Around the interwebs...

Derrick Goold looks at the price of pitching.

Six Cardinals filed for free agency after the end of the World Series.

The six Cardinals who filed Thursday were: RHP Braden Looper, SS Cesar Izturis, INF Felipe Lopez, C Jason LaRue, LHP Ron Villone and veteran righthanded reliever Russ Springer. Springer, who threw the final pitch of the 2008 season, recently told senior baseball writer Joe Strauss that he is leaning toward pitching again in 2009 and would prefer to return to the Cardinals.

The Cards have their own plans for the offseason.

"It's a great opportunity to get a grasp of what teams are looking for and if there are areas to address your own needs," says Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak, who actually arrived with several lieutenants Saturday. "It's an important time period. It's not make-or-break. But it can really help set what direction we go in."

Coming off their most prolific regular season since 2005, the Cardinals are admittedly in search of a middle infield makeover, help for the left side of their bullpen and perhaps another starting pitcher.

A persistent search for another "impact bat" to better protect first baseman Albert Pujols goes on but probably falls far down Mozeliak's shopping list.

Larue has been resigned for a one year deal.

This is an interesting take on the past election and how it impacts the Cardinals over the next season and future seasons to come.

When a new President is elected, the Cardinals have had a losing record only once in the 14 seasons that coincide with the first year of a new administration. But they have never finished better than second place in those seasons, and they have only once made the postseason. (It took a Wild Card berth in 2001 to accomplish that.) In the nine times that there has been a change of President AND a change of party — as is the case, of course, this coming 2009 — the Cardinals have never had a losing record with a new party and new President in office.[...]

The Yankees have won six of their 26 championships in the year after a Presidential Election. Not all tha striking considering the odds are better than 1-for-4 in the last century that the Yankees won. But as detailed earlier this year by The New York Daily News, the Yankees success with a Democrat Commander in Chief borders on uncanny. (Bettered only by the Green Bay Packers’ 12 championship titles — nine with a Democrat in office and three with a Republican President. So, chin up, Dad.) The Yankees have won 22 of their 39 pennants with a Democrat in office. They’ve gone 7-10 in World Series with the GOP in the White House, and a remarkable 19-3 with a Democrat sitting there.

Two of those three losses were to the Cardinals, in 1942 (FDR) and 1964 (LBJ).

The past five National League pennants the Cardinals have won came with a Republican in the Presidency (1982, 1985, 1987, 2004 and 2006). But they’ve been rather bi-partisan with their trips to the World Series. The Cardinals have gone to a World Series nine times with a Republican in office and eight times with a Democrat. The biggest difference: They win when it’s a Democrat.

DEM … 6-2 (.750)

REP … 4-5 (.444)

Yadier Molina took home a Gold Glove!