Full Results after the jump

ABs,Hits,Doubles,Triples,HRs,BBs,Ks

This video of Descalso comes courtesy of Adam Foster of Project Prospect.

Kary Booher left some big shoes to fill, leaving the News-Leader to a full-time gig at Baseball America. Is it exciting, nerve-wracking, stepping in his role covering the Springfield Cardinals?

It’s definitely exciting, regardless of whose shoes I’m filling. I’m a youngun a year out of college, so I’ve been excited to show what I can do. I’ve been a lot more places than you’d expect for someone my age, and I’ve enjoyed my time on the beat so far, breaking news, finding stories and watching prospects develop.

Kary’s a good guy and a great reporter. He set the bar high for our readers in Springfield — and all over Cardinal Nation, for that matter. His work speaks for itself. As for following in his footsteps, I’m going to sum that up with my all-time least favorite sports cliche: It is what it is. I’ve just got to go out there and do what I do, and the rest will take care of itself.

But seriously, it’s been awesome.

You had a strong opinion on why Wallace not only doesn’t belong in the majors this year, nor AAA. Care to elaborate on that a little?

For the record, I only said that Wallace doesn’t belong in St. Louis this year – not Memphis. I received a little flak about it from people afraid I was bashing Wallace. That’s not the case at all. I saw him start the season with two massive home runs…and hit walk-off home runs on back-to-back nights. He’s got a tremendous amount of talent. With Rasmus in St. Louis, I think Wallace is the top prospect in the system.

That said, he had holes in his game during the time I watched him. I thought the promotion to Memphis was too soon, but Freese’s injury forced it. That’s a moot point.

His defense remains an issue. And his swing had flaws when Texas League pitchers threw around him. If he couldn’t pull the ball, he wasn’t as effective. Pitchers threw him outside or wayyyy inside, and, based on what I saw, he hadn’t figured out how to get around that.

A few days before the promotion, Wallace apparently found problems with his swing. And he’s fixed them. The numbers in Memphis show that. But he’s not ready for St. Louis. He needs to struggle. He needs to go through slumps. And he needs to learn from them. Slumps happen to everyone, even Pujols. It’s better for him to go through them in the minors where the pressure (and money) aren’t as big. If he found the flaw in his swing and corrected it, then I’ll give him props for that. It’s a sign of maturity and shows that he’s closer to St. Louis than I thought.

There’s also the money aspect. I think the club would like to keep him off of the 40-man roster this year and give him the chance to compete for the starting 3B job in spring training.

Wallace is an extremely hard worker. He spent a lot of time with Derrick May and others working on his swing. And he’s put in time working on his glove and range, too. Because of his body type, he might not ever become an average MLB defender. If that’s the case, it won’t be because of a lack of effort. I just think he needs a full season in the minors before he’s in the discussion to replace Troy Glaus.

There are some pretty impressive offensive numbers we’re seeing from some of the S-Cards. Since you get to see the team play more than any of us probably do, how much of this would you say is Hammons Field/Texas League-inflated and how much of this would you say is the real deal?

It’s a little of both. When Curt Smith hit his first home run here the other day, he only got one arm on it. But, with the wind blowing out of Hammons Field, it carried over the left-field wall. “Welcome to Springfield,” Steven Hill told Smith after the game.

But this lineup definitely has some pop. Hill, Smith, Henley, Jones and Descalso have powerful bats, as does a healthy Mark Hamilton. Tyler Herron told me this spring that he knows the team’s offense will be there. If its pitching is solid, there’s no reason to think they can’t compete for the Texas League title. I agree.

What have you seen from the Cards’ supplemental first rounder Lance Lynn so far? What do you feel his upside is?

Unfortunately, I haven’t seen very much. He’s only pitched one game at home, so I’ve only seen that plus a few bullpen sessions. His fastball is solid (up to 93), and his curve is better than I heard. Didn’t see enough of the change or slider to give a scouting report.

One thing I did see: composure. The defense collapsed around him when Hamilton didn’t charge a grounder and Pete Kozma made an error. Lynn kept his cool and pitched 6.2 solid (but unspectacular) innings. Plus he’s a fellow Indiana boy. Nice to have another native Hoosier around.

Best-case scenario: No. 3 starter. Worse-case scenario: A bulldog in the bullpen, capable of spot starts.

Daryl Jones has been viewed with some skepticism because of his previous struggles, but it seems to me he’s now doing it two years running. Give me some of your impressions of Jones.

Last year definitely wasn’t a fluke. His bat is definitely there, although the power is down from last season. He said that’s because he’s shortened his swing, which means fewer strikeouts but also fewer home runs. That’ll help him as he continues to move through the system. His glove is fine, and I do think he has a below-average LF arm.

He’s a little flashy with a great personality. One of the best guys in the clubhouse to talk to and a pretty hard worker who puts in the swings he needs to. The front office is very high on him, and I expect him to be in Memphis after the All-Star break, if not before.

The biggest question from scouts is about his speed. Most scouts I’ve talked to have him at average or below-average speed from home to first. That’s a major problem for a guy with a game built around his wheels. He can turn his speed off and on. I saw him sneak into home Monday with a great heads-up play, so I know he has wheels. It’s just a matter of using them — and the rest of his tools — all the time. But consistency is the biggest thing most guys need to work on in the minors, so let’s put that in proper context.

Trey Hearne was the Viva El Birdos approved sleeper prospect a few years back, and is back putting up some strong numbers in AA. What’s been the key to his success?

Throwing strikes, plain and simple, as he’s told me repeatedly. He locates his fastball well, and he’s got a plus curveball. One scout told me that’s been the biggest reason for his success — not a lot of hitters at this level can hit really good curveballs. And he has a really good curveball.

A better sign — he’s put his team in a position to win even when he doesn’t have his best stuff. See, Sunday: 6 IP, 4 H, 4 BB 2 ER and only 2 K. He didn’t look great, but he left with the team was in a position to win. It helps that Hearne doesn’t get flustered and doesn’t sweat the small stuff. He’s a very laid back guy, which helps him on the mound.

I didn’t see Hearne’s breakout coming. I thought that when Mura came back from the DL, Hearne would go from the rotation back to the pen. But the way Hearne is pitching, I think it’s more likely for him to earn a promotion to Memphis than a trip back to the bullpen.

Mark Hamilton looked poised for a break out and before hitting the DL. What’s his status?

He’s on the DL, obviously, after pulling a muscle running out a grounder Friday. Which means I regularly get to ask the most awkward question in all of sports journalism: So, how’s the groin?

Hamilton said he’s felt better each of the last few days and will be back in about a week. The rest also gives him time to heal a foot injury that’s been nagging since spring training.

I think he’s figured out Double-A pitching. He was great in his first game here after extended spring training (2 for 5 with two doubles) and hasn’t slowed down (7 home runs and a .333 average in May). When he comes back, he’ll be fine and continue to hit well until he gets a chance to move up.

I’m going to go all James Lipton on you (hopefully sans the freakiness) and just say a name, and you give me what pops into your head.

Daniel Descalso. Scrappy. Hard worker, blue-collar ball player with a plus glove and a much-improved bat. Some scouts wonder if he can be an everyday second baseman in the majors…and I think he can.

Steven Hill. Chicken-fried. Hill is one of the many Texans in the clubhouse, and he looks and acts just like you’d picture someone from Stephen F. Austin State. His walk-up song is “Chicken Fried” by Zac Brown — a stark contrast to the rap that guys like Rapoport and Descalso prefer. As far as his game? Good bat (although he’s been struggling over the last week or so, hitting .178) with plenty of pop. He’s got work to do behind the plate, but he’s making progress.

Tony Cruz. Steven Hill’s alter ego. Lame, I know. They entered the year with similar enough scouting reports: good bats trying to find a position. Now they’re opposites. Hill’s bat is definitely there (overlooking this mini-slump), but the glove needs work. One scout told me Cruz has the defense to become a backup catcher, but his bat hasn’t been great this season.

Tyler Herron. Improved. He struggled here last year and, from what I’ve heard, wasn’t impressive in spring training (I didn’t get to see him pitch much when I was in Jupiter, Fla.). Now he’s looking like a first-round pick with four ER in his last four starts. Average to slightly above average fastball and a plus curveball.

Kenny Maiques. Oy. One scout used the dread four-letter word — wild — when he saw Kenny up here. He struggled, to say the least. I saw him face two batters one game, throw eight consecutive balls — including a pitch-out that sailed into the backstop. Obviously he’s going through a tough time right now with his drug suspension, and I wish him the best.

Curt Smith. Hitter. Dude can hit, plain and simple. Lightning-quick bat with some power. Fielding needs to improve, but his bat can play. Plus, the major leagues need more Curacao natives who became 39th-round draft picks out of Maine and speak four languages. Right?

Tyler Henley. Football player. He looks, acts and talks like a running back from a big high school in Dallas, and that’s the mentality he brings to the ballpark. I’ll add another thought: Underrated. He’s hitting a very quiet .333. But after his grand slam and a 3-for-4 game this homestand, he’s not under the radar anymore.

Francisco Samuel. Good Sammy/Bad Sammy. One game, he’s lights-out. 100-mph fastball. SICK 90-mph slider. Unhittable.

The next? He’s all over the place with no command whatsoever. And, dare I say, that four-letter word. Wild.

I will say this about Sammy: I think he’s the best prospect in Springfield. One scout said he could be a major-league All-Star closer. Others willingly and easily project him as an MLB closer. I’ve heard that one scout said he’d take Sammy on his major-league club by the end of the year. If he gets his fastball command down, he’s got the stuff to be a star. And I think between guys like Dyar Miller and (eventually) Duncan, he’ll iron those problems out.

Eddie Degerman. Catapult. Or someone throwing a grenade. Or someone giving someone a pie in the face. Take your pick. But he’s looked better in his last few appearances, regardless of what you think about his motion.

Jeff Luhnow. Northwestern Wildcats. Bet you didn’t see that one coming. Luhnow got his MBA at Northwestern — my alma mater. Regardless of how you feel about his number crunching, draft picks and willingness to take players like Degerman and Joe Williams whom others wouldn’t touch, the guy’s brilliant. I don’t think anyone will argue that.

Ron Warner. Competitor. Winning is something that gets overlooked a lot in the minors, where developing prospects is (understandably) the goal. Pop is a good teacher and can help young guys along the way…but deep down he’s a competitor who hates to lose.

Can you tell me why Pete Kozma is in AA?

I can try. This organization believes in promoting top prospects aggressively, and the front office thinks Kozma is a top prospect. The Cardinals have already invested a lot in him ($1.395 million signing bonus), and they want to see what kind of return they’re going to get on their investment. That means moving him up and letting him struggle, if that’s what happens.

Kozma’s numbers haven’t been great, but he’s not a lost cause, like some fans seem to think. He’s made some sensational plays in the field, and he’s got a good arm — once he settles down, takes a breath, sets his feet and fires. When he rushes his throws and tries to force things, he has problems. He said that was his biggest problem in the field in Palm Beach, and it’s been an issue here in Springfield, too. His bat is OK, but he hasn’t always been able to find holes in the field so far. It’s a long season, so that’ll balance out. There’s also the age factor: Koz just turned 21 and is in Double-A.

Kozma is certainly taking his lumps (.214 average, 7 errors). But he’s struggled in the past, too. He hit .130 in Palm Beach last year, worked in the off-season and boosted his average to .315 there to start this season. Who’s to say he can’t do the same in Springfield this year?

Players will struggle, either in the course of a long season or in a long career. That goes for first-round picks and for undrafted guys, for All-Stars and for players who won’t make it out of A-ball. The key is to see how they react when that happens. Do they try to force things (as Kozma said he’s done in the past)? Do they try to fix things that aren’t broken? Do they learn from their mistakes?

I expect him to spend the full year in Springfield with the expectation that he’ll be in Memphis at the start of next year (or shortly thereafter). It’s fine for him to make mistakes now. As Pop Warner said recently, you’ve got to make mistakes in order to get better. If he’s making these same mistakes in two months, then it’s time for Cardinals fans to worry. But not yet.

Any passing thoughts on the Joe Williams experiment?

I respect anyone who bar tends to pay the bills and refuses to give up on his/her dream. Extra props for anyone who gets a baseball contract just before they were supposed to ship out with the hopes of becoming a Navy Seal. Too bad he couldn’t cut it on the field. So it ends with this epitaph: It was fun while it lasted.

Shameless plug — make sure to check our Cardinals blog at the News-Leader and you can follow me on Twitter (MattBaker31). I’m always happy to hear from readers, and I answer questions as quickly (and honestly) as I can.

Daniel Descalso has been on fire since getting called up to Springfield this past week, the 21 year old second baseman is hitting .458 thus far.  I recently had the opportunity to talk with Daniel about hitting and making adjustments, offensively and defensively.

Q and A after the jump.

Seems like the transition to AA has gone pretty well so far you. Can you explain your early success in Springfield?

I don’t really have an explanation. I just came up here and tried to fill in for Jose (Martinez) and not have the team skip a beat. I just been trying to have quality at bats and play good defense.

How would you describe your approach at the plate?

My approach is the same as its been for the last couple months down in Palm Beach. I just been thinking hard up the middle and trying to just throw my hands at the ball and stay on top.

How would you describe a quality at-bat?

I think a quality at bat is anytime you can put the ball in play hard. It is not easy to find holes so all you can do is hit it hard. Walks and other productive outs are quality at-bats too.

When you’re facing a pitcher, how important is his velocity?

When you face a guy who has good velocity he can make more mistakes because he throws harder. A guy who throws harder forces you to make your decision to swing or not sooner. With a hard thrower I just try to be smooth and quiet and not muscle up.

You seemed to be really struggling in the month of May and June but have since turned things around. What sort of adjustments did you make, if any?

Those were a couple of tough months for me. I had some bad habits at the plate that I needed to break. I was chasing pitches and getting myself out. I worked a lot with our hitting coach to stay on top of the baseball and just think line drive. I also made a couple of adjustments with my hands and my stride and they seem to be working out for me.

During that slump, did you ever feel like you were just plumb hitting into bad luck?

Yes I did. Throughout the slump it seemed like every time I did hit a ball well it got caught. So that just made things worse. I just kept working hard and knew I would eventually get things figured out.

How would you rate yourself as a second baseman, defensively?

I’m still learning over there at second. This was my first season where I’ve spent the majority of my time at second. I feel like I turn the double play pretty well and I am getting better with the angle over there as well. I am a little disappointed with the number of errors this year, but I’m working hard to get better.

What about you as a person? Are you more laid-back, or more intense?

Most of the time I am a pretty laid back, easy going guy. I do have a tendency to get pretty fired up from time to time. But I’m pretty easy going most of the time.

What would you describe the highlight of your career to this point, college or pro?

The highlight has to be getting that call two Junes ago saying that I was a Cardinal. I had always dreamed of playing professional baseball and my dream had finally come true.

Baseball or otherwise, do you have a favorite sports team you follow?

I grew up a big Oakland Athletics fan and I still keep tabs on them, but it’s kind of hard being on the East Coast. I’ve always been a big 49ers fan and I’ve always rooted for the Warriors.

Disappointingly, things haven’t worked out as well as we had hoped for Jose going into the year. He’s been one of the Texas League’s least productive hitters with a horrendously bad .598 OPS,  the league’s worst among qualified batters. So what’s the story?

For one thing, Martinez has stopped hitting line drives. Last season, his line drive percentage was a robust 23%. This year he’s down to 14%, which again puts him at the bottom of the pack among TL batters. Jose’s BABIP is a lowly .247, which is partly due to the lack of line drives, and partly from hitting into bad luck. Let’s pretend for a moment his BABIP was around league average, say .309. That would give him a .291/.328/.377 line, which obviously looks a lot better, but still is a far cry from last season’s power output. But if he could get back to lacing liners, he should get back to some doubles, which of course would positively effect his SLG.

One thing that has kept Martinez in the lineup everyday is his glove. His fielding runs above average  is +14 (Baseball Prospectus’ metric), which makes him the best defensive infielder in the Texas League. Since Tyler Greene‘s promotion, Martinez has moved back over to SS. Hopefully he can catch a little more luck, and more importantly rediscover his line drive stroke. He’s still only 22, so there’s time.

Daniel Descalso is another 2B that has been a huge disappointment this season. I called Descalso one of my 2008 sleepers, citing his college track record and the fact that the Cardinals saw it fit to make him to make him their 3rd round pick last year. Rather then breaking out as I predicted, Descalso has made me look stupid by hitting for a paultry .635 OPS. But wait, he may not be making me look so stupid after all. He’s come on as of late; in the past 4 weeks he’s hitting .307/.347/.466. A big part of that has been an increase in line drives, as he’s been hitting them at a 26% clip during that time.

Descalso’s suffered by some bad luck this season with a BABIP of .261. On the flip side, Daryl Jones has had all the good luck; his BABIP was .399 despite hitting for just a 4% difference in line drives: Jones, 22%-Descalso 18%. Let’s just pretend Descalso is a lot more lucky and we’ll give him a .346 hit rate. (Quick explanation: It may sound like I’m cherry picking, and maybe I am a bit, but the FSL’s  average BABIP is .342. While major league average BABIP is .300, minor league BABIPs tend to get a lot higher, especially in the lower minors.) That would make his line would be .310/.365/.455 for the season. I think those kinda of numbers would make us at least a little more excited about Descalso.

My main point is that we shouldn’t just write off these two middle infield prospects right now just because of their “slash” lines, there’s more underneath the surface. I have hopes to see better performance out of both of them for the rest of this season and the next.

(Note:Stats used are current up to 8/2.)

Jarrett Hoffpauir – Hoffpauir fits into the prototype of Cardinals middle infielders like Eckstein, Miles and Kennedy in that he isn’t the biggest guy around at 5’9″ 165lbs. If you look at his cumulative numbers in the minor leagues, they even match up really well with Eckstein’s numbers. Here are Hoffpauir’s “slash” stats in his 520 minor league games: .287/.371/.407 and here are Eckstein’s numbers over his 473 minor league games: .293/.392/.390. Hoff has a little more pop, while Eckstein had a little more patience. Almost a wash. Leaving it at that, wouldn’t you take the 25 year old version of Eckstein as the starting second baseman for the Cardinals at the league minimum? But it might be even better than that. Eckstein’s numbers are were strongest at A+ and AA and then fell off once he faced better competition at AAA (they were closer to the numbers he put up in the big leagues). Hoffpauir, on the other hand, has had his numbers get better as he has moved up the ladder in the minor leagues. It is not inconceivable that the 25 year old version of Eckstein is Hoffpauir’s floor and the Cardinals could get something even more valuable. If they ever give him the shot.

Brian Barden – The Cardinals haven’t tried him at second base, but he has played in 87 minor league games at the position. He’s working on his fourth full season at AAA, so if he doesn’t get a shot soon, he may never get a shot.

Jose Martinez – Jose wasn’t one of my favorites coming into the season because of his inability to take a walk. There can be a place in a major league lineup for a free-swinger that doesn’t get on base a lot, but those guys usually hit for power (Martinez’ career SLG: .398) or save runs in the field (Martinez is projected to be average at best in the field). Jose is really struggling at Springfield this year, putting up a .237/.280/.316 line.

Casey Rowlett – Casey isn’t really much of a prospect, but he is a useful guy to have in the organization because he can probably play just about anywhere on the field when needed (he’s played every position except catcher and first base in his minor league career). It is extremely unlikely that he’ll ever see the major leagues.

Daniel Descalso – Descalso was the Cardinals third round pick in 2007 out of UC-Davis. He was a third baseman in college and he split time between third and second after signing last year, but this season he has been almost exclusively a second baseman. In college he hit a ton of doubles and was very selective at the plate, but those skills have not translated in the minors to this point. He is still only twenty-one years old, but he’s struggling at Palm Beach this season, putting up a .229/.291/.351 line to this point. It is too early to make a call yet on his prospect status, but I would have liked to seen more from our third round pick by this point.

Donovan Solano – Solano is more of a shortstop (and I’ll discuss him in greater detail when I get there), but he has played some second base and with Kozma coming up and Descalso struggling, who knows? Solano is a year younger than Descalso and, while he hasn’t shown much pop, he has been respectable this year in his slash stats: .291/.350/.371.

Mike Folli – Folli was an UDFA out of the University of Buffalo signed in 2007. He’s bounced around the lower levels over the past two years and hasn’t shown much of anything to suggest that he’s a prospect.

Oliver Marmol – Like Solano, he’s more of a shortstop at this point. Unlike Solano, he hasn’t shown much offensively anywhere he’s gone.

Jose Garcia – Garcia is another guy that has shuffled around the infield a bit in the low minors over the last couple of years. He is only twenty years old, so it is hard to say what the Cardinals have in him. He has put up decent numbers this year at Batavia, but struggled while at Quad Cities.

Ross Oeder – Ross was a 28th round pick in 2007 out of Wright State. He has played sporadically over the last two years and hasn’t played particularly well when given a chance. Casey Rowlett‘s career might be his upside.

Nicholas Peoples – Peoples was a 19th round pick out of Texas in 2007 and has played all of the outfield positions and a handful of games at second. His good average and on base percentage in college has not quite translated to the minors, but he has maintained his lack of power.

Colt Sedbrook – Colt was our 22nd round pick this year out of Arizona. In college he was a solid all-around hitter. His line for his senior year in college was .335/.431/.427 (his slugging percentage was a full 100 points lower than in his junior year). He has played ok thus far in his first 25 games at Batavia with a .267/.389/.344 line to this point. Because he’s already 22, I’d like to see him moved up pretty quickly to see what we’ve got in him.

Brett Lilley – Brett is another guy hit for a good average and high on base percentage in college, but his power is a bit lacking.  He was the Cardinals 29th Round pick out of Notre Dame and has the typical size issues of the standard MI in the organization.  He has lived up to billing so far at Johnson City with a .309/.440/.338 line over his first 18 games.

Guillermo Toribio – Toribio is a 21 year old that is spending his second year playing all over the infield in rookie ball.  Last season he slapped the ball around and took a lot of walks and this year his walks are down a bit and his average is propped up by a .414 BABIP, but it’s really too early to know what we’ve got here.