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A Weekend In Houston

The Cards kept a couple of their trends alive this weekend.  They won a series after dropping the first game, something they've done five times this season.  And they had another game where early scoring was only scoring, though this time the cushion held up.  Let's do the traditional CATB wrap here.

Friday
Hero: Well, it's pretty much either Adam Kennedy or Skip Schumaker, since they are the only ones that got hits in the game.  I've given him the Goat before because he didn't produce in the leadoff slot, so it's only fair to give him the Hero nod when Skip gets two hits in that role.
Goat: Braden Looper.  He wasn't helped by his defense, true, but he really helped dig the big hole.

Saturday
Hero: Ryan Ludwick.  Not only was he 2-4 with what turned out to be a very big three-run home run, but he hit that home run after Pujols was intentionally walked.  He's going to have to continue to do that so Pujols can have pitches to hit.
Goat: Kyle McClellan. I know he was pressed into service with Adam Wainwright's finger injury, so maybe allowing the runner on second to score would be understandable.  But to allow two others and get the game into an area that allowed Houston to think they had a chance was not a good thing at all.

Sunday
Hero: Brendan Ryan.  Coming up with that game-winning hit was big, especially after Wandy Rodriguez had shut the Cards down until that inning. 
Goat: Albert Pujols.  This is more of a series-award than just particularly this game.  When was the last time Albert went hitless in a series?  (Apparently it was 7 years, at least in Houston.)

Cards get an off day today, then get another chance to be part of a Ken Griffey history celebration this week.

Another Downer

Really, was anyone surprised?

I missed both games yesterday, the afternoon win due to work and most of the evening one due to softball.  I did see them get down 5-0 and was pleasantly surprised to hear on the radio on my way home that the game was going into the bottom of the ninth.  I turned on the game at home to see the Cards up in the bottom of the 10th, but the Nats had a runner on and Ryan Franklin was pitching.

This is going to turn out badly, I thought.  And sure enough it did.

Since Izzy gave up the closer role, Franklin has pitched 9.1 innings.  Counting last night, he's given up four earned runs, for an ERA of 3.86.  Six of the nine outings, though, he's not been charged with any runs.  However, his WHIP in that span is 1.61, which is ridiculously high for a closer.  To put it in perspective, Izzy's WHIP for the year is 1.78.

I'd like to see Tony be a little more open to one of the rookies getting a shot in the ninth, but I think the more likely hope is that Izzy is mentally and physically ready soon to take the job.  And will Tony have to swallow a little pride and bring Anthony Reyes back to the majors after another disaster by Mike Parisi?

Hero of the second game has to be Mark Worrell.  Two scoreless innings with the team way down, then blasts a three-run homer in his first AB.  The Cards have had a number of people, including pitchers, do that in the last decade.  If I had more time, I'd look them up.  (About to leave the office, sorry!)

At least they won the first game, behind another blast by Troy Glaus.  He really does like the warmer weather!  The goat is a toss up between two players that went 0-3, but Aaron Miles left more men on than Brian Barton.  Awesome to see a pinch-hit HR by Pujols as well.

More draft today.  I'm sure everyone's seen that the Cards took a 3B with their first pick.  Sounds like a pretty solid hitter.  With David Freese, Allen Craig and now Brett Wallace, the hot corner is a popular place.

Cards and Houston tonight.  Looper vs. Moehler.  Could be a lot of fireworks at the bandbox.  Out of time, or I'd do the normal breakdown.  Enjoy the day!

Continuing the Trend

The Cardinals, after last night's victory, have won four series in a row, all by a 2 games to one count.  They've at least mixed up the game they lost, though, losing the first one twice, the second once and the third once.  That's winning baseball for almost two weeks, which was very good to see after the mini-meltdown (3-7) in the middle of the month.

Lots of people going on about Chris Duncan's at-bat last night.  It was a good sign to see Duncan battle back and drive the runs in.  However, I'm still giving the Hero tag to Albert Pujols.  First off, it was his two-out single that kept the first alive, leading to Duncan coming up (after a couple of walks).  Second, his home run proved to be the difference in the game.  If he doesn't hit that and Berkman ties it up in the ninth, you think as much talk about the first inning is going on?  You also have to fit Kyle Lohse into the Hero conversation, but no strikeouts is something that can come back to bite you eventually.

With not a lot of offense going on, it's a little tougher to find a Goat.  Ryan Franklin could have gotten consideration if he'd struggled after the home run to Berkman, but getting three straight outs after that soothed things.  So I think I'll go with Rick Ankiel, who went 0-4 including a strikeout hitting ahead of Pujols.  This shouldn't have been too unexpected, however.  He's hitting .232 in the #2 hole.

The Cards now face the last team they lost a series too.  Pittsburgh came into Busch May 13-15 and won the first and last game of the series.  Now, they come in for a four game set having settled back into the cellar that they are accustomed to.  As far as I can tell, this is the last series against the Pirates in St. Louis for the year.

Tonight's matchup is Todd Wellemeyer against Zach Duke.  Wellemeyer, as we say every time he comes around in the rotation, has been the pleasant surprise of the pitching staff.  He's solid proof that Dave Duncan does know what he was doing.  The last couple of years of Walt Jocketty's reign, he tended to grab anyone on the scrap heap and let Duncan tinker.  It didn't always work, but when it did, it worked big.

Wellemeyer has faced the Pirates twice this year.  The first outing, in Pittsburgh, was one of his worst of the year.  He had an almost identical line his next time out, then did not give up more than two earned runs again until his last time out against the Dodgers.  That included facing Pittsburgh in Busch, where he gave up one run in seven innings in a win.  He's got good career numbers against most of the hitters as well.

Duke, on the other hand, has never really fulfilled the promise he showed in 2005 as a rookie.  His ERA has always been high and he's only one five games in the last two years.  He's actually pitched much better on the road than at home this year, with an ERA under four.  However, no matter where he's at, his K/BB ratio is close to one and he gives up over a hit an inning.  If the Cardinals are patient against him, they may be able to continue their good numbers against him.

The YNOT for this series is up at the Clubhouse and the series preview will be soon as well.

Other news and links: Mark Mulder will retire rather than have another surgery.  It may come down to him retiring anyway, as neither he nor the team now thinks he'll be ready by the All-Star Break.  I was really hoping the Cards would get something out of him, especially after all the players were raving about him in the spring.  Now it really looks like his career is probably over.

And, if you are a big Lost fan like I am, you'll get a kick out of this one.  (And don't say a thing about the finale--I've still not watched the hour from a couple weeks back, much less last night's episode!)

On the Wagonmaker

I've probably complained before about my cable system.  It's my blog, though, so I'm going to do it again.

Actually, the system really is good.  We, for some reason, here in this part of Arkansas are considered part of the Houston market, so that's the FSN that we get.  My cable company, though, runs the pregame and game feed from FSN Midwest on an unused channel for the Cardinal fans.

This works out great except when the Cardinals play Houston.  Then, we are forced to have the Houston feed, which is how it was Tuesday night.  That's not too bad, though I prefer the pregame show and getting the Cardinal announcers.

What irritates me is situations like last night.  Houston's FSN wasn't televising the game, but we still didn't get the FSN Midwest feed.  So it was televised, but we couldn't get it down here.  It's a rare thing and I know I'm blessed to be able to see as many games as I do, but it still gets a little irksome.

And, apparently, it was a heck of a game to watch.  I love to see good pitching, especially from the Cardinal side, and Adam Wainwright provided that.  Three hits in eight innings?  Very nice.  Especially against a resurgent Houston team that had put the wood to the Cardinals the night before.

Getting that early lead surely helped, and I see we have the Houston defense to thank for that.  I knew that Rodriguez has been tough on the Cardinal hitters, so I was surprised to see that the Cards jumped on him early.

Another rough night for Troy Glaus.  0-4 with 4 left on. Glaus seems to be a streaky hitter in the line of Edmonds.  When he's going, he's going well.  When he's not, it's not pretty.

Back to Wainwright for a minute, though.  It was about this time last year that things started to click for the Wagonmaker and he became the pitcher we've grown accustomed to.  Since the end of May last year, he's 15-10 with a 2.93 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP.  His H/9 is 8.0 and K/9 is at 6.1.  All in all, he's the ace, whether Carpenter comes back or not.

Cards look to win the series tonight, but it'll be a challenge.  Roy Oswalt is on the mound for the Astros.  Oswalt isn't having a typical year for him, but he's still a tough pitcher to face.  The Cardinals were able to beat him the one time they faced him this year and some Cards do have pretty decent numbers against him.

Kyle Lohse goes for the Redbirds.  If he pitches like he did against Houston earlier in the year or how he did last time out, the Cards will be in good shape. However, if he pitches up to his career numbers against Astro hitters, well, it'll be a long evening.

Losing Momentum

The glow from a nice road trip was quickly erased last night as the Cards lost their second in a row and their third straight Tuesday game (for what that's worth).

Braden Looper easily gets the Goat tag.  Four runs down before the Cardinals even come to bat?  You knew it was going to be a rough day when that happened.  When Houston kept piling on, it's time to start thinking about the next game.

A 4-4 game with a HR is classic Hero stuff, even in a game like this, so Albert Pujols adds to his total.  However, I did really like seeing Brian Barton get the first home run of his career.  In a game like that, you take your joy where you can get it.

Things should turn around tonight, as Adam Wainwright goes against Wandy Rodriguez.  Wainwright only has one start against Houston this season, but it was a complete game in which he allowed three runs.  In fact, until his last outing in LA, that game was his last win.

Rodriguez is coming off the DL, but does have a start against the Cardinals this year.  He has even a better line than Wainwright, going 7.1 and allowing only three hits, no runs.  He's been tough on the Cardinals in the past, especially Pujols.  Maybe I spoke too soon about things turning around.

Delay In Transmission

Sorry I've not been around.  Work and holiday weekends have conspired to keep me out of cyberspace for the most part.  I've got some interesting (to me) blog ideas, if I can ever just get around to writing.  Sadly, it looks like this week will be another where there won't be much regular correspondence from this corner.

Let's briefly hit the Heroes/Goats of the Los Angeles series.  All in all, a very good series.  Two wins and a strong chance for the sweep.  A 4-2 road trip out to the Coast is about all you can ask for and it got them back into first place before the Cubs win today.

(And, personally, I'm glad it's not just me that thinks it's crazy the Cards don't have a game on Memorial Day.  All the summer holidays--this one, the Fourth, Labor Day--should be games for every team.)

Friday
Hero: Adam Wainwright.  7 innings, five hits, one earned run.  The team needed every bit of that and he stepped up to make those rough outings history.  Honorable mention: Ryan Ludwick, for providing basically all the offense.
Goat: Adam Kennedy.  0-5 in the leadoff slot doesn't help, though there were many that could have been chosen here.
General notes: I didn't get to see very much of this one.  How about Chris Perez, though?  I know that LaRussa won't have him closing soon, but he sure looks ready for it.  And don't you hate rain delays in the bottom of the ninth?  I wanted to see the end of the game, but I wasn't going to wait up for it by that time.

Saturday
Hero: Kyle Lohse.  An even better line than Wainwright, with no runs in six innings.  Again, exactly what the team needed.  Got to love those pitcher's parks.   Honorable mention: Adam Kennedy, for drawing the two-out walk that led to all the scoring.
Goat: Kinda tough to find one.  Molina went 0-3, but threw out Pierre trying to steal.  I guess we'll give it to Troy Glaus, because he stranded the most runners (2) with an 0-for night, but you hate to pick on the guy that leaves with abdominal problems.
General notes:  They might still be playing if Penny hadn't been wild with two outs.  It was a pretty fun game to watch, if you are into the pitching thing.

Sunday
Hero:  2-5 with a RBI will give the tag to Albert Pujols, but kudos to Brian Barton going 1-3 with 2 runs.
Goat: Skip Schumaker, for his 0-4 in the leadoff slot and the stranding of three runners.
General notes:  I had my daughter's first birthday party during this time (I didn't do the scheduling) so I saw only the 10th.  Can't blame Parisi too much, but it'd been nice if he'd gotten that out and sent it to the 11th.

Houston comes to town tomorrow.  The scheduled starters are Braden Looper vs. Shawn Chacon.  Chacon has already faced the Cardinals twice this year, posting a 2.76 ERA against them, though he got no decision in either outing.  In fact, it took Chacon 10 starts before he finally did get a decision, a win against the Cubs.

Looper has a win and a no-decision against the Astros, but proves the futility of win-loss records.  In the win, he gave up three in 5.2 innings.  In the no-decision, he threw seven scoreless innings.  Note that in the no-decision, he was matched up against Chacon.

Containing Berkman, as always, will be the key to the series.

I'll try to post some later in the week, even if it's just a short thought on the previous night's game.  But be looking for my special blog posts, including what your Cardinal T-Shirt says about you.

Bad Blood Weekend

I figured that both the Cardinals and the Astros hadn't forgotten about the Pujols/Towles-Backe issue but I wasn't expected a couple of bench clearings this weekend.  Playing Houston another 12 times or so could enliven the summer, especially if the team slides out of contention.

That's not the case right now, though, as the Cardinals take the series from Houston.  And, with regular results, would have swept their way into first place.

Friday night, the loss all comes down to Jason Isringhausen, the Goat of the Day.  Giving up three runs in the ninth, with only one coming on a home run, is unacceptable for a closer that's getting paid as much as Izzy is.  Of course, these things happen, but lately they've been happening with much more regularity with Izzy, bringing back memories of his disastrous 2006 campaign.  He doesn't seem to be hurt now, but that 6.55 ERA is going to have the phone in Memphis ringing for Chris Perez pretty soon if he doesn't straighten it out.

The Hero of Friday night had to be Braden Looper, who saw possibly his best ever start go up in smoke in the ninth.  But seven innings of two-hit ball is pretty impressive, even if you don't have the W beside your name afterwards.

After getting quite excited about the Oswalt/Wainwright matchup, my Saturday got eaten up and I wasn't able to see any of the game.  While it wasn't quite as great as the 1-0 Mulder/Clemens matchup of three years ago, it didn't disappoint by much, with the Cardinals pulling it out in the bottom of the ninth.

The big number that jumps out at that game is 126.  That's how many pitches Adam Wainwright threw.  I understand that, especially on the heels of Isringhausen's Friday, LaRussa may not trust the bullpen as much, but that's pushing it, I think.  The last thing this team needs is for the Wagonmaker to blow out his arm.  I'd hope that next game TLR thinks about removing Wainwright around the 90 pitch mark.  It probably also helps that there is a day off in this run through the rotation, which means that he'll get an extra day of rest before taking the mound again.  Still, for his effectiveness and durability, you've got to give him the Hero award, though Pujols with his two RBI would come close.

Saturday's Goat would probably be LaRussa for leaving Wainwright in so long, but I'm trying to limit it to the players.  Most everyone had a similar batting line, with nobody having more than one hit.  Even Troy Glaus, who went 0-3, drove in a run.  So, just because his season has been so bad and he didn't do anything to redeem in, the award goes to Jason LaRue for his 0-1, plus forcing TLR to pinch hit for him in the ninth.

Oh, and there's no doubt that Wainwright was trying to send a message to Ausmus without causing any damage.  After a couple of your players get thrown at, you want to make sure you stand up for them.  There wasn't any chance Ausmus would get hurt, at least it didn't look like it from the replays.  I've got no problem with that at all, as long as you aren't throwing at the head.  At least to some, that was the play of the game.

Sunday, you just knew something was going to happen with Brandon Backe on the mound.  He stymied the Cardinals for a while, but after Ludwick's double to break the scoring seal for the Cards and then Hero Troy Glaus going yard for the first time this year, he seemed to come a little unglued, as we saw in his confrontation with Molina.

And, boy, was Yadi steamed about the whole thing.  He was still talking after Backe was out of the game.  If you see a fastball in your face, I'm sure it does tend to rile you up.  Like I said early, I doubt this is completely over. Mark your calendars for May 27-29!

I gave Glaus the Hero because he finally got the home run, which put the game out of reach, but there were a number of players you could have chosen.  Kyle Lohse pitched a great game.  Kyle McClellan got his first save by going three strong innings.  Pujols hit a home run.

The Goat is a little harder because most everyone did play a solid game.  For one of the rare times he's not had a good game in the leadoff role, though, the Goat goes to Skip Schumaker for his 0-4 day.  You don't often see 0 in the hit column for Skip lately.

The Cards start this series with Cincinnati just a 1/2 game behind the Cubs, making that loss on Friday (after the Cubs had already lost as well) very costly.  Tonight, Brandon Arroyo and Todd Wellemeyer meet up as the other two contenders in the NL Central, the Cubs and Brewers, clash.  A win tonight could move the Cards back into the penthouse.

Some mixed results for the Cardinals against Arroyo.  For instance, Pujols has a .233 average against him, but does have two home runs.  Chris Duncan should be in the lineup tonight, since he's hitting .316 with a long ball against Arroyo.  Izturis and Ludwick both have good numbers in limited action against the pitcher, so expect Izturis to return from his injury tonight.

The Reds haven't done well against Wellemeyer, though only Adam Dunn has more than 10 plate appearances against him.  Scott Hatteburg and Edwin Encarnacion combine for five of the nine hits the Reds have managed against the Cardinal hurler.

Programming note: There's been a change in the lineup of the UCB Game Blogging Project.  CardinalsGM is going to take the fourth instead of this blog.  Instead, I'm going to have the pre-game and post-game post.  Tom's done a lot of the UCB activities in the past and it's great to have him on board for this one as well.

The CardsClubhouse preview will be up later today, and there's still time to get into the Reds YNOT.

Splitting

The Cards have been doing a lot of .500 ball playing lately.  They are 5-5 in their last 10, with a pattern of win two, lose one, win one, lose two, win one, lose two, win one.  It's a roller-coaster ride after the smooth winning pattern of the first couple of weeks.

They got back on the horse last night with patience and strong pitching.  While I wanted to go Hero-wise with Brian Barton, who was 2-4 with a walk and got the scoring started with a two-run double (on the first hit of the game), it's tough to argue with the numbers Joel Pineiro put up last night.  Seven innings of one-run ball, four hits, six strikeouts and bonus points for the kick-save out that will on highlight reels for years to come.  I think that's the second time this year that Pineiro has done a kick move like that, but the first time it's actually worked.  Besides Barton, honorable mention goes to Yadier Molina for three hits, including two doubles, and Albert Pujols for reaching base five times (though once was when he was thrown out going for a double).

Goat-wise, I guess you have to go with Ryan Ludwick for his 0-5 night.  He wasn't even able to coax a walk out of Tom Gorzelanny, something that just about everyone was able to do.  I really like the patience that the team is showing so far.  Especially with the weaker hitters.  If they are able to get on base, that just makes the offense that much more potent.

The Cardinals go home and get to match up with the streaking Houston Astros, who have won five in a row.  The Cardinals beat them two out of three in Houston earlier in the year, but the Cards will only face one pitcher they saw in that matchup.

That pitcher is Shawn Chacon, who goes tonight against Braden Looper.  The Cards were able to beat him last time, 5-3, but historically they've had their troubles against him.  Chris Duncan has had success in limited action against him, so you figure to see him out there tonight.  Then again, since it's a right hander on the mound, you figure all the lefties will be in the lineup.  Which is too bad for Brian Barton, after his strong game, but if Ludwick got benched after hitting home runs in three straight games because a righty was on the mound, Barton has little room to argue.

Looper has done all right against the Astros and hopefully will continue that this evening.  He wasn't anything special last time out, allowing three runs in 5.2 innings, but he did get the win.  Which is what counts the most, right?

The biggest key to this series will be getting the guys out in front of Lance Berkman.  Berkman always seems to kill the Cardinals, so the pitchers are going to have to do their best to limit the damage.  To a lesser degree, Carlos Lee and Miguel Tejada are also threats, but I personally will always breath easier when Berkman is retired.

And Saturday's matchup should be a lot of fun, with Adam Wainwright against Roy Oswalt.  If Oswalt's on his game (something that's eluded him a lot in 2008), that could be a pitcher's duel that ranks right up there with another Saturday afternoon game against the 'Stros.

The series preview and the YNOT are up at the Clubhouse, so check those out as well.

All's Right With The World

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.

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]