Tony DeMarco

Midway through spring training, the St. Louis Cardinals looked every bit like a team struggling to find a new identity.

Gone were Jim Edmonds, Scott Rolen and David Eckstein — mainstays from the 2006 World Series champion team — and holes existed up and down the pitching staff because of the injury-related absences of Chris Carpenter, Mark Mulder, Tyler Johnson and Josh Kinney. And then there was the unnerving possibility of Albert Pujols’ elbow injury cutting into his superstar production.

But something happened on the way to the regular season, and now it appears as if a year of transition in St. Louis might turn out quite nicely, thank you.

With an otherwise trivial 6-5 victory over the New York Mets on March 13, the Cardinals began a 12-1-1 stretch to close out the Grapefruit League. And the winning has hardly slowed in April, as the Cardinals’ surprising 11-5 record through Thursday is the second-best in baseball.

The connection has everything to do with an atmosphere of competition born out of necessity in the Cardinals’ spring camp.

“With the exception of Yadier (Molina), Albert (Pujols) and (Troy) Glaus, nothing was guaranteed for anybody,” general manager John Mozeliak said. “You see spring-training (camps) is where there isn’t much competition. But we had open competition in several spots.

“This was a unique opportunity for us. Trying to replicate it every year isn’t going to be possible. But this was definitely something that we benefited from. These guys were fighting for their jobs. Nobody wanted to be the guy who had a bad outing.”

It’s mid-April, and that feeling still exists around Busch Stadium. Another fortuitous mid-spring development was Joel Pineiro’s continuing arm trouble, which in part prompted the Cardinals to sign Kyle Lohse to a one-year deal that could turn into a potential bonanza for both sides.

Lohse (2-0, 1.48) made his fourth consecutive strong start in a no-decision on Thursday, holding the Brewers to two runs in seven-plus innings. He has become pitching coach Dave Duncan’s new prized pupil, and Lohse, a chronic underachiever who has turned 29, could be pitching himself into the big, multi-year contract he couldn’t find last winter.

But Lohse is just one-fifth of what to date has been the league’s best rotation. Excluding one disastrous outing by Pineiro, the fivesome of Lohse, Adam Wainwright, Braden Looper, Todd Wellemeyer and Brad Thompson are a combined 8-1, with Wainwright’s 2.78 ERA the highest in the bunch.

In comparison, last year’s rotation members accumulated only 48 wins.

The schedule-maker has been kind, for certain, as there have been series against the Giants, Astros and Nationals. But Cardinals pitchers also have shut down the expected-to-be-powerful offenses of the Rockies and Brewers. So Mozeliak feels it’s no coincidence that those five teams were the bottom five in the league in batting average through Wednesday’s games.

“I’d like to think it’s just because the guys we are sending out there (on the mound) are having success,” he said.

And those alleged spring elbow issues for Pujols? Well, the numbers say otherwise: .365, three homers, 10 RBI and a nine-game hitting streak.

“I’d be the first one to tell you we’d be in big trouble if he was out of the lineup,” Mozeliak said about Pujols. “Losing him would be critical, so you’re always worried (when an injury occurs). But that absolutely was overblown.”

There also appears to be little to worry about with a reconstructed outfield in the absences of Edmonds and Juan Encarnacion, whose career sadly is over after a severe beaning suffered last season.

The stirring transformation of Rick Ankiel continues, as he and Pujols are dueling for the club lead in several offensive categories.

“His determination and will are mind-boggling,” Mozeliak said about Ankiel. “He’s very driven. He expects to be  great.”                       

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Ryan Ludwick has home runs in his last four starts — three against San Francisco and one among his four hits on Thursday. He and Skip Schumaker are playing well enough to cut into the at-bats of Chris Duncan, who hit 21 homers last season. And Brian Barton, a Rule 5 pick who has stuck, is providing something the Cardinals haven’t had enough of lately — speed — in his starts against left-handed pitching.

“It’s a nice group of five to inter-change,” Mozeliak said.

In Mozeliak’s perfect-roster world, there would be a bit more protection in the lineup behind Pujols. But for now, the Cardinals will be patient, and wait for their disabled list crowded with pitchers to clear. There currently are six of them on the list, with reliever Russ Springer expected to come off as soon as Monday.

Mark Mulder, trying to come back from surgery, is one start into a minor-league rehabilitation assignment. He is expected to pitch again Sunday at the Double-A level, and if all goes well, will be back in the Cards’ rotation after five rehab outings.

Ace Chris Carpenter, also on the comeback trail after surgery last season, has begun a throwing program. The expectation is for a return around the All-Star break, and anything the Cards get from him in the second half will be a bonus. As Mozeliak said, “even if you make a trade, you’re not going to get someone as good as (Carpenter).”

And there certainly is no need to rush anybody back too quickly. Not with the way the current staff is performing. Not with the Cardinals on top in the NL Central.

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