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JUPITER, Fla.聽鈥� You could almost hear the gripes and groans getting louder from various corners of the Cardinals fan base every time that Ivan Herrera missed games during spring training. Each day just provided more fodder for the proponents of taking Herrera鈥檚 catcher's gear away and hiding it, locking it away, burning it or donating it to charity.

Herrera, 25, possesses so much talent and potential impact as a hitter that the physical demands of the catcher position will only limit him, lead to more ailments or injuries and reduce the amount of games he plays and the number of at-bats he gets to potentially change games for the Cardinals. At least, that鈥檚 the argument.

JUPITER, Fla.聽鈥� With one roster move Saturday afternoon, the Cardinals finalized the look of their bullpen and left only the position player side of the roster to complete before ending Grapefruit League play this weekend.

The Cardinals notified relievers Chris Roycroft, George Soriano, and Rule 5 pick Matt Pushard that they had made the major-league team and would be part of the 13-player pitching staff on opening day.

JUPITER, Fla.聽鈥� A question that welcomed the Cardinals to spring training remains a concern as they ready to leave Florida on Monday morning with a lineup that鈥檚 still a work in progress and an offense that鈥檚 not yet in full swing. Which maybe is the answer, after all.

With uncertain power, the Cardinals plan to plug into persistence.

JUPITER, Fla. 鈥� As a free agent this past winter, after he was designated for assignment by the Orioles, Cardinals reliever Scott Blewett reflected and looked for the answer to a question.

鈥淲hat do I need to do to get my body in the best position possible?鈥� Blewett said.

JUPITER, Fla. 鈥� After the first up-close look at Cardinals top draft pick, top 100 prospect and intense, left-handed strikeout maven Liam Doyle, it鈥檚 clear he鈥檚 not ready for the major leagues. Not yet 鈥� sorry to burst anyone鈥檚 bubble 鈥� and that鈥檚 a good thing.

Make no mistake, I鈥檓 excited about Doyle鈥檚 potential. I鈥檓 curious to see him in the majors, just like everyone else. I also value him being as prepared and ready as possible when he arrives.

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla.聽鈥� Matthew Liberatore took several strides off the mound as if he knew what the ABS system was about to tell the crowd.

Liberatore landed a cascading curveball that had a 5-foot drop to it, but came into the strike zone at such a high angle that the batter ignored it and the umpire miscalled it. Liberatore stepped off the mound expecting the called strike 3, and he would get it when his teammate challenged the ball call and got the overturn for a strike.

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla.聽鈥� At some point during the season the Cardinals are likely to have an internal competition between pitchers when it comes to most first-pitch strikes and fewest walks, but pitching coach Dusty Blake hasn鈥檛 done that this spring because he hopes strategy against walks becomes something more 鈥� like an allergy.

鈥淚f it鈥檚 an identity, it鈥檚 not something you talk about it, and it鈥檚 not a goal,鈥� Blake said Friday in the manager鈥檚 office at Clover Park. 鈥淚t鈥檚 just what you do. We鈥檙e trying to get toward that. It鈥檚 a skillset. But it鈥檚 also a mindset.鈥�

JUPITER, Fla. 鈥� Cardinals prospect Tanner Franklin recalls arriving at the University of Tennessee for an orientation for student athletes from different sports ahead of the 2025 college baseball season.

A transfer student from Kennesaw State, Franklin remembers walking into the orientation alongside Liam Doyle, a transfer from Ole Miss. The righty (Franklin) then sat next to the lefty (Doyle). Although the first conversation struck up between the two future Cardinals prospects was brief, it was the start of something long-lasting.

JUPITER, Fla.聽鈥� In addition to the widespread renovation of the Cardinals鈥� player development complex and updated clubhouse, Matthew Liberatore was braced for the subtractions that would welcome him to spring training. Familiar names would be removed from lockers and replaced like the carpet.

The left-hander tracked the offseason changes to the Cardinals as month by month, All-Star by All-Star, the Cardinals peeled the highest salaries from the roster and rushed headlong into a new goal, something as new around these parts as the performance center鈥檚 altered-gravity treadmill.

JUPITER, Fla.聽鈥斅燦ear the end of their annual road trip to visit every club during spring training, officials from the Major League Baseball Players Association arrived Thursday morning to meet with the Cardinals, a team at the crossroads of the conversation barreling toward a work stoppage this winter.

The Cardinals are among the teams buffeted by the collapse of the regional sports network model experiencing reduced revenue from rights fees. At a time of increasing payroll disparity and big-market tycoon spending, the Cardinals dropped salaries. They鈥檝e withdrawn from bidding on multi-year deals for free agents, and their payroll for the upcoming season will plunge to one of the lowest in the game as part of a self-determined rebuild.

If the Cardinals are looking for a rebuild blueprint, there are several formulas to follow. Although not all of them get the "build" in "rebuild" right.

Beginning with the most (in)famous and successful rebuild of the modern era, here are seven recent styles of organization renovation聽鈥� some successful, some not, some close to home, some fleeting and not one of them a deconstruction of whatever the Rockies and Angels are doing:

JUPITER, Fla.聽鈥� Emotional in a good way and overcome with joy, that鈥檚 how Matthew Liberatore described his reaction to the news he鈥檇 been named the Cardinals' opening day starting pitcher. No tears, in case you wondered.

Fittingly, Liberatore, a 6-foot-5 left-hander, received the news the same morning former longtime Cardinals pitcher and franchise icon visited the club鈥檚 renovated spring training complex and spent the day on site in uniform observing bullpen sessions and interacting with players and staff.

A position-by-position look at the 最新杏吧原创 Cardinals lineup:

Rotation gets shot of youth