Chris Perez - this close to closer

Chris Perez is big, nasty and in Triple-A. While the Cardinals split closer time between Ryan Franklin and Russ Springer in order to give Jason Isringhausen a "mental break," Perez continues to dominate that very role with the Memphis Redbirds. Perez would appear to be the prototype closer the Cardinals haven't had since 2002-'05 Isringhausen and before that Tom Henke in 1995 (no we didn't forget Dave Veres and Dennis Eckersley, they just weren't as good as Izzy or Henke... alright, actually, we did forget about Veres and Eckersley because we weren't Cardinal fans and they didn't provide memorable seasons like Izzy or Henke).

If Franklin and Springer fail to close games this week (Franklin looked solid the first time around), keep a close eye on what the Cardinals decide to do. St. Louis manager Tony La Russa might be forced to say Isringhausen's break is over and give the job back to the guy everyone figures will be re-inheriting the job. If Izzy falters again, however, Perez would become a very intriguing candidate who is already getting tabbed as "the man" in certain circles. Provided he continues to dominate in the minors, Perez's installation as the anchor of the Cardinals' bullpen may be just two to three weeks away.