I sit here torn, like a man that wants six-pack abs standing over a Casey’s sausage pizza. I want a chance to win NOW, but deep down I know it’s a distant dream as I gaze out over the landscape of the National League. And my favorite definition of self-discipline is “prioritizing your future self over your current self.”
When will the Future Arrive?
The great thing about planning for “the future” instead of an actual date on the calendar is that the future, by definition, never arrives. I’ve been getting in shape since 2013. And, like our Redbirds I got really close then, and a few more years since. But boy oh boy were the last few a sight to behold.
To put a time frame on it we have to look at the age of the players we KNOW are the core.
- Masyn Winn: Just turned 24
- Jordan Walker: Just turned 24
- JJ Wetherholt: Turns 24 in September
The fact there are only three true known core guys is a problem unto itself, but I digress. Your athletic prime begins to fade at 29, so if you want to maximize these players you have a window from now until 2031 to hang a banner, give out some rings, and start planning reunions.
Can anyone else join THE Core?
The true issue with falling in love with this team and wanting to go all in is that there are too many maybes. Maybe Herrera is in the core. He’s only 26? Maybe Crooks, maybe Blaze, god I hope Burleson? But Burly is an ancient 27 years of age! On this team he might as well be sitting on the porch blasting CCR and talking about when gas was eighty-seven cents a gallon.
If all those ifs became yes’s, then you’d have seven core players and none of them are pitchers. That’s way too many. Think back to 2011. That was a team of definites. Pujols, Molina, Carpenter, Freese, Holliday, Craig, Jay, Loshe, Garcia etc. You KNEW these guys were playing and a part of the team. Only a few stood the test of time, but in that glorious fall, they were IN.
The team is as iffy as a Randy Choate relief appearance.
What should we want?
The quick answer: sustained excellence. From 2000 to 2015 that is what we had. But it wasn’t all from great scouting and drafting and shrewd, calculated, front office genius. Getting the greatest right-handed hitter since Henry Aaron in the 13th round and drafting the greatest defensive catcher to ever put on a chest protector in the 4th round is luck. Lucky no one else took a flyer, and lucky you decided to.
But those two were added to teams loaded with established talent that were ready to win a title. This team, as wonderful and maddening as they are to watch, is not ready to win one. I’m not advocating a fire-sale where the last two months of home games might as well be held at Price Cutter Park in lovely Ozark, MO. What I do want is anyone that isn’t IN the core to be dealt for a good price.
Then, tell everyone from Effingham to Lonedell that we are in it to win it. This blip in history that is the reign of the Brewers must come to an end…it’s a stain on baseball.
BUT…..
What if they reel off 10 straight? What if they overtake the Brewers? What if….
Ahh…it’s that kind of thinking that got us where we were the past three seasons. One leg in and one leg out leaves you straddling the water when the music from Jaws starts to play.
Think, they are five over .500 and their second-best starter is Andre Pallante. Just wait till they actually go all in. I’m here for it, and you should be too.
Born and raised in St. Louis, Will Saulsbery is a multitalented writer and musician. A graduate of the University of Missouri, Saulsbery has established himself as a prominent ghostwriter, with his work appearing in top-tier publications like Newsweek, Time, Forbes, Fast Company, Tech Crunch, Entrepreneur, The Observer, and The Hill.
His collection of short stories, Death in the Midwest, A Collection Of Nine Stories Of Death In The Midwestern United States... And One In London, is now available for sale and download. He is also the host of the podcast Hoops on Scoops for the Scoops Sports Network.
