ST. LOUIS -- It is called an intangible. But its presence within a clubhouse is almost tactile.
Reliever Kyle McClellan believes its value can equate to five wins in a season, maybe more. Without it, a 162-game schedule might seem endless. With it, a team augments its resiliency.
It is known as chemistry, or mix.
Admittedly challenged in that department in 2010, the St. Louis Cardinals rescued themselves this past season by calling upon one another's pride and professionalism during a late August meeting that arguably came at the summer's low point.
Less than a month shy of returning to Jupiter, Fla., in defense of an improbable World Series title, the club again wonders about its vibe.
"When you look at 2010, we just felt this was something to be addressed in '11," general manager John Mozeliak said. "I do think the leadership we have on hand for the upcoming season made up a lot of the core strength we enjoyed last year. But I would agree that you can never take those things for granted. It's something you work on from Day 1."
Right fielder-turned-first baseman Lance Berkman said: "I don't see it being an issue. But I guess you really never know until you get out there and come together."
Mozeliak recognizes first-year manager Mike Matheny's role in the approaching transition. Nearing his fifth season as head of baseball operations, Mozeliak is sensitive to what "the mix" represents.
Mozeliak last winter imported Berkman, Ryan Theriot, Nick Punto and Gerald Laird, among others, to help the team contend but also to decompress what many, including the general manager, believed had become a tight clubhouse that one veteran confided "walked on egg shells."
The 2010 club arrived at the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline in first place but buckled late. Offered a similar opportunity last season, the Cardinals surged to a 23-9 finish that erased 101/2 games separating them from the NL wild card.
"It definitely played a big part," utility player Skip Schumaker said of chemistry's role in the team's five-week finishing kick. "If it's not there, we don't get there. No way."
Berkman said: "It's one of those wait-and-see things. I don't think you can discount it entirely. It's a special mix of guys. Everybody adds something to that. Whenever you start subtracting pieces, those guys are going to be missed. But I do believe we have a lot of high-character guys remaining. There are a lot of guys who are going to drive this thing. It's just going to be different."
A rare players-only meeting that followed the Cardinals' unsightly three-game home sweep by the Los Angeles Dodgers coincided with the surge. Chris Carpenter led the meeting, but several players offered input. Team members who had performed shabbily began to play for each other as well as for themselves. Left fielder Matt Holliday thought it was "a special group of guys."
This winter's exodus is highlighted by first baseman Albert Pujols, who along with retired manager Tony La Russa provided much of the team's public face for the past 11 years. Other losses carry subtler yet significant meaning.
"We're going to miss guys like Nick Punto, Ryan Theriot and Gerald Laird and some of the other guys who aren't going to be here," Holliday says. "But it's our job to forge that bond again. It's never going to be the same. You're never going to have the same team as you had last year, as much as you want to. It's a profession with a lot of turnover."
Carpenter, Adam Wainwright, catcher Yadier Molina, Holliday, Schumaker and Berkman are among those widely viewed as clubhouse pillars. However, Theriot represented part of the clubhouse glue even when removed as starting shortstop. Rather than grouse, he accepted a smaller role that moved him to second base. Laird played little as Molina's backup but was a teaser and fantasy-football enthusiast. Punto, the infamous Shredder, was universally respected.
Theriot and Laird departed via free agency, as did Edwin Jackson, a welcome addition to the mix when acquired from the Chicago White Sox via the Toronto Blue Jays on July 27.
"You're not going to get that every single year," Holliday says. "I'm going into my ninth year and I know you're not going to be that lucky every year. But we have a great group to start out with. I think it's very attainable for us to have that kind of chemistry and that kind of bond again."
Holliday was often perceived as quiet, even reclusive, by many outside the clubhouse.
In reality, he brandishes a dry wit and is considered generous with his wisdom by teammates. However, he also has become an occasional on-air participant on local sports talk radio and has re-engaged his Twitter account after almost a two-year hiatus.
"I think a lot of that is perception," Holliday said. "Interact with my teammates a little differently than some of you (media) guys think. I'm not a loud yeller, but I'm not afraid to talk to young players about things."
In Pujols' absence Holliday could be asked to move out of his familiar cleanup role while assuming a more visible role regarding the team's identity.
"I'm willing to do whatever it takes," Holliday said. "I've played on teams before that didn't have Albert. I've batted third before. I've played in a World Series before. I'm available for whatever is asked of me. I work for the St. Louis Cardinals and, if the job description changes and more is asked of me, that's part of my job."
Berkman embraced his roles as right fielder, team spokesman and clubhouse release valve. Two weeks into a difficult April, he took the floor after a brutal loss in San Francisco to remind the team of its potency. Berkman then stood at his locker trying to deflect heat from closer Ryan Franklin and center fielder Colby Rasmus, the pivotal players in that night's loss.
"It's a reason why maintaining a leadership group has to always be in your thinking," said Mozeliak.
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