The Cardinals finished the regular season with the best record in baseball at 100-62, but the postseason was full of tension as they faced the young, dynamic Cubs in the NLDS and lost in four games. The season had its share of ups and downs, through injuries to top players, to an offense struggling to keep up with its pitching staff.

Team hitting: 1,386 hits, .253 AVG., 137 HR, 619 RBI, .716 OBP

Team pitching: 2.94 ERA, .246 AVG. against, 62 saves, 1,464.2 IP

Best hitter: Matt Carpenter, 3B – .272 AVG., 28 HR, 84 RBI

Best pitcher: Kevin Siegrist, RP – 7-1 record, 2.17 ERA, 74.2 IP, .198 AVG. against

Top rookies: Randal Grichuk, OF – .279 AVG., 17 HR, 47 RBI & Stephen Piscotty, OF – .305 AVG., 7 HR, 39 RBI

Team MVP: Matt Carpenter, 3B

Offense: The Cardinals sat in the middle of the pack in hits and average, near the top in doubles and triples, but at the bottom in home runs and run batted in. Matt Carpenter led the group at the leadoff position, hitting 22 of his 28 homers at leadoff, and the emergence of Randal Grichuk’s power and Stephen Piscotty’s hitting mid-season were essential improvements to a stale offense needing a boost. Jhonny Peralta started off hot in the first half, becoming an all-star for the third time, but cooled with a .243 AVG, 4 HR and 25 RBIs following the all-star break. New acquisition Jason Heyward was a key part of the offense and defense, as he finished with a team best .293 AVG and 160 hits, as well as 10 outfield assists.

Defense: Led by John Lackey (2.77 ERA), Carlos Martinez (14-7), Kevin Siegrist (81 games) and Trevor Rosenthal (48 saves), the pitching staff were on the verge of breaking all-time records through this season, as they picked up a 2.94 Team ERA, .27 points better than the next best team.  Adam Wainwright’s achilles injury on April 25 hurt the team and put that much more pressure on the rest of the staff to keep the pitching at the level it was with him.

Manager: Mike Matheny: Through the injuries, and offensive inconsistencies, Matheny did a great job throughout the season, along with the rest of the coaching staff. In appreciation, GM John Mozeliak gave each coach an extension to try to redeem this year’s early postseason exit.

2016 Season Outlook:

Offseason Needs:

An offensive jolt. The Cardinals need to sign Jason Heyward, as he was the best all around player on the club in 2015, but they will need to pay $200 million-plus because of his young age (26), and already impressive skill set. A shakeup in the bullpen is always certain as each relief man has up and down years. Then at starting pitching, the Cardinals have the decision to make on free-agent John Lackey, who pitched a career-best 2.77 ERA at the age of 37. If the Cardinals can’t retain Heyward, starting pitchers Zack Greinke and David Price are free agents, and the Cardinals could make their way into the mix for those two.

Projected Line-up:

1. Matt Carpenter, 3B (.272 AVG last season)
2. Jason Heyward, RF (.293)
3. Stephen Piscotty, 1B (.305)
4. Matt Holliday, LF (.279)
5. Jhonny Peralta, SS (.275)
6. Randal Grichuk, CF (.276)
7. Kolten Wong, 2B (.262)
8. Yadier Molina, C (.270)
9. Pitcher’s spot

Projected Rotation:

1. Carlos Martinez (14-7 last season)
2. Adam Wainwright (2-1)
3. Michael Wacha (17-7)
4. Jaime Garcia (10-6)
5. John Lackey (13-10) / Lance Lynn (12-11)