Another Suitor For Orlando Hudson?

For some reason, the Cardinals released second baseman Adam Kennedy even though he had another year on his contract. Kennedy has been a bust thus far for the Cardinals, but he was still viewed as the Cardinals second baseman entering the 2009 season. Releasing Kennedy this late in the off season is a pretty tacky move, unless Kennedy had a falling out with Manager Tony La Russa or management:

"Even after general manager John Mozeliak designated Kennedy as this year’s starter, La Russa found it difficult to embrace the arrangement."

So where can the Cardinals go from here to fill their second base void? Well, there are the obvious in house options that include: Brendan Ryan, Skip Schumaker, Joe Thurston, and more. Depending on how the Cardinals budget looks, this could be an obvious route for them to travel.

However, I'd like to see the Cardinals go bigger on this one. No one would have suspected that Orlando Hudson, the best free agent second baseman, would still be available in early February. Hudson has virtually no suitors right now and his market has really taken a nose dive because of the economy.

With their hole at second base, the Cardinals would be a great fit for Hudson. He would be a wonderful addition on the defensive side of the ball with his gold glove ability at second base and would be a pretty good number 2 hitter, right in front of Albert Pujols. There is no doubt in my mind that this move would make the Cardinals a much more competitive team in the NL Central.

The biggest question remains the Cardinals budget. If they can find room to in the payroll to make a run at Hudson, they will likely be able to sign Hudson to a team friendly one or two year deal. As I said before, there is no market for Hudson. The Cardinals would be in a very powerful position when negotiating with Hudson and would be in prime position to get a great player at cheap price.

Something in the one year/$7 million range or two years/$16 million would be perfectly reasonable for Hudson and the Cardinals at this point. Make it happen St Louis.