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The Second Half Begins

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

BDJ: I don't anticipate that. No.

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

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

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

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

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

SD Victory II: The Wrath of Pujols

What a dangerous third inning.  Very rare you take out both sides of the battery within a couple of plays!

I was very impressed with Albert's behavior, though.  I don't think I've ever seen a batter come and huddle with the opponents on the mound like that and, as a fellow Christian, was glad to see him praying with Adrian Gonzalez as the trainers tended to Chris Young.

I'm not sure why things were different for Josh Bard.  All I can figure is that Pujols didn't think that his slide hurt him that badly and, by time the extent of the injury was known, it was really too late to go back out and check on him.  I was hoping the PD story would say something about that, since I've only heard his comments about Young, but no such luck.

Another quick post.  I don't know if I'll be back until Tuesday.

Hero:  Troy Glaus, again.  2-4, 3 RBI including the go-ahead one (that Bard is really wishing hadn't happened).
Goat:  Braden Looper.  Yes, he got the win, but he was continually bailed out by his fielders and only lasted five innings.  If the game had been closer or the Cards hadn't had the off day today, that could have been disastrous for the bullpen.

No game today.  Cards get back at it tomorrow with a late one against the Dodgers.  I'll see if I can't sneak some computer time and get it previewed before it happens!

Disappointing Defeat

I'm out of the office the next couple of days, so I don't know how much posting I'll get done between now and Tuesday.  But let's throw up a quick one.

Went to bed with the Cards up 2-0 and the Pads really not doing much.  Was pretty stunned to see the 3-2 loss when I woke up this morning.  That really was a game the Cards needed to win, with the Cubs already losing.  The offense looked pretty solid early, but apparently never could get it done late.

Hero: Troy Glaus.  2-4, drove in a run, scored another.
Goat: Brian Barton.  0-4 in the leadoff spot.  He needs to show a little more to keep from being buried on the bench.

Tonight's game is Braden Looper vs. Chris Young.  Looper hasn't faced San Diego much.  He's done well, save against Adrian Gonzalez, in his limited exposure.  Young's done even better against the Cardinals (assuming I've pulled the right Chris Young, that is!)  Hopefully the Cardinals will be able to pull out the series win tonight.

Sand, Surf and Slugging

Hey, isn't Petco supposed to be a pitcher's park?

I have to admit, I was a little concerned about last night's game.  All the pieces seemed to be in place for a Cardinal win, but those are the kind of games that tend to come up and bite this team.  From the get-go last night, though, it was apparent that neither the travel or the team was going to hold the Cardinals back.

Honestly, I wanted to give the Hero award to Cesar Izturis.  There was plenty of shock when I saw Gameday record his first home run of the year.  I personally savaged this deal in the spring, when Izturis was flubbing a ball a day and recording more errors than hits.  Even now, he can be a whipping boy for some fans.  But he's posting a .263 average right now, which is well more than most of us expected on the year.  He was hitting .186 on April 27.  Since then, he's gone 18-54 (.333) and now with a surprising home run.  You figure he'll slow down soon, but he's already proven that John Mozeliak might have a little idea what he's doing.

Still, when a guy slugs two home runs, both moon shots and one of which may not have landed yet, you gotta go with him.  Albert Pujols continues to show that he isn't to be challenged, though Ryan Ludwick is making it difficult for teams to bypass him.  Any surprise, then, that Pujols has three home runs in three games?

A little tough to find a Goat in yesterday's battle.  Wellemeyer pitched another stellar game and the bullpen kept everything in line.  Most everyone contributed something to the game.  (Gotta love--well, he might not--Yadi's bases-loaded HBP.  Takin' one for the team!)  So, for his 0-4 (even though he did draw a walk), the Goat goes to Adam Kennedy.

Not only is the press starting to rip on the Padres, the GM is getting into the act as well.  Which may mean a fired up squad comes out to play tonight.  The Cardinals will do well to not take them for granted, especially with the future Hall of Famer on the mound.

Greg Maddux has faced the Cardinals, as a team, numerous times.  Compared to the recent starters the Redbirds have faced, they are old friends with Maddux, but even then there are a number of players that haven't faced him or have faced him less than 10 times.  Pujols has been able to hit him well and surprisingly both Jason LaRue and Izturis have good averages against him as well.  It's always good to see Maddux play--he's been one of my favorites for years--but hopefully the Cards can get to him early.

Going for St. Louis is Joel Pineiro.  Pineiro has a solid body of work against the current Friars, but nothing dramatic.  Josh Bard will probably get the start as he's hit Pineiro well in the past.   Pineiro hasn't be quite on top of his game the last couple of outings, but hopefully the big park will help him keep the score down.

Some general notes:  I was half-watching highlights last night when I saw a Cubs outfielder make a great play with his back to the infield on Tal's Hill there in Houston.  I thought, "Hey, that's kinda like a play that Edmonds made for the Cardinals."  It didn't register with me until they showed him jogging off that it actually was Edmonds.  Having him in Cub blue is just so terribly wrong.

Did you see this part of the PD article about Stan the Man?  Personally, I think it's pretty neat:

Asked if Pujols, an avowed fan of Musial's career, could break his records, Musial said, "He has a chance to. He loves baseball, he's a good first baseman. ... You know the first time I saw Albert Pujols? He gave me a big hug and kissed me on the forehead."

Congrats to Jon Lester on his no-hitter.  Very impressive, especially considering where he was just a couple of years ago.   The only downside: more Boston talk.  I mean, c'mon, let's spread the no-hitters around, can we?

Note that Mark Mulder is having his rehab delayed.  At least it looks like it was something instead of just the Cardinals playing around with technicalities. Don over at The Redbird Blog talked about the injury situation with the Cardinals and how it is such an unnecessary mess.  It appears that Rick Ankiel might be ready to go tomorrow, but if not, it seems like the Cardinals are doing one of their trademark moves, playing short for a long length of time when it'd be better for the player to go on the DL.  He's missed three games so far, so it's not a big deal.  If he's not back in the lineup by Friday, though, it might have been better to bring up Joe Mather.

If you are enjoy the blog and want to add it to your personal site, use this widget and, boom, C70 headlines will be there.  And if anyone out there has an extra Stan Musial statue from this Sunday and would like to part with it, e-mail me and let me know if we can work something out!

Era Ending? Edmonds Exits

The Padres have released Jim Edmonds.

I don't think many of us really expected that when he was traded back in December.  Sure, the contract was up at the end of 2008, but he should be able to put together the semblance of a decent year.  Even last year, a down year by his standards, he stroked 12 homers and hit .250.

Apparently, that wasn't the case.  After a .178 average and the fact that San Diego is struggling, sitting in last place in the NL West, he now finds himself without work.

If this is it for the man nicknamed Hollywood and Jimmy Radio, he leaves with a career .286 mark, 363 HR and numerous Gold Gloves.  Is he a Hall of Famer?  That'll be for more knowledgeable people than I to determine.  I do know that he's a shoo in for the Cardinal Hall of Fame, though.

If you wanted to be slightly melodramatic, you could say he couldn't stand playing anywhere outside of St. Louis.  A movie script would have him coming back to the 'Lou, taking a bench role, then producing down the clutch for one last hurrah.  Unfortunately, this isn't a movie, and the Cards have too many outfielders as it is.  Though if he wanted to do some coaching, I'd think the door would always be open.

All this does make that trade in December look more and more like a huge steal for the Cardinals, what with David Freese moving up the prospect ranks.  Maybe Mozeliak knew more than we gave him credit for.

For now, though, I'll say what I said in December.  Thanks for the memories, Jimmy!

Rumor Check

First off, the rumor that died about as fast as it arose.  Apparently, Mike Lowell had been contacted by the Cardinals.  Bernie put that to bed pretty quickly, which was good, because it didn't really make much sense from the Cardinal point of view.  You've got a guy under contract that would probably be cheaper than Lowell would be that you are trying to dump.  Why would you move him just to sign a guy that will probably decline significantly over the life of the contract?  I thought part of the reason for trading Rolen was to reduce payroll.  All and all, not a good idea if it was even broached seriously.

There's another one floating around that the Padres have asked about Edmonds.  It wouldn't be out of the goodness of their hearts, either--they'd expect the Cardinals to throw some cash into the deal.  With Edmonds' new restaurant, I don't think he'd be real excited about moving and he should be a 10/5 guy who gets some say in it.  I think the Cardinals are reconciled to having Edmonds back next year, even if they have to move him to a corner slot.  Besides, if Rasmus continues his ascent, I wouldn't be surprised if management wouldn't want Edmonds to pass on some tips when the rookie comes up.

The Cardinals are apparently interested in free agent pitchers Carlos Silva and Kyle Loshe.  I can't say either of them is all that exciting and probably both will be overpaid.  However, if I was to choose one, it'd be Silva.  His pitch-to-contact style is right up the Cardinals alley and, if the defense can improve somewhat, he could be a pretty good pickup.  Loshe reminds me of Gil Meche from last offseason--never been much but will get paid like they have been.  At least Meche had shown some flashes of talent.  Loshe is a league-average pitcher, at best.

In case you've not seen it, Matthew Leach got an interview with John Mozeliak.  Mozeliak doesn't really say anything that gives definite direction, keeping a lot of things close to the vest.  I do like that he doesn't think there's a front-line starter in free agency--because there's not--and I hope he keeps that in mind when negotiating with whatever pitchers he might be talking to.

In my mind, the only way we get a good solid pitcher is to trade Duncan.  But to do that, we have to bring in an outfield bat to protect Pujols.  We'll see if either of those happen.

The Void

I once read a quote, which I can't find right now, that went something like this:

"There are only two seasons, baseball season and the void."

The void is now upon us, after Isringhausen made it interesting, as he usually does, but got the final out and preserved the victory, like he usually does. And with that final out, the 2007 season came to an end.

It's not going to be a season fondly remembered by fans years from now, but it was baseball. One thing I'd forgotten until it was mentioned this weekend was just how good the pitching looked in spring training. The team ERA was around 3 or so, just amazing for the spring. Which proves that spring training stats aren't worth the web page they are published on.

A season with so much promise ended on opening night, for all intents and purposes. When Carpenter had a rough outing and came up lame soon after, we should have realized what we were in for. Injuries with the Cardinals are never simple things, where the player is back soon and all is forgotten. Injuries with the Cardinals drag out, start to look better, then get worse. I personally don't buy into the "Carpenter on the mound by late July" talk going around. If he's there by September, like Mulder this year, I'll call it a surprise.

Then the pitching fell apart, Hancock died, everyone that wore Cardinal red came down with some sort of injury, and through all of that, they hung in there.

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Did I Miss Anything?

You know, I start a Cardinal blog, and it's been occasionally tough to find something interesting to write on. I want to keep this site fresh, but sometimes it's tough to know what to put down on cyber-paper, if you will.

Then I go on vacation, and all the news spills out:

• LaRussa returns to the 1998 experiment and starts hitting the pitcher in the 8th slot.


• The Nationals sweep the Cardinals.


• The Cards tie a MLB record with ten consecutive hits in a game.


• Scott Spiezio goes on the restricted list so as to enter drug and alcohol rehab.


• The prodigal outfielder Rick Ankiel finally makes his second-life major league debut, smacking a homer to boot.


• Ankiel then has a two-home-run day.


• LaRussa and Juan Encarnacion battle it out in the press.


• The pitching staff actually comes around, with quality start after quality start.


• Adam Kennedy is sidelined with knee problems, perhaps for the rest of the season.


• The Cards win 4 of 6 against good teams from San Diego and Los Angeles.

And, in the midst of all of this, even after the slide in Pittsburgh and Washington, the Cards sit 5.5 games out of the NL Central and about 4 games behind the Cubs. After being written off by a lot of people, including me, the Cardinals are still in the thick of things come mid-August.

Let's hit a few of the points above before moving on to a look-forward of this week:

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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]