Under the Arch: A Sign of What’s to Come

Greg Maddox, Alestle Reporter

by Greg Maddox, Alestle Reporter

Baseball season is officially underway and the St Louis Cardinals kicked off the 2010 season with a bang, beating division rival Cincinnati 11-6.

In Albert Pujols’s first at-bat of the season he sent one careening over the wall. He would add another later to go along with home runs by Yadier Molina and Colby Rasmus. The Cardinals put up 12 hits against the Reds.

The Cardinals looked sharp and came out like they had something to prove. The players must still have a bitter taste in their mouths from the playoffs last year, but they have put it all behind them to focus on this season. They seem to be the unanimous favorites to win the NL Central, and they look more than capable, though it is extremely early.

The Cardinals pitching was solid for their first outing. Carpenter went six innings, giving up five hits and two earned runs, both on home runs. The bullpen came out flat, but I think that Franklin will pull them all together when he gets warmed up. I just hope that he shakes off the later part of the season and post season he had last year.

In the end I do not think anyone is going to remember what happened opening week (except a few years down the line when Jason Hayward is a star), but wins matter, and come August, the Cards are going to want as many as possible.

In Rams news, rumors were flying around earlier in the week about a trade for Washington Redskins defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth. Apparently the Redskins tried to move Albert with the Donovan McNabb trade, but the Eagles didn’t want him. Haynesworth is a big footprint on the Redskins’ payroll this year, and apparently his lack of effort isn’t impressing new head coach Mike Shanahan.

The rumor stated that the Redskins are interested in Rams defensive tackle and former first round pick Adam Carriker. The Redskins are switching to a 3-4 defense and Carriker fits that system much better. Haynesworth has said he wants no part of the 3-4 and is very displeased with the decision.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter denied the rumors today, and since he is very close to Mike Shanahan, you have to believe the rumor is dead. Haynesworth would be an instant upgrade to the Rams’ defensive line and would remove all interest of Ndamukong Suh with their first round pick in the draft. The Redskins just paid Haynesworth’s big roster bonus, so they have almost $21 million tied up in the defensive tackle, so you can not see them letting him get away cheap.

All signs still point to the Rams going Sam Bradford with the number one overall pick April 22. I’ll try to keep up with all draft rumors I hear about leading up to draft night.

Cardinals record as of April 7:  2-0.