Cubs have a long way to go to catch up with Cardinals

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Agents used to love playing the Yankees against the Red Sox and getting that huge markup from New York or Boston.
But now the Yankees are working to get under the 189 million luxury-tax threshold by 2014, while the Red Sox hit the reset button with last summers blockbuster trade with the Dodgers.
So the winter meetings that begin Monday could become the battle for Los Angeles, with the Dodgers and Angels fighting over Zack Greinke.
Cubs fans have put their faith in Theo Epsteins Red Sox model. Theyre jealous of the 6 billion television contract the Dodgers could be getting from Fox Sports. But really their focus should be some 300 miles southwest of Wrigley Field.
The Cardinals wont be major players on the lobby scene inside the Gaylord Opryland in Nashville, Tenn. But quietly they have already built the scouting and player development machine the Cubs like to talk about, and they have flexed their financial muscles with a payroll around 110 million last season.
A lot of people always think working in St. Louis: Eh, its not Chicago, New York or L.A., Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak said. But there is pressure to win, to do it right. I think thats a great thing about St. Louis.
One year ago, the Cardinals had already lost one franchise icon (Tony La Russa), and were bracing for the possibility of losing another (Albert Pujols). They were hoping they made the right hire with a rookie manager (Mike Matheny).
This is The Cardinals Way. They defended their 11th World Series title by winning 88 games, and were one victory away from clinching the National League pennant.
Mozeliak pointed to chairman Bill DeWitt Jr., who led the group that purchased the team in 1996. Between 1996 and 2011, La Russa won two World Series rings and endured only three sub-.500 seasons. Mozeliakwho replaced Walt Jocketty in October 2007joined the organization after the 1995 season.
Its been a very stable environment, Mozeliak said. You can have that when youre having success, but I think now its sort of grown and become expected.
I always say to people (that) St. Louis is a wonderful place to be in baseball, because our fan base expects to win. Actually, they demand it. And I think thats a great compliment to them, because they show up. Were drawing three million fans. And as long as we put an entertaining product out there, they support it.
Ownership instability handcuffed Jim Hendry, who was never able to build off the 2008 team that won 97 games and a second straight division title. The Cubs went all-in trying to win one for the Tribune Co. after a last-place finish in 2006, but for years there had been issues with draft budgets and the ability to make international investments.
Clearly, the Cubs have a long-range plan now. But its not like the rest of the baseball world is going to stand still. In late October, Hall of Fame writer Rick Hummel wrote a 2011 Cardinals obituary in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. An authoritative voice told you whats coming next.
Never, in my 40 years covering this team, have I been so entranced by the number of good arms the Cardinals have as potential starters, Hummel wrote. Most of those plus-90s spent the postseason in the bullpen, with Lance Lynn emerging for two starts, but the Cardinals never have had as many hard throwers as they have now, with right-handers Lynn, Shelby Miller and Joe Kelly, and Carlos Martinez lurking in the minors.
Then there is Trevor Rosenthal, who is the first Cardinal in my memory to hit 100 miles an hour consistently. Rosenthal also seems to have a working knowledge of a breaking ball but, for my money, I dont want to see somebody throwing 100 mph pitching two innings out of the bullpen. He seems ready for much more and is the most exciting young pitcher to come along here since Rick Ankiel, with Alan Benes and Matt Morris before that. But none of those could throw 100 miles an hour, and you see how interested the San Francisco and Washington hitters were about facing that kind of heat.
The Cubs once felt that way about Mark Prior, Kerry Wood and Carlos Zambrano. What could possibly go wrong?
The organizations that youre certainly envious of are the ones that seem like they have young pitchers all over the place, general manager Jed Hoyer said. Granted, those can be fleeting. Certainly, the 2003 Cubs looked like they were in the catbird seat and soon enough they were all injured and thats what happens. Thats the nature of pitching.
(But) look at the Cardinals right now and its a pretty nice position to be in when theyve got guys like Shelby Miller and Rosenthal coming out of the bullpen in the LCS. Thats having some organizational depth when a guy like (Jaime) Garcia goes down and you (dont) miss a beat. Thats when you know youve drafted well, developed well and made good trades. Thats the position we need to be in.
The last time the Cardinals lost 101 games in a season was 1907. The Cubs have so many needs that pitching will drive several key decisions, from the starter they could sign to join Scott Baker and Scott Feldman in the rotation, to the No. 2 pick in the 2013 draft, to next summers trade deadline.
From Day 1, Hoyer said, weve been staring at the same picture. Its a minor-league system that was devoid of pitching prospects. Its upper levels arent producing the depths that we need.
Its not a problem were going to fix this offseason. Were going to do our best and spend our money as wisely as possible this offseason to improve it, but organizationally its a three-, four-, five-year project. Its drafting pitchers. Its trading for pitchers. Its signing pitchers. I guess you never feel like you have enough pitching depth.
Epstein and Hoyer made their bones in the American League East by taking down the Evil Empire. This isnt the frenzy of Yankees-Red Sox, but if the Cubs are going to matter, they will have to find a way to respond to the Cardinals.

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