Worth noting

• Tony La Russa, who will be inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame this summer, was among the Cardinals alumni to participate in Winter Warm-Up. The former manager signed autographs on Sunday -- and, for one of the first times, included "HOF" next to his signature, if someone asked.

As for his election to the Hall of Fame, La Russa remarked: "It's a unique club, and I'm not really comfortable being in it."

• Having spent last offseason engrossed in learning a new position (third base), Matt Carpenter took advantage of the opportunity to actually enjoy some downtime this fall. He said he took two weeks off after the World Series, during which he and his wife moved into a new home.

"I'm a pretty high-energy guy," said Carpenter, who is now preparing to move back to third base. "I get pretty restless when I sit around. Most of the time after a season, I take a couple of days and then I'm ready to get back to work. This season, I needed two weeks of nothing. I really enjoyed that."

• Right fielder Stephen Piscotty is among the organization's Minor League players to receive a non-roster invite to Spring Training. He is also a part of the logjam of outfielders the Cardinals have in the upper levels of their farm system. That surplus, Piscotty said in his Winter Warm-Up appearance on Sunday, serves as additional motivation.

"That's why I think the system is so good," said Piscotty, the No. 36 overall pick in the 2012 First-Year Player Draft. "I think there are players, good players at every single position. Ultimately, a player recognizes that, and you've got to be the best. You can't ever take a day off or relax. It's just good competition. Honestly, I'm fortunate that that's there because I think that's going to make me a better player in the long run."

• It has been an eventful offseason for right-hander Joe Kelly, who got married in November and has since been shaken by an earthquake and watched wildfires burn down dozens of structures in his area of southern California.

The earthquake, which Kelly said registered in the mid-4s on the Richter scale, knocked down a few items in his home but otherwise caused no damage. His home has also been spared from the ongoing fires in Glendora, Calif., because of the direction of the wind.

• Mark Ellis, asked about the October perception that the Cardinals and Dodgers had clashing personalities, noted that he expects to find the two clubhouses "nights-and-day dissimilar."

"It's not bad one way or the other," Ellis added. "A little bit more flamboyance with the Dodgers. But when you're inside that clubhouse, guys are having fun. When you're outside the clubhouse, they're cocky or arrogant or whatever. You look at the way the Cardinals went about it, kind of put their heads down. They're having fun, too. But it seems like it's a big difference."