Recently in Brad Thompson Category

End of the Line

That's the last time we'll see Mark Mulder in a Cardinals uniform.  It's probably the last time we'll see him on a baseball field at all.

I don't say that with any malice or glee.  I really was hoping that Mulder's new arm slot would be the key to getting him, not to his Oakland level, but at least to a serviceable starter.  Instead, he faces three batters, walking two and leaving the mound again in pain.

If that was the end of the line for Mulder, it's too bad St. Louis never got to see the really good version.  (If Billy Beane knew about Mulder's health issues--and I wouldn't put it past him--I'm not sure how he sleeps at night.)  The only really positive memory I have of Mulder is that epic 10-inning shutout against Roger Clemens.  Other than that, there's not much.

Of course, there will be more revisiting of the most rehashed trade in Cardinal history.  I'm still firmly convinced that if Dan Haren had been a lefty, the trade never would have been made.  It was all about getting an lefthander into the rotation.  And, at the time, the trade was reviled because of the inclusion of catcher Daric Barton.  That's not the problem.  Barton had to move to first (which means he couldn't play in St. Louis anyway) and isn't just lighting it up yet, three and a half seasons after the deal.  It's the fact that Haren developed into so much more than the Cardinals (and the fans) ever thought he would that has made the deal so lopsided.

The hero from last night's game probably has to be Brad Thompson.  I really liked Troy Glaus's AB that tied the game, but Thompson coming in with two on and one out in the first and getting out of it, then pitching effectively from there really stands out.  I've got trouble giving out the Goat, though.  I can't give it to Mulder--just can't tag a guy like that after possibly his career ended.  Kyle McClellan gave up the go-ahead home run to Howard, but he pitched well the inning before that and it was Ryan Howard.  I guess I'd probably give it to Chris Perez, because the Feliz home run made it just that much less likely the Cards were going to rally off of Brad Lidge.

One last comment on the game.  Does anyone else think it was cheap that they gave Skip Schumaker just a double on that ball that "stuck" under the wall?  Victorino looked like he was going to get it, then realized he could just keep it there and get an advantage.  I think there should have had to be an attempt at the ball before he could throw up his hands.  That was pretty lame in my book, though must be part of the ground rules at Citizens Bank.

The team is already moving on the Mulder front, likely disabling him and bringing up Jamie Garcia, which will please Erik at Future Redbirds immensely. Garcia will work out of the pen at least until the break.  If nothing else changes, I'd expect him to move into Mulder's slot after the All-Star Game.

Changes, though, are what Tony LaRussa wants to see.  This will be the first real test of the Mozeliak/LaRussa dynamic.  Up until now, it's pretty much been "hey, this is great, more than we thought, but let's wait and see."  Now, Mo's still there but LaRussa's competitive nature has taken hold and he wants to see something.  This is where Jocketty would go out and make some move that, in recent years, was little more than combing the waiver wire.  Will Mozeliak do that?  Will he start looking for a bigger trade?  Will he take Tony's dogs hostage until he quiets down?

Couple of vets going this afternoon.  Braden Looper looks to keep the bullpen off the field when he takes the mound, but the Phillies may have other ideas.  Pat Burrell has two homers off of him and probably will be excited to take his cuts today.  On the other side, Jamie Moyer is one of those you'd expect the Cardinals to struggle with, a soft-tossing lefty.  Really, though, for a guy that's been around as long as he has, the Cards (save Glaus and Kennedy, guys that saw him in the AL) haven't gotten a lot of ABs against him.  Glaus does have five home runs off of Moyer, so maybe he'll break out the big bat today.

The UCB is working on their next project.  If you weren't e-mailed and want to join it, let me know.  It should be a good discussion.

Good Start, Lousy Finish

Another one of those "get a lead, but don't add to it" games for the Cards, as they get ahead 3-1 but lose 7-4.  Not really the way to start off a month.

You have to wonder what that stellar, Pitcher of the Month May did to Todd Wellemeyer.  Since the end of May, Wellemeyer has a 6.60 ERA and a 1.83 WHIP.  His strikeout rate has stayed fairly strong--his K/9 rate is 6.12--but last night his inability to finish off batters killed him.

Heroishly, even though Rick Ankiel had a nice two-run HR, for his work saving the bullpen (and doing it very effectively), I'll award it to Brad Thompson.  Four innings and only two hits, though one was a David Wright long ball.  Thompson may be increasing his trade value as well.

Speaking of trade, I got to hear some of the FSN interview with John Mozeliak last night.  Mozeliak is probably playing cards close to the vest, but it doesn't sound to me like he feels there's much reason to do any dealing, which is understandable.  Hopefully he keeps that mentality and doesn't overpay to make a run this year.  Of course, he also says he's not been in touch with the Rockies, reports about the Cards asking about Brian Fuentes and Matt Holliday to the contrary.  If he's going to bring someone in, a guy like Holliday (who won't be a free agent until the end of '09) wouldn't be a bad choice.

For a farm system that's lately been considered fallow, the Cardinals look to have a stranglehold on the Futures game this year.  Colby Rasmus has been added to the roster, which already includes Jamie Garcia, Bryan Anderson and Jess Todd.  Cardinal fans may have more reason to watch that game than the All-Star Game this year!  For more, of course, head to Future Redbirds.

Joel Pineiro goes for the Cardinals tonight and they could use a strong start out of him to get the taste of last night's game out of their collective mouths.  The Mets haven't seen him all that often, though Delgado has done a pretty good job against him in the past, something St. Louis doesn't want to see after not being able to retire him last night.

Pineiro goes against Pedro.  Not surprisingly, the Redbirds haven't done much against him.  Even Pujols is just 2 for 10.  Still, Martinez isn't the Pedro of old, sporting a 7.12 ERA this season in just over 30 innings.  He's only had one really decent outing (1 ER in 6 IP against Texas) and in his last two starts he's allowed a total of 12 earned runs.

Still, knowing the Cardinal luck, he'll find his old form tonight.  Hopefully Pineiro can match him.

Always Good To Be Back

Before I do anything, I've got to give major thanks/props/kudos/whatever the kids are saying these days to Mike for filling in for me.  I really appreciate him filling in and keeping things running while I was up in Reds country.  It was great yesterday to get into Arkansas and be able to easily find Mike and John on the radio.  I listened to the last couple of innings and knew I was home again.

I'll catch up the Hero/Goat leaderboard soon with Mike's selections, but let's take a look at the last two wins by the Cardinals, insuring a winning homestand.

Saturday, looks like the hero was Rick Ankiel with a two-run homer.  Mitchell Boggs was in the discussion, though four walks was a little on the high side.  Good to see him get a solid game in, though, especially with the state of the pitching staff.  Goatishly, you'd probably look at Brendon Ryan, who went 0-4 and left four on base.

Sunday, it's a surprise hero in Jason LaRue.  A home run, a triple, and four RBI, plus getting the best of a collision at the plate?  Gotta give him the award (wind-aided), even with an AP two-for-five, HR day.  (Sounds like he would have had two homers on a different day, with the wind holding one up at the track.)  In my mind, the goat has to go to Braden Looper, because when you know the bullpen needs some rest, to go out there and not get through the fourth is a terrible thing.

Last year it was a little busy during my Ohio trip.  Sorting through, it looks like there were a few things that happened the last 10 days as well:

• Jason Isringhausen looks like he's going on the DL, then doesn't.  Pretty decent outing yesterday against the Royals, save the back-to-back doubles.
• Yadier Molina returned from his concussion.
  
• Cesar Izturis goes on the DL, exposing the weakness of the middle infield.
  
• Mark Mulder gets activated and put in the bullpen, but doesn't pitch.  And, apparently, there's not a lot of confidence in him since apparently Brad Thompson is returning because "we need innings."
  
• To make room for Thompson, Nick Stavinoha goes back down after being promoted during the week.  Wish I could have seen him play.
• And, last but not least, El Hombre returns, with Randy Flores going on the DL.  And obviously Pujols didn't forget how to hit in his time off.

The Cards return to Busch today (their road trip just perfectly coincided with mine) and take on the so-far disappointing New York Mets for the first time this year.  The Mets sit a game under .500 and in third place in the NL East, though that's only 3 games out of the top spot.  The Cards continue their run of missing ace pitchers as they won't see Santana in this four game series. 

Kyle Lohse goes for the Redbirds, looking for his tenth win of the season.  There are a couple of Mets that are excited about renewing acquaintances.  Walk Beltran every time up, Kyle.  And as hot as Delgado has been, think about it with him as well.

John Maine goes for the Metropolitians.  The Cards haven't seen a lot of him, though Pujols has liked what he has seen.  (Both of those home runs were in a game in 2006, though.)  Maine's most famous game against St. Louis was probably Game 6 of the 2006 NLCS, where he kept the Mets alive and set the stage for a classic.

This is a big series for the Cards.  Winning this one against a quality (if scuffling) opponent would give them a lot of momentum for the weekend series against the Cubs. 

The World Series Reprise Continues

Before we get to the upcoming series with Detroit, lets pause for a moment and remember Sunday's game.  From all accounts, it was a doozy.  Piniero pitched great; Lester was slightly better.  Paplebon was proven human.  There were clutch hits (Kennedy in the ninth off the Sox closer), timely pitching (see McClellan in the 10th and Izzy in the eleventh), and off your seat drama (Duncan cut down at home).  I only wish I could have seen it.

Congrats to Nick Stavinoha, who got his first ML hit on Sunday in the sixth.

I'll award the Hero for this game to 2 folks:  Joel Piniero, who shook off my dire predictions of doom to throw 7+ innings and allow only 2 runs, and Aaron Miles, for his 5-hit effort.  Anytime your name is linked to Don Mattingly's (the last visiting player to have 5 hits in a game at Fenway) that's good.  Goat?  Mike Parisi.  Sorry, Mike.

Although the sting of losing that 2004 world series will always remain (granted, the sting will eventually fade to almost nothing as time passes), the Cardinals have won both regular season series from Boston since (in 2005 and this past weekend).  We haven't been so lucky with the Tigers, getting swept in Detroit last year.  Looper, Reyes, and Thompson were the victims during that May Series at Comerica.  Looper gets another crack at them today, facing Kenny Rogers.  The best pitching matchup of the series, however, is tomorrow, as Kyle Lohse meets rookie wunderkind Armando (don't call me Andres) Galarraga.  Wellemeyer's balky elbow will face hit or miss Nate Robertson in the finale Thursday.

The Cardinals, a team that has not shown much plate discipline lately, would be well served to be deliberate at the plate and run up the pitch counts early.  That would get the starter out and get us to their bullpen; other than Zumaya (who's just back off the DL), it is one of the worst in the AL.

One other item worth discussing today:  Mark Mulder's name has been bandied about for a possible start in Kansas City this weekend.  He was scratched from his rehab tune-up last night.  Despite two surgeries and countless hours rehabbing his shoulder, Mark's never gotten his arm back to the form he displayed as one of the Oakland A's anchors in the first part of this decade; whether it's a loss of velocity due to diminished strength in the arm following the surgeries, or his elusive arm slot issues, he isn't the same pitcher he was in 2004.  Also, as he progresses higher in the minors he's gotten slapped around pretty good by AA/AAA hitters.  I don't see how he's even an option at this point for a spot start with the big club.  Mark deserves all the credit in the world for his determination to get back on the field and resurrect his career.  I just don't think it's going to happen.

Frankly if Mulder's name appears as a better option for a spot start than Anthony Reyes from here on out (once Reyes returns from the DL), there's something seriously wrong with the thinking in the front office.

(PS - There was no Mitchell Boggs on the 1970s A's teams; the guy I was thinking of is Mitchell Page.)

You Can't Win If You Don't Score - Cardinal70 Version

Well hello everyone.  Perhaps some of you have perused my blog at one time or another; if not, I'm Mike, and I'll be minding the store while Dan takes some much deserved vacation time over the next week.

Continuing a running thought from over at the Stance, the Cardinals again managed one measly run and got swept out of Busch by the Royals, 4-1.  KC scored as many runs in this game as they allowed St Louis in the series, and that's just not going to get the job done.  Heroes and Goats for this game are pretty simple.  For driving in the lone Cardinal Run, Rick Ankiel gets the nod as Hero; and the Anemic Offense is the Goat.  I suppose I could saddle Brad Thompson or Chris Perez with the goat label, but since Brad came up on short notice and worked 5 solid innings, and since the Cardinals would still have lost 2-1 if Perez hadn't served up that gopher ball to Mark Teahen, it just didn't seem fair.

We all knew the offense would struggle without AP in the #3 slot.  There's no way you can adequately fill the shoes of a future HOF.  But to hit .154 against KC with RISP?  To not get anyone to second today?  Albert would have raised those figures a little bit, but it still points to some major problems surfacing offensively.  The same Post-Dispatch article I linked to above points out the Cardinals aren't taking walks like they were at the beginning of the season. Viva El Birdos took it a step further, showing the Cardinals are a lot less disciplined at the plate since the calendar flipped over into May, a trend that has become worse recently (see lboros post from Thursday; that site is down as I write this at 11:18 PDT, so I don't have a link to it).  You would think that plate discipline and patience would be things they really need to focus on now that the NL's second leading hitter is out of the lineup, as opposed to trying to do too much, which appears to be what they're doing.

One other thing:  Bernie Miklasz suggests the Cardinals should utilize the speed they have on the roster while they struggle to score runs, as a way to generate some offense.  It's a good suggestion.  Brendan Ryan and Brian Barton are two guys worth plugging into the lineup to see what they can create; it's not as if second base has been a font of offensive prowess this season, and the OF has really cooled off recently (witness Ankiel's 2 RBI on the homestand as an example).

Because I'm obligated to disagree with at least one thing in every article/post Bernie writes, sitting Chris Duncan really isn't an option, as he's the first baseman.  The two guys he suggests bringing up to help the offense wouldn't displace Chris at first.

We limp into Boston next.  They have the best home record in the majors (28-7), and will send Wakefield, Dice-K, and Lester to the hill to face our boys.  Might be a loooong weekend; keep your fingers crossed.

Not Part of the Script

Hang on just a minute.  Something's not right.  The Cards lost last night?  They lost the series?  They aren't supposed to do that!  They were supposed to win the next two and keep the pattern going.  Instead, they lost a series for the first time since the Pittsburgh series May 13-15.  They've only lost four series all year, which is pretty impressive for this team as well.  I don't believe what I just saw.

I've never been a huge Braden Looper fan, but after his last couple of outings, you can't do much more than stand up and applaud.  I was afraid that he'd come out a little weaker, a little down after his complete game last time around, but instead he threw up more zeros before allowing a run in the seventh.

Unfortunately, the bullpen did it again.  This time, it was the fairly reliable Kyle McClellan serving up home runs to a non-home run hitting team.  The Cards continued to struggle mustering offense and so, at the end of two games with a last place team, they've scored a total of three runs and have two losses to show for it.

More agonizing, the Cubs have lost the last two nights as well.  The Cards could easily be sitting 1.5 out and knocking on the door.  With Zambrano possibly out, the Cubs could almost have the same problem the Cards did, losing their best player (well, Soriano may not be the best, but he's close) and their top pitcher at the same time.  We will see if the Cards can go crazy while the Big Crazy is out, if he is.

So the Cards have to try to avoid their first sweep of the year this afternoon.  Apparently, though, the pitching injury bug is contagious, with Anthony Reyes being scratched and placed on the DL while Brad Thompson will be activated and get the start.   Thompson in general doesn't necessarily inspire confidence in the fanbase, which makes this quote a little on the scary side:

"Easy call," manager Tony La Russa said. "Never ever risk a pitcher. ... We don't have a lot of innings (available from the bullpen), so we're going to have to get something from Brad."

It is mind-boggling that Reyes was within 24 hours of making his first start and then has to be put on the DL.  It seems a little strange in my mind, when you see what Reyes was saying:

"This is nothing serious," Reyes said. "The velocity has been the same. The command is the same. I wasn't sore after the games.

Apparently the thought was that he might get hurt and they didn't have the bullpen available to back him up.  I guess it's just a coincidence that it is Reyes that this happens to, but boy, is he cursed in St. Louis or what?

Thompson has seen the Royals before and the results have been less than inspiring.  Granted, no one has more than 9 plate appearances against him and nobody's gone yard, but a cumulative .280 average could be a problem today.  Zack Greinke goes for the Royals and the Cards have had success against him in limited appearances.  Greinke's not been the same pitcher he was the last couple of years, though, so it could be a tougher road to hoe.

One thing that didn't get a lot of mention yesterday and something that I honestly hadn't realized was upon us yet until FSN's montage last night, was that yesterday was the sixth anniversary of the death of Jack Buck.  That year of 2002, with his passing and then the shocking death of Darryl Kile just four days later, seems so much more recent than over half a decade past.  That is why I've sprinkled a few of Jack's better known calls in this entry.

That'll do it for me.  Mike takes the reins tomorrow and lifts the blog to new heights for a week.  We'll see you tomorrow night!  (Well, the 30th, but that doesn't have the ring, does it?)

Back On the Horse

So far, this Cardinal team has shown resiliency.  Drop a game?  Win the next.  Whether they can win the next five like they did last time remains to be seen.

And there was little doubt who last night's Hero was.  Troy Glaus made it competitive (for the second straight night, which is a good sign) with his tie-breaking two-run double, but the game likely wouldn't have been that close if it weren't for the pitching of Anthony Reyes.  To come in and shut down the Astros was a great thing to see.  Three solid innings, no runs, only one hit.  He had good velocity, though he only had one K and had a negative GB ratio.  In other words, he pretty much pitched his way, it seems like.  A good discussion of the variance in reaction between TLR and Dave Duncan can be found at VEB.  When you look at what Duncan says, it really does start to come off like a guy that's been proven wrong and doesn't want to talk about it, finding any flaw he can.

Glaus is finally getting some good swings and even made a nice defensive play last night, spearing a shot hit right at him by Mark Loretta.  While we know the Cardinals have downgraded defensively over there, it's good to see him make some plays and hopefully as he relaxes, the bat will continue to come around and the glove will as well.

If the Hero wasn't much in doubt, then neither was the Goat.  Brad Thompson may have just pitched himself out of the rotation.  Whether it was internal pressure knowing that Joel Pineiro was pitching in Memphis last night or just the Astros catching up to him, three runs and five hits in four innings is not the way to step up to the challenge.  He left the bases loaded in the second and then allowed the runs in the third.  I expect the next time we see the Puppy Kicker will be coming out of the pen.

Pineiro pitched well last night and should be back on Sunday, depending on what the braintrust wants to do.  Also on the injured pitcher front, Mark Mulder should start his rehab on Monday, meaning he will be in St. Louis no later than the middle of May but likely earlier.  I hope we get to see a healthy and effective Mulder, but I don't think anyone is holding their breath on that just yet.

So let's take a look at today's matchup.  Braden Looper goes for the Cardinals.  Here's how he matches up against the current Astros.  Surprisingly, though Berkman has a nice average against him, the only member of the lineup that has a home run against him is Geoff Blum.  J.R. Towles had a good day against him last year, driving in five runs and going 3-3.  Bet he's in the lineup tonight.

Chris Sampson takes the bump for the 'Stros.  The Cardinals haven't seen much of him.  Kennedy and Ludwick have good averages against him, but for the second time this series, Pujols faces a pitcher he's never gotten a hit against.

Both games have had 5-3 finals.  Tonight's should be in line with that.

One Series Down, 51 To Go

Being that not only was I working yesterday during the game, but working out of the office, I was able to catch about 10 minutes on the radio and that was it.  All of my observations will have to come from reading game stories and various other discussions.

From what I see, though, there's little doubt that the Hero for Thursday was starting pitcher Brad Thompson.  Six and 2/3 scoreless, plus an RBI single?  Without looking it up, I'd say that has to be the best game Thompson has ever pitched in the majors.  Doing it against the Rockies is pretty impressive as well.

Other positive notes included the first appearance of Anthony Reyes this season.  Three up, three down, all on strikeouts.  And even Tony gave him his due, saying, "You kept saying, 'Wow.' Three times."  It will be interesting to see when he pitches again, whether he'll get a longer stint, whether he'll be ready to go tonight.  The pitching has looked very good so far this season, but Braden Looper goes tonight against a team that's been hitting the ball pretty well.  Long relief may be something the Cards are needing today.

Also, apparently Troy Glaus reads the blog (Hey, Troy!) because after saying yesterday that a bit of offense wouldn't go amiss from him, he has two hits and drove in a run.  Maybe that will relax him and get his bat going.

It also sounds like Skip Schumaker and Jason LaRue combined on a nifty play throwing out Todd Helton at the plate.  This series had hitting, pitching and defense--keep that up and there are going to be some disappointed people writing for Yahoo.

Examining the box score, it's a little difficult to come up with a Goat.  Most of those that didn't get a hit made a play in the field.  Almost by default, today's Goat goes to Cesar Izturis.   0-3 plus an error will get you that on a lot of days.  Though I will say Izturis has played better so far this season than I expected.

Cards start a series with the Nationals tonight.  You can participate in the CardsClubhouse YNOT for the series if you get your picks in by first pitch.

Home Stretch

A while back, the United Cardinal Bloggers (some of who did the roundtable that you can find below) put out their predictions for the way the different standings around the league would pan out.  Daniel at Redbirds Fun told me at the time he typically waited until closer to the regular season, and you can now find his selections at his blog.

Not your traditional Opening Day, but the Red Sox and Athletics have kicked the season off in Japan.  Looks like Boston's in good shape to win this one in extra innings.  Our network friends at Who Made You Mirabelli? and Beantown West will likely be all over this, albeit from the Boston perspective.

Cards won another one yesterday, 8-4 over the Twins.  13 hits for the Redbirds, so most everyone had a good day.  Even Cesar Izturis drove in two with a single in his only AB.  You know it's a good day when something like that happens!  (He did get caught stealing, however.)  Colby Rasmus again made the trip and drew a walk.  Being that the Cards don't have another road trip, that may be his last appearance with the big squad in the spring.

Brad Thompson threw a pretty decent outing, two runs in five innings.  He even struck out four, which usually isn't a big part of his game.  The only pitcher with a rough day was Chris Perez, who allowed two runs in the ninth and was yanked before he could finish it.  That probably seals his demotion to Memphis, but he will see St. Louis sometime this summer, barring injury.

It really is the home stretch for the Cardinals.  They have home games today and tomorrow against the Nationals and Orioles, respectively.  Then, on Thursday, they are the "road team" for the last Fins and Feathers game against ST roommates Florida.  Friday and Saturday has them playing in Springfield, MO against their AA team before heading to St. Louis to start off the season on Monday.

Joel Pineiro pitched against AAA batters yesterday and did pretty well.   According to the article by Matthew Leach, if all goes well Pineiro could be back with the major league club by mid-April.  I don't know what the odds are of that happening.  I'm sure they go up dramatically if he doesn't report pain today.

There's an article up today about the pitching of Thompson and Todd Wellemeyer.  I don't know that they should bear the brunt of the outrage of Anthony Reyes not being in the rotation.  I still don't think Wellemeyer can keep up his numbers if he had to stay in the rotation for a whole year.  Thompson would probably have a better chance, but I do think of him as a reliever as well.  The biggest problem is that we've got these guys plus Braden Looper when our top prospect of a couple of years ago languishes.  It just doesn't make a lot of sense.

Rick Ankiel is hitting .369 for the spring, coupling the average with power.  If anyone had said 8 years ago that Ankiel would be our cleanup hitter, it would have been a joke about a weak offense.  He's definitely developed into a reasonable alternative in that slot.  Of course, the jury is out on whether he can continue to be effective until the regular season gets started, but I think he'll be fine.

This offense really has me excited about the 2008 season.  There should be a lot less of "oh, we aren't going to score" this year.  Last year, if Pujols or Molina weren't coming up, a lot of times scoring opportunities were wasted.  There will be a lot more firepower in the lineup this year, it appears.

Mr. Goold is on the ball again today, bringing us the lineup.  Anthony Reyes is on the mound and hopefully will have another great start.

1. Skip Schumaker, RF
2. Brian Barton, LF
3. Albert Pujols, 1B
4. Troy Glaus, 3B
5. Rick Ankiel, CF
6. Jason LaRue, C
   
7. Aaron Miles, 2B
8. Anthony Reyes, RHP
9. Cesar Izturis, SS

The bullpen is stocked with LHP Ron Villone, LHP Randy Flores, RHP Ryan Franklin, RHP Jason Isringhausen, RHP Kelvin Jimenez, RHP  Hugo Castellanos.

Dashing Reyesd Hopes

First off, a happy Easter weekend to all of you.  I've said before this year that Lent is the spring training for Christians, which makes Easter our Opening Day.

Secondly, the UCB roundtable continues.  Here's Thursday's, brought to you by Rockin' the Red, and Mike on the Cards should have yesterday's transcript up soon.  I'll be posting my questions soon (if I can come up with something we haven't covered yet!) and should have the transcript up Monday or Tuesday.

The biggest story today seems to be that Brad Thompson will be the fifth starter, supplanting Anthony Reyes.  This just seems like another blow to Reyes, who seems to have twerked off someone in the organization.  (That someone likely wears sunglasses and sits in the dugout, but that's just a guess.)  Yes, Thompson has had a pretty good spring.  A 2.38 ERA and less than a hit an inning does look pretty good compared to Reyes's 4.85 with 17 hits in 13 innings.

Reyes has had four starts this spring.  Two of those he didn't allow a run, including his last outing.  He has 11/2 K/BB ration, which seems pretty good to me.  Almost a strikeout an inning.  (Thompson is 10/3, which is good as well, of course.)  When you look past the ERA, the numbers for the two are pretty similar, especially since Thompson has only started one game this spring.

I guess what bugs me, besides the fact that I think Thompson is a great relief pitcher when he's on, but he's not necessarily a starter, is this quote from Duncan:

"For that role, you aren't sitting on the edge of your chair not knowing what's going to happen every time he goes out there."

Yet, for all of that, the Cardinals continue to throw Braden Looper into the starting rotation.  He of the 7.98 spring ERA, 7 walks to 6 strikeouts, and 20 hits in 14.2 innings.  And he's a better option that Anthony Reyes?  Looper was almost the definition of "edge of your chair" last year after his strong start.  Either he was going to pitch well or he was going to blow up.  You never quite knew.

Someone, I think it was at VEB, mentioned that they thought the comments earlier in the week by LaRussa saying that they wanted to make the "least disruptive" decision meant that they'd probably start Thompson and move him to the bullpen when Clement, Pineiro etc. were ready to go, because that'd be less disruptive than sending out Reyes then.  Seems like something this group would do.

I thought over the winter that Reyes might need a new organization, though I was glad when he wasn't traded, figuring they'd make a commitment to him.  The first thought might still be the correct one.

In other news, apparently Brendan Ryan has gone and gotten himself hurt, which means that D'Angelo Jimenez might actually make the Opening Day roster.  Hopefully this injury won't give LaRussa an opportunity to send Ryan down to the minors to "catch up" while carrying another weak but veteran infielder on the major league squad.

I see Ron Villone has his ERA in the 1 range.  He could be in the Percival/Springer mold as a veteran who revives his career in the Cardinal bullpen.  Which will be good, since apparently Tyler Johnson won't be around anytime soon.  (Anyone want to lay odds on when they announce he needs surgery?)

Today's game has a lot of interest on the mound.  First off, Kyle Lohse makes his Cardinal debut, which is enough to get bloggers ready to go.  Then, apparently, Mark Mulder may face hitters.  That could give us some information on how long he's going to be out.  If a good Mark Mulder joins this club in May, the people who are selling on the Cardinals might get a surprise.  (EDIT: They were minor league hitters, but the results looked pretty nice.)

The game is on the Cardinal Radio Network and apparently FSN as well.  Looking forward to seeing the results!

Also on the Network: √ Yanks Beat A Lefty? [Depressed Fan] √ Yanks Start Second Half With "W" [Green Pinstripes] √ All-Star Breather: The Giants Catchers [El Lefty Malo] √ Rock Is Dead; Shea Stadium July 18, 2008 [Loge 13] √ Citi Field Revealed (FYI: No Loge Here) [Loge 13] √ My Rifle, My Pony and Me [Beantown West] √ Quick Chicago roundup [Tremendous Upside Potential] √ Giants Reveal New Stadium Ticket Plans [Loge 13]