Carpenter Confident in Cardinals Future - KMOX.com

St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Chris Carpenter speaks to reporters during the team’s Winter Warm Up in St. Louis on January 13, 2012. UPI/Bill Greenblatt

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (KMOX) â€" Following the Cardinals 2011 World Series championship, there have been a lot of changes starting with manager Tony La Russa’s retirement all the way up to Dave Duncan’s stepping away from his pitching coach duties. One constant that returns for the 2012 season will be starting pitching Chris Carpenter.

Carpenter will be entering his ninth season with the Cardinals once he reports to Spring Training next month. With some people leaving and some new ones arriving, Carpenter feels that leadership will not be an issue with the 2012 club.

“We’ve got so many quality characters in that clubhouse that it doesn’t matter”, he answered when asked about his possible new leadership role.

Since new pitching coach Derek Lilliquist filled-in for Dave Duncan at the end of the regular season, Carpenter believes that ‘Lilly’ shares and will employ similar philosophies.

Carpenter talked about what it will be like without Duncan, “He has instilled so many things in a lot of us that I’m not sure we’ll ever forget.”

The 2005 NL Cy Young Award winner is coming off a season with the second-most innings pitched (237.1) since earning the honor. Carpenter, 36, turning 37 in late April, is confident that he and the Cardinals will be back for more in 2012. “I feel good. I started throwing two weeks ago. I’ve worked my butt off, I continue to work my butt off, and everything feels good.”

Carpenter’s 2011 season did not start well as he was 1-7 on June 17, but finished 10-2 with a 2.73 ERA. In the playoffs, Carpenter had his biggest outing when he shocked the world along with the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 5 of the NLDS with a 1-0 victory allowing only four base runners.

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