"The Tale of Todd Wellemeyer"

In case anyone missed it today, the Cardinals gave Todd Wellemeyer a $4.05 million contract for 2009 and avoided an arbitration hearing.

The news of the deal got me to thinking...

How in the hell did the Cubs, Marlins and Royals just flat out give up on this guy?

Here's a big, strapping right handed pitcher who can reach the mid 90's with his fastball to go along with a pretty good slider and you've got three teams that wash their hands of him in 2-year span?

The funny thing is - well, not so funny for the teams that gave up on - that he'd be doing in his thing as a starter in the minors and then he'd get called up to the big leagues and immediately be stuck in the bullpen, a place he'd never worked before.

In 107 career minor league games Wellemeyer appeared as a reliever just 10 times.

And people were confused to the point where they gave up on a talented (cheap) young pitcher?

Sometimes the decision makers on big league teams confuse the hell out of me.

Wellemeyer was never a superb minor league pitcher - control problems, difficulty getting past the 5th inning, etc. - but he was always a very gifted player. Was the Royals' rotation in 2007 really so crowded they couldn't find a way to work this guy into the mix?

Tony LaRussa, Dave Duncan and the Cardinals took a shot on this guy, put him in his natural role and look at what he's done...

13-9 w/ a solid 3.72 ERA in 191 2/3 IP last season, 3-1 with a 3.65 ERA in 11 starts w/ the Cards in '07.

So, 16-10 w/ an ERA around 3.70 in 43 big league starts.

Not bad for a guy picked up off the Royals' scrap heap.

Ah, they're so loaded they'll never miss him....

KW