Cards Eager For Renteria To Stay In Their House
Mike Dodd
USA Today
October 14, 2004
ST. LOUIS -- It's not as if shortstop Edgar Renteria needed to remind
Cardinals
fans of his value. He has been a fixture in St. Louis for six seasons
now.
But the 29-year-old free-agent-to-be had his best postseason
series in the
just-concluded National League Division Series, hitting a team-high
.455 with
four RBI in the four games. With his contract up, Big Red fans are
hoping it's
not his Cardinals curtain call.
"It's safe to say that he would be tied for first as everybody's
favorite
player and person," St. Louis manager Tony La Russa says. "I mean, this
guy, I
think, has got the ideal on- and off-the-field approach to baseball. .
. . You
've got a guy who is really a great player and a great teammate."
Renteria, second only to Reggie Sanders on the Cards in playoff
experience,
will be among the more sought-after free agents this winter. The
big-market
Chicago Cubs and Boston Red Sox will be looking for a shortstop if they
can't
re-sign Nomar Garciaparra and Orlando Cabrera, respectively.
Cardinals general manager Walt Jocketty said the club approached
Renteria and
his representative about a new deal prior to the season and again in
midseason,
but Renteria appears intent on testing the market.
"I'll think about the offseason after the (playoffs)," says
Renteria, who
earned $7.25 million in 2004. "All I want to think about now is what I
can do to
help the team win."
All things being equal, he says he'd prefer to stay put.
"I like St. Louis. I think I'm a good fit here," he says. "I have
no
complaints. But I don't know, let's see what happens."
Renteria enjoyed a career year in 2003 -- hitting .330, becoming
the first
Cardinals shortstop to drive in 100 runs and falling just six hits
short of
joining Honus Wagner as the only shortstop in NL history with 200 hits
and 100
RBI in a season.
This year wasn't quite as splashy, as he finished with a .287
average and 72
RBI. He was at his best in the decisive stretch of the Cards' season,
hitting
.317 in June, July and August. "A year like last year, he got a lot of
recognition because his numbers were great. He plays at that level all
the time,
" La Russa says. He slumped in early September and La Russa rested him
a few
days after the Cards secured the NL Central Division title.
"That helped me a lot because I was a little tired," he says.
"Tony knows me
and knows when I need a day off. He asked me if I needed a day off. I
said,
'What do you think?' He said, 'Yeah, you need it.' . . . I don't like
to take a
day off."
He finished strongly in the final week of the season and carried
it into the
Division Series.
"It's no different," he says of the playoffs. "It's the same
game; it's
getting yourself ready to go."
Renteria's magic postseason moment came in the 1997 World Series
for the
Florida Marlins. He drove in the winning run in the 11th inning of Game
7
against the Cleveland Indians.
His career postseason numbers weren't that impressive heading
into October,
but his defense and fundamental contributions are consistent any time
of year.
"When the game starts, I mean, he knows what it is to win a
game," La Russa
says. "He's trying to win a game. He'll do it. He'll bunt, he'll steal,
get a
guy over, get a guy in, play defense."
Adds second baseman Tony Womack: "You know what this guy's going
to bring to
the table. You expect it, and you won't see anything less."
Back to 2004 Articles Page