Can this seasons’ St. Louis Cardinals team win it all?

The 2011 Saint Louis Cardinals accomplished the unthinkable last October when they defeated all odds everywhere and brought home there eleventh World Series title after winning in all seven games against the American League’s champion’, the Texas Rangers.

It was a story book ending after the Cardinals were crowned world champions of the baseball world considering all that that team had gone through. Injuries plagued the team, and trailed the Atlanta Braves by ten and a half games for the Wild Card spot with under thirty games remaining – on August 25^th, 2011.

Of course though – that team was managed by one of the sports’ all-time greats, Tony LaRussa—and had probably the best player of the last generation—and most definitely a first-ball hall of famer, Albert Pujols.

Now, with the second-half of the 2012 season underway, and the Cardinals beginning to get hot at the moment, the big question buzzing around the baseball world right now is if this team can once again beat out the injuries, overcome the adversity, and become the first team since the New York Yankees to go back-to-back with World Series title.

Sure, it’s an easy answer for most baseball fans and so called “experts” at this point and time—and while I wouldn’t say that it it likely myself, I most certainly do believe that it can be done. I’ve learned over many years of baseball that once you get into the postseason, anything is possible.

The team did lose one of the greatest player-manager combos that I have ever seen in my life time around the baseball world—and anybody who knows the sport of baseball, knows that that in itself is pretty rough to even have yourself with the opportunity to do—let alone do it—but out of the past few champions that I have thoroughly watched and follow, I believe this team has the best chance to make it happen.

While many people wrote off the Cardinals after Albert Pujols departed for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim this past off-season, I don’t think anybody in the current clubhouse would say anything a long them lines—and to be quite honest with you, the twenty-five guys in uniform along with the management, are the only ones that matter in this entire debate and situation.

Following ninety games of baseball last season, the 2011 World Series champions owned a record of 50 wins and 45 losses. Well, while the team currently owns a record of 54-46 at the moment, after ninety-five games in 2012, they had the same exact record. Not saying that it means anything now, nor in the long run; but it does say some character about this team and the heart that they have—which they never give up.

New manager Mike Matheny may have not won a World Series title himself as a player, but he does indeed know what it’s like to be involved in one—as he was a part of the 2004 team that lost to the Red Sox in four games to end there long drought—and that alone is certainly a good thing if anything at all—because in the fall classic, experience matters a bunch.

The addition of Carlos Beltran did a lot of help to replace the missing piece of Pujols—but the offense hasn’t seemed to miss a beat without his bat. If this team is going to win a title this season, consistentsy will certainly have to pick up, but it is possible. Matt Holliday is still always a threat to put a run on the board every at-bat that he has—and has actually been one of the hottest players on the planet this season as he is batting a team-high .321 with seventeen home runs and 64 RBIs—and while Berkman was out for a couple of months due to injury, he pretty much carried the load of the offense.

Also, the offense is what is in the best shape, with mainly every player right now having experience in big-time post-season games—including Division Series games, League Championship series games, and World Series games—and having their backs up against the wall in all of them—most of the guys are so much more well-prepared than some teams and players have been throughout their entire careers.

David Freese and Allen Craig both stepped into the scene and became legends in Saint Louis baseball history—while youngers such as Matt Adams, Matt Carpenter, and Daniel Descalso are all getting into the thick of things and should have a lot of energy and hunger come September and October.

The starting pitching is in pretty good shape as well—despite Chris Carpenter being sidelined for the entire season due to surgery—they still have the likes of Adam Wainwright, Kyle Lohse regaining pre-injury form, and the likes of Jake Westbrook and Joe Kelly—which could get even deeper if the front office manages to find a good deal to help prepare for the post-season before the trade deadline approaches.

One thing that this team does need help with though is the bullpen. With the deadline just three days away, the bullpen will certainly be shopping hard and if this team can grab someone else to go along with the newest acquisition of Brian Fuentes, this team could most definitely become even more scary—and even more prepared for another title run.

Just remember what I have stated before—as well as many people apart of Cardinals Nation—no matter who is one the team, we play a hard nine. The name on the back of the jersey is a privileged individual—but the name on the front of the jersey is what makes the entire organization one of the best. Anything is possible—and even with everything this team has been going through, repeating world titles is still most definitely possible.