Top 5 Stories of 2007

First of all, I hope everyone had a happy holiday season as I write on this New Year's Eve. My Christmas was wonderful: I got an Ozzie Smith McFarlane Legends figure, which depicts him doing one of his trademark flips. I'm making a habit of collecting Cardinals figures; a habit which is quickly turning into an obsession on eBay. Two books - The Baseball Economist by J.C. Bradbury and The Book: Playing the Percentages in Baseball by Tango, Lichtman, and Dolphin - were also Christmas gifts I received, and they seem to be really informative and well-done. If you got any cool Cardinals gifts, let us know in the comments.

On we go: C70 had another great idea to have the members of United Cardinal Bloggers each write what they believe the top 5 stories of 2007 were. New Year's Eve is a time to reflect on the past year and look forward to the next. Looking back, I don't know if the Cardinals have had a season as demanding, dysfunctional, and frustrating as 2007. It leaves us with a lot to be thankful for the previous year, but we still have the feeling that 2008 may not be much better than '07. The Cardinals have not done enough to seriously make a run at the post-season in '08, but maybe that is the best route to take. Concede one year for three, four good ones. Without further ado, here are my top 5 stories of 2007:

1. Josh Hancock's Death

Josh's tragic death not only reminded us of DK57, but it brought the bitter reality of driving under the influence to the media spotlight, especially given Tony La Russa's arrest a month earlier. The team united under the tragedy but never fully recovered, and the issue turned into a controversy when the Hancock family decided to sue a plethora of people they believed to have caused his death, including the tow truck driver he collided with and the driver of the car the tow truck was stopped to help. The lawsuit left a sour taste for fans looking to honor Hancock in the same fashion as Kile.

2. The Departure of Jocketty

The frustration of 2007 could not have been more evident than when the Cardinals decided to fire GM Walt Jocketty. The move should not have come as a surprise to us, as we had been hearing reports of dysfunction in the front office throughout the course of 2007. The division within the front office was capped by the firing of Walt Jocketty and the hiring of John Mozeliak. In between, we were tantalized with reports of Chris Antonetti visiting St. Louis, but DeWitt's guy ended up being the interim GM. Jocketty left the Cardinals after having built a powerhouse baseball team this decade. He brought Jim Edmonds, Mark McGwire, Woody Williams, and numerous other Cardinals stars to the team, all without giving up much in return. Of course, he did make the infamous Mark Mulder trade and has overseen a farm system that has remained in shambles for quite some time.


3. Rick Ankiel's Comeback

The season would have been an absolute disaster if not for the sliver of hope we were given by the return of Rick Ankiel to the baseball diamond. Rick's return, and subsequent home run in his first game back, was such a unique event that we probably won't see anything like that again. Rick helped turn the team around to the brink of leading the Central division. Naturally, though, in a season where no one could catch a break, Rick Ankiel faced allegations that he was taking HGH in a report from the New York Daily News. And naturally, Rick's amazing return fizzled down as he went .220/.250/.330 from September 7th on. His non-denial/non-admittance of HGH wasn't encouraging either.

4. Return of TLR

Following the end of the season, absolutely nobody knew what was going to happen with Tony La Russa. He was at the point that he could just as easily retire after ending his contract, and when Walt Jocketty was fired the reports of Tony to New York and Tony to Cincinnati sprung up. Like him or not, we are stuck with Tony for another two years. His return was a testament to his willingness to accept a shifting philosophy in the front office, but his return also signals his desire to keep this team competitive in the process. Some think that Tony La Russa won't be able to emphasize player development in the manner that is needed, but the trade of Jim Edmonds and the release of Aaron Miles, So Taguchi, and David Eckstein suggest otherwise. This reign by Tony will be different than what we are accustomed to, and it will be interesting to see how it plays out.

5. The Rise of Rasmus

At the beginning of the 2007 season, Colby Rasmus was a great prospect in the Cardinals farm system. At the beginning of the 2008 season, Colby Rasmus could be the starting center fielder for the St. Louis Cardinals. Somewhere in between, Colby went from great prospect to can't-miss prospect and established himself as a top 10 prospect in all of baseball with a .274/.380/.550 season in Springfield. Coupled with the departure of Jim Edmonds, Rasmus will have every opportunity to win a starting spot in 2008. Colby also helps take away the pain of trading Jim Edmonds with the hope that center field will continue it's reign of dominance for the St. Louis Cardinals for years to come.

That's all I got for 2007. It's been a great year, and I really appreciate your visits and comments. I hope everyone has a wonderful New Year. 2008 may be a transition year, but 2006 wasn't supposed to turn out so hot either. Anything can happen, and the only thing we can do is be thankful for Cardinals baseball. We'll see what happens.