Pettini Begins Another Season

By Nick Bedway
Joe Pettini’s bags are packed and the Bethany resident will be departing Wednesday for Jupiter, Fla., the spring training home of the St. Louis Cardinals.

Looking forward to his seventh season as Manager Tony LaRussa’s bench coach and his 24th year overall in the Cardinals’ organization, Pettini said he will be attending day-long meetings of the coaching staff Thursday before the pitchers and catchers report for the official opening of camp early Friday morning.

‘‘The team is going to have a much different look when we open the season,’’ pointed out the former San Francisco Giants infielder. ‘‘To begin with, we’ll have a new third baseman, shortstop and centerfielder in the lineup.’’

The Redbirds, who won the World Series in 2006 but failed to qualify for the National League playoffs last season, lost 3B Scott Rolen and SS David Eckstein to the Toronto Blue Jays while their long-time centerfielder Jim Edmonds is now a San Diego Padre.

‘‘Edmonds was the best centerfielder I’ve ever seen and Rolen was the best third baseman,’’ Pettini said. ‘‘But both have had injury issues the past couple of years. We have some younger kids coming up that, hopefully, will help us.’’

Pettini also thinks the Cardinals picked up a couple of veterans who are capable of replacing Edmonds and Eckstein. Troy Glaus, a power-hitting third baseman from the Blue Jays, should be an offensive improvement over Rolen, whose shoulder problems have affected his swing the past couple of seasons. Cesar Izturis knows his way around the position. He’s a steady glove man who played for the Cubs and the Pirates in 2007.

One of the most interesting position battles to watch during the spring will be centerfield.

Pettini said a lot of attention will be given to Colby Rasmus, a highly-regarded prospect who has yet to play higher than Class A baseball.

The native of Phenix City, AL who broke Bo Jackson’s state high school home run record while playing for national champion Russell County in 2005, Rasmus combined to bat .288 with 16 long balls in 131 games split between Quad Cities and Palm Beach. He also drove in 85 runs to lead all Cardinals farmhands which helped earn him the organization’s minor league Player of the Year tag.

‘‘He’s just 21 years old but if Colby is ready to take a huge step into the majors, it would allow Tony to move Rick Ankiel to right field and make us stronger overall,’’ Pettini said. Ankiel, the one-time pitcher turned outfielder, returned to the show last season and gave the Cardinals a big lift in the Central Division pennant race before allegations of steroid use got into his head and affected his play on the field.

‘‘It was totally unfair the way the media treated him and I know it got him off track for a while. I think Rick is an outstanding young man and a very good athlete. If things go right for him, he is going to have a good career,’’ Pettini predicted.

On the subject of steroids, Joe believes it is time that Congress gets out of the business of baseball.

‘‘I’m really tired of all these hearings in Washington. I also think that Congress has a lot more important things to worry about than to get into baseball’s problems,’’ Pettini bristled.

Joe admits that baseball was guilty of dragging its foot at the beginning but stressed that things have changed. ‘‘We are taking the right steps to try and eliminate steroid abuse,’’ he insisted.

‘‘We’re being singled out over the other sports and that irritates me. But I also understand it. Baseball is a statistics sport. People judge careers by the numbers individuals put up. It is important that we clean up this mess so that the fans and everybody else won’t have to question the integrity of our game.’’

Our luncheon conversation last week then turned back to the field and his thoughts about the upcoming season. He joins the Cardinals’ skipper in refusing to say 2008 will be a rebuilding year in St. Louis.

LaRussa, in a recent release on the Cardinals’ web site, claimed he preferred the word transition over rebuilding. ‘‘I think we’re putting together a team to contend,’’ LaRussa commented. ‘‘ÖI think we’re going to have guys on the player position side (who will provide) a lot of energy and a lot of attention to execution.’’

Pettini stressed that despite all the changes on the roster, the Cardinals’ goal is the same as ever.

‘‘We want to be competitive and remain competitive without going over our budget. Last year, because of all the injuries, Tony had to do a lot of mixing and matching. Even with that we were in the race until the middle of September when we lost seven out of eight during our next-to-last road trip,’’ he said.

St. Louis saw its dreams of possible back-to-back World Series titles all but come crashing down on the opening night of the 2007 season when pitching ace Chris Carpenter left after six innings with an elbow injury that ended his season. Carpenter subsequently underwent elbow surgery that is expected to keep him on the shelf until after the 2008 All-Star break.

Joe also is a believer that baseball remains a sport where anything can happen and usually does.

‘‘For two years in a row (2004 and 2005) we were the best team in baseball and we didn’t win the World Series. In 2006, we were the last team to get into the playoffs, clinching on the final day of the regular season and we went on to win it all. It’s one of the toughest sports to figure out and that is what makes this game so neat,’’ he added.

For Joe, life continues to be good. Barbara, Joe’s lovely spouse, is still teaching in the Brooke County System, while son Joseph and daughter Amy also are doing well.

Pettini did have a few anxious moments following the 2007 season waiting to hear from the Cardinals about his contract for this year.

The future of the entire coaching staff remained in limbo for about 10 days while LaRussa debated about returning to St. Louis. When the veteran manager finally agreed to a new two-year deal, Pettini and his fellow coaches were surprised when they were only offered one-year contracts.

He was informed of the situation in a phone conversation with General Manager John Mozeliak.

‘‘I wanted two years but I don’t have any complaints. This is a great organization and I’ve been with the Cardinals for a long time.’’

Pettini has worn many hats during his previous 23 years in the St. Louis organization. He served as a minor league manager for eight seasons in the system, finishing up at triple-A Louisville where he directed the Redbirds to the 1995 American Association championship. He also previously managed at Hamilton, ONT, St. Petersburg and Arkansas Joe then served as the club’s minor league field coordinator from 1997 through 2001 when he was asked to serve as LaRussa’s bench coach.

Joe’s professional baseball career began in 1977 when he was signed as a non-drafted free agent with the Montreal Expos. In 1980, he was traded to San Francisco where he played four seasons. Pettini then played an additional three years with the triple-A Louisville Redbirds before hanging up his infielder’s glove.

Now 53 years old, Pettini still loves what he is doing but admits still holding thoughts of getting an opportunity to manage in the majors.

‘‘It is something you always want to do but managing jobs aren’t easy to come by. You can’t really campaign for one. Somebody higher up has to notice you and think you might make a good manager.

‘‘If it never happens, I won’t be disappointed. I’ve spent 31 years in this game (as a professional) and I hope to stick around for as long as I can,’’ Pettini concluded.

Nick Bedway is the retired former executive sports editor of The Intelligencer/Wheeling News-Register