The series on team offense continues with the St. Louis Cardinals. The Cardinals scored 4.51 runs per game in 2009, ranking 18th in the majors and 7th in the National League. The order comes from the probable lineup on CBSSportsline.

The OBP and slugging percentage used come from the Marcel the Monkey forecast system. Plugging those numbers in the Lineup Analysis Tool (LAT) produces the following results:

• Best lineup: 5.32 runs per game
• Probable lineup: 5.18 runs per game
• Worst lineup: 4.64 runs per game
• Regressed lineup: 4.81 runs per game

Tony La Russa is another manager with so many good hitters that it’s difficult for him to put a poor lineup on the field. He comes close to the optimum, however, only 0.14 runs off. Part of that, of course, is batting the pitcher eighth, but part of that is keeping Pujols and Holliday together in the lineup.

I don’t quite understand Brendan Ryan in the two hole, however. He does steal bases, but Freese has been much better in the minors at getting on base, and better in his brief stint in the majors. Plus, if Freese’s power develops, there is nothing wrong with that in the two hole. Flipping Ryan and Freese in the above lineup yields 5.22 runs per game, a small improvement. The Cardinals have done a very good job of assembling a fine offensive unit.

Previous entries in this series:

• Toronto Blue Jays
• New York Yankees
• Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
• Boston Red Sox
• Philadelphia Phillies
• Minnesota Twins
• Colorado Rockies
• Tampa Bay Rays
• Milwaukee Brewers
• Texas Rangers
• Los Angeles Dodgers
• Cleveland Indians
• Florida Marlins
• Oakland Athletics
• Baltimore Orioles
• Detroit Tigers
• Atlanta Braves

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