What is the story about?
Today I’d simply like to take a look at who is still on the team so that I can compare further down the road what is happening to the Cardinals with Bloom at the helm, and to add any comments to what I think will happen to each player. I feel like this list of players may look a lot different in a couple two, three months! Listed in order of best player to least valuable…
- Masyn Winn lead the team with his elite defense, gold glove, and wily ways at the plate. To become a true star player, he will need to improve his hitting. He is good at putting the ball into play, making hits that are at times unexpected, but he will need to up his power back to his 2024 levels to have a chance at being remembered as a pretty decent hitter. After 316 games, his career 91 wRC+ matches his 2025 mark. So that may be what we have got with Winn. He’s the type of hitter that isn’t going to strike out a ton, but will rarely take a walk. Perhaps due to his knee pain, his batting average, obp, and power numbers were all down. Steamer and Fangraphs, and myself, think he can hit over 100 wRC+ going forward. His BABIP numbers hover around .300, so he’s not being unlucky, nor too overly lucky, so maybe he’s just a league average hitter. I’ll take that with a gold glove and plus plus defense! Maybe this will be the only year he is the best defensive shortstop in baseball, but he also still hasn’t reached his peak years.
Chance of being traded: slim and none. - Brendan Donovan was our lone All-Star because of a torrid first half and some strong moments in the second half. He is good for a roughly league average defender utilityman who can move around the diamond, but also play some corner outfield without much worry. He’s experienced in both the infield and outfield! He’s got that “veteran” leadership thing going on, so this will probably attract contender type teams looking for postseason greats. Maybe Donovan is such a player! But it’s not going to happen for him here in St Louis, at least for a few years. He’s quite likely to be the first player traded away, with the complications of full NTCs on other Cardinal veterans. Donovan will hit 10-15 home runs per year with contact heavy offense resulting in doubles and singles, usually. Brendan is an exciting player, but is more of a top notch, complimentary utility guy than anything. He’s at his peak years at 28 (29 next season). The Cardinals will wisely try to get the most possible value for Brendan Donovan, so things may not happen quickly. There has already been a lot of buzz about Donny being moved, and I’d be surprised if he’s a Cardinal in 2026.
Chance of being traded: any day now. - Willson Contreras could still be someone’s back up catcher, but the big story in Willson’s career now is that he’s one of the best defensive first basemen in the game while still being one of the better hitters in MLB. His walk percentage fell to its lowest levels in 2025, so he was probably pressing more in his new role at 1B; or was it because he had a dismal start to the season, and was injured, missing over 20 games? …which isn’t a ton but, he only played in 125, 84, and last year 135 games… I guess for him as a Cardinal, that was a pretty solid season of total games played. As a first baseman, he will be expected to play in more games, so it’s a bit unsure how he will do next year. The move to first base was a good one, but Alec Burleson was a very similar hitter in 2025. Burly’s defense at first base is far less a liability than him in the outfield, but since we are talking about Willson Contreras, there’s around 5 OAA difference between the two players. Willson Contreras with his competitive energy, offensive upside, and newfound defensive prowess would be greatly missed: perhaps even more than Brendan Donovan. And we should note, he was the only Cardinal to reach 20 home runs in 2025 (arbitrary endpoints and all, but fact). He will enter the season at 33, but will be 34 before the All Star Break. So this could be his last really good season, with his newfound 1st baseman status. Maybe it will be his best.
Chance of being traded: I have revised my opinion on this from unlikely to somewhere around 50/50… any defense forward team will be after such a first baseman. And if they want a producer down the stretch or in the playoffs, I think I’d like to have Willson on my side, if I were them. He’s a big ? as far as if he will be here next year, or not. Added complication of the full NTC, of course… he has stated that he would like to be an elder to the up and coming Redbirds. It makes sense for him to be traded but, there are also just as many signs of him staying with the birds on the bat. - Ivan Herrera speaking of injuries, Herrera had an oft injured 2025 playing in 107 games. That’s not a terrible number, but it was frustrating for both the fans and for Ivan who didn’t stick at catcher but hit like one of the best players in MLB. There are not a ton of .800 OPS guys these days, and we have one of them. Other players who posted at or near a 137 wRC+ were Vladimir Guerrero Jr, Arizona batsmen Carroll and Perdomo, and the Braves Matt Olson, just to name a few. If you extrapolate Herrera’s 19 home runs to a 150 game season, he would’ve hit 27 or so. Herrera will be age 25 and 26 in 2026, about to enter his prime.
Chance of being traded: out of every Cardinal player, Herrera is probably the least likely to be traded. - Alec Burleson is the other primary Cardinal who is not likely to be traded… the Cardinals MLB players to build around in their cost controlled years at this time are Winn, Herrera, and Burleson. Burleson’s lack of defensive prowess and slowly blossoming hitting might make him more likely to be traded than usual, because Big Burly Al is made redundant if Willson Contreras is of the mind he wants to stay. He would then just become a more full time DH and also play a few outfield starts while backing up first base, but not many of us want to see that. You want to keep him because he will probably hit over 20 home runs next year while making a ton of contact for singles and doubles too. He doesn’t strike out much, but also doesn’t walk much, being from sort of the same school of slappy contact hitting that Donovan and Winn showcase at times. Burleson will always be a bit of a liability on defense, but he’s only a tick below average at first. He could be a valuable foundation for the team, even if he’s a bit limited. He’s still only 26. His fate is tied to Willson Contreras and if Ivan Herrera is to occupy the DH spot or not. I’m torn on if they should trade Contreras, Burleson, or maybe just keep both? That will depend on where Ivan Herrera plays.
Chance of being traded: not likely, but possible with Contreras on the team. - Sonny Gray was more valuable than any Cardinals player by fWAR, but as far as his effectiveness goes in his results from last year, it feels more like this is where he should be rankings-wise. Also, I just forgot to include pitchers until now! Maybe I should’ve ranked him above Burly, but he’s also being floated as tradebait, so I can live with the temporary omission. Gray could go either way next year, be here or not, and entering his age 36 season, you just never know. I am torn on if he should be traded or not, and he could be one of the more difficult decisions made according to Bloom’s new roster machinations. I can only arrive at the usual conclusion, trade him only for the right deal, aka folk wisdom. Common sense. Gray could still certainly be good with his over 10 K/9, 3.07 xFIP, and BABIP against hopefully regressing to something more normal. But what many are worried about is just how hard he got hit when people connected. He will need to avoid the longball next year, but his LD% did not go up. In fact it was a little bit lower than usual! Another confusing Sonny Gray season. To be determined…
Chance of being traded: 60/40 it feels like, even though it might seem like a good idea to keep him in the rotation, it feels like another team would be apt to acquire him and pay up with some prospects and/or maybe a blend of MLB level players, if it’s part of a multi-player deal. At the least, 50/50 chance of being traded. - Matthew Liberatore could be a good player if he keeps up the trend of lowering his BB/9 every year. And upping his innings each season too. In his first full season as part of the starting rotation, Liberatore held the line with a FIP around 4 and an ERA not too much higher. This puts him more in the back end rotation category, but our rotation was so awful he seemed really good. But that’s the thing, he started off pretty amazing! And faded as the season progressed. Maybe if he’s more used to being a starter, he will get better and be more mid-rotation, eventually. He flaunted some higher ceiling for a couple months, but I wouldn’t bank on it. Surprisingly, Liberatore is only 26 years old, so he could be a part of the team for a while if he sticks in the rotation. Maybe his peak is still yet to come years from now… he seems like a slow bloomer.
Chance of being traded: unlikely. - Kyle Leahy posted a fantastic ERA and FIP last season at 3.07 and 3.04, but his xERA and xFIP look pretty scary. It is anyone’s guess how he will transform into a starting rotation arm, with numbers like that. When the difference between ERA and xERA is almost 1.5, that just gives me some pause. That said, my gut says he will probably do ok as a starter. He was after all more valuable than most of the starting rotation in 2025, out of the bullpen. If he can condition in the offseason and make the leap from 88 IP to 150 or so, kind of like Liberatore did, he could help pad a thin rotation and make it better than last year, at least.
Chance of being traded: highly unlikely; I don’t think anyone would trade what the Cardinals would want for him. And they have plans for him to be in the 2026 rotation. - Victor Scott II is a very defense forward player, but he’s one of the best defenders in MLB. So if he can start hitting more, he will be a big part of the future of the Cardinals. That doesn’t seem likely though, his future is likely as more of a 4th outfielder. Scott is only 24, so it’s impossible to say what his future is, exactly. It’s just unlikely he will be able to come close to a league average hitter with a career OBP of .283 in 191 games. He will probably be a defensive substitute in center field, which can save games. His impressive speed would be such a huge benefit if he could just get on base.
Chance of being traded: unlikely, unless some team thinks they have a good plan to make him a better hitter. Still, the Cardinals outfield is so thin I don’t see them trading VSII away at this time. - Pedro Pages can’t hit much or maybe is an ok streaky hitter; he’s more of a stalwart defender than anything. He doesn’t really have one area in his catching skills repertoire where he excels at, rather he is overall a defensive backstop. And that has some value. But just to give you an idea of how limiting his hitting might be, his OBP of .272 was one of the worst on the team, not even close to as much as Victor Scott II got on base, which is pretty bad! His .133 ISO means he will find some home runs here and there, but he’s mostly suited to being a backup catcher. Pages not an elite level defender in my estimation. As a starter he’s not the worst catcher, his defense is comparable to Cal Raleigh. Not saying he’s going to hit 60 home runs, but, he’s a good defender. Just not among the best, and a liability on offense.
Chance of being traded: 50/50 maybe? I could see him being part of a package deal, if the organization is still attached to Jimmy Crooks III. A good backup catcher would be valuable to many teams. The fact that they have so many catchers means any one of them could be moved, except I would expect prospect Bernal. - Matt Svanson impressed many fans with his strong 2025: ERA 1.94, 2.72 FIP, K/9 over 10. I even had the feeling this guy could one day be a starting pitcher, but I’m dreaming a bit here. He ended up pitching over 60 innings, and looked like he still had a lot of energy even towards the end of the year. He is one of the more exciting aspects of the Cardinals’ pitching at this point, his statline was electric.
Chance of being traded: very unlikely. - Michael McGreevy was limited to 95 innings, but that was paving his way into a full season as a starting rotation lynchpin in 2026. His results look more like a #5 pitcher, but if he can improve upon his ERA and get closer to his FIP of 4.27, one day he could move more towards a good #4, maybe better. It just seems like he has that kind of poise and enough abilities to be honed that he should be something more than a back end rotation starter. That said, it’s entirely possible he could end up more of a longman #6. Still a big part of the future plans of the Cardinals, nonetheless. I suspect the days of us thinking that he is a possible front end starter are gone with the 2025 season.
Chance of being traded: not likely, he hasn’t really proven anything yet. Keep in mind, McG is 25 going on 26 years old. - JoJo Romero is a valuable bullpen arm and could easily be part of a trade. I’m not sure I see someone seeking out him in particular to trade away good prospects, but I could definitely see him go as part of a package deal. Romero’s 2.07 ERA in 2025 was his career best, and a 3.28 FIP is very encouraging. He avoided the longball which made him elite, and I would wager some team will take a bet on him in constructing an elite bullpen.
Chance of being traded: pretty likely! it will be sad to see him go but I think he will be part of a deal. - Nolan Arenado will be 35 in much of the 2026 season. In 107 games his defense remained well above normal, but his offense fell off a cliff with an OBP below .300! My guess is that he was playing injured much of the year, but his BABIP was only .241, so he could’ve had an off season as well. My guess: he isn’t done yet, as a hitter, but his career as a Cardinal is likely over. At least that’s how it feels right now. We have been through the idea and machinations regarding an Arenado trade ad nauseam but it seems more likely than ever now, unless we are all just high on the hype and the idea and the buzz surrounding a Nolan Arenado trade. It remains to be seen if any team even wants him at this point of his career, with his contract.
Chance of being traded: most definitely likely, but he does seem to stick around, doesn’t he? - Lars Nootbaar played in 135 games last year, which honestly seems like more games than he did play in… but anyways we now have the added knowledge that it is uncertain as to when he will be able to play next year, due to how uncommon the surgery he got on his heels is. And that he had been playing with this heel condition for multiple seasons just puts things into an air of mystery. Nooooot may have played more games than he usually does at 138, but he had his least good season to date. His OBP is usually a strength for him but in 2025 it was a pedestrian .325. It would seem that the unusual heel condition has sapped his power too. And his defense continued a downward trend from average to not so good.
Chance of being traded: only if someone wants to take on a reclamation project. Probably not traded. - Jose Fermin might be ranked higher than this if he could just find the playing time. He was really good at getting on base in 2025 with a .377 OBP! Do I think he’s as good as his 30 games in ‘25? No, not really. But he has earned a place in the outfield, if you ask me. He can also play the infield. If anything, he could be the new super utility guy. He’s only 26. But our outfield was so bad that it just makes sense to give him a chance out there and see what happens.
Chance of being traded: right handed hitter and possible future of the team whether as a bench piece or full timer…. not likely. - Thomas Saggese is only 23 years old, so I am refraining from having much of an opinion on his .299 OBP. He struck out too much and didn’t walk enough. In half a season of playing time, he didn’t really show much power either. That said, he could also be a part of the future of the Cardinals as a bench player or even eventually push his way onto the field more often. If he can flash any more home run potential.
Chance of being traded: right handed hitter who hasn’t yet shown his full potential, it’s tough to say what he is at this point… still kind of a prospect. Only if some team is interested and the deal makes sense for both teams. - Andre Pallante finally makes the list, but his time is running out. He’s 27, has a 4.25 FIP in 460 IP, walks too many batters, and has already attempted a pitching makeover which worked at first but doesn’t seem to be fooling anyone anymore. A groundball pitcher who gives up too many home runs doesn’t feel like a great asset, but he could survive by bouncing back to the bullpen or on a team with a thin rotation. That’s us! We could very well have to endure more Andre Pallante starts. If we do, I hope he can make another adjustment to be more like his 2024, because wouldn’t that be nice? He’s too confusing to deal with at this point. I wish we could part ways, but we also kind of need him a little bit, until things change at least.
Chance of being traded: unlikely. - Riley O’Brien made a leap forward into the Cardinals bullpen and threw for an ERA of 2.06 in 48 IP. The FIP and xFIP numbers aren’t nearly so elite, but they’re not alarming either at 3.61/3.88. He is walking far too many batters so far, but he’s also able to get out of it with good LOB% numbers. You may think of him more as a strikeout guy but he’s also pretty good at inducing groundballs.
Chance of being traded: doubtful. - Gordon Graceffo at no point last year was I not at least a little bit nervous when Graceffo pitched. He has had bad luck pitching in the majors, with an ERA north of 6 and a FIP of 2.93 in 2025. The verdict is still out on GG, but I wouldn’t want to have to rely on him too much at this point. I’m not impressed so far, despite the very encouraging FIP and xFIP.
Chance of being traded: not likely. - Yohel Pozo it pains me to see him so low on the list, probably the most clutch hitter of all time. Pozo hit 5 home runs in 67 games, so he does have some power as a hitter. However, the .262 OBP is just terrible. I do like him as a backup catcher for some team, but either him or Pages should probably be traded or something.
Chance of being traded: maybe? again, he would make a nice backup with some pop in the bat and good defense. Not all that much different than Pages. Both are good defenders. Pages is more polished, though. - Nathan Church was an exciting promotion because he had been hitting at AAA… but when he arrived at MLB that hitting ability dissipated into thin air. That said, he only played in 27 games (small sample size) so he’s still a part of the future with his superb defense. While he’s not the elite defender that Victor Scott II is, he probably does have more potential on offense than VSII. The problem was that he didn’t hit even nearly as good as VSII. I could see him making the team next season as an extra outfielder, especially if Nootbaar is out a while.
Chance of being traded: not very likely. - Andre Granillo pitched 42 innings at AAA and was an elite reliever at 1.29 ERA and 2.42 FIP. This did not however translate to MLB in 21 IP: 4.71 ERA, 4.42 FIP, and 4.91 xFIP. He retained his walk rate at the MLB level but he wasn’t striking out batters like he did in AAA. I would imagine him to be given a few more chances to impress in 2026, as he was maybe the Cardinals best reliever in the minor leagues. He didn’t really pitch much at the MLB level. Not yet.
Chance of being traded: probably not. - Chris Roycroft flashes signs of being effective but for the most part his Cardinals career has been a big dud. He was terrible by ERA in 2025 and his 5.56 career ERA in MLB in 55 IP doesn’t make it seem like he will be much of a factor going forward. Mut cut ties! He is walking too many batters and not striking out enough of them. Looking at his minor league track record it just doesn’t seem like he’s going to stick… he has control issues.
Chance of being traded: he should be more worried about losing his job. - Nolan Gorman was a replacement level player last year, and the year before. He can hit home runs but his isolated power numbers have been going down each year while his batting average hasn’t been improving. He is striking out a ton still, and just doesn’t seem like he will be anything more than a bench player at best. We now have over 1500 MLB PA on the books. I thought he was going to be a 30+ home run hitter, but he just never turned the corner into a better hitter after the league adusted to him. And perhaps he never will.
Chance of being traded: 50/50 if we are lucky, but we will probably have to DFA him at some point, or continue to watch him strike out and be below average on defense. I’ve pretty much lost hope. Here’s hoping he can turn it around, especially if we trade away Arenado. Otherwise who plays third? - Ryan Fernandez was our Rule 5 darling in 2024, but he absolutely crapped the bed in 2025. Whatever went right in 2024 switched up and went all wrong this past season. His 64 IP was split between AAA and MLB with a little more action at AAA. He did just fine in the minor leagues, but couldn’t be effective at the major league level anymore, for whatever reason. His K% actually went up a bit, and his walk rate didn’t really balloon. I’m just going to have to imagine his 2024 was a mirage.
Chance of being traded: nope, and he might be lucky to not be DFA’d soon. - Jimmy Crooks III was aggressively promoted, but he did not impress at the MLB level in 2025. Ain’t ready for primetime yet. His defense seemed ok at best, and his hitting caved his value to -.4 fWAR in only 15 games played. He struck out a lot, took no walks, and was unlucky on batted balls. Jimmy’s either ready for revenge next year, or he’s scared of MLB level play after such a performance. He is shaping up to be a possible backup catcher for someone, but we already have several of those. Or we just haven’t seen enough.
Chance of being traded: 50/50 I guess? We have too many catchers, but I don’t know if anyone would want him right now. - John King had an abysmal 2025 in 48.1 IP. The lefty specialist will probably not make the cut for any MLB team. Expect him not to make the roster. He’s still on the 40 man, for now.
Chance of being traded: he probably wishes. - Jordan Walker is now a seasoned MLB player in some ways, looking at his playing time. He was only a good hitter when he first came up, and then he hasn’t been able to figure out breaking pitches or much of anything hitting-wise in 2024 and 2025. His outfield defense has definitely improved since his rookie year, but not to the point where it’s actually good. The bright side is that he is only 23 and it’s possible that he has been totally mishandled by the organization and could transform if he has another year at AAA. Or maybe ne heeds to be traded? As with Gorman, I have pretty much lost all hope and can only see him as bogging down the team, but during a rebuild I suppose it’s not as much of an issue. It’s just really tough watching his at bats knowing that he doesn’t really do much for the team on defense, either. He may have a cannon for an arm and some serious wheels, but if he can’t hit, what does it matter really.
Chance of being traded: no idea if anyone would take a flier on him, but probably? I’d imagine he could be a flier complimentary piece to put a package deal over the top.
PLAN OF ACTION
- Trade Donovan and Romero for as much value as possible, whether it be for prospects or for an MLB ready SP or OF, whoever puts forth the best deal.
- Trade either Willson Contreras or Alec Burleson, again to the highest bidder! Whichever deal works out best for everyone involved.
- Keep Gray for the rotation but also add to it through trade of free agency… unless you get a good offer for him in trade.
- Keep Nootbaar and hope that he regains form because we need outfielders. It doesn’t make sense to DFA him yet, or to trade him at his lowest value.
- Play Jordan Walker at AAA all of 2026 or maybe call him up in September. Him playing at MLB level hasn’t been helping him or the team whatsoever.
- Trade Arenado if possible, if not he can still play 3B while we figure out the third baseman of the future.
- Don’t even pencil Kyle Leahy into the rotation all season, be ready to promote someone by June if he isn’t cutting it as a starting rotation arm. He’s a valuable bullpen piece.
- Play JJ Wetherholt at 2B, unless his spring training doesn’t go well then Saggese or Fermin can man the keystone until JJ is ready.
- DFA Gorman, Roycroft, Fernandez, Alcala, Prieto, and King. Nice knowing you Nolan 2, but you’ll probably have better luck elsewhere. Otherwise if Nolan 1 is traded, you’ve got one more shot early in 2026.
- Trade Pages or Crooks. Pozo is likely to be DFA’d and re-signed as depth at AAA level. It will probably be Pedro that will be traded, is my guess. It was fun but we have too many catchers!
- Sign Lane Thomas as outfield depth since Nootbaar is a big question mark. Maybe he will push Victor Scott II to defensive replacement? Otherwise there are plenty of other outfielders on the market, if we cannot trade for one.
- There are many, many pitchers on the market, Steven Matz would not be a bad option to bring back if the contract is correct.
- Ranger Suarez would be another good option! I don’t know that they will want to sign a big contract though.
- If they want to bolster the bullpen with a veteran arm, Maton, Helsley, Crismatt all available! And what seems like 50 other relievers.
- Work Svanson towards a starting pitcher role if he continues to impress. Or maybe he’s the closer.
- Play Fermin in the outfield to start the season; he can also play middle infield as a backup/super utilityman.
- Try out Herrera in the outfield more
I started writing this before I read Jake’s article from Tuesday, so it’s a bit of a retread, but hopefully you will
find another angle to be fun hot stove reading. We are still speculating a lot, and waiting to see what moves are made, but I think Chaim Bloom will find that addition by subtraction will be a fruitful endeavor, re-aligning the roster to what it needs to be going forward. Brendan Donovan and JJ Wetherholt are redundant, Willson Contreras and Alec Burleson are redundant, the catching glut needs to be addressed, you have to either remove or demote unproductive players, and most importantly improve both the starting rotation and the outfield.
The Future
Build around gold glover Masyn Winn, silver slugger Alec Burleson (if Contreras is traded), and blossoming slugger Ivan Herrera, along with up and coming phenom JJ Wetherholt. Perhaps Liam Doyle won’t be too far away either. The #1 projects are the rotation and the outfield, for now. (along with continuing improvements to the farm system)
And on a somewhat related note…
Who are the cheapest team owners pocketing the most money?
So, I cannot find anything more up to date, but dating back to 2024, the Dewitts don’t seem to totally deserve their stingy reputation, at least compared to other rich team owners, using sports as their extra piggy bank. These numbers are from Forbes and Sportrac, and posted as a chart by Brooksgate on twitter. This is based on 2024 revenue and 2025 payroll:
- The Mets blow through their money like no other team. 90% of their revenue goes to their payroll.
- The Dodgers are rather spend happy as well. These two teams should come as no surprise, but the Dodgers are far more intelligent about it, spending 73% on payroll but getting so much more out of their players.
- Blue Jays 71.5% showing that you have to spend to contend.
- Phillies spend 67.2% of their revenue on payroll.
- Diamondbacks are often in the mix because they spend two-thirds of their revenue on payroll.
- Padres surprisingly spend a little less on payroll than Arizona: 63.8% going into 2025.
- Rangers spend 57.1% on payroll.
- Angels 52.3% (wow do they look stupid)
- Royals 51.5%
- Orioles around 50%
- Yankees and Tigers just under 50%
- Astros, Giants, and Twins over 47%
- Mariners and Braves 46.1%
- Rockies and Athletics spend more on payroll than…
- The St Louis Cardinals spent 42.9% on payroll. But are rebuilding their infrastructure/training systems, at least?
- Cardinals are closest to the Reds in payroll %, just barely outspending them
- Red Sox and Nationals spend just over 42%
- The Brewers are pocketing some money but putting good teams on the field at 40.8%
- Now we get into the real stingy owners, pretty much the villains of the sport: Guardians, Cubs, Pirates, Rays, White Sox, and Marlins are using their franchises to make money over competing, in my opinion.
So while the Dewitts are certainly deserving of the Cheap Owner stereotype, and they should open DeWallet more than they do, they aren’t among the worst of the owners, at least. They are conservative in spending but not too exploitative. They try to treat the veteran players well with loyalty, and compete without spending too much. They were cheap in letting the training facilities go to hell, though. And sometimes I wish they’d just spend a little more, but I’m not too upset.
Roster Decisions Update
- Good news, Leonardo Bernal fans! He has been added to the 40 man roster!
- Alcala DFA’d
- Outfielder Joshua Baez added to the 40 man roster
- LH pitchers Hjerpe and Mautz added to 40 man as well
Blaze Jordan will be left unprotected in the Rule 5 draft, along with Pete Hansen who is also a good prospect.
Denton makes the argument that Bernal, Baez, and Mautz made the 40 man due to the success of AA Springfield, and he’s probably not wrong. Adding in Hjerpe shows the organization’s faith in his future, because he just had Tommy John surgery not too long ago (and not too long ago he was a first round draft pick). Bernal threw out 27 of 69 would be basestealers and subsequently won a gold glove about it, so if that doesn’t send a message to a certain someone, I don’t know what will. I keed, I keed… but… Interesting. He has some pop in the bat too.
Blaze Jordan was left unprotected due to a not so showy showing at the plate. I’m sure they wanted to throw him on the 40 man, but… also not so much.
Music
I have been a big fan of the band Ministry since I was in high school. Horror stories about Al Jourgensen’s addict behavior used to be all around Chicago 25+ years ago, but he has withstood the test of time. Especially the run of albums ranging from ‘Land of Rape and Honey’ to ‘Animositisomina’ (excluding the somewhat disappointing and terribly named ‘Dark Side of the Spoon’). After that run, bassist and chief collaborator Paul Barker left to start a line of guitar pedals and synths, and to start his own project Lead Into Gold, while Ministry began churning out overtly political speed metal, which isn’t the worst thing in the world to me, but it wasn’t quite the same.
These times bring a lot of aggravating nonsense, so it might be worth it to revisit some top tier 90’s industrial metal. I will rank the discography as best as I can, from an avid listener and long time Ministry fan.
- Filthpig – many would disagree with me here, but Ministry’s ode to noise rock and sludge punk was a rousing success! Alienating some fans, it sounds like a huge accomplishment in production quality to me, with a collection of some of the tightest rock and metal songs ever made, covering a variety of tempos and approaches while retaining the same cohesive vision. The Bob Dylan cover of “Lay Lady Lay” just puts it over the top. Perfect album start to finish which I’ve already retired into my Album Hall of Fame. (and the cover was my avatar for a while).
- Psalm 69 – much like ‘Filthpig’ but more straight up industrial metal and thrash, this is the favorite for many big Ministry fans as well as more casual fans. Another perfect album from start to finish. “TVII” is one of the fastest things I’ve ever heard, especially for the time it came out. I once opened for a band that covered this song and actually pulled it off. Other standout tracks are “NWO” and “Just One Fix” but it’s a masterpiece overall. Don’t forget “Jesus Built My Hotrod” which I’m sure many of us will never forget with Gibby Haines of Texas’ Butthole Surfers on vocals.
- The Mind Is A Terrible Thing To Taste – This is honestly nearly as good as ‘Psalm 69’ but isn’t quite up to that level of perfection. This is the album that put Ministry on the map in the underground for some, however, with songs like “Thieves”, “Burning Inside”, and “Breathe” being hits among metal fans and the industrial scene alike. If you rank this album #1 by Ministry, you’re certainly not wrong. Top tier.
- The Land of Rape and Honey – Could also be #1 because the Big 4 albums for Ministry are that strong. Someone has to be doing a Big 4 Albums column somewhere, right? Anyways… “Stigmata” was probably the most well known song from this album, but don’t sleep on “Deity” and “You Know What You Are” as well as the title track. It’s all another perfect album from Ministry. This is where they found their true sound… and the third in their discography.
- Animositisomina – yes it’s a palindrome version of animosity but it is what it is. Jourgensen has always had a way with words. Usually pun intended, or poignantly political, or socially analytical, but this is a bit of a departure. Probably the noisiest of Ministry albums and the last with Paul Barker as the dynamic duo. Robin to Al’s Batman? Not really, but kinda. Just being silly. I hear he’s coming back for the final Ministry album, which is super good news. This one has a cover of “The Light Pours Out of Me” by Television which again, feels like Ministry outdid the original. But I suppose that depends on how you like your “music”. Maybe I like noisy more than traditional songcraft. This is another perfect album, five deep now, there is not a bad track to be had if you can stand the searing production quality.
- Twitch – here’s where my fandom drops off a bit, I never listened to this one a ton as it’s a different genre than I’m used to, before they had fully developed their sound. While it’s their first true “industrial” type of release, it’s also still a bit new wave synthpop in a way. I recognize it, but am not super into it.
- With Sympathy – it took years for me to get into this album, even had to play the cassette of it at different tempos at a dive bar punk venue while DJing using a tape deck for no particular reason. Eventually it worked its catchy magic into my soul. Still, I’d rank it middling in the discography, unless you love synthpop, then you would rank it higher than here.
- Moral Hygiene – a relative return to form, pretty good album! Worth a listen. Jello Biafra on there! I enjoyed it as a whole. Their most recent good one. A little more straightforward and dare I say “classic’ than the rest…
- Dark Side of the Spoon – outside of a couple really good tracks, this doesn’t live up to either of the albums before it or after it, but it’s pretty good still… just not one of the more memorable ones.
- Hopium for the Masses – not a bad album but it’s kind of forgettable at the same time… it gets lost in the vastness of the discography. Might give it another try some day, but there are 9 better Ministry albums.
- Houses of the Mole, Rio Grande Blood, The Last Sucker – this is where dipped down deep into the speed metal genre. They’re sort of cringe at times, but there is at least one killer track per album, you be the judge. If you wish to get charged up about the Dubya Bush Dick Cheney era, these will serve to be nostalgic.
- Relapse, From Beer To Eternity – I could do without, mostly cringeworthy material but still better than a lot of bands.
- Live albums, compilations, redos – Sphinctour DVD should be in your hands if a you need a live at home Ministry experience. I’m not familiar with the other live albums, nor am I in need of a best of compilation. I wasn’t into the remake album ‘The Squirrely Years’… It made songs that weren’t my favorites into lesser versions of the past. And the fans of those early songs probably hate the remakes.
Well there you have it, I’m good for a good article every once in a while. This one is up there with total hours of writing for one week, compared to all my other articles so far. I hope to do more like this in the future, hope you liked it and thanks for reading VEB community.
-howl out
