Hudson goes from offseason to playoff chase

ST. LOUIS -- Joe Hudson had planned to be moving into a new apartment in Tampa, Fla., right now, but a sudden change of schedule had him cancelling plans, thinking on the fly and getting to St. Louis as quickly as he could.

When catcher Matt Wieters sustained a mild left calf strain when rosters could expand, the Cardinals promoted Hudson for the first time this season in case they needed one more catcher behind Yadier Molina and Andrew Knizner. Hudson got the call on Saturday, after Triple-A Memphis played the Iowa Cubs.

“Last week or so of the Triple-A season, I was preparing for the offseason,” Hudson said. “I was getting ready for that mentally; my wife and I were moving into our new apartment in Tampa, so I was turning the page to go into that chapter of my offseason.

“Then you have to flip the switch pretty quickly, because not only are you going up to the big leagues, but you’re going to a team that’s contending with their eyes set on the World Series. So it’s not just, 'You’re up here and we’re going to throw you into the fire and see if you float or not,' but this is a contending team, and this stuff matters.”

Hudson, who was Knizner’s backup in Memphis this season, knows he might not get a lot of playing time this month. But he’s preparing like he will, refamiliarizing himself with the Cardinals pitchers he knew from Spring Training and asking Wieters questions while on the bench.

“I definitely want to continue my development as a player,” said Hudson, who made his MLB debut with the Angels last September. “I’m not here to just accept my role and sit back and just learn. I’m here to get better as well and develop and learn from one of the best, and that’s Yadi and Wieters. I’m ready when called upon, whenever that is. If that’s one at-bat in the next month, I’ll be ready. If it’s to catch an inning to help a pitcher through an inning, I’m there and ready. Ready to go.”

As he watches the games unfold, Hudson said he’s mentally playing the game, even though he might not be playing physically. He’ll talk to Wieters about what pitches he might call for in the situation and how he would plan to get the hitter out.

“He probably knows that he might not get in a lot, but he’s preparing like he might get in a lot, which is perfect," Wieters said. "It’s great for him to think through things that might happen, and that’s kind of more of what we’ve been doing lately. Just making sure he’s prepared for anything that’s thrown at him.”

Wieters has been impressed with the way Knizner and Hudson are approaching this month as they prepare to help the Cardinals get to the postseason in whatever way they can and also prepare themselves for their future careers.

“They’re soaking it all up,” Wieters said. “They’re two guys who want to learn, and it’s fun to be a veteran guy talking to guys who want to get better.”

Rookie-level Cardinals win Appalachian League Championship

The Johnson City Cardinals captured the Appalachian League Championship on Wednesday night after defeating the Burlington Royals, 8-6, in a winner-take-all Game 3. It was Johnson City’s 11th championship and fifth this decade. Cardinals manager Mike Shildt was at the helm of their 2010-11 back-to-back titles.

Shildt said Johnson City winning a championship does a lot for the players who are typically playing their first year of professional baseball.

“You want to be able to get guys to be able to see what it feels like to play past the regular season,” Shildt said. “It’s a challenge for everybody, but it’s more so one for guys who are typically coming in to their first year of professional baseball. But ultimately, it’s about playing, getting guys to know what it means and feels to play for something.

“So congratulations to them. That’s a heck of an accomplishment to win a championship at any level.”