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Fantasy baseball: St. Louis Cardinals 2020 fantasy preview

By Mike Marteny

FT. MYERS, FL - MARCH 10: Jack Flaherty #22 of the St. Louis Cardinals pitches during a spring training game against the Boston Red Sox on March 10, 2020 at JetBlue Park in Fort Myers, Florida. (Photo by John Capella/Sports Imagery/Getty Images)
FT. MYERS, FL - MARCH 10: Jack Flaherty #22 of the St. Louis Cardinals pitches during a spring training game against the Boston Red Sox on March 10, 2020 at JetBlue Park in Fort Myers, Florida. (Photo by John Capella/Sports Imagery/Getty Images) /
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fantasy baseball, st. louis cardinals
JUPITER, FL – MARCH 07: Paul DeJong #11 of the St. Louis Cardinals walks off the field against the Houston Astros during a spring training baseball game at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium on March 7, 2020 in Jupiter, Florida. The Cardinals defeated the Astros 5-1. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /

2020 St. Louis Cardinals projected starting lineup:

Kolten Wong, 2B (.285, 11 HR, 59 RBI, 24 SB in 478 AB)
Matt Carpenter, 3B (.226, 15 HR, 46 RBI, 6 SB in 416 AB)
Paul Goldschmidt, 1B (.260, 34 HR, 97 RBI, 3 SB in 597 AB)
Paul DeJong, SS (.233, 30 HR, 78 RBI, 9 SB in 583 AB)
Yadier Molina, C (.270, 10 HR, 57 RBI, 6 SB in 419 AB)
Dexter Fowler, RF (.238, 19 HR, 67 RBI, 8 SB in 487 AB)
Tommy Edman, LF (.304, 11 HR, 36 RBI, 15 SB in 326 AB)
Harrison Bader, CF (.205, 12 HR, 39 RBI, 11 SB in 347 AB)

For the first time in quite a while, the Cardinals don’t have a first-round pick. Goldy still has good numbers, but the lack of an elite average drops him into the mid-to-late second round.

The power on DeJong is nice, but SS is deep and he kills the average. He’s a good power surge as your draft gets into the 6-10th round if you have set yourself up to take the hit in batting average.

What to do with Matt Carpenter? Such are the evils of having a career year at 33. Last year’s drop was swift and precipitous. At the age of 34, does he have a lot left? If he can get his average back around .260, he’s a solid CI option later in drafts. The trend I have noticed though is that he’s going at a higher price than I want to pay.

I do like Wong leading off. He’s going to hit for a good average and steal some bags. You can do worse in the middle rounds. I feel the same way about Fowler, but the average can hurt and he’s not reaching a career-high in home runs like he did last year.

Molina is a solid catcher, but at 37, he could see more days off. If you wait to take a catcher, Molina is my preferred pick in the later rounds.

Edman needs to be starting somewhere. Some publications have Tyler O’Neill as the favorite to start in left, but Edman is probably my favorite sleeper on the team as long as he starts every day.

Prospects to watch:

How far off is Dylan Carlson? He’s a guy worth stashing on your bench. Bader, Fowler, and Lane Thomas are far from sure things. Carlson hit .361 in 72 AAA at bats last year with five homers and two steals. That was after lighting up AA. He’s worth a bench slot since I think he’ll be up before the end of July.

It seems like Justin Williams has been around forever, and he’s still only 24. He hit seven homers in 102 AAA at bats for Memphis last year to go with a .353 average. If he gets the call to replace one of the struggling outfielders, he’s worth a look.

Right now, Edmundo Sosa is a man without a place. He can play any IF position, but all of those are locked up for the Cardinals unless Carpenter has another miserable start. Sosa has nothing left to prove at AAA. He’s ready if they find room for him.

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