| 2007 St. Louis Cardinals | ||
|---|---|---|
 | ||
| League | National League | |
| Division | Central | |
| Ballpark | Busch Stadium | |
| City | St. Louis, Missouri | |
| Record | 78–84 (.481) | |
| Divisional place | 3rd | |
| Owners | William DeWitt Jr., Fred Hanser | |
| General managers | Walt Jocketty | |
| Managers | Tony La Russa | |
| Television | FSN Midwest (Dan McLaughlin, Al Hrabosky, Joe Buck) KSDK (Jay Randolph, Ricky Horton, Mike Shannon) | |
| Radio | KTRS (Mike Shannon, John Rooney, Rick Horton-KSDK Games Only) | |
| ||
The St. Louis Cardinals 2007 season was the team's 126th season in St. Louis, Missouri and the 116th season in the National League. The season started with the team trying to defend their 2006 World Series championship. During the offseason, the Cardinals were faced with the challenge of handling their starting rotation. Four of their five starters were free agents, including Jeff Suppan (the 2006 NLCS MVP), Jeff Weaver (the winning pitcher in the World Series Game 5 clincher), Mark Mulder, and Jason Marquis. In the end, Suppan, Weaver, and Marquis all signed with other teams. The Cardinals signed Mulder, who ended the 2006 season on the disabled list, to a new two-year contract, but Mulder remained on the disabled list after undergoing shoulder surgery.[1]
To replace the departed pitchers, the Cardinals promoted Adam Wainwright, who spent 2006 in relief and took the closer's job from injured Jason Isringhausen, to the rotation. They signed free agent pitcher Kip Wells to fill another spot. The team entered 2007 with a rotation of Chris Carpenter, Wells, Wainwright and Anthony Reyes, with reliever Braden Looper assuming the fifth starter's role until Mulder's return.[2]
In contrast with the rotation, the rest of the team remained stable. Every member of the Cardinals' playoff bullpen remained under contract for 2007, though the Cardinals signed free agent relievers Ryan Franklin and Russ Springer for reinforcement[3][4] and middle reliever Josh Kinney suffered an injury in spring training that required Tommy John surgery and forced him to miss the entire 2007 season.[5] Every position player for the Cardinals returned in 2007 except for midseason acquisition Ronnie Belliard, who signed as a free agent with the Washington Nationals.[6] To replace Belliard, the Cardinals signed Adam Kennedy, a former Cardinal who was traded to the then-Anaheim Angels for Jim Edmonds in 2000, and was teammates with current Cardinals David Eckstein and Scott Spiezio when they won the 2002 World Series with Anaheim.[7]
In spring training, the Birds were 16–10–3 with a team batting average of .255 and a 2.29 team ERA. Attendance at Roger Dean Stadium was 102,619. This was the Cardinals last losing season, until 2023.[8]
- ^ "Cardinals sign Mulder to two-year deal". St. Louis Cardinals official website. Retrieved May 14, 2007.
- ^ "Notes: Starting five are finalized". St. Louis Cardinals official website. Archived from the original on March 28, 2007. Retrieved June 2, 2007.
- ^ "Notes: Franklin needs to earn spot". St. Louis Cardinals official website. Archived from the original on April 3, 2007. Retrieved June 2, 2007.
- ^ "Springer relishes role as mentor". St. Louis Cardinals official website. Archived from the original on April 3, 2007. Retrieved June 2, 2007.
- ^ Matthew Leach (January 2, 2011). "The Official Site of The St. Louis Cardinals: News: Kinney to have Tommy John surgery". MLB.com. Stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com. Archived from the original on February 23, 2012. Retrieved December 12, 2011.
- ^ "Belliard ready to help Nationals". Washington Nationals official website. Archived from the original on June 21, 2008. Retrieved May 14, 2007.
- ^ "Former teammates Eckstein, Kennedy have great chemistry". St. Louis Cardinals official website. Archived from the original on June 20, 2008. Retrieved June 2, 2007.
- ^ "St. Louis Cardinals GAME NOTES" (PDF). St. Louis Cardinals. March 6, 2008. Retrieved March 6, 2008. [dead link]