It is nearly impossible to predict what type of season the Cardinals will have in 2008 because so much hinges on the health of a few key players. The starting rotation is a mess, but the hope is that Dave Duncan will work his magic with the group of misfit toys he has been given. Best case scenario would be that Adam Wainwright, Braden Looper, Joel Pineiro, Anthony Reyes, and Matt Clement pitch well enough to keep the Cards in the hunt until stud pitchers Mark Mulder and Chris Carpenter return from injury at full strength and immediately put the team over the top in the weak National League Central. That plan is flawed on two fronts: first, assuming that Mulder and Carpenter come back at all is a stretch, let alone returning to their pre-injury form; second, asking for that staff to hold off the Cub and Brewer offenses for half the season is expecting a lot of magic, even from Dave Duncan.
Offensively, even the most cynical Cardinal fan has to crack a smile knowing that Albert Pujols will be back at first base in 2008. Outside of that, however, are a lot of questions. Chris Duncan will provide power, probably in front of Pujols, but should not be expected to do a whole lot more. If new addition Troy Glaus is healthy, he will be solid protection for Pujols at the cleanup spot. If the Cardinals are going to have any success offensively they will need Rick Ankiel to return to his post-promotion form (where he probably had Hollywood producers scrambling to buy the movie rights to his life story) and he will have to avoid going into the tank like he did when the HGH allegations came up. Cardinal fans can not reasonably expect anything big from the rest of the offense, save a pleasant surprise from a player like Adam Kennedy or an offensive breakout from Yadier Molina, both of which seem unlikely. That said, the Cardinals have enough fire power in the middle of their lineup to combine with a solid starting pitching effort (hopefully from a staff including Mark Mulder and Chris Carpenter) to compete in a very winnable National League Central.
