Redbirds Are "Cheap, Cheap"

Those of you who have lived or spent any amount of time in the St. Louis area are probably familiar with the ubiquitous Dirt Cheap Liquors television ads. The ad features a man in a bird costume saying "cheap, cheap" instead of "chirp, chirp." Get it?

Anyway, the Post-Dispatch's Bernie Miklasz is calling out the Redbirds for being cheap as well:

HERE’S A WORD TO DESCRIBE THE CARDINALS: Cheap. This covers all of the code words and phrases that already have been offered, such as “low-hanging fruit,” and “patient” and “keeping the powder dry.” No, what all of this really means is the Cardinals are cheap until they prove otherwise. No one is asking them to throw money around like those crazy Steinbrenners, but when Khalil Greene is the big offseason acquisition (so far) after the organization promised an “aggressive” approach … well, that’s sad.

Now, before anyone rushes to defend the Cardinals, Bernie has been pretty consistent in arguing that the Cardinals need to be judged on the entirety of their offseason, not just the first couple of months. And Miklasz, in my opinion, has always given the Cards' front office a fair shake.

Where I take issue with this post is that it seems to be a reaction to either or both of (a) the apparent withdrawal of the Cardinals from the Brian Fuentes race, and/or (b) the comments from Dewitt and Mozeliak earlier this week relating to budget adjustments and attendance projections impacting the team's willingness to spend money. I think it's a bit of a rush to judgment on Miklasz's part.

Now, if the Angels or some other team are able to sign Fuentes for a "reasonable" amount (e.g., 2 years and $13-15 million), then I would agree with Miklasz. The Cards are cheap. But if Fuentes is able to snag a deal worth $9+ million per year, then I think Mozeliak is smart to pull out of the derby. There simply are very few relievers worth that kind of money, especially with Perez and Motte waiting in the wings.

Regarding the Mozeliak/DeWitt comments and their 2009 attendance/budget projections, I think they're smart to be a bit conservative. No matter how well the Cards do in 2009, national economic forecasts are not rosy, and there is a good chance fewer people will be able to attend games at Busch in 2009. It looks like U.S. job losses will continue to increase for awhile, and attending baseball games requires output of discretionary income.

How big of an impact will the economy have on the Cards? That's the $100 million question, isn't it? But in the meantime, I think it's hard to fault the Cardinals for being financially conservative. Where I do have an issue is that Mozeliak promised at the outset of the offseason (when we already had a good idea about the current economic crisis) that the Cardinals would be "aggressive." Now the team appears to be backpedaling. What has changed so significantly in the two months since the season ended that the Redbird front office has had to completely change course?

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Today's Musical Selection: "Bohemian Like You" by The Dandy Warhols.