Ryan Theriot

Theriot's first year with the Cardinals was a bit of a disappointment, as he stole a career-low four bases and posted a .662 OPS. The OPS was a mild improvement from 2010, but at least he stole 20 bases in that campaign. With no power to speak of and a glove that isn't getting any better, Theriot is headed for a utility role after signing a one-year deal with the Giants in January.

Theriot came to the Dodgers along with Ted Lilly in the Blake DeWitt deal last summer, but after batting just .242/.323/.283 in 198 at-bats, the Dodgers signed Juan Uribe to a three-year deal to play second base and then dealt Theriot to the Cardinals. Theriot's plate discipline has taken a step back the past two years, as he's seen his OBP drop from .387 to .343 to .321 during that span. Theriot is projected as the Cardinals' starting shortstop at press time, but he'll have to turn things around considerably to maintain that role all season.

Theriot's plate discipline regressed significantly last season, and he lost 23 points of batting average as a result. While he hit a career-high seven homers, at 30, we expect that's the upper limit of his power. Theriot is good for 20-odd steals a year, but if he keeps getting caught 10-plus times, it doesn't make a lot of sense for the Cubs to give him the green light. The bottom line - he's the starting shortstop for now, but with prospects Starlin Castro (and eventually Hak-Ju Lee) on the way, he might be forced to second base before long or even to a utility role.

Like many of his teammates, Theriot, too, had a career year in 2008, hitting for average and getting on base at a .387 clip, thanks to his first-rate plate discipline. On the downside, Theriot has no power whatsoever, and while he stole 22 bases, he was caught 13 times. Nonetheless, heading into the season, Theriot has a firm hold on the starting shortstop job, and he did steal 28 bases with only four caught-stealings in 2007.

Theriot took over the shortstop job from an ineffective Cesar Izturis last year and never looked back. Of course, Theriot's not much of a hitter, either, but he does know how to take a walk, and he's a good base stealer, succeding 24 times in 28 attempts. Theriot's slated to keep the job heading into 2008, and he should again be a good source of steals, especially if his batting average on balls in play (.289 last year) rebounds toward his minor-league and brief major-league career norms.

Theriot played better in the majors after his call-up than he did at Triple-A, and for that reason, he's likely to fill a utility role behind Mark DeRosa at second and Cesar Izturis at short. There's even talk that the club will use him in the outfield on occasion. Theriot makes good contact, draws a few walks and can run a little. He's never shown much power before his .328/.412/.522 showing in 134 major league at-bats, and we assume that was a sample-size fluke. Ronny Cedeno could also be in the mix, but at this point, Theriot is probably ahead of him on the organizational depth chart.

Theriot makes good contact, can hit for average and take a few walks, but he's 26 years old, blocked by Ronny Cedeno and has no power to speak of. He could make a useful utility infielder at some point.