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Recently in Philadelphia Phillies CategoryA Game For The AgesPosted on October 8, 2011 at 9:25 AM
You may remember that recently I had a giveaway of a DVD of Game 5 of the 1985 National League Championship Game. It was part of a series of DVDs called "Baseball's Greatest Games." After last night, A&E needs to make room for another disc.Going into a game that was as heavily hyped as this one was, I was a bit concerned. I mean, how often to these games live up to the advance billing? However, I told my father Thursday afternoon, "You know, the team that scores next in this series might just win it." I was sure it was going to be low-scoring, but this low-scoring? That the Cards score the only run of the game before anyone was out? Which, of course, made for a stressful evening. The mid-evening start time meant I missed parts of the game with the whole bathtime/bedtime routine for the kids, but when I wasn't doing that, I was standing in front of the TV, pacing a little square as I watched the tension continue to increase. My wife, who went back to watch another show, came out in the bottom of the ninth to see me in front of the TV, phone in hand, and asked, "What did baseball fans do without Twitter?" As I told her, I honestly don't know. I'm not sure I'd have stayed sane if it wasn't for being able to share this incredible tension with a number of my closest Cardinal fans. So thanks to all that Tweeted with me last night, even if the last out countdown worried some. Right now, I think the next podcast is going to have our resident historian Bob Netherton as a guest. One of the questions I was planning to ask him, even before last night, was if Chris Carpenter was the Bob Gibson for our generation. He's not going to be a Hall-of-Famer (though if Jack Morris still gets arguments basically for Game 7 of the '91 World Series, perhaps there will be some discussions of Carp) but as Bernie Miklasz stated, last night he sure looked like him. Credit where credit is due to Tony La Russa, who did the controversial to attain the inconceivable. It almost backfired on him--if the Cards don't come back in Game 2, we probably aren't talking about a Game 5 at all--but La Russa knew that if the Cardinals were going to have a chance to win against Roy Halladay in an elimination game, they had to have Carpenter to go against him. There's no doubt that TLR is a baseball visionary and I'm very, very glad that he had the foresight to do just that, apply his vision to this series. We'll talk about the NLCS in the next post. The Brewers and Diamondbacks played their own classic game last night, an extra-inning affair that featured a safety squeeze to tie the game in the ninth. And yet, it was completely overshadowed by a game that will be talked about for a long, long time. Thanks, Chris Carpenter, for giving us a night we'll always remember and for giving this team yet another happy flight.  Quick Check-InPosted on October 5, 2011 at 6:44 AM
The beginning of October, I always have a bank audit to do for my real job. (If only blogging paid the bills!) It's a two-hour drive, so I'm out of the house before dawn and back not much before dark, with kids to see and things to do before getting to bed earlier than normal to make sure I don't snooze on the next day's drive.Sometimes, that's not a huge deal. If the Cards miss the playoffs, as they have three of now-five postseasons since I've started blogging, it's not like I'm missing much. However, when they make it like this year, it leaves me behind the eight ball. Which is a long winded way of saying I wish I could be writing about these games and probably will try to look back on them this weekend if I can get a chance. However, I have a couple of minutes this morning before I head out of town and I want to talk about a point in yesterday's game that could have been the turning point of the whole series. A lot of focus is being put on the seventh-inning intentional walk of Carlos Ruiz, and with good reason. I listened to most of the game driving back in my car yesterday afternoon and I was talking to the radio much of the drive, but especially then. I know there was sound baseball logic to it--Ruiz was probably more likely than a pinch-hitter to get a base hit that would have driven in Shane Victorino from second. It sets up a force play as well and gets Cole Hamels out of the game (though at 117 pitches, he probably was out anyway). So I understand why Tony La Russa made the call. I just know that so often times, that kinda thing backfires. He got away with it earlier by walking Hunter Pence to get to Ryan Howard, which I thought was a gutsy but smart move with the way Howard had looked against Jaime Garcia (and his typical struggles against lefthanders). I just wasn't sure that he could get away with it again and, sure enough, Ben Francisco put one over the wall. However, that might not have been the turning point of the game. I wasn't on Twitter at the time and I've not had a lot of time to look at our intrepid Cardinal bloggers, but I'm not sure a lot of discussion is going on about the bottom of the sixth. After two strikeouts, Ryan Theriot singles and they wind up walking Jon Jay with Garcia up next. Two on, two out against Hamels, who really seemed to be laboring from what I was hearing on the radio. Now, I know Garcia was pitching a strong game up to that point. That said, it's October. Don't you have to take a better shot there than letting Garcia hit? You've got a rested bullpen for the last three innings, allowing you to mix and match however you want. Garcia had just gotten past Howard after walking Pence, so you aren't going to have him come back up and you are looking at 5-6-7, which is less formidable than 2-3-4. A base hit here gives you the lead, which would have been huge in a 0-0 game. If this was April's bullpen, I'd have understood the move more. You wanted to keep that bullpen off the field as much as possible. Now, though, the pen is a strength, or at least not a weakness. You'd feel pretty confident with those guys and a one-run lead, also figuring that the bullpen moves for Philadelphia might be different if they are behind than if they are ahead and you can likely hit them better than you have Hamels anyway. Cards have their backs against the wall today, sending Edwin Jackson out against Roy Oswalt. Oswalt's been tough on the Cardinals in the past, but after facing the other three Philadelphia pitchers, I feel pretty good about the Cardinals' ability to put good at-bats together and score a few runs off of him. This will be Jackson's first postseason start, though, so I'm a bit concerned with how his game is going to go. You have to figure he'll be yanked at the first sign of trouble because of the import of the game. No matter the outcome of today's game, it's been a good series. That said, be nice to see Roy Halladay vs. Chris Carpenter in a Game 5, wouldn't it?
Know Your EnemyPosted on October 2, 2011 at 12:00 AM
I will have more to say about Game 1 of the NLDS either tomorrow or Monday, but for right now I want to bring you a chance to learn about the Phillies from a person that follows them. Max of Fire Eric Bruntlett is the Membership Secretary of the Baseball Bloggers Alliance and a diehard fan of the Philadelphia persuasion. He and I exchanged some questions before the series started. You can see my responses to his over here (along with our old friend Bill Ivie), while his answers to mine are below.C70: What's the pulse of the Philadelphia fanbase? Are they expecting a walkover? FEB: Some of the fan base seems like they would be disappointed by anything less than a sweep. However, I think that's too arrogant. Obviously, the Cardinals are the biggest underdogs in these series, but they're not the 2010 Cincinnati Reds that the Phillies swept last year. The Cardinals offense is more balanced, and the Reds didn't have a Chris Carpenter-type starter who could at least salvage one game with a shutdown performance. Not to mention, expecting a sweep leaves no room for error, only room for disappointment. Better to expect to lose a game and be pleasantly surprised than expect a sweep and be disappointed. C70: Is there any one player that worries you more than the rest of the Cardinal team? FEB: Aside from the obvious Albert Pujols-Matt Holliday-Lance Berkman fearsome trio, that Yadier Molina has put up the best offensive numbers of his career does worry me, especially considering last year's sharp decline. He was the NL's starting catcher last year, despite a truly abysmal .223/.301/.294 slash line, but the difference between his second half of the season and that first half was a very impressive .092/.067/.111. Still though, I figured it was merely regression to the mean and his awful first half was evened out by an over-his-head second half. However, this season, Molina put up numbers on par with those from the All-Star break on last year and set career highs in nearly every offensive category. He's already an above-average catcher defensively, and only helped to further the separation between him and Carlos Ruiz with his offense. C70: Do you put any stock into the series from mid-September, when the Cards won three of four in Citizens Bank Park? FEB: Offensively, no, I don't. The second game, when the Phillies won and clinched the NL East division, was the only of the four in which they had their full starting line-up, the same one that will be used in this series. Game 1 had first baseman Ryan Howard and left fielder Raul Ibanez out. Game 3, when I believe the team to have started putting on the cruise control, also the first game of their 8-game losing streak, gave Howard and catcher Ruiz the night off, and Howard also sat out Game 4. What I do put stock in is the starting pitching. Game 2 featured Roy Oswalt continuing to make great progress from a long injury that kept him out into August. 5 hits and 7 strikeouts through 7 innings was instrumental in reminding Phillies fans both why he was acquired in July 2010 and why he is the clear choice for fourth starter over rookie Vance Worley. Meanwhile, in Game 3, Hamels, except for two mistake pitches, was similarly masterful. One was a first-inning home run to deep left-center by Allen Craig, the other a sixth-inning homer just inside the left field line by Pujols, accounting for all four runs allowed by Hamels. Take away those, Hamels likely would've fared better than Oswalt - also 7 innings and also 5 hits, but 9 strikeouts - and likely would have pitched longer as well. Hamels's innings got him 16 fewer pitches, despite the homers. Unfortunately, Hamels has an unusual propensity for giving up the long ball. That game was the fourth in a streak of six consecutive games in September allowing a home run to end the season, the longest of his career. Surprisingly, that was the sole game of the month at home, in which he has allowed a long ball in just five of fifteen starts, despite the widely-held belief that Citizens Bank Park is a bandbox. On the road, he's allowed a homer in ten of seventeen. Of course, Hamels will start Game 3 of this series in St. Louis, so that may all be rendered moot. C70: What could reasonably go wrong in this series for the Phillies? What concerns do you have, if any? FEB: It is certainly difficult to imagine the Phillies losing this series, but of course, nothing is impossible. My main concern is Murphy's Law, "everything that can go wrong will go wrong." The young Phillies bullpen that is largely new to big roles in playoff baseball will blow a couple leads and the offense won't be able to come back. The offense continues the trend of being shut down by former teammates, this time Kyle Lohse, who beats Roy Halladay in a very close pitcher's duel and sets the tone for the series. Chris Carpenter wins a similar match-up over Cliff Lee in game 2 and the Phillies are on the road on the brink of a sweep. The phases of the moon determine that Raul Ibanez will go into a slump. The effects of injuries to Ryan Howard and Chase Utley will continue to manifest themselves and the rest of the lineup will not be able to overcome them. But while it is now apparent that the purpose of this question was to make me paranoid, I will continue to pray to BaseBa'al that not all of those things happen. C70: Is anything short of a World Series title acceptable among the majority of the fans? FEB: Unfortunately, for most fans, no, but I guess that's the downside to having the best 162-game team by a wide margin. I would obviously prefer the best regular season record 100% of the time, regardless of post-season expectations. As has been proven many times, the best team actually rarely wins the World Series. There's so much more luck and variance that plays in. But no one remembers the best regular season team even a couple years later, while most fans can reel off every World Series champion of the past ten years or so. C70: Who is the hottest hitter on the team at the moment? Who do you want up with the game on the line? FEB: No one is coming into this series on a tear, likely as a result of clinching so early, then losing eight in a row. Of hitters with 50+ September plate appearances, the highest batting average was just .317 (Hunter Pence), Ryan Howard's .417 OBP led the team, and Pence also led in slugging, at .548. I suppose either of them would be preferred in a crucial situation. Both of Howard's September strikeout and walk rates were improvements over his season totals, 25% vs. 26.7% K-rates, and walk rates of 16.7% compared to 11.7%. Swinging at junk in the dirt is usually I fear the most from Howard in a big spot, so, despite a small jump, is still a good sign for me. Meanwhile, Pence was by far better with the Phillies than he was in Houston, improving in nearly every category and does inspire confidence. If the Phillies are in a spot in which they need a big hit from the bench, John Mayberry, Jr. would certainly be the first player to look at, unless Charlie Manuel plays the platoons and starts him against lefties. He's hitting .095 points better (.306 vs. .211) and OPS'ing a whopping .368 points better (.953 vs. .585) against them this season. Since he was called back up to the big club on July 5, 25 of his 49 hits have come for extra bases. Mayberry is the best hitter on the team when it comes to making the most of his hits. C70: We know about the rotation, but what is the state of the Phillies bullpen right now? FEB: The bullpen is in a very interesting position right now. This series, it consists of Ryan Madson, Antonio Bastardo, Michael Stutes, Brad Lidge, Vance Worley, Kyle Kendrick, and Joe Blanton. Worley, a rookie, and Kendrick was successful in their starting roles, filling in for the injured Oswalt and Blanton, while Blanton experienced moderate success in 7 September innings in his return. Bastardo pitched more than 25 innings for the first time in his career (58), and used the opportunity to break out as a great setup man. He had one of the lowest opponent batting averages for a reliever ever (.144) and that he did that in his third Major League season at the age of 25 is incredible. He has run into some troubles of late, but it seems that's as a result of having never pitched this much before, and appears to be back on track now. Stutes is another rookie of the bullpen. He had a 3.63 ERA in 62 innings in his first ever season. He hit a bump in the road in August to the tune of a 5.84 ERA, but brought it back down to 3.00 last month. Behind injuries to Lidge and Jose Contreras, Madson broke out as a dominating closer, previously standing out as one of the top-tier set-up men and among the most underrated relievers in baseball. In 60.2 innings, he accumulated 32 saves and an ERA of 2.37. In his return from injury, Lidge had a 1.40 ERA in 19.1 innings. The most encouraging part of the bullpen is their ability to dominate. Five of the seven have SO/9 rates of 8 or better: Bastardo, 10.9; Lidge, 10.7; Madson, 9.2; Stutes, 8.4; and Worley, 8.1. On the other hand, only Bllanton, Madson, and Kendrick walk 2.5 batters per nine innings or better (2.0, 2.4, 2.4, respectively). If I were to rank them by confidence, Madson is easily first, followed by the close second-tier of Worley, Bastardo, and Stutes, then Lidge fairly sizably over Blanton and Kendrick. C70: Can we have Brad Lidge always pitch to Albert Pujols with the game on the line? FEB: That's fine by me, so long as it's not Game 5. Lidge has yet to allow a home run this season, only four extra-base hits, all doubles. Small sample size alert, but this is the lowest opponent slugging percentage of his career, save his 48-for-48 save 2008 season. I've been anticipating Lidge winning a rematch between the two of them, anyway. My thanks to Max for his input on this series. So far, his confidence in the Phillies is well-placed, but we'll have to see how things look tomorrow evening.
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And So It BeginsPosted on October 1, 2011 at 9:36 AM
I wrote two different posts yesterday talking about the NLDS and in neither one of them did I actually get around to asking a question that I meant to ask. So before we talk about the latest Cardinal roster move, let me jump into that.I don't to speak for a large part of Cardinal fandom (though I would hope the fandom would speak in the comments to what I'm about to say) but so often we go into the postseason with high hopes and high expectations. I don't think there's an NLDS that I haven't expected the Cardinals to win. So often it seems like that's just a stepping stone to going deep into October. It hasn't always panned out that way, of course. When the Cards were swept last time, in 2009 against the Dodgers, there was a lot of angst and frustration. We knew this team was better than that. We knew they should be moving on. And yet they weren't. Today, the Cards kick off another NLDS. I do believe they can win it (as I noted yesterday) and I know that if they don't win, I'll be disappointed at seeing the season come to a close. And yet, I don't think I'll be able to get really worked up about it, no matter what. Sure, a couple of late inning collapses and I'll rue what could have been. In the heat of the moment, I might get irate over what has just taken place. But angst? Lasting frustration? I just don't see that happening. I think that, because I had pretty much put this team to bed in August, that everything from now on is house money. I want the team to win, I think they can win, but I don't think I can get all wrapped up in a loss knowing that if Atlanta had just been a smidgen better at holding a lead, the Cards are playing golf right now. September gave us a lot of thrills and have given us the chance to see some October baseball, so to some degree I think I am just "happy to be here." That doesn't mean I don't want to see more, just that I'll be content either way. Being the fact that the Cards are an underdog rather than a favorite probably plays into it as well. It's one thing when we've seen a team be strong all year long and are playing a team that's perhaps their equal or less. We feel the Cards really should win those series. Instead, this time they are playing possibly the best team in baseball, a team that is on paper built to win it all. Again, doesn't mean that the Cards can't do it or that it'd be some major miracle if they did, but I can accept being beaten by a team that appears superior better than I can a team that the Cards really should handle. Am I wrong? Are more of you going to live and die with this October just like you have in years past? Let me know in the comments or on Twitter. Now, we've talked about the surprise in the rotation already, but there was another twist to the roster. Kyle McClellan won't be on the NLDS roster, it seems. McClellan had complained of a dead arm recently, but he says he was back to full health. The Cardinals felt they couldn't trust him to be available on back-to-back days and so they left him off. That's a very, very tough call. As Kevin referred to last night on Twitter, the Cards asked McClellan twice this year to change roles, first from the pen to the rotation when Adam Wainwright went down, then back to the pen when Edwin Jackson was acquired. McClellan was a good soldier, doing what the team asked of him. In that regard, doesn't he deserve the honor of going to the postseason with the club? I mean, that's the reason that Jake Westbrook is still on the team, isn't it? Westbrook hasn't relieved in a game since 2004. He can eat up innings if the Cards are getting blown out, but that's about it. I don't think we want to see Westbrook come into a game in the fifth if it hangs in the balance. On the flip side, the Cards have to put out the best team they have, and if they are concerned that McClellan can't go more than an inning every other day or so, that's a legitimate reason to leave him off the roster. The postseason isn't a time for sentiment and minimizing hurt feelings. Remember, the Cards dropped Jason Marquis from the roster in '06 due to ineffectiveness. McClellan has been prone to the long ball lately--possibly due to arm fatigue--and that can be a dagger in the postseason. So I can't fault the Cards for doing that. I do wish they'd have made room for Eduardo Sanchez, but they aren't completely sold on his health either, so I guess they are consistent about the whole thing. The good news about the roster is that Rafael Furcal and Matt Holliday will both be on it after passing some physical evaluations. It looks like Furcal might be healthy enough to go in Game 1, while Holliday isn't likely to start until later in the series, but could possibly pinch-hit. Hopefully those guys can be healthy and productive, because that would be huge for the Cardinals' chances. One last note--Tony La Russa is again a trendsetter. He hit the pitcher eighth, then a couple of other teams started flirting with it. He announces that Chris Carpenter is going in Game 2 on short rest and immediately Milwaukee thinks that's a great idea for Zack Greinke. 'Course, Ron Roenicke said if Greinke had thrown 100 pitches he wouldn't be doing it, which shows he still has a ways to go before getting to TLR levels.  Postseason Starts With A CurvePosted on September 30, 2011 at 6:04 PM
Tony La Russa pulled out another of his sleight of hand tricks today, stating that Chris Carpenter would be the Game 2 starter in Philadelphia, sending Carpenter out just three days after throwing a complete game shutout.There's no doubt Tony has his reasons. We talked this morning about Jaime Garcia and how he does much better at home, ruling him out of the first couple of games. It seemed fairly obvious, then, that Edwin Jackson would be the much better choice to go in the second game, until this announcement. As you've probably heard, Carpenter has never--never, mind you--gone on three days' rest in his career. Josh from Pitchers Hit Eighth and I were chatting on Google Talk this afternoon and he brought up a point that I hadn't considered, namely that Jackson is more of a fly ball pitcher. I recall him going to extremes with that in one of his last starts, as balls continued to fly deeper and deeper, but stay in the ballpark. With Philadelphia's bandbox, those balls would be much more likely to soar over the wall. However, I wanted to see if that was actually true. Pulling up his Baseball Reference page, I note that he has been a bit more likely to give up the longball since moving to the National League and that his strikeout rate has decreased. His GB/FB is 0.64 and his HR/FB% is at 6%, higher than it has been in his last couple of teams. How much of these numbers are skewed due to the beating he took in Milwaukee, I don't know, but that does have to be considered. Nevertheless, it does look like he'd be an ill fit for Philadelphia. He did not pitch in Citizens Bank Park this season and in his one career game there, he gave up five runs in five innings. I also think this is a good way for TLR to keep the pressure off of Kyle Lohse. We know that he likes to do that (look at the disastrous attempt back in 2000 with using Darryl Kile as a decoy for Rick Ankiel) and he loves to get the focus on him so that the players can do their jobs without concern. People are talking about Carpenter and whether this decision is the right one. They aren't talking about Lohse having to go up against Roy Halladay. With Lohse and Carpenter, the latter of which treats 100 pitch games are like warmups, going in enemy territory it does seem like the best way for the Cards to steal a game there and have a chance to win it at home. I'm a little worried that TLR is getting too cute with things and that these kind of moves have a tendency on backfiring, but I understand the logic and it's worth a shot. Also, per the discussion earlier today, TLR has said that Jake Westbrook will be on the postseason roster, so you can probably go ahead and cross off Eduardo Sanchez, which is too bad because I really think he could make a difference. Quick plug before I wrap this: you can hear my thoughts on the upcoming series and some on the season that's past on this Popblerd podcast. Garrett and I have known each other for a couple of years, as internet people know each other at least, and it was good to sit down and talk to him about the squad. I hope to have him on my podcast sometime this winter so we can have a chat about the San Francisco squad. Before the 2006 postseason, I remember looking at the path the Cardinals were going to take and thinking that they really had a legitimate shot. I felt like they could get past San Diego, in part because they always did. I looked at the Mets and thought that the Cards had the pitching edge in that series because Pedro Martinez was unavailable. I looked at Detroit and again thought the Cards had the edge because of their pitching and how they were playing, having everyone healthy and ready to go. I look at this 2011 postseason and, while they don't necessarily have all the edges that the 2006 squad had, I really do like their chances. Getting past Philadelphia will be tough, but it's a team that the Cards have beaten in the regular season so I don't think there will be as much of an intimidation factor as there might be with some other teams. Couple that with a fairly experienced squad and I think they can beat Philadelphia in five. I'm not sure who wins in the Arizona/Milwaukee series, but I think the Cardinals can hang with either of them. The Cards went 4-3 against Arizona and 9-9 against Milwaukee. Arizona has a big top two of Daniel Hudson and Ian Kennedy, but the Cards can counter those and have been able to get to those guys as well. As for Milwaukee, a matchup against them in the NLCS would be epic. You know it'd go seven games and all the stops would get pulled out. The Cards have proven they can beat their aces (though Yovani Gallardo can give them fits) and the Brewers have done damage against the Cards. Again, I'm not saying that the Cards would definitely win against either of those teams, but I think there's a legitimate case to be made that they could. Finally, you get to the World Series, and I don't think any team that makes it that far out of the AL doesn't have their own weaknesses. The Tigers can't throw Justin Verlander every night. The Yankees drop off after CC Sabathia. I'm not sold on the Rangers pitching (and, being that the Rays are now beating the Rangers 6-0 in a game that their ace started, there seems to be a reason) and the Rays....well, now, the Rays might make for an interesting time. They have good pitching and a solid offense to go along with it. Just on the face of it, I think Tampa Bay will be the toughest team the AL can send to the Series. I know it's optimistic, I know it's red-colored glasses, but if the Cards can get past Philadelphia (which, admittedly, is a tough but possible chore), I really like their chances. However, as the players say, we've got to take it one game at a time. And that game is tomorrow afternoon. Go Cards!  Filed Under: Arizona Diamondbacks
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Looking At The NLDSPosted on September 30, 2011 at 10:11 AM
The aftermath of Wednesday's excitement is still being felt. Granted, not much on the major networks, as they seem to be pretty focused on some team from the Northeast having some sort of failure. (I don't know, it's the American League and not really worth following.) Still, at least locally, there's some buzz about the Redbird nine.First off, there's some well-deserved recognition for John Mozeliak. I said in yesterday's post how important that the Colby Rasmus trade was to this team's September run and it's nice that the players recognized that as well. I think they were more on board with that deal than some of the fans were even from the first, not necessarily because they were down on Rasmus (which they may have been) but because they recognized the flaws on this team and that they were being filled. While the Brewers' incredible hot August made it look like the "win-now" component of the deal wasn't going to be fulfilled, the pieces were in place for the incredible September. It's hard to remember now all the trouble Tony La Russa went through with his shingles this year, isn't it? Where exactly does the time go? It seems like we were just talking about how this was a problem, then how Tony had lost the team and maybe a change was needed. Apparently, all ideas of shaking things up were a bit premature. I don't think there's any doubt now that TLR is back for 2012, if there ever was any. Even a quick exit in the NLDS won't damper what the Cards have been through in the last month. This team is incredibly focused, as is obvious in this article from Matthew Leach as he lays out all the different obstacles this Cardinal team went through, both on and off the field. A couple of those by themselves, especially the Adam Wainwright blow, would have ruined a lesser team. Putting a number of them in combination should have finished off even the hardiest of contestants. However, this Redbird team never gave up, plugged along, and now are reaping the benefits. Of course, those benefits include a trip to Philadelphia and a chance to face the most dominating pitching staff in modern times. So, you know, pretty much par for the course. The rotation has been announced and it will be Kyle Lohse in Game 1, Edwin Jackson in Game 2, Chris Carpenter back home for Game 3. Most likely you'd have Jaime Garcia in Game 4 and then Lohse again in Game 5. I think that's the way I would have put them as well, given the fact that you couldn't start Carpenter in the first game. That said, it's a bit interesting that Garcia and Jackson weren't flipped. Of course, Garcia has been very good at home and struggled on the road a lot of the season. His ERA at Busch is two runs better than his road one and by just about every measure (save strikeout rates, which are for some reason better out of town), so the logic definitely is having him pitch under the Arch. (Side note: looking at some of his splits, did you know he has a 1.85 ERA in games he wins, a 3.52 ERA in games where he gets a no-decision, and a 7.51 ERA in games he loses? When it goes south for him, it really goes south.) The only drawback I see to Garcia going in Game 4 is the fact that, if the Phillies are up 2-1 at that point, it's an elimination game, and I think all of us know that there are questions about Garcia's mental toughness at times. Can he handle that kind of pressure? Can he comport himself if an error allows a run, or will it be another flash fire? Garcia did throw seven strong innings in Philadelphia just three starts ago, but you have to go back to July to see similar results away from Busch. I understand it and it makes complete sense, especially since Jackson is pitching so well right now also, but I can see the potential fly in the ointment. As far as I know, the roster configuration hasn't been announced yet. It's probably not too hard to guess it, though. Here's what I'd do and I expect it'll be pretty accurate. Catcher: Yadier Molina, Gerald Laird Backup catcher is pretty much meaningless here, since Molina will play every inning unless he gets hurt and odds are Tony won't pinch-hit with his catcher. Plus there's no other option, as Tony Cruz only got three at bats in September. Infield: Albert Pujols, Skip Schumaker, Rafael Furcal, David Freese, Daniel Descalso, Ryan Theriot, Nick Punto Last I heard about Furcal, he's still day to day. I hate to go into Philadelphia with a 24 (or 23, depending on the outfield situation) man roster, but if Furcal really thinks he can go, he'll be on there. If for some reason he's not going to be ready for a week, leave him off, put Tyler Greene in there and then swap them for the NLCS if necessary. Outfield: Lance Berkman, Jon Jay, Allen Craig, Matt Holliday, Adron Chambers I honestly expect they'll take Corey Patterson instead of Chambers, but they really shouldn't. Chambers has just as much speed as Patterson, can play probably about as adequate of a center field if not moreso, and can hit better than Patterson can right now. All Patterson gives you is experience, but even that's limited--he was with the 2003 Cubs and that seems to be the only time he played in October. And Cub experience in October--especially THAT October--may not be exactly what you want on the club. Matt Holliday is already been ruled out of the first game. I'd say that if it doesn't look like he can go, keep him off and you could definitely get Chambers in. However, from what Al was saying on the last broadcast, it was more of a fielding issue than a hitting one, so you'd like to have him on the bench as a weapon for the late innings if that's the case. Starters: Lohse, Jackson, Carpenter, Garcia We'll get to Lohse in a bit as we look at Game 1. Talked about Jackson and Garcia and what else needs to be said about Mr. Carpenter? Relievers: Jason Motte, Marc Rzepczynski, Octavio Dotel, Fernando Salas, Arthur Rhodes, Kyle McClellan, Eduardo Sanchez I expect Sanchez will be removed for Jake Westbrook, though I'm not sure I see any reason for that besides honoring Westbrook for being on the team. He's obviously not going to start any games and I don't know how well he'd work out of the bullpen. Sanchez is a bullpen member that hasn't been worn out, but obviously still has his stuff as we saw on Tuesday night. Having that card up your sleeve for the late innings could be huge. Tough to lose Mitchell Boggs, because I think he could make a difference as well, but I think looking at his usage patterns, Tony and company don't fully trust him and they've got to be able to do that with those on the roster. So, Lohse against Roy Halladay. While it looks like a huge mismatch, when you look at the current run Lohse is on, it's not quite as much. Since his meltdown against the Dodgers at the lowest part of the season, he's gone out there five times, won four of them, and posted a 1.72 ERA. If he can keep that up, and when you factor in how he pitched at the beginning of the season as well, it's not unreasonable to think that the Cards can hang with the Phillies in a low-scoring affair. In that stretch, Lohse gave up one unearned run in over seven innings in Philadelphia, so it's not like he was beating up on weak teams. On the flip side, that does mean that the Phillies have him fairly fresh in their minds. Here are the career numbers:
He's going to have to because Halladay is always a handful. Remember (and Cincinnati fans will never forget) his career numbers in the NLDS are: 1-0, 0 runs, 0 hits. I will go out on a limb and say that the Cardinals break into at least one of those 0 columns. They were able to beat him in Philly during that late series (he opposed Lohse in that game as well), in part by jumping on him early. I also remember Halladay saying after the game that he'd "remember that," which just sounds ominous coming from a player like him. Anyway, here are the career numbers for the Cardinal hitters:
Albert has struggled against Halladay, but hopefully he can come up big in the postseason. We could say that about almost all of them, though, couldn't we? Should be a fun one on Saturday! On a sad note, Dan McLaughlin was arrested again this weekend on DWI charges, including leaving the scene of an accident. Dan was more than gracious with his time when I got to talk with him last year and, honestly, this year's rotation of on-air guys has made me miss the days of him and Al Hrabosky on there regularly. I know that there were some comments that he made that indicated he wasn't really thrilled with the cutback in his work schedule, which you can well understand. This, though, as it comes on the heels of his arrest last year, may be the final straw for him at Fox Sports Midwest. I don't know that at all--this is pure speculation on my part, not anything I've heard from people that might know--but it's tough to swallow that this happened again. On the flip side of that, Dan has been with the company for 14 years and he's developed into a guy that gets some national work as well. It's also not just as easy as dropping him and going with Rick Horton and Al as the full time team. (At least, I hope it's not--that would be brutal for me personally.) You'd probably have to get a professional in the mix, someone with a broadcasting background instead of a playing background, so you'd have to go out and find a guy like that as well. Still, the easy thing isn't always the right thing. FSMW has a tough decision to make and I don't envy those that have to do it. I hope that, no matter how the situation gets resolved, Dan can find whatever counseling or rehab that he needs to make sure that this never happens again. He was lucky this time that his accident was of the one-car variety and no one was hurt. There's no guarantee that would happen the next time. Don't know if I'll be back posting this weekend or not, so if not enjoy the games and you can find me on Twitter, most likely. I do plan on recording the next Conversation With C70 on Saturday, so if I can get it all edited up you'll have that to look forward to!  Two And A Half MenPosted on September 21, 2011 at 6:50 AM
I had to get around early yesterday to go to continuing education. I appreciate the Cards making sure that I could still use that headline today.Last night's game was one that probably will make it onto the Game of the Year nominations for the November Cardinal Blogger Awards, but before we get there, let's take a quick look at the end of the Philadelphia series. Monday (4-3 win) Hero: No doubt it's Kyle Lohse. I said a number of times, most notably on Gateway to Baseball Heaven Sunday, that the Lohse vs. Roy Halladay matchup was just one you didn't want to see. While that's still true, Lohse pitched an outstanding game while the Cards were able to get to Halladay early. Lohse got into the eighth and just allowed one unearned run, working out of at least one situation that wasn't all his doing. He may not be able to be this great all the time, but it's a wonderful sight when he is. Goat: Jason Motte. Coming on the heels of his blown save against the Phillies, having Motte come into a three-run lead and almost give it away was a very scary thing to see. If the Cards are going to be able to keep this run going, they need Motte to be on top of his game. He was able to get a little rest last night, so maybe the Cards can get another non-save win tonight and give him more of a breather. Notes: Lance Berkman had a huge night, getting the home run early and driving in another run later one. Rafael Furcal may have set the tone, though, getting a leadoff double on the first pitch and scoring the first run. Furcal also went three for four, which is a great thing to see. On to last night's game. While some may have had more dramatic moments, I'm giving the Hero tag to Albert Pujols. He had four hits, getting his season average up to .304. He drove in a run, giving him 97 RBI. He stole a key base, which allowed him to tie the score when Berkman singled him and Craig in. He had the hit with two outs that started the big seventh-inning rally. All in all, it's a reminder that he still is the best player in baseball and a great way to kick off what potentially could be his last home stand in Cardinal red. You also have to give credit to Ryan Theriot, who came in as a pinch-hitter with the bases loaded and two down in the seventh. His double gave the Cards the lead, one they never relinquished. Adron Chambers' bases-loaded triple was a wonderful thing to see as well. Chambers hasn't had a lot of at-bats, but he's making the most of them when he gets a chance. If you are looking for a Goat, you'd have to go with Edwin Jackson. We've been talking about how consistent he's been in St. Louis, how he's only had that one bad start. Well, now you can make it two. He was bailed out by the offense, but it would have been devastating to this team to have come out and lost this game, which is what it looked like when he quickly put them in a 4-0 hole. Five earned runs in five innings isn't what you want to see when you are trying to chase down another team. Also, Kyle McClellan allowed yet another run, which was really tough since the Cards had just tied it up. September has not been kind to McClellan, as he's put up a 6.75 ERA while his BAA has been .226 and his BABIP has been .136. Which means when he's getting hit, he's getting hit hard, allowing four home runs in eight innings. That said, he is 2-0 this month, so you figure it out. The wild card deficit stays at 2.5 games since the Braves cleaned up against the Marlins. I said earlier this month that the Cards could only lose three more games. They've lost just twice since then and they have a schedule that, with the way they are playing, may allow them to go 7-1 over the rest of it. If that's the case, the Braves will be feeling the heat. The Cards have upped their playoff chances to 16.9% (or 18.3%, depending on who you believe)--still not exceptionally strong, but much better than the 2% or so they were a couple of weeks back. The team seems relaxed and playing like they are having fun. I don't think a month to six weeks ago that they would have been able to come back last night. They were too often dropping games just like that, games after a high and against a team they should have beaten. The beginning of last night's game started to look like that, but thankfully the rest of the game didn't. Tonight, the Braves send out Derek Lowe against Javier Vazquez. Lowe gave up six runs in 2.1 innings against the Mets last time out but beat the Fish by allowing just two in six last time he faced them, back in early August. Looking at Lowe's numbers, he's either going to be pretty good or really bad, not a lot of in-between with him. Vazquez is having a pretty solid year and is coming off of a shutout of the Nationals. Interestingly, for the fact that the two teams are in the same division, Vazquez hasn't faced the Braves this year. I'd think the way things are going for the Atlanta squad that this could be a tough one for them. The Cards will have to take care of their own game, though, and it could be a bit tough as well. The Mets are throwing a rookie named Chris Schwinden. In talking with Steve Keane on Episode 4 of Conversations With C70, he seemed pretty high on the kid after his ML debut. Schwinden's only made two starts, both of five innings, and he struggled with the Braves but did OK against the Nationals. A rookie pitcher that the Cards haven't seen before could be trouble, though at least he's not likely to go too deep and the Cards could again get into the Mets bullpen. St. Louis trots out Jaime Garcia. Anytime Garcia starts against the Mets, that 20-inning game of last season comes to mind. He hasn't faced the Mets this year, but here are the career numbers:
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Doing What They CanPosted on September 19, 2011 at 6:35 AM
The math doesn't favor the Cardinals. I think we all know that. However, you have to admit that this team is playing like they don't know that. Two out of three this weekend against Philadelphia is pretty solid, even if that stumble put them much closer to the edge of the cliff.Friday (4-2 win in 11) Hero: Albert Pujols. A 4-4 night pushed Pujols's average up over the .300 mark, which is incredible given where he's been this season. At the end of May he was at .267, the end of June .279. Since coming back from his broken wrist, though, he's hit .325 with an OPS of .988. If the Cardinals do get into the postseason, it might be enough to get him back on the MVP ballot. If not, this might be the first year he's not in the top 10, though he still deserves to be. He needs to keep that average up and get five more RBI, something that's completely doable this week. Goat: Corey Patterson. Patterson's not there for his offense, obviously, since he's hit .157 since coming over to the Cardinals (and four of his eight hits came in his first six games with the club). So if Tony La Russa's going to put him on the field, he's got to catch the ball. Dropping one that tied up a must-win game in the ninth isn't acceptable. Notes: Congrats to Adron Chambers, who made his first big-league hit a memorable one by driving in the tie-breaking run in the 11th. Also, we found out that extra innings is the only way Tyler Greene is apparently going to get an at-bat, though he stroked a double and really should be considered over Patterson in pinch-hit opportunities going forward. Whether he will or not is a completely different story. Jaime Garcia pitched an incredible game, going into a small ballpark and dominating by allowing only one run. The bullpen did well all the way around, with Jason Motte only getting the blown save due to Patterson's gaffe. Saturday (9-2 loss) Hero: Lance Berkman. Three hits and an RBI as the Cardinals almost took a late lead. Goat: Tough to say. You look at what Marc Rzepczynski and Octavio Dotel did in the bottom of the eighth, taking a one-run deficit and expanding it out of reach. That said, it was the bottom of the lineup coming up in the ninth and the momentum definitely had shifted when the Phillies got out of the two-on, two-out jam after the Cards had scored two runs to get right back in it. I'll give it to Dotel, because even though Rzepczynski was charged with more runs and didn't pitch all that well, Dotel only had to get one out and instead gave up two hits that led to five runs. Notes: Jake Westbrook had his shortest outing of the year, as TLR was obviously not taking any chances on a laboring starter. He threw 71 pitches to get 13 outs and walked Shane Victorino with one out and the bases loaded for his final act. Yadier Molina had two hits, the only Cardinal besides Berkman to have a multi-hit night. Hero: Chris Carpenter. This is why he got the contract extension. In big games, it seems like he's always able to step up and he definitely did that last night. Facing an imposing team in a bandbox ballpark, Carp threw eight scoreless to give the team the win and rest a bullpen that had gotten a lot of work in the series. That's the Carpenter we know and the Carpenter that will be a legend in St. Louis for a long time to come. Goat: David Freese. Freese went 0-4 with three strikeouts and is in a bit of a slump. He's only hitting .211 in September and has struck out 13 times with only one walk during that span. Take out his 3 for 5 against the Reds in the first game of the month and he's only hitting .152. Whether he's tired from playing this many games (he's played more big league games this year than he had the last two years combined) or just slumping, you have to figure we'll see some more of Daniel Desclaso over there this week. Notes: Great night by Allen Craig, making up for his one-pitch groundout to end Saturday's threat by smashing two home runs. What La Russa was doing having him bunt before his first one is beyond me. I mean, a leadoff double in the sixth inning, not to mention when you are are already up 2-0, and you want to give up an out to get it to third? With your second place hitter in the lineup coming up? You've got to let him swing the bat. I wasn't on Twitter during that part of the game but I'm sure there were numerous people making that point, especially after the ball left the yard. St. Louis finds itself 3.5 back in the wild card with 10 to play. (Interestingly, they aren't the only ones trying to put some heat on the Braves, as the Giants have now crept to four back.) The Cards get the Phillies tonight, then host the Mets, while the Braves start a three-game set with the Marlins. It's not at all likely, but it is possible, and that's about all you can hope for right now. A look at tonight's starters here in a bit. Before I get to a giveaway (free stuff alert!), let's talk a few minutes about Tyler Greene. As I noted above, he finally got his first at-bat since being called up at the beginning of the month on Friday, after pinch-running a few times. Even though the Cards need to see what they have with him, there is a strong argument that, while they are still pushing for the wild card, Rafael Furcal needs to stay at short. I get that. I'm not 100% sure I agree, but I get that and completely understand what is going on there. However, last night the Cards started Ryan Theriot over at second base for the first time in a long while. So why did he get that start instead of Greene? Greene's played second. If you are trying to give Skip Schumaker a rest, why not give yourself a chance to evaluate a player that is possibly better than Theriot and more likely to be around next year? Theriot did double and score and didn't botch any plays, so it worked out, but it seems that if you were going to deviate from the regular lineup, this would have been a great chance to see what a guy could have done. OK, for your enjoyment (hopefully) Episode 5 of Conversations With C70 is up. I get a chance to talk with Nick from Pitchers Hit Eighth and talk we do. It's a good half-hour longer than the longest previous episode, but I think it's pretty good stuff and worth your time to take a listen. At the end of the show, I make mention of a nice opportunity for those of you that read this blog and listen to the podcast. I was sent a copy of Baseball's Greatest Games: 1985 NLCS Game 5 on DVD. Obviously, this is the "Go Crazy" game, when Ozzie Smith lines his first left-handed home run over the wall to give the Cards a win and a lead in the series. I've had a chance to watch a little bit of this and it's a lot of fun. There's not much in the way of special features or anything (though it'd be fun to see them have an interview with the people involved as a featurette) but there is one significant difference that sets this disc apart from the one that was included in the Greatest Games of Busch Stadium set that came out a few years back. You have the option to watch the game either with the TV call, which is Vin Scully doing what Vin Scully does, or you can watch the game with the KMOX radio call of Jack Buck and Mike Shannon. As great as Scully is, watching the ninth and not hearing "Go crazy, folks, go crazy!" is a little strange. Having that option is a great thing. As I say on the podcast, I've got five of these to give away. The first five that send me an email with their name and address can have one sent to them. Use "Blog Giveaway" in the subject line, if you don't mind. My address can be found on the about page of this blog. Look forward to giving these away! Today's game in Florida pits Mike Minor for the Braves against Ricky Nolasco for the Marlins. Nolasco gave up four runs in seven against the Braves last time out, while Minor gave up one in 5.2 against the Marlins in his last start. Cards, of course, have to win their game to be relevant and that's going to be the tallest of tall orders. Cardinals send out Kyle Lohse with this assignment.
The problem is, the Cardinals have to go against Roy Halladay, one of the leading contenders for the Cy Young Award and one of the best pitchers on the planet the last few years. Here's what they've done against him:
It's going to be a tough one tonight, but if the Cards are able to win it (and, even more so if they are able to gain a game) that bandwagon might be a bit more crowded tomorrow. Let's make it happen!
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Treading Water In A Rapidly Filling PoolPosted on September 15, 2011 at 6:49 AM
The Cards won yesterday, which is always a good thing, no matter the situation. However, with the Marlins unable to hold a late lead, the Braves also won. Which means the Cards are still 4.5 back and another day has been marked off the calendar. (If for some reason you are still looking at the divisional race, the Brewers did lose, but they are still up 5.5.) That means that even though the Cards won, they really lost.The Cardinals have 13 games left, the Braves 12. Even if the Braves just break even, the Cards have to go 11-2 just to tie them, and the Braves are a better than .500 team, so odds are they'll play that way down the stretch. There just really isn't enough time left on the calendar for the Cards to make this comeback, at least not without some sort of epic collapse by the Atlanta squad, like seeing them go 2-10 over the next two weeks. The task is even harder because Matt Holliday is out for at least 4-5 days and likely the rest of the season with tendon inflammation in his hand. You have to be impressed with the numbers that Holliday has put up this year, because he's done them around just about every possible thing that could go wrong with him. The man got a moth in his ear, for cryin' out loud. What other kind of omen do you need? So it wasn't that yesterday's win wasn't important--anything that keeps you alive this time of year is a good thing--it's just that it probably didn't have the import that some of us would like for it to have had. Edwin Jackson gets the Hero for pitching another solid game, giving up two but pitching into the seventh. The rotation is full for next year and it's likely Jackson is going to command a pretty good salary this offseason, but I find myself wishing there was a slot for him to be with the Cards in 2012. Then again, we saw what happened last year, when Jake Westbrook pitched well enough down the stretch to get a contract offer from the Cards. It hasn't turned out all that well for St. Louis, though Westbrook has had some success. Liked what Marc Rzepczynski did yesterday as well, bouncing back from his last rough outing to strike out all three batters he faced. I find myself cheering for Rzep for some reason, perhaps just so that the Cards will have something good going forward from the Colby Rasmus trade. Not really sure, but there you have it. Rough day for Skip Schumaker. 0-3 with a strikeout and only saw seven pitches all day. Patience was not on the menu for Skip yesterday, it doesn't appear. Cards are off today and they've already reached Philadelphia. In fact, apparently they've done the rookie hazing thing, though it seems to extend to those with three years or less in the bigs. Honestly, I thought the Cards didn't do that and was kinda glad that they didn't, having more respect for those coming up. That said, it probably does aid in a loose clubhouse. Probably won't get a post up tomorrow, save the UCB's annual Top 7 Prospect list, so let's go ahead and look at Friday's pitching matchups. Jaime Garcia goes for the Redbirds, and here's what he's done against the Phils:
They have to go up against Vance Worley, this year's sensation that may (but probably won't) bump Roy Oswalt out of the postseason rotation. Worley hasn't faced any of the Cardinals yet, a red flag if ever there was one, and has posted an 11-2, 2.92 season so far.
This one will be a tough one for the Cards. They win it, perhaps thinking about a strong run to the finish isn't quite so impossible after all.  Filed Under: Heroes and Goats
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Struggling For Silver LiningsPosted on June 26, 2011 at 3:46 PM
It's Sunday afternoon and, as I write this, the Cardinals are still playing the Blue Jays, though it just got a bit out of hand and odds are we now know how it is going to end. I want to recap the last few days before talking about the state of the team.Wednesday (4-0 loss vs Philadelphia) Hero: Lance Berkman. Two of the team's six hits. Goat: Matt Holliday. 0-4 on a night when they really needed his bat. Notes: I actually had written this game up on Thursday, but got the weirdest error ever when I went to use the Baseball Reference linker, replacing my post with one from Tomahawk Take. (It was easily the best post I've ever written, full of insight, deep thinking, and....no, not really. You didn't miss much.) Kyle Lohse pitched pretty well, but made a couple of mistakes and that was all the Phillies needed with Cliff Lee on the mound. I'm fairly sure Lee remembered his last time, when he walked six, and was determined not to do that again. Thursday (12-2 win vs Philadelphia) Hero: Chris Carpenter. Carp's had his rough times this year, but he was on this night. Seven strikeouts in seven innings with just one run allowed. The more you look at Carp's numbers outside of win/loss, the more picking up his option might be the best thing for the club. Even if you get outings like this just 60% of the time instead of 90%, it still is worth it. Goat: Daniel Descalso. Everyone's getting hits, most people are getting two, but Descalso can't break through with a knock. Did get a walk, though, so his evening wasn't a complete waste. Notes: Berkman goes yard, Holliday gets two hits, everyone is just hunky-dory. Even when you factor in that Roy Oswalt went on the DL after this game, you still had to be pretty positive about the game, since the Cards hit just about every pitcher Philadelphia threw at them. Friday (5-4 loss vs. Toronto) Hero: Matt Holliday. His two-run homer late in the game looked like it could be the thing the Cards needed to come back in this game. Goat: Fernando Salas. Salas has really struggled this month with the long ball. Sure, it was Jose Bautista, who is crushing everyone, but it's a tough thing to live with after the team had rallied to tie it up. Notes: Nice to see Colby Rasmus go yard, even if it was his only hit. Some great work by Mitchell Boggs (who only went 2/3rds of an inning, but the two strikeouts he got were key) and Lance Lynn, who in a just world would have had the Cards pull out a win for him. Saturday (6-3 loss vs. Toronto) Hero: Jon Jay. Two for three with a run scored on a night where the offense didn't do a lot. Goat: Jaime Garcia. Descalso's throwing error didn't help matters at all, but Garcia did walk the pitcher--an American League pitcher at that, though Carlos Villanueva has been in the NL before--and allowed the long ball that put the Jays well in command. Garcia in the past has talked about letting his focus slip and it seemed to in that inning. Notes: 0-fers for Holliday and Berkman, so when your 3-4 guys can't get anything done, it's going to be a long night. (Holliday did drive in the first run, but it was on a double play after the first two batters had reached.) Sunday (5-0 loss vs. Toronto) Hero: Mitchell Boggs. 1.2 innings of scoreless relief. He's definitely looked good in his return from Memphis, though he didn't look bad before he went down. Goat: Kyle McClellan. After giving up a second-inning homer, it looked like McClellan would settle down. After a while, though, he either ran out of gas or the Jays figured him out, as he Notes: It's always going to be a tough assignment to go up against Ricky Romero, but it'd been nice if some of the bats had shown up. Berkman's error was an issue as well, but McClellan just couldn't get out of the inning. So now the Cards have lost five of six since Albert Pujols went down. They've done it in a mix of ways, by being dominated by good pitching, by losing due to the bullpen, and by just not being good enough to get over the hump. They are still in the pennant race, of course, but this weekend didn't help them out much. Milwaukee is working on finishing off the sweep of the Twins, so the Cards would be three back going into their off-day tomorrow. (Also, I must confess my hubris as, before the series, I poked some fun at our resident Blue Jays fan in these parts. Don't ask me how he got this far South, something about forgetting to return home for the winter. Anyway, I believe he enjoyed this weekend way more than he should have. Would have appreciated the Cards bailing me out!) The Cards haven't been completely complacent, though, shuffling the bullpen around. Miguel Batista was released since last we talked (part of that post that got erased) and Raul Valdes has been called up as well as Lynn, with Makeil Cleto being sent down. Save for Salas's issue in the ninth on Friday, the bullpen has been pretty solid. Ryan Franklin gave up a run in his now-infrequent appearance on the mound and there have been runs allowed here and there, but they haven't factored into the decision, for the most part. Speaking of Franklin, why exactly is the team carrying 13 pitchers if Franklin's only going to pitch once in a blue moon? If you can't ever use him, why is he on the roster? I think I saw where Jake Westbrook had more appearances this month than Franklin does. He's well and truly buried, so does that really help the club? While we are on the topic of player usage, what is up with Mark Hamilton? When Pujols went down, they brought Hamilton up with the idea that, while he probably wouldn't play every day and there was the idea that first would keep Berkman healthier (though Berkman said that he though the outfield was easier, without having to run back and forth to the bag all the time), Hamilton still would see some time in the field. Since he came up, the Cards have played six straight games and, in all six (save today, where as of this moment he still hasn't appeared), he's only gotten one pinch-hit at-bat. I don't know if Hamilton can hit in the bigs. He's had great success in the minors, though, and remember that Allen Craig didn't really start hitting the ball until he got some regular playing time. I get that Hamilton wasn't in there today because Romero is a lefty. But why not have him in there last night against Villanueva? Either rest Berkman a bit or put him back in the outfield. I'm sure there is some reasoning to all of this, but it seems right now that Hamilton should have stayed in Memphis and someone else (don't know who, of course) promoted. I'm guessing that, with the DH in play when the club goes to Baltimore and Tampa Bay, Hamilton will get some time at first while Berkman DHs (or vice versa). Then again, with David Freese coming off the DL on Tuesday, it's possible that Freese will DH to get him up to speed and we'd have the same situation. (Also possible Hamilton goes down when Freese comes up, though it'd make more sense for it to be Andrew Brown.) Bill Ivie and I will be on Gateway To Baseball Heaven tonight at 9:30 Central and I'm sure we'll talk some about all of this. The Cardinals are coming to the end of June at a crossroads. They can't afford to get too far back, but what can they do about it? What should they do about it? Join us in the chat room, if you want, to give your opinions. Cardinals get to take on the old Browns on Tuesday. We'll look at the starting pitchers Monday night or Tuesday and talk about whatever roster gyrations are done to get Freese and Nick Punto into Cardinal red then as well!  Filed Under: Heroes and Goats
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 HeroesLance Berkman (24) Albert Pujols (19) Matt Holliday (15) Chris Carpenter (10) Kyle Lohse (9) Yadier Molina (9) Ryan Theriot (8) David Freese (7) Jaime Garcia (7) Jon Jay (7) Jake Westbrook (6) Allen Craig (5) Kyle McClellan (5) Colby Rasmus (5) Edwin Jackson (4) Skip Schumaker (4) Daniel Descalso (3) Rafael Furcal (2) Gerald Laird (2) Nick Punto (2) Marc Rzepczynski (2) Fernando Salas (2) Mitchell Boggs (1) Daniel Descalso (1) Lance Lynn (1) 2010 Top Heroes: Matt Holliday and Albert Pujols (24) 2009 Top Hero: Albert Pujols (28) 2008 Top Hero: Albert Pujols (25) GoatsRyan Theriot (12) Albert Pujols (11) Jake Westbrook (10) David Freese (8) Ryan Franklin (7) Jaime Garcia (7) Fernando Salas (7) Kyle Lohse (6) Kyle McClellan (6) Colby Rasmus (6) Skip Schumaker (6) Miguel Batista (5) Chris Carpenter (5) Daniel Descalso (5) Matt Holliday (5) Jon Jay (5) Jason Motte (5) Allen Craig (4) Rafael Furcal (4) Tyler Greene (4) Yadier Molina (4) Lance Berkman (3) Mitchell Boggs (3) Gerald Laird (3) Edwin Jackson (2) Trever Miller (2) Corey Patterson (2) Marc Rzepczynski (2) Matt Carpenter (1) Maikel Cleto (1) Tony Cruz (1) Octavio Dotel (1) Mark Hamilton (1) Lance Lynn (1) Nick Punto (1) Arthur Rhodes (1) Eduardo Sanchez (1) Raul Valdes (1) PJ Walters (1) 2010 Top Goat: Brendan Ryan (14) 2009 Top Goats: Rick Ankiel and Todd Wellemeyer (13) 2008 Top Goat: Troy Glaus (13) Cardinal Nation Approval Ratings (March 2011)Adam Wainwright 94.7% (down 0.9%) Matt Holliday 91.1% (up 6.6%) Albert Pujols 90.4% (down 8.3%) Dave Duncan 87.9% (up 0.9%) Derrick Goold 87.8% Chris Carpenter 86.9% (down 6.7%) Matthew Leach 85.5% Mike Shannon 84.9% (down 4.6%) John Rooney 84.3% (up 8.1%) Yadier Molina 83.7% (down 8.3%) Colby Rasmus 81.8% (up 5.0%) Pop Warner 76.7% Jim Hayes 76.1% John Mozeliak 74.1% (down 12.0%) Ryan Franklin 72.8% (up 3.1%) Bill Dewitt 71.0% (down 12.0%) Tony La Russa 70.8% (down 10.2%) BJ Rains 70.4% Ricky Horton 69.1% John Vuch 68.9% Jeff Luhnow 66.4% Skip Schumaker 64.1% (down 17.0%) Al Hrabosky 63.2% (up 19.0%) Mark McGwire 62.5% (down 10.7%) Dan Lozano 58.7% Joe Strauss 57.5% Kyle Lohse 55.1% (down 11.7%) 2009 Rick Ankiel 83.9% Chris Duncan 69.1% Looking for St. Louis Cardinals Tickets? TicketCity is your source for New York Yankees Tickets and World Series Tickets. Looking for Cardinals tickets? Stop by OnlineSeats. We’ve got Blues seats and even Rams games. Go to the coasts as well and catch a Celtics game or get Dodgers tickets. Referrals |
