This is probably not the headline St. Louis Cardinal fans were hoping to see as they head towards the 2011 season. They were hoping to see a headline that read something like this, “Albert Pujols Signs 7-Year Extension.”
That headline still might happen, but if the Cardinals are going to make that happen, they better get a move on it.
According to Andrew Moses on Twitter, the Cardinals were informed by Pujols’ camp that they have until the beginning of Spring Training to work out an extension with the best player in the game. Originally, the Cardinals thought they had until the end of spring training to work something out.
So there is good news and bad news to this. If you are a Cardinal fan, which one do you want to hear first? I feel most people take the bad news first when given the option, so I will drop that on you first.
The bad news is that it very much appears Pujols is headed towards free agency after the 2011 season. The only team that doesn’t have to worry about their superstars leaving town when they become free agents is the New York Yankees. For the other 29 teams in baseball, all bets are off when it comes to re-signing their superstars.
And if Pujols makes it to free agency, all bets will be off in regards to him re-signing with the Cardinals. There will be five-to-six legit contenders for his services.
The good news? The Yankees, Boston Red Sox, New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies don’t need a first baseman. Those are the only teams that could have blown the Cardinals out of the water with an absurd contract. With those teams for all intents and purposes out of the bidding, the Cardinals should be on a level playing field with the other teams interested in Pujols.
I think the teams that will be interested in Pujols will be the Los Angeles Dodgers, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, San Francisco Giants, Chicago Cubs and Baltimore Orioles. Of all those teams, the Orioles would be my dark horse. Derrek Lee is only on a one-year contract and Pujols could be the guy to put the Orioles back on the baseball map.
But even if it’s not the Orioles who make a run at Pujols, I don’t believe any of those teams I mentioned can blow the Cardinals out of the water. If Pujols really wants to return to the Cardinals and they make a competitive offer, then they should be able to afford to keep him.
If the Cardinals and Pujols aren’t able to work something out before the start of Spring Training (which is in a month by the way), then this will be one of the biggest story lines throughout the 2011 season.
You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter @ theghostofmlg.
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