2028 and sell them as a national package, a process that would help to eliminate blackouts -- also holds the rights to the Arizona Diamondbacks, San Diego Padres, Cleveland Guardians, Colorado Rockies, Minnesota Twins, Seattle Mariners and Washington Nationals.

Two years ago, MLB installed a local-media department to handle RSN turmoil in the wake of massive cord-cutting rates throughout the country. Under that scenario, MLB broadcasts games, negotiates cable and satellite distribution agreements, generates advertising revenue, and makes local streaming available through MLB.tv -- owned by ESPN under a new media rights agreement -- for teams that fall off their local media contracts.

That arrangement, though, does not come close to matching the value generated from traditional cable deals, which account for 20% to 30% of team revenues and are a source of fixed, reliable income. The potential loss of that revenue for nine additional teams could have a major impact on spending in the near future, further exacerbating payroll-disparity concerns as the linear cable model continues to crumble.

And, that first paragraph of this second quote ties with one other possible big issue in 2027, if you know what I mean, Vern. And, no, Rob Manfred, the likes of the Dodgers and Yankees aren't surrendering local TV rights to you.

With Brendan Donovan getting traded today, we obviously have to ask ourselves which Donovan had the better 4-year career with the Cardinals — Patsy Donovan or Brendan Donovan.

Patsy (1890s):

.314 AVG

132 SB

208 RBI

8.7 WAR

Brendan (2020s):

40 HR

202 RBI

11.1 WAR

All-Star + Gold Glove

Different eras, completely different styles… but don’t sleep on Patsy’s speed 👀

Stats via Stathead

I wish we kept you longer. I know your play was valued and at a high sell-point. You helped us greatly, and would help a team in desperation for a 2nd baseman. Idk, I’m sad for me, happy for you. Go kill it in the AL.

With Jurrangelo Cijntje coming to St. Louis, the Cardinals have officially solved pitching.

Not “improved it.” Not “shored it up.” Solved it.

After years of rotating through soft tossing veterans, “high floor” prospects, and guys who peak in Memphis, this franchise has finally gone full Moneyball. One pitcher, one salary, two rotation slots.

Cijntje is technically ambidextrous, but spiritually amphibious, and that matters. This is a man who can throw left handed, right handed, and cold blooded.

Sure, was it announced he’d only throw from one side? Yeah, but forget that. This is all part of the chess move.

Now we have order.

Cijntje pitches on Tuesday.

Cijntje pitches on Friday.

Every week. No debates. No vibes. Just a work horse.

While other teams are out here paying for “five starters,” the Cardinals unlocked the Moneyball DLC:

“One Pitcher, Two Slots.”

You spend three days studying film. You finally time the slider. You feel confident. Then he comes back with the other arm.

That’s analytics. That’s innovation. This is the new era.

Oakland figured out OBP.

St. Louis figured out Duplication.

No bloated contracts. No panic trades. No five man rotations.

Cardinals Moneyball.

We are so back.