Notes: Cardinals, curveballs, Yunel Escobar

-P- A St. Louis writer thinks the Pirates and the Cardinals will be long-term rivals. It's terrific for the Pirates to get that kind of respect from St. Louis, given what good shape the Cards are in. Neal Huntington from the article:

"Because [the Cardinals are] exemplary in everything that they do, whether it’s scouting, it’s development, what they do at the major-league level. And to be mentioned in the same vicinity of them is an honor. But we’ve still got a lot of work left to do before we’re even beginning to be at that echelon."

-P- I enjoyed Travis Sawchik's article about the Pirates' struggles to hit curveballs. Note, however, that only one of us was able to avoid referencing a terrible baseball movie. Wait, I think I just did it too!

-P- The Rays have signed shortstop Yunel Escobar to a deal that's almost criminally cheap -- he's a very valuable player due to his defense, and his extension essentially tacks a year, plus an option, onto his existing contract, for the modest cost of $8 million.

Check out Charlie's book, Dry Land.