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Cardinals STL

199883–79 (0.512)
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GM: Walt Jocketty

Overview

Ranks vs the 30 teams in 1998, or a custom range (defaults to every team-season since 1985, when our data starts).

to

Front Office

PoorAverageGreat
Value
Payroll $M
$54M
Surplus $M
-11
Win %
0.512
TAB
+3.6
WAB
-2.1
Roster composition
Roster fWAR
40.8
Dead money %
26%
Depth Players
7.0
Dead WAR
-4.9

Offense

PoorAverageGreat

Pitching & Defense

PoorAverageGreat

Roster

1998 depth chart — stacked by playing time

C

REli Marrero73
LTom Lampkin62
RTom Pagnozzi44

1B

RMark McGwire151
LJohn Mabry16
RBrian R. Hunter10
RGary Gaetti⇄3
LTom Lampkin2
REli Marrero2
LDelino DeShields1
BWillie McGee1

2B

LDelino DeShields111
RPat Kelly41
BDavid Howard19
RPlacido Polanco14
RJoe McEwing6
RDavid Bell⇄4
RShawn Gilbert⇄2
RLuis Ordaz1
RGary Gaetti⇄1

3B

RFernando Tatis⇄54
LJohn Mabry38
BDavid Howard14
RLuis Ordaz2
RBrian Jordan1

SS

RRoyce Clayton⇄90
RLuis Ordaz54
RPlacido Polanco28
BDavid Howard16
RPat Kelly2
RFernando Tatis⇄1

LF

RRon Gant104
BWillie McGee56
LJohn Mabry46
RBrian R. Hunter16
LJ.D. Drew6
LTom Lampkin4
RMark Little3
RPat Kelly3
RJoe McEwing1

CF

LRay Lankford145
RBrian Jordan33
BWillie McGee7
BDavid Howard2
LJ.D. Drew2
RJoe McEwing1

RF

RBrian Jordan124
BWillie McGee38
LJohn Mabry37
RBrian R. Hunter11
LJ.D. Drew5
RMark Little4
RJoe McEwing1
RGary Gaetti⇄1
BDavid Howard1
LTom Lampkin1

DH

RBrian Jordan3
BWillie McGee3
RBrian R. Hunter1
LRay Lankford1

Starters

RTodd Stottlemyre⇄3.1 WAR
LKent Mercker2.4 WAR
RMatt Morris2.1 WAR
RJuan Acevedo1.4 WAR
RKent Bottenfield1.1 WAR
RManny Aybar1.1 WAR
LDonovan Osborne1.0 WAR
RMark Petkovsek1.0 WAR
RMike Busby0.5 WAR
RJose Jimenez0.4 WAR
LDarren Oliver⇄0.3 WAR
RBobby Witt⇄0.0 WAR
RCliff Politte-0.1 WAR
RBrady Raggio-0.1 WAR
RSean Lowe-0.2 WAR

Bullpen

★ RJeff Brantley14 sv
RJohn Frascatore0 h
LLance Painter0 h
RRich Croushore0 h
RCurtis King0 h
RMike Busby0 h
LBryan Eversgerd0 h
RJose Jimenez0 h

Each position shows its top 3 by games (top = starter) — click "+more" for the rest. The letter is bats/throws; ⇄ marks a player traded mid-season. Starters are ranked by WAR, bullpen by holds; ★ marks the closer (most save chances). MLB Stats API.

Key additions (new vs 1997)

PlayerfWAR
Kent Mercker2.4
Juan Acevedo1.4
Kent Bottenfield1.1
J.D. Drew1.1
Fernando Tatis0.9
Jose Jimenez0.4

Key subtractions (gone from 1997)

Player1997 fWAR
Andy Benes5.4
Alan Benes3.5
Rigo Beltran1.0
T.J. Mathews0.6
Dmitri Young0.5
Micah Franklin0.3

Contract Value

WAR translated into tier-adjusted market value, then compared with what the player was paid by Cardinals. Guaranteed contracts from the 2015-present contract-data period use the known contract period through 1998; everyone else is shown as a 1998 season snapshot.

PlayerPeriodfWARTier Market $MPaid $MSurplus $M$ / WARTierContract
Brian Jordan 1998 +6.9 +113.0 3.7 +109.3 $0.5M 2.05× –
Ray Lankford 1998 +6.2 +101.8 4.7 +97.1 $0.8M 2.05× –
Mark McGwire 1998 +8.5 +92.7 8.9 +83.8 $1.1M 1.37× –
Todd Stottlemyre↔ 1998 +3.1 +48.5 3.4 +45.1 $1.1M 1.96× –
Kent Mercker 1998 +2.4 +28.7 1.3 +27.4 $0.5M 1.49× –
Matt Morris 1998 +2.1 +24.5 0.3 +24.2 $0.1M 1.49× –
Juan Acevedo 1998 +1.4 +14.6 0.2 +14.4 $0.1M 1.34× –
Ron Gant 1998 +1.9 +18.9 5.5 +13.4 $2.8M 1.22× –
Delino DeShields 1998 +2.1 +13.5 3.0 +10.5 $1.5M 0.82× –
Gary Gaetti↔ 1998 +1.6 +10.1 0.7 +9.4 $0.5M 0.81× –
Manny Aybar 1998 +1.1 +8.7 0.2 +8.5 $0.2M 1.02× –
Kent Bottenfield 1998 +1.1 +6.1 0.8 +5.3 $0.7M 0.67× –
Mark Petkovsek 1998 +1.0 +5.4 0.5 +4.9 $0.5M 0.67× –
Donovan Osborne 1998 +1.0 +8.1 3.8 +4.3 $3.8M 1.02× –
Eli Marrero 1998 +1.1 +4.4 0.2 +4.2 $0.2M 0.52× –
Fernando Tatis↔ 1998 +0.9 +4.1 0.1 +4.0 $0.1M 0.58× –
Mike Busby 1998 +0.5 +2.7 0.2 +2.5 $0.3M 0.67× –
Tom Lampkin 1998 +0.4 +1.7 0.5 +1.2 $1.2M 0.52× –
Darren Oliver↔ 1998 +0.3 +2.2 1.1 +1.1 $4.2M 1.02× –
Royce Clayton↔ 1998 +0.6 +3.0 2.2 +0.8 $3.6M 0.61× –
Pat Kelly 1998 +0.1 +0.5 0.3 +0.2 $2.8M 0.56× –
David Bell↔ 1998 -0.0 -0.2 0.0 -0.2 – 0.56× –
Brian R. Hunter 1998 -0.0 -0.0 0.3 -0.3 – 0.83× –
Braden Looper 1998 -0.0 -0.2 0.2 -0.4 – 0.67× –
Bryan Eversgerd 1998 -0.1 -0.4 0.2 -0.6 – 0.67× –
Lance Painter 1998 -0.1 -0.4 0.4 -0.8 – 0.67× –
Cliff Politte 1998 -0.1 -0.8 0.2 -1.0 – 1.02× –
Placido Polanco 1998 -0.3 -1.3 0.2 -1.5 – 0.61× –
David Howard 1998 -0.2 -0.8 0.8 -1.6 – 0.56× –
Bobby Witt↔ 1998 +0.0 +0.1 1.7 -1.7 $160.8M 0.67× –
John Frascatore 1998 -0.3 -1.4 0.2 -1.7 – 0.67× –
Tom Pagnozzi 1998 -0.1 -0.6 2.1 -2.7 – 0.52× –
Willie McGee 1998 -0.3 -1.8 1.4 -3.2 – 0.83× –
Luis Ordaz 1998 -1.0 -4.7 0.2 -4.8 – 0.61× –
Jeff Brantley 1998 -0.6 -6.0 2.8 -8.8 – 1.34× –
John Mabry 1998 -1.4 -9.2 1.4 -10.6 – 0.83× –
Brady Raggio 1998 -0.1 -0.5 – – – 0.67× –
Curtis King 1998 -0.1 -0.6 – – – 0.67× –
J.D. Drew 1998 +1.1 +7.3 – – – 0.83× –
Joe McEwing 1998 -0.0 -0.1 – – – 0.56× –
Jose Jimenez 1998 +0.4 +3.2 – – – 1.02× –
Mark Little 1998 +0.0 +0.3 – – – 0.83× –
Rick Croushore 1998 -0.1 -0.7 – – – 1.34× –
Sean Lowe 1998 -0.2 -1.3 – – – 0.67× –
Shawn Gilbert↔ 1998 +0.0 +0.2 – – – 0.56× –
Total—+40.8+493.353.7+431.7—

Trades

Every graded 1998 deal involving the Cardinals — best expected value first. Surplus is realized value in $M; 7 total.

1998 · STL / PHI
STL · Walt Jocketty +$8.0M
Ricky Bottalico, Garrett Stephenson
PHI · Ed Wade −$8.0M
Jeff Brantley, Ron Gant, Cliff Politte
STL came out ahead by $8.0M
1998 · ANA / STL
ANA · Bill Bavasi +$2.4M
Mark Petkovsek
STL · Walt Jocketty −$2.4M
Matt Garrick
ANA came out ahead by $2.4M
1998 · STL / TEX
STL · Walt Jocketty +$100.8M
Darren Oliver, Fernando Tatís, Mark Little
TEX · Douglas Melvin −$100.8M
Royce Clayton, Todd Stottlemyre
STL came out ahead by $100.8M
1998 · STL / NYM
STL · Walt Jocketty +$2.4M
Shawn Gilbert
NYM · Steve Phillips −$2.4M
Wayne Kirby
STL came out ahead by $2.4M
1998 · STL / ANA
STL · Walt Jocketty +$2.4M
Chip Hale
ANA · Bill Bavasi −$2.4M
Craig Shipley
STL came out ahead by $2.4M
1998 · STL / NYM
STL · Walt Jocketty +$2.4M
Juan Acevedo
NYM · Steve Phillips −$2.4M
Rigo Beltrán
STL came out ahead by $2.4M
1998 · STL / MIA
STL · Walt Jocketty +$92.8M
Édgar Rentería
MIA · Dave Dombrowski −$92.8M
Armando Almanza, Braden Looper, Pablo Ozuna
STL came out ahead by $92.8M

Current & Historical Payroll

1998 payroll
$53.6M

What the front office was committed to as of 1998, 1998–2004. Pre-2015 has no contract-terms data — forward italic $ are realized actuals (hindsight, not commitments known then). Control labels (ARB/FA) are point-in-time.

current $ guaranteed $ actual $ (hindsight) arbitration (proj) pre-arb (proj) free agent

Guaranteed / signed (20)

PlayerAgeSvc1998199920002001200220032004
Mark McGwire3412.000$8.9M$9.4M$9.3M$11.0MFREE AGENT
Ron Gant3311.000$5.5MFREE AGENT
Ray Lankford318.000$4.7M$6.6M$7.6M$5.6MFREE AGENT$650k
Donovan Osborne296.000$3.8M$5.1MFREE AGENT
Brian Jordan316.000$3.7MFREE AGENT
Todd Stottlemyre3310.000$3.4MFREE AGENT
Delino DeShields298.000$3.0MFREE AGENT
Jeff Brantley3410.000$2.8MFREE AGENT
Royce Clayton287.000$2.2MFREE AGENT
Tom Pagnozzi3511.000$2.1MFREE AGENT
Bobby Witt3412.000$1.7MFREE AGENT
Willie McGee3916.000$1.4M$1.0MFREE AGENT
Kent Mercker309.000$1.3M$2.1MFREE AGENT
David Howard317.000$850k$950kFREE AGENT
Kent Bottenfield296.000$800k$850kFREE AGENT
Gary Gaetti3917.000$711kFREE AGENT
Tom Lampkin3410.000$500kFREE AGENT
Mark Petkovsek327.000$475kFREE AGENT
Pat Kelly307.000$325kFREE AGENT
Brian R. Hunter307.000$300kFREE AGENT

Arbitration-eligible (7)

PlayerAgeSvc1998199920002001200220032004
John Mabry274.000$1.4MARB 3FREE AGENT
Darren Oliver275.000$1.1MFREE AGENT
Lance Painter305.000$430kFREE AGENT
John Frascatore284.000$240kARB 3FREE AGENT
Juan Acevedo283.000$200kARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Bryan Eversgerd294.000$185kARB 3FREE AGENT
David Bell253.000$6kARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT

Pre-arbitration (18)

PlayerAgeSvc1998199920002001200220032004
Matt Morris231.000$300kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Manny Aybar261.000$175kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Eli Marrero241.000$172kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Mike Busby252.000$172kARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Luis Ordaz221.000$172kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Braden Looper230.000$170kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Placido Polanco220.000$170kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Cliff Politte240.000$170kPre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Fernando Tatis231.000$62kPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Shawn Gilbert33–—
Curtis King271.000—Pre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Sean Lowe271.000—Pre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Brady Raggio25–—
Rick Croushore270.000—Pre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Joe McEwing250.000—Pre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
J.D. Drew220.000—Pre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Jose Jimenez240.000—Pre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT
Mark Little250.000—Pre-ArbPre-ArbARB 1ARB 2ARB 3FREE AGENT

Graphs

How each 1998 acquisition stacked onto Cardinals's playoff-odds curve. The side table is ranked by PPA.

Rosternomics — front-office performance, roster value, and transaction history. Follow @rosternomics on X.
Decision-maker records extend to 1933; resource-controlled WAR and payroll metrics cover 1985–2026. Data sources include FanGraphs, Baseball-Reference, the Chadwick Bureau register, the Lahman Database, prospect rankings from Baseball America, MLB Pipeline, and FanGraphs, and public payroll records. Transaction and trade data was obtained free of charge from and is copyrighted by Retrosheet. Executive birth/death data via Wikidata (CC0).
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