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Matt Carpenter | Second Baseman

Team: St Louis Cardinals
Age / DOB:  (27) / 11/26/1985
Ht / Wt:  6'3' / 200
Bats / Throws: Left / Right
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Latest News

Recent News

Matt Carpenter has hit safely in all but two May games.
The young infielder is third in the NL with 33 runs scored. Carpenter's slash line of .263/.333/.442 in April was solid, but he's really turned up the heat in May, batting .375/.470/.482. If Carpenter can convert some of his doubles (14) into home runs (three), he'll eradicate a fantasy weakness to this point. Despite his hot stick, Carpenter has driven in only 14 runs. He's not a threat to run, either. May 19 - 2:29 AM

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Player News

Date:
Matt Carpenter - 2B - Cardinals

Matt Carpenter went 3-for-4 with two doubles and an RBI from the sixth spot in the order Wednesday against the Reds.

Carpenter has typically hit first or second for the Cards this year, which had allowed him to rack up 22 runs scored in 26 games. Today's RBI was just his ninth.
May 1 - 4:55 PM
Matt Carpenter - 2B - Cardinals

Matt Carpenter is back in the lineup Sunday after being removed from Saturday's game due to tightness in his left side.

Carpenter spent time on the DL last season with an oblique strain, so the Cardinals wanted to play it safe. It sounds like he'll be fine, though. "It tightened up on me a little bit," Carpenter said. "There in the ninth inning it was more of a precautionary move to make sure, to get me out of there in case I took a swing and it got worse. That's basically it."
Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Apr 28 - 11:58 AM
Matt Carpenter - 2B - Cardinals

Matt Carpenter went 4-for-5 with a homer, a double and two RBI against the Reds on Wednesday.

While the homer was Carpenter's first, he already has five doubles. That he won't contribute overly much in homers or steals will limit his fantasy upside, but he should be an effective regular for the Cardinals.
Apr 10 - 4:36 PM
Matt Carpenter - 2B - Cardinals

Matt Carpenter is getting his first career start at second base Sunday.

Carpenter played second base almost exclusively during spring training, but he moved to the hot corner following David Freese's injury. With Freese due back Monday, most of Carpenter's playing time going forward should come at second. Ty Wigginton is at third base Sunday in what will be his first start of the season.
Related: Ty Wigginton
Source: FOX Sports Midwest on Twitter
Apr 7 - 1:09 PM
Matt Carpenter - 2B - Cardinals

Matt Carpenter is batting leadoff for the Cardinals Friday, and manager Mike Matheny said he might hit Carpenter there some during the season.

Jon Jay, who will be the team's normal leadoff hitter, is batting second Friday. Carpenter doesn't have the speed normally associated with a leadoff man, but he has a great batting eye, having posted a .365 OBP his rookie year and a .408 mark during the minors. Slated to see most of the playing time at second base this season, Carpenter's fantasy appeal would move up a notch if he spends ample time hitting first or second.
Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Mar 22 - 1:32 PM
Matt Carpenter - 2B - Cardinals

Matt Carpenter appears to have earned the Cardinals' starting second base job.

The Cardinals released Ronny Cedeno on Tuesday and will have to use Daniel Descalso as their utility infielder this season. That opens second base for Carpenter, who entered play Tuesday batting .415/.510/.610 this year in the Grapefruit League. He's a legitimate fantasy sleeper.
Related: Daniel Descalso
Mar 19 - 4:06 PM
Matt Carpenter - 2B - Cardinals

Matt Carpenter tripled and doubled off Mike Minor as the Cardinals edged the Braves 5-4 on Thursday.

Carpenter is hitting .382 with five doubles and five walks in 32 at-bats this spring. His fantasy stock is climbing, as he's proved adequate enough at second base to likely earn a spot in the starting lineup.
Mar 14 - 4:05 PM
Matt Carpenter - 2B - Cardinals

Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes that Matt Carpenter and Daniel Descalso's competition at second base is expected "to continue into the season with performance and need dictating the starter."

Carpenter has proved to be a quick study at second base and should ultimately see the most starts at the position this season, but Descalso will still see his fair share of playing time and is a likely late-inning defensive replacement. For fantasy purposes, Carpenter is clearly the superior option. He batted .294/.365/.463 with six homers over 296 at-bats during his rookie season and is hitting .417/.517/.583 so far this spring.
Related: Daniel Descalso
Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Mar 10 - 9:59 AM
Matt Carpenter - 2B - Cardinals

Matt Carpenter has impressed Cardinals manager Mike Matheny with his defense at second base this spring.

"He looks good," Matheny said. It's a nice vote of confidence for the 27-year-old. If the manager feels comfortable using Carpenter at the keystone once the regular season starts, he immediately becomes the team's best offensive option at the position. Keep an eye on how the position battle plays out in the coming weeks.
Related: Daniel Descalso
Source: Cardinals.mlb.com
Mar 9 - 5:45 PM
Matt Carpenter - 2B - Cardinals

Matt Carpenter went 4-for-4 with a couple of doubles Friday against the Nationals.

It'd be great for the Cardinals if Carpenter proved capable at second base. The team's best offensive option there, he's 10-for-24 with four doubles and five walks this spring.
Mar 8 - 5:10 PM
Matt Carpenter - 2B - Cardinals

Cardinals third base coach and infield instructor Jose Oquendo said Matt Carpenter is "ahead of schedule" in his tryout at second base.

Oquendo is referring to Carpenter being "ahead of schedule" as it relates to Skip Schumaker, who also made a move to second base without ever having previously played the position. Of course, it's not surprising that Carpenter has caught on quicker since he, unlike Schumaker, has been an infielder. The Cards are hoping that Carpenter can become adequate enough at second to see ample time at the position in 2013. Even if Carpenter wins the starting job, Daniel Descalso would still likely see plenty of starts and also sub in as a defensive replacement late in games.
Related: Daniel Descalso
Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Feb 11 - 2:04 PM
Matt Carpenter - 2B - Cardinals

Matt Carpenter said the daily work he's been putting in this offseason at second base is going "great."

"Obviously you can't simulate a real game, but there's definitely confidence built when you are working with something every day," Carpenter said. "There's a comfort level being built." Carpenter is a corner infielder by trade, but the Cards want him to get comfortable at second base in an effort to get his bat into the lineup. It's possible he could push Daniel Descalso into a utility role if he looks good enough at the position in spring training.
Source: Cardinals.mlb.com
Wed, Dec 19, 2012 07:38:00 PM
Matt Carpenter - 2B - Cardinals

The Cardinals have instructed Matt Carpenter to work on his defense at second base throughout the offseason.

The 26-year-old profiles better as a third baseman or corner outfielder, but those spots are filled right now in St. Louis and the Cards want to get Carpenter's bat in the lineup on a regular basis. He had a cool .294/.365/.463 slash line in 340 plate appearances this season.
Source: Derrick Goold on Twitter
Thu, Oct 25, 2012 01:38:00 PM
Matt Carpenter - 2B - Cardinals

Taking the spot of the injured Carlos Beltran (knee), Matt Carpenter launched a two-run homer in Wednesday's win over the Giants.

Beltran went down in the first inning with a knee injury, but Carpenter came up huge, taking Matt Cain deep in his first at-bat to give the Cards what turned out to be the winning runs. Although Beltran reportedly could be ready to play in Game 4, the Cardinals have a nice fallback option in Carpenter.
Wed, Oct 17, 2012 11:01:00 PM

Depth Charts

Batters
PosRoleName
C1Yadier Molina
2Tony Cruz
1B1Allen Craig
2Matt Adams
2B1Matt Carpenter
2Daniel Descalso
SS1Pete Kozma
2Rafael Furcal
3B1David Freese
2Ty Wigginton
LF1Matt Holliday
CF1Jon Jay
2Shane Robinson
RF1Carlos Beltran
Starting Pitcher
PosRoleName
S1Adam Wainwright
2Jaime Garcia
3Jake Westbrook
4Lance Lynn
5Shelby Miller
6Chris Carpenter
7John Gast
Relief Pitcher
PosRoleName
R1Edward Mujica
2Trevor Rosenthal
3Randy Choate
4Carlos Martinez
5Joe Kelly
6Fernando Salas
7Seth Maness
8Mitchell Boggs
9Jason Motte