Update: For some reason my scripts missed Joe Kelly when assembling these tables and caught the mistake when creating the Class of 2012 minor league tables.
In this installment and being the first day of the World Series between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Boston Red Sox we’ll take a peek into some of the Cardinal’s stand out players from the 2013 and in the playoffs and look at their traversal through the Cardinal system. Previously the Top Ten Cardinals based on WAA was posted here.
First let’s take a look at the NLCS MVP, Michael Wacha.
Michael Wacha
Michael came from their PCL AAA team and posted a good half year and then moved up to pitch very well. His WAA=1.7 is above average. Since his MLB stats are truncated, only 64 IPs in 15 games, WAA can’t tell the entire story but it is quite positive. In cases like this you have to check ERA, 2.78, which is very good. Had Wacha pitched double those innings he would probably double his WAA score. WAA~4 is a solid playoff contender regular player.
| Year | WAA | BA/IP | OBP/ERA | PA/G | RBI/W | R/L | Name_Tm | BAT/PITCH |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 0.7 | 8.0 | 0.00 | 4 | 0 | 0 | Michael_Wacha_Palm_Beach_Cardinals_SLN_fla | PITCH |
| 2012 | 0.6 | 8.0 | 1.12 | 4 | 0 | 0 | Michael_Wacha_Springfield_Cardinals_SLN_tex | PITCH |
| 2013 | 3.7 | 85.0 | 2.65 | 15 | 5 | 3 | Michael_Wacha_Memphis_Redbirds_SLN_pcl | PITCH |
| 2013 | 1.7 | 64.7 | 2.78 | 15 | 4 | 1 | Michael_Wacha_SLN | PITCH |
Matt Carpenter
| Year | WAA | BA/IP | OBP/ERA | PA/G | RBI/W | R/L | Name_Tm | BAT/PITCH |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 0.6 | 0.283 | 0.441 | 128 | 16 | 17 | Matt_Carpenter_Palm_Beach_Cardinals_SLN_fla | BAT |
| 2010 | 2.7 | 0.316 | 0.412 | 472 | 53 | 76 | Matt_Carpenter_Springfield_Cardinals_SLN_tex | BAT |
| 2011 | -1.7 | 0.300 | 0.417 | 535 | 70 | 61 | Matt_Carpenter_Memphis_Redbirds_SLN_pcl | BAT |
| 2011 | -0.5 | 0.067 | 0.263 | 19 | 0 | 0 | Matt_Carpenter_SLN | BAT |
| 2012 | -0.2 | 0.143 | 0.333 | 9 | 0 | 1 | Matt_Carpenter_Memphis_Redbirds_SLN_pcl | BAT |
| 2012 | 1.8 | 0.294 | 0.365 | 340 | 46 | 44 | Matt_Carpenter_SLN | BAT |
| 2012 | 0.4 | 0.300 | 0.462 | 13 | 3 | 3 | Matt_Carpenter_Springfield_Cardinals_SLN_tex | BAT |
| 2013 | 5.7 | 0.318 | 0.392 | 717 | 78 | 126 | Matt_Carpenter_SLN | BAT |
Allen Craig
| Year | WAA | BA/IP | OBP/ERA | PA/G | RBI/W | R/L | Name_Tm | BAT/PITCH |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 3.6 | 0.304 | 0.373 | 568 | 85 | 84 | Allen_Craig_Springfield_Cardinals_SLN_tex | BAT |
| 2009 | 3.3 | 0.322 | 0.374 | 521 | 83 | 78 | Allen_Craig_Memphis_Redbirds_SLN_pcl | BAT |
| 2010 | 5.2 | 0.320 | 0.389 | 350 | 81 | 57 | Allen_Craig_Memphis_Redbirds_SLN_pcl | BAT |
| 2010 | 0.3 | 0.246 | 0.298 | 124 | 18 | 12 | Allen_Craig_SLN | BAT |
| 2011 | 0.4 | 0.286 | 0.359 | 39 | 5 | 9 | Allen_Craig_Memphis_Redbirds_SLN_pcl | BAT |
| 2011 | 2.8 | 0.315 | 0.362 | 219 | 40 | 33 | Allen_Craig_SLN | BAT |
| 2011 | -0.1 | 0.000 | 0.125 | 8 | 1 | 0 | Allen_Craig_Springfield_Cardinals_SLN_tex | BAT |
| 2012 | -0.1 | 0.364 | 0.417 | 12 | 1 | 1 | Allen_Craig_Palm_Beach_Cardinals_SLN_fla | BAT |
| 2012 | 0.6 | 0.353 | 0.353 | 17 | 7 | 3 | Allen_Craig_Memphis_Redbirds_SLN_pcl | BAT |
| 2012 | 6.3 | 0.307 | 0.354 | 514 | 92 | 76 | Allen_Craig_SLN | BAT |
| 2013 | 5.3 | 0.315 | 0.373 | 563 | 97 | 71 | Allen_Craig_SLN | BAT |
Joe Kelly
| Year | WAA | BA/IP | OBP/ERA | PA/G | RBI/W | R/L | Name_Tm | BAT/PITCH |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 2.3 | 72.2 | 2.60 | 12 | 5 | 2 | Joe_Kelly_Palm_Beach_Cardinals_SLN_fla | PITCH |
| 2011 | -0.9 | 59.1 | 5.01 | 11 | 6 | 4 | Joe_Kelly_Springfield_Cardinals_SLN_tex | PITCH |
| 2012 | 3.2 | 72.1 | 2.86 | 12 | 2 | 5 | Joe_Kelly_Memphis_Redbirds_SLN_pcl | PITCH |
| 2012 | 1.1 | 107.0 | 3.53 | 24 | 5 | 7 | Joe_Kelly_SLN | PITCH |
| 2013 | 3.5 | 124.0 | 2.69 | 37 | 10 | 5 | Joe_Kelly_SLN | PITCH |
Shelby Miller
Shelby Miller rifled through A+ and AA, was so so at AAA PCL level and then threw an extremely good 1.32 ERA over 6 games, ~14 IP in 2012. The Cardinals must have liked what they saw and he became a solid starter for the team in 2013.
| Year | WAA | BA/IP | OBP/ERA | PA/G | RBI/W | R/L | Name_Tm | BAT/PITCH |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 1.4 | 53.0 | 2.89 | 9 | 2 | 3 | Shelby_Miller_Palm_Beach_Cardinals_SLN_fla | PITCH |
| 2011 | 3.6 | 86.2 | 2.70 | 16 | 9 | 3 | Shelby_Miller_Springfield_Cardinals_SLN_tex | PITCH |
| 2012 | -0.2 | 136.2 | 4.74 | 27 | 11 | 10 | Shelby_Miller_Memphis_Redbirds_SLN_pcl | PITCH |
| 2012 | 0.9 | 13.7 | 1.32 | 6 | 1 | 0 | Shelby_Miller_SLN | PITCH |
| 2013 | 3.3 | 173.3 | 3.06 | 31 | 15 | 9 | Shelby_Miller_SLN | PITCH |
Kevin Siegrist
I had to double check that ERA of 0.45. Letting up hardly any runs over almost 40 IP in 45 games will really boost WAA. A pitcher’s only job is to limit the amount of runs against the other team inflicts. A pitcher who can make lots of outs without giving up runs is a very valuable player. Most likely Siegrist will not be able to keep his ERA that low all year.
| Year | WAA | BA/IP | OBP/ERA | PA/G | RBI/W | R/L | Name_Tm | BAT/PITCH |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 0.6 | 52.2 | 3.42 | 11 | 0 | 3 | Kevin_Siegrist_Palm_Beach_Cardinals_SLN_fla | PITCH |
| 2012 | 2.0 | 55.1 | 2.28 | 10 | 6 | 0 | Kevin_Siegrist_Palm_Beach_Cardinals_SLN_fla | PITCH |
| 2012 | 0.3 | 32.1 | 3.62 | 8 | 1 | 2 | Kevin_Siegrist_Springfield_Cardinals_SLN_tex | PITCH |
| 2013 | 0.8 | 20.0 | 2.25 | 13 | 1 | 1 | Kevin_Siegrist_Springfield_Cardinals_SLN_tex | PITCH |
| 2013 | 0.6 | 7.2 | 1.17 | 5 | 1 | 0 | Kevin_Siegrist_Memphis_Redbirds_SLN_pcl | PITCH |
| 2013 | 3.3 | 39.7 | 0.45 | 45 | 3 | 1 | Kevin_Siegrist_SLN | PITCH |
Matt Adams
Matt Adams came up in 2012 and did OK over 91 plate appearances. He has had a very good 2013.
| Year | WAA | BA/IP | OBP/ERA | PA/G | RBI/W | R/L | Name_Tm | BAT/PITCH |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 6.3 | 0.300 | 0.357 | 513 | 101 | 80 | Matt_Adams_Springfield_Cardinals_SLN_tex | BAT |
| 2012 | 2.2 | 0.329 | 0.362 | 276 | 50 | 41 | Matt_Adams_Memphis_Redbirds_SLN_pcl | BAT |
| 2012 | 0.2 | 0.244 | 0.286 | 91 | 13 | 8 | Matt_Adams_SLN | BAT |
| 2013 | 0.0 | 0.250 | 0.250 | 12 | 2 | 1 | Matt_Adams_Springfield_Cardinals_SLN_tex | BAT |
| 2013 | 3.2 | 0.284 | 0.335 | 319 | 51 | 46 | Matt_Adams_SLN | BAT |
Now we’ll dive further down into the Cardinal’s roster.
Seth Maness
Very good ERA over 62 IP and 66 games played.
| Year | WAA | BA/IP | OBP/ERA | PA/G | RBI/W | R/L | Name_Tm | BAT/PITCH |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | -0.1 | 8.1 | 4.32 | 3 | 1 | 0 | Seth_Maness_Palm_Beach_Cardinals_SLN_fla | PITCH |
| 2012 | 1.9 | 46.0 | 2.15 | 7 | 3 | 1 | Seth_Maness_Palm_Beach_Cardinals_SLN_fla | PITCH |
| 2012 | 2.1 | 123.2 | 3.27 | 20 | 11 | 3 | Seth_Maness_Springfield_Cardinals_SLN_tex | PITCH |
| 2013 | 0.1 | 25.0 | 4.32 | 4 | 2 | 2 | Seth_Maness_Memphis_Redbirds_SLN_pcl | PITCH |
| 2013 | 2.3 | 62.0 | 2.32 | 66 | 5 | 2 | Seth_Maness_SLN | PITCH |
Trevor Rosenthal
Another reliever with a sub 3 ERA. Every little contribution helps. Trevor contributed 2.2 wins out of SLN’s +32 this year.
| Year | WAA | BA/IP | OBP/ERA | PA/G | RBI/W | R/L | Name_Tm | BAT/PITCH |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 0.2 | 15.0 | 4.20 | 3 | 0 | 0 | Trevor_Rosenthal_Memphis_Redbirds_SLN_pcl | PITCH |
| 2012 | 2.8 | 94.0 | 2.78 | 17 | 8 | 6 | Trevor_Rosenthal_Springfield_Cardinals_SLN_tex | PITCH |
| 2012 | 0.7 | 22.7 | 2.78 | 19 | 0 | 2 | Trevor_Rosenthal_SLN | PITCH |
| 2013 | 2.2 | 75.3 | 2.63 | 74 | 2 | 4 | Trevor_Rosenthal_SLN | PITCH |
Daniel Descalo
Daniel struggled the last few years but pulled it together this year to post a greater than 1 WAA.
| Year | WAA | BA/IP | OBP/ERA | PA/G | RBI/W | R/L | Name_Tm | BAT/PITCH |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | -0.0 | 0.351 | 0.405 | 42 | 4 | 6 | Daniel_Descalso_Springfield_Cardinals_SLN_tex | BAT |
| 2009 | -0.4 | 0.253 | 0.327 | 172 | 17 | 23 | Daniel_Descalso_Memphis_Redbirds_SLN_pcl | BAT |
| 2009 | 2.2 | 0.323 | 0.396 | 324 | 51 | 46 | Daniel_Descalso_Springfield_Cardinals_SLN_tex | BAT |
| 2010 | 2.1 | 0.282 | 0.350 | 531 | 71 | 86 | Daniel_Descalso_Memphis_Redbirds_SLN_pcl | BAT |
| 2010 | 0.2 | 0.265 | 0.324 | 37 | 4 | 6 | Daniel_Descalso_SLN | BAT |
| 2011 | -2.0 | 0.264 | 0.334 | 375 | 28 | 35 | Daniel_Descalso_SLN | BAT |
| 2012 | -2.8 | 0.227 | 0.303 | 426 | 26 | 41 | Daniel_Descalso_SLN | BAT |
| 2013 | 1.1 | 0.238 | 0.290 | 358 | 43 | 43 | Daniel_Descalso_SLN | BAT |
I’ll stop here. There are quite a few players between 0 and 1 but that’s right around average. There is nothing wrong with being average because that player is not hurting the team and everyone can’t be above average. Negative WAAs hurt a team. Some of the above players may play bit parts for the Cardinals but they all performed very well in 2013, played a significant role in the Cardinals winning 97 games, and all came up recently from the Cardinals’ farm system.