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Carpenter strategic pick to start opener
JUPITER, Fla. -- First among equals, Chris Carpenter will receive the spoils of a rousing comeback season on Tuesday, April 5. Carpenter, barely 18 months removed from missing all of the 2003 season, will be the Opening Day starter for the Cardinals in Houston.
Carpenter might be the stealth choice from a St. Louis rotation that also includes new acquisition Mark Mulder, last year's American League All-Star Game starter. But he also might very well be the best pitcher in that rotation. He certainly was in 2004.
As far as Carpenter and his teammates are concerned, though, first doesn't equate to best. First is simply first. On Wednesday, April 6, Jason Marquis will be the No. 1 starter. It's Mulder on Friday, and Jeff Suppan on Saturday. Every pitcher in the Cards rotation -- including rehabbing Matt Morris, slated to make his first 2005 start on April 19 -- was credited with at least 15 wins in '04.
"For me, it's exciting because it's the first day, but I think anybody here deserves it," Carpenter said. "I really do. I think that you could have thrown anybody out there to do it. It's nice for them to allow it to happen, but after game one, it doesn't matter. All of a sudden, here we go.
"Just like last year, five guys are going out there and competing to give us a chance to win a ballgame. Each night, it's our ace. That's the way we looked at it last year, that's the way we look at it this year. Any one of us could be aces."
But if all the Cards' aces are created equal, Carpenter might be a little more equal than the others. His ERA in '04 was the best of any of the returnees, as was his winning percentage. He was a groundball machine with a striking strikeout-to-walk ratio. Even after sitting out almost all of two seasons with shoulder trouble, Carpenter has emerged as a borderline elite starting pitcher -- and there are plenty around the Cards clubhouse who would take issue with the word "borderline."
It's been several years since St. Louis even had a question as to its Opening Day starter. The last time it was an issue at all was 1999, as Darryl Kile in 2000 and 2001 and Morris from 2002-04 were basically slam dunks. Kile was the prize acquisition in 2000 and the returning ace in '01. The next three years, Morris was the face of the staff.
This year, though, it was up for debate. Do you go with Carpenter, who seized the mantel as No. 1 starter last year? Or do you go with Mulder, on whose acquisition the Redbirds hung their collective hat this past winter? Fortunately, tactical considerations helped the decision somewhat. Mulder, a left-hander, will face the heavily left-handed Phillies in the home opener. Carpenter will pitch at Minute Maid Park, where he pitched one of his first attention-getting games as a Cardinal last year.
"You can't honor somebody if the strategy of it stinks," said manager Tony La Russa. "You want to get off to a good start. In our situation, I really don't think that any one of the four guys for either the home or road opener would have been a bad call."
Yet some would be better than others, and it's hard to find fault with the selection of Carpenter. His absence, due to a rare nerve injury, was conspicuous throughout the 2004 postseason and a major blow in the World Series. His presence over the rest of the season helped make a good team great.
And all of it from a pitcher who was -- at least outside the clubhouse -- considered a question mark coming into last season.
"I'm excited about it, and I'm happy that they chose me to be able to pitch Opening Day in Houston," he said. "I'm looking forward to the game. Besides that, if you want to talk about where I've come from last year, even if I was the fifth starter ... I've done a lot of good things and come a long way. I don't care where I'm at in the rotation. You talk about what I've done, that's as exciting, and what you look at, as anything."
It's not only that injury-erased 2003 that Carpenter has come a long way from. He's been an Opening Day starter before, for the Blue Jays in Boston in 2002. He expects to handle the assignment a little more gracefully this time around. He also expects to be feeling good, which wasn't the case in '02. Carpenter was already in pain when he took the ball for that game, and he was on the DL soon thereafter.
"I learned a lot from it," he said. "It was three, four years ago? I've matured from it. I was younger. I've matured. I feel better. I feel more confident in being able to control my emotions and pitch well."
It's all come together for Carpenter. He's healthy, he's got some perspective, he has all the ability. And now he's first among equals.
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Originally Posted by griffeyfan30
