WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. 鈥 A rookie reporter crashed this spring training鈥檚 final Grapefruit League pregame scrum of Cardinals manager Oli Marmol.
Marmol on Sunday morning had been reflecting on the conclusion of this Florida portion of preparation as the scene prepared to shift to Arizona for two exhibition games against the Cubs.
The Cardinals are down to those two tuneups before a chaotic opening day and series against the Dodgers in Los Angeles.
Catcher Willson Contreras, seeing Marmol and a few reporters, joined the huddle and held up the barrel of his bat, pretending it was a microphone.
The Cardinals鈥 vibes are good. Much better than those of the bulk of their fans, it seems. Soon enough, we see if the team and its supporters will once again find the same page. Winning cures all.
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鈥淲e really like where we鈥檙e at as a club,鈥 Marmol said. 鈥淲e set out to do several things in this camp, and I feel like we were able to accomplish all of them. The team, the overall feel, the confidence of the group and the camaraderie in the clubhouse, it鈥檚 where we need it to be. The attention to detail all camp has been really good. The focus and the emphasis on the fundamentals, defensively and base runnning have been really good. So as a staff, we are satisfied with this camp.鈥
As the Cardinals head west, let鈥檚 hand out some spring training superlatives:
Biggest story: injuries, unfortunately. The top rotation addition (Sonny Gray, hamstring); one of the top bullpen additions (Keynan Middleton, forearm); and two of the projected starting outfielders (Lars Nootbaar, ribs, and Tommy Edman, wrist) are starting the season on the injured list. The Cardinals will start a brutal first month schedule-wise without their best roster. Buckle up.
Biggest concern: It鈥檚 a familiar one. The rotation. Cardinals starters produced a Grapefruit League rotation ERA of 5.82. Opponents averaged .295 against them. The Cardinals hope to have Gray back against the Phillies for a home game on April 9. Miles Mikolas, Zack Thompson, Lance Lynn, Steven Matz and Kyle Gibson have to score quality starts until then and after, or the offseason plan falls apart.
Biggest bummer: Alas, pitcher Jordan Montgomery never showed up. He鈥檚 still a free agent. The Cardinals monitored his market but think the ask from agent Scott Boras is way too high. It doesn鈥檛 seem to be coming down, and if it does, there are fair questions about how ready Montgomery will be after such a strange offseason. The Cardinals should have added two starters better than Mikolas this offseason. They added one in Gray, and now he鈥檚 injured but hopefully not for long. More outside help does not appear to be on the way.
Best quote: 鈥淲e鈥檙e not exactly a low-payroll team, but you鈥檝e got the Dodgers playing checkbook baseball. And we are going to go out there and be the hardest-working group of Midwestern farmers that we can be out there. If there鈥檚 a series you want to win early, any time of the year, it鈥檚 great to go out there and stick it to the Dodgers.鈥
Biggest quote: 鈥淥bviously, we want to get back to where we were competitive every year and do what we have to do to have a shot of not only getting in the playoffs but going deep in the playoffs.鈥
That鈥檚 the first sign in a while of DeWitt and president of baseball operations John Mozeiak鈥檚 front office not sharing almost identical talking points. Interesting.
Best play: Matt Carpenter conquered a tarp. Paul Goldschmidt crashed into a dugout. Nolan Arenado bare-handed a bunt. Nolan Gorman and Alec Burleson looked slimmer and smoother at second base and corner outfield, respectively.
But nothing beat out Victor Scott II climbing the wall in West Palm Beach to rob a CJ Abrams homer. Scott鈥檚 impressive push for the opening day roster fell short for a few reasons, some out of his control. He can use some time in Class AAA to have better answers for the high areas of the strike zones pitchers started targeting against him late in camp. But his speed and his defense are elite, and his bat is getting better fast.
鈥淭his kid is going to help us at some point,鈥 Marmol said. 鈥淭his year. I鈥檒l tell you that. He will.鈥
Best bullpen surprise: long, lanky and effective Riley O鈥橞rien, and Andre Pallante鈥檚 newfound swagger on the mound.
Most resiliency shown: on the position side, Dylan Carlson. He took and ran with the opportunity created by injuries to Edman and Nootbaar. Then he answered the bell when Scott challenged. He hit a team-high three homers here and slugged .521. He鈥檚 playing somewhat angry, and that鈥檚 good. On the pitching side, Zack Thompson. He didn鈥檛 flinch when he was assumed to be out of the rotation, and he outperformed his friend Matthew Liberatore once again to earn the fifth starter spot until Gray鈥檚 return forces a conversation.
Loudest camp: Don鈥檛 overlook who was left in the big league clubhouse even after hotshot prospect Scott was sent down. That would be utility infielder Thomas Saggese, who has proven to the big league staff that his bat is big league ready. He seems to be one injury away from being called up to the majors.
Quietest camp, bad edition: Paul Goldschmidt left here averaging .116 with a .220 on-base percentage and a .233 slugging percentage. No Cardinal had more Grapefruit League strikeouts than his 19. If shortstop Masyn Winn, who had a cold camp (.579 OPS), struggles at the plate, it鈥檚 not a huge problem. If 36-year-old Goldschmidt (.453 Grapefruit League OPS) does, it鈥檚 a different story. He could be one swing away from breaking out, but he鈥檚 never had a spring so cold.
Quietest camp, good edition: After a chaotic Cardinals debut season, all is calm and well for catcher Contreras. Expect good things from him. Honorable mention: Gorman鈥檚 unbothered back.
Biggest pleasant surprise: Some fumed when the Cardinals brought back Carpenter as last man on the bench and veteran clubhouse presence. Well, he鈥檚 leading as expected and slashed .348/.429/.652 in Florida. No, it doesn鈥檛 have to mean Carpenter starts at designated hitter on opening day. Alec Burleson, who also had a great spring, exists.
Biggest conversation starter: Marmol鈥檚 two-year contract extension after a 91-loss 2023 season generated many opinions. Said the manager: 鈥淚 understand the noise outside. Probably somewhat unpopular in certain circles. But the reality is, I鈥檓 dedicated to getting us to where we need to get to. We are taking really good strides in that direction.鈥
Best day: easy. Brendan Donovan and his wife, Aly, welcomed their baby girl, Vivian, into the world on March 15. Add diaper-changing to Donovan鈥檚 versatility.
Worst dressed: Surprisingly, not the sportswriters! Every player is the answer, thanks to Nike and Fanatics teaming up to ruin MLB uniforms. You saw how bad they looked on TV. Trust me when I tell you they are worse in person.