The St. Louis Cardinals lost Albert Pujols, but gained a pick in the 2012 MLB Draft. Not a fair trade, no, but a first round pick still holds a lot of worth, as a good, young player who vastly outplays his salary is one of the most valuable commodities in the game. Of course, first round picks must travel a very long road before they reach that status, but the Cardinals have shown an ability in recent years to begin to squeeze the potential out of their draftees.
The Cardinals have two picks in this draft, and are expected to target at least one hitter, if not two. In his most recent mock draft, Baseball America's Jim Callis sees one hitter and one pitcher for St. Louis. Callis sees St. Louis taking Clemson third baseman Richie Shaffer, whose seen by most as the best college hitter amongst a severely weakened crop of college hitters.
With their second pick at No. 23 overall, Callis projects the Cardinals to take Lucas Sims, a right handed pitcher from Snellville, Ga. who happens to be a Clemson commit.
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