It's somewhat overlooked, but the St. Louis Cardinals went through a lull from 2007 through 2010, making the playoffs only one time in four seasons. What happened? A lot of core-nucleus talent and effective role players had inevitably moved on after the team's phenomenal stretch from 2004 through 2006.
Jeff Luhnow's dramatically revamped draft, development, farm system and analytics operation required an investment of patience to pay off, but prospects were beginning to graduate in waves and by 2011 the Cardinals were all set to go off on another run -- leading MLB in regular-season wins and postseason wins from 2011 through 2015.
That rich set of history included a 2011 World Series title, two National League pennants, and four appearances in the NLCS over five seasons. And a lot of that kicked in, even though the Cardinals lost Albert Pujols to free agency and Tony La Russa and Dave Duncan to retirement after the 2011 campaign.
Cards chairman Bill DeWitt has learned something from his own history: it's essential to have a strong, impactful and sustainable farm system and player-development program that can rejuvenate your franchise. DeWitt was at fault for letting the system deteriorate, and other mistakes were made. But with the hiring of Chaim Bloom, DeWitt is attempting to recreate the farm-and-player-development revival that bloomed after Luhnow was recruited to change the way the Cardinals drafted and developed players.
The Cardinals' farm system and player-development structure is an embarrassing mess. I knew it was bad, but the deterioration is much worse than I...
The St. Louis Cardinals are entering a rebuilding phase, and at the moment it is difficult to predict how it will go. Major rebuild?...
The St. Louis are struggling to fully develop young hitting prospects and do everything that's necessary to help them maximize their full potential. Too...