5. Cam Janssen
Cam gets the honorary last place spot on this week's list, for the simple fact that he's not even playing. I'll concede to Bernie Miklasz:
Janssen played 7 minutes 12 seconds against Phoenix in his Blues' debut. But he's been a healthy scratch for the last three games, sitting in the press box with Larry Wigge, Jeff Gordon, Jeremy Rutherford and other esteemed hockey authors. Would you trade Salvador for a sportswriter? Probably not. But Janssen is spending more time upstairs with the scribes than he is on the ice.
Kind of bizarre. The longer the season goes, the more Andy Murray resembles Tony LaRussa. That's not a good thing, by the way.
4. Joe Mather
A regular outfielder, Mather has spent time at 1st base this spring and has adapted quite nicely. He's hitting .391 with 17 total bases, second only to Albert Pujols' 21, an OPS of 1.040, second only to Pujols' 1.050. It's fitting, since Mather is hoping to land a spot on the Cardinals' roster as a backup infielder. The prospects of Mather playing 1st base on Pujols' days off is much more assuring than Chris Duncan. On the downside, Mather has struck out 6 times in 23 at bats.
3. Drake Bulldogs
Considering head coach Keno Davis thought his team would be overachievers if they finished 6th in the Missouri Valley Conference, a 1st place finish in the regular season and MVC Tournament championshipis more than a surprise. In their dominant victory over Illinois State, the Bulldogs made 10 3-pointers and connected on 30 of 54 field goal attempts. At 28-4, Drake will probably land a 4 seed in the NCAA tournament, just as the SIU Salukis did a year ago.
2. Billy DeVaney
Sure he was in Atlanta for the disaster that was the 2007 season, but DeVaney has wisely and cautiously operated since taking over as Rams VP of Player Operations. He made the unpopular decision to let a $5 million Isaac Bruce walk and got his man, Jacob Bell, who was reportedly ranked ahead of Alan Faneca on the list of offensive linemen free agents the Rams coveted. The aging Faneca signed a 5 year $40 million deal with the Jets, while the Rams spent less money and added more years for the cheaper and younger offensive guard.
1. Brian Barton
You could pretty much look at Joe Mather's statistics above and replicate them for Barton. He's got a .391 average, 17 total bases and has 3 less strike outs (and 2 more triples); he's also a right handed outfielder with speed, something the Cardinals lack. I say it's time to permanently welcome Barton to the club, since anything less will result in his departure. If Juan Gonzalez makes the club in place of Barton or the out-of-options Ryan Ludwick, there will be many a disappointed and angry Cardinals fans.
5. Cam Janssen
2. Billy DeVaney
