Figures

So the Cards have a potent attack and great pitching in their "first" game, only to have it wiped away by rain.  So what do they come back with?  Well, at least the good pitching stuck around.

First off, a new feature here.  We're going to give out Heroes and Goats for each game, then total them up at the end of the year and see who are the CATB Hero and Goat of the Year.

Last night, the hero had to be Yadier Molina.  Not only was his home run the only run of the ball game, but his ability to block pitches in the dirt almost got the Cardinals out of the bases-loaded, no-out jam.  And, no matter what Dan and Al were saying, I don't think he was responsible at all for that error by Glaus.  Plus he was part of one of the Really Neat Moments that I'll talk about in a minute.

The goat has to go to Ryan Franklin.  My personal theory on relief pitching (and it works for position players as well) is never get wrapped up in a great year if it is out of line with the rest of their career.  One of the first applications of this was Tony Womack.  He had a wonderful year for the Cards in 2004, but there was no way they should have signed him after the season was over.  Even though they tried, they weren't successful and he flopped the rest of his career.  Hopefully Franklin just had a bad game and won't be another example of this theorem.

On to the Really Neat Moments.  The first one was as Kyle McClellan was coming off the field after pitching a scoreless inning in his debut and striking out the last batter.  Everyone is walking to the dugout, but I noticed that Molina stopped and waited for McClellan, then gave him a big hug and some words of encouragement.  You can see a picture of it here with a good story about McClellan.

It was great to see the rookie step into a situation like that and perform.  TLR had talked about trying to get him into a non-pressure situation to get his feet wet, but it says a lot about what they think of him that they'll put him out there in a 1-0 game against that kind of lineup.

The second Really Neat Moment came from Brian Barton.  He pinch-hit in the sixth, I believe, and hit a grounder between third and short that no one could come up with for his first major league hit.  Most of the time, you see a guy get his first hit and he tries to treat it like no big deal.  Not Barton.  You could see the excitement and joy in his face and his mannerisms as he gave the first base coach an emphatic five.  I think he's going to be come a fan favorite in short order.

Aaron Cook vs. Todd Wellemeyer tonight.  Odds are we'll see Anthony Reyes make his first appearance of the season as well.


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