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One More Try

Really, is there anything to say about last night?  Sabathia was on, was dominant, and we have to be glad for the few Cardinals hits and the fact the score stayed close.

Hero?  I guess Brendan Ryan, for breaking up the no-hitter.  None of the pitchers were that great.  Looper kept it close, but could only go five innings after continually getting into trouble.  Jiminez and Izzy both went two, but gave up a run in that time span.

Goat?  Albert Pujols.  Flying out with men on first and second basically put paid on that game.

Newest rumor buzz: Roy Halladay.  Discussion on various sites agrees that a trade like that would take Colby Rasmus.  The dissension comes from whether he's worth it.  My initial reaction is no.  The Cards are going to need cheap, quality offense in the years to come and Rasmus should provide that.

The other side of the coin, though, has merit.  Rasmus may not pan out.  Halladay is pretty proven.  'Course, that's what they said about Mark Mulder.

If there was anyway to get Halladay without Rasmus (say, Anderson, Todd and Reyes), I'd have to say go for it.  Otherwise, I just don't know.

Tonight, the Cards try to avoid the sweep with Todd Wellemeyer going against Ben Sheets.  The Cardinals have been able to solve Sheets before, but it's a tough puzzle.  Albert's really liked to see him in the past.  Maybe he can stop that homerless streak tonight.  The Cards scored three runs in seven innings on him earlier in the year, which didn't give him the loss but the Cards did win the game.  He's fairly unknown to the Brewers; though they won the matchup against him this year, he got a no-decision allowing two unearned runs in six innings.

Housekeeping:  I forgot to note it last week, but CATB has passed the one-year milestone.  Over 300 posts when you combine the Wordpress version and this one.  Glad y'all are still reading and I hope you enjoy it.  If you are on Facebook, please join the CATB blog group over there.  Thanks!

The Second Half Begins

Before we get to tonight's game, let's take a look at a few of the stories floating around about the Cards.

First off, there's the rumor that the Cardinals might part with Colby Rasmus.  Here's the relevant part of that link (took me a minute to actually find it):

Overheard at the pre-All-Star Game bash out on Randall's Island. The contending Cardinals might even consider parting with top outfield prospect Colby Rasmus, a major surprise. If so, it may put them in line to land Pittsburgh's Xavier Nady, or even Jason Bay.

OK, one, I don't believe the Cards would move Rasmus, that this is more of someone's either wishful or uninformed thinking.  Second, if they did move Rasmus, they darn well better do it for someone better than Nady and probably for someone better than Bay as well.

Speaking of rumors, apparently there was one on XM that had Rasmus, Bryan Anderson and Mitchell Boggs going to Colorado for Matt Holliday and Brian Fuentes.  I'm not fond of this one either.  With Holliday not completely proving he's not a Coors Field creation and the fact that Rasmus should be able to do what he does soon and for much cheaper, it just doesn't make sense to trade two top prospects for that package.

I really don't think Mozeliak will trade off Rasmus.  It just doesn't make any sense from the Cardinal perspective.

In fact, that was emphaised in an interview with Bill DeWitt on the Post-Dispatch site.  To quote:

P-D: Back to the club. Much speculation has sprouted about how far the organization will go to acquire help for this year's team if it remains in contention. What does that say about the availability of premium prospects such as Colby Rasmus?

BDJ: They're must-haves for any organization. I don't think you can trade potential premium prospects unless you get premium players back. I think what a lot of clubs have done historically is trade premium prospects for less-than-premium return. I don't agree with a short-term fix. A lot of quick fixes don't work. Time goes on, you're down the road, and your former prospect is out there putting up All-Star numbers for someone else.

P-D: Is there a chance that Rasmus could play his first major-league game in another uniform?

BDJ: I don't anticipate that. No.

The rest of the interview is pretty good as well.  I think DeWitt has taken a lot of unnecessary criticism over the years, so it is good to see him out in the press taking on some of the questions.

Closer to the field, it looks like the injured pitchers are getting better.  Adam Wainwright is looking to return in the next three weeks or so, it appears, and Chris Carpenter really liked how his simulated game went.  I would expect a solid return from Wainwright, maybe in time for the Cubs series August 8-10, but I still don't think we'll see Carpenter on the mound until the end of August and even then, I'm not sure how effective he will be.  But it's good to know things are getting better.

The Cards are the wild-card leader at the moment and they try to stay that way when they take on the Padres in Busch tonight.  It's a matchup of current aces, as Kyle Lohse and Jake Peavy take to the hill.  Not many of the Padres have seen a lot of Lohse, though outfielder Jody Gerut seems to have his number. The Cardinals have actually been able to put up some good numbers on Peavy, which really surprised me knowing the kind of pitcher he is.  Both Albert Pujols and Troy Glaus have two home runs against him.

Even so, I'd expect this to be a low-scoring game.  It's a good thing the Padres offense has been so weak--the Cards may not have to score much to win.

Series preview is up at the Clubhouse and the YNOT is active as well.  Ready to get it started!

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.

Also on the Network: √ Kevin Curtis Out With Sports Hernia [Depressed Fan] √ Trying to Find the Bright Spots [Arin It Out] √ You Have GOT To Be Kidding [C70 At The Bat] √ Fantasy Football Anyone? [Depressed Fan] √ Damon's Miscue Sinks Yankees [Green Pinstripes] √ Two F'ing Hands. [Depressed Fan] √ More Newbies, Please [El Lefty Malo] √ Shea Stadium Seats: This Explains Everything! [Loge 13]