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Pujols Not Concerned About Future Contract

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Matthew Leach of MLB.com spoke with Albert Pujols Monday at the annual Cardinals Winter Warm-Up in St. Louis.  According to Leach, Pujols "deflected questions about his future contract status" and "has hardly given a thought to what Mark Teixeira’s contract with the Yankees means to his own situation."

"Ask me that question in 2011," Pujols said. "Right now I don’t really care about it.  That’s [my agents’] job. That’s why they’re my agents. That’s why they’re getting paid. They got me the money that I got because they do their homework. So when that time comes, we need to take care of it. As of right now, I don’t even worry about it. I worry about getting ready for this year, next year and 2011 if I’m still here and they don’t trade me. Because they have the right to trade me wherever they want right now."

Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch was the first to make the Pujols-Teixeira contract comparison back in December.  He described Albert’s 2011 free-agent value as simply "mind-boggling."

Cardinals Outfielders Speak

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A few Cardinals notes this evening coming out of the team’s Winter Warmup.

  • Before Matt Holliday was traded to the A’s, Cards outfielder Skip Schumaker thought he’d wind up in Colorado as part of the rumored Holliday-Ryan Ludwick deal.  Schumaker said, "I thought that was a done deal, and from everything I heard and from pretty good sources I thought I was definitely out of here."
  • Ludwick and Rick Ankiel are two of the team’s prominent arbitration cases.  Ludwick said the Cards have not opened up extension talks.  Ankiel, a Scott Boras client, is eligible for free agency after the season.  Ankiel’s quote about the future: "Absolutely, I’ve told [Boras] I want to work in St. Louis. But for me, it’s just focusing on having a healthy year. If you don’t play, nobody’s going to want you."
  • The cheapest autograph at the Warmup: $5 for Adam Kennedy.  Kennedy drew Tony La Russa’s ire for not attending last year.

Cardinals Inquired About Cano

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According to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post Dispatch, the Cardinals called the Yankees to inquire about second baseman Robinson Cano. Goold says the Yankees asking price was an immediate deal breaker: Adam Wainwright. "The conversation did not last long," writes Goold.

Yankees GM Brian Cashman has expressed an unwillingness to part with Cano.

The Cardinals could potentially turn to infielder Brendan Ryan who is reportedly bulking up, Adam Kennedy who is trying to earn his job back, and a remote possibility: Skip Schumaker who played shortstop in college and has been taking groundballs in workout.

Wellemeyer, Cardinals Close To Deal

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Matthew Leach of MLB.com believes the St. Louis Cardinals and right-handed starting pitcher Todd Wellemeyer are close to a deal to avoid arbitration.

This from Wellemeyer himself: "I know it’s getting close, I’ll tell you that much."

Wellemeyer, 30, went 13-9 with a 3.71 ERA in 2008.

Leach notes that deals might be close for Chris Duncan and Brad Thompson, too. General manager John Mozeliak said he would like to avoid arbitration with Duncan and Thompson, as well as Rick Ankiel and Ryan Ludwick.

Mozeliak is hopeful that none of the five players will actually go to arbitration. Ankiel is especially challenging given his short tenure as an outfielder, Leach writes.

Cards’ Carpenter Wants To Start

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St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Chris Carpenter told The Associated Press that he wants to start in 2009, although he’s willing to move back to the bullpen if his body can’t hold up to the rotation pressures.

"I’ll do whatever they want me to do," Carpenter said. "If that’s the case, that’s the case. I’m just going to take it one game at a time like I have all the time in the past. I’m going to do everything I can to take the ball every fifth day. With everything that I’ve gone through, obviously, some of it is out of my hands. I’ve done everything I can in the past four months to go out and pitch."

Cardinals manager Tony La Russa has said earlier in the offseason that he might use Carpenter as a closer if he is unable to start every fifth game.

Carpenter, 33, has had elbow and shoulder surgeries on his pitching arm. The righty threw 15 1-3 innings in 2008 for a 0-1 record with a 1.76 ERA.

Cardinals Not Interested In Re-Signing Springer

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Free agent reliever Russ Springer told Matthew Leach of MLB.com Friday that the Cardinals have not expressed a desire a to bring him back for the 2009 season.

"I loved the opportunity to play for the Cardinals and the fans," said Springer. "I did everything I can to come back. I told them I’d take a pay cut, play for incentives. And it just never went anywhere… They don’t have any interest in bringing me back.  That’s fine. That’s baseball. I enjoyed the time I played there and I made a lot of good friends there. I want to put myself in the best opportunity now to go out and play for a competitive team and maybe get to the playoffs."

Springer, 40, posted a 2.32 ERA in 50 1/3 innings for St. Louis last season.  He claims to have a couple of contract offers on the table, but would not reveal which teams they’re from. 

Rosenthal On Andruw, Nady, Lyon, Madson

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The latest from Ken Rosenthal…

  • The Braves are pulling back for the moment in their search for an outfield bat.  They’ll hope for a free agent bargain or the right trade.  Rosenthal says they’re torn about Andruw Jones.  The Braves seek a right-handed hitter but aren’t dead set on it.  They were unwilling to meet the Yankees’ demands for Xavier Nady.
  • Brandon Lyon’s agent is telling teams he has a two-year, $9MM offer in hand (Kyle Farnsworth money).  The Tigers or Twins are possibilities there, while the Cardinals may have offered one year.  Jon Paul Morosi confirms Detroit’s interest, but says they’ve yet to make an offer.  Morosi believes the Tigers have about $5MM left in their budget.
  • Ryan Madson turned down a three-year, $12MM extension from the Phillies.  The Scott Boras client is eligible for free agency after the season.
  • Execs have all kinds of concerns with Oliver Perez: his flyball tendencies, frequent walks, and inability to reach 200 innings.
  • The Yankees have little interest in Ben Sheets and Freddy Garcia.  The Rangers, Mets, and White Sox remain in the mix for Garcia.
  • The Brewers and other teams are in on Braden Looper, while the Orioles and Dodgers have backed off.
  • Edgardo Alfonzo is playing well in the Venezuelan Winter League and could make a comeback.

Cards Could Pursue Free Agent Pitchers

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According to MLB.com’s Matthew Leach, the Cardinals would love to upgrade their rotation and could do so via free agency. Ideally they would trade an outfielder for pitching, but the Cards are interested in pitchers with limited health risks willing to sign a short-term contract.

Leach confirmed with Jon Garland’s agent that the Cardinals "have called," but nothing has happened beyond that. Leach breaks down the chances that Andy Pettitte, Braden Looper, Randy Wolf, Odalis Perez, Ben Sheets or even Oliver Perez ends up in St. Louis.

The Cardinals appear unlikely to add a reliver or a second baseman.

Rosenthal On Lackey, Dunn, Young, Isringhausen

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Here’s a look at the latest from Ken Rosenthal.

  • John Lackey is due up for extension talks with the Angels, as he’ll be eligible for free agency after the ’09 season.  He’d easily be the best available starter.  Rosenthal says talks with the Angels should occur before the beginning of the season, but the Halos may not be willing to offer A.J. Burnett money (five years, $82.5MM).  In November, Jayson Stark said Lackey had been telling friends he expects to have an extension by Opening Day.  That came after Lackey’s confirmation he’d wait to see the Angels’ offensive plans before re-signing.
  • The Braves paid $60MM for Derek Lowe, though no one else made a comparable offer.  This is a testament to Scott Boras (and perhaps the Braves’ desperation), though Boras has more challenging work ahead in Manny Ramirez and Jason Varitek.
  • The Red Sox have shown interest in Adam Dunn, one rival exec tells Rosenthal.  Rosenthal considers the possibility a longshot – "a square peg in a round hole."  The Sox could always make a midseason deal if their offense isn’t cutting it.
  • A Rangers official put Michael Young’s chances of being with the team on Opening Day at at least 90%.  The Rangers aren’t interested in moving Ian Kinsler to left field and Young to second base.
  • Rosenthal believes Xavier Nady is likely to garner Type A status when he becomes a free agent after the ’09 season, but half of the equation (his 2009 stats) is missing.
  • Jason Isringhausen is considering four teams, and he’d have a shot to close for those clubs.  The Dodgers aren’t terribly interested, while the Cardinals and Tigers are possibilities.
  • Should the Mets sign Andy Pettitte as well as Randy Wolf or Oliver Perez?  One rival exec suggested the idea.
  • The Astros apparently made a three-year, $28.5MM offer to Wolf before pulling it back.  Looks like he’ll be settling for less.
  • Rosenthal says a Rangers trade for Jermaine Dye is "not happening."  They’ll go with Hank Blalock’s left-handed offense rather than sign an aging veteran.  Blalock is headed into a contract year.
  • If Todd Helton has a healthy spring, the Rockies could shop Garrett Atkins.
  • The Red Sox and D’Backs are not close to a deal involving catcher Miguel Montero.  Arizona will need to add a capable backup catcher if they do find a deal for Montero.
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