Recently in Scott Spiezio Category

Scuffing Up the Start

It was a glorious day.  The Cardinals--well, at least the Baby Birds--were on the field and creating plenty of highlights.  The big guys were scheduled for the next day, really getting the freshness of spring going.

And then Spiezio happened.

I'm not sure exactly why it took two months for an arrest warrant to be issued in this case.  It doesn't sound like there was a whole lot of debate over what happened.

The worst part, perhaps, of the whole thing was the fact that he wasn't upfront with an organization that had done all it could to help him, plus signed him to a two-year contract in the offseason.  A contract that now they are going to have to eat.

I'm not sure what the Cardinals knew and when they knew it.  Apparently they didn't think it was a big deal but once the whole story came out, that changed.  I have no problems with their quick response in this matter.  Maybe, if last year hadn't happened, you'd have more of a debate about whether he should have been let go or not.  But when you look at the whole situation, it was pretty obvious that he wasn't welcome there anymore.

You note that his lawyer says that Spiezio "has been clean and sober for some time".  Apparently "some time" is less than two months.  And after the incident was apparently downplayed to Cardinal brass, you have to take that with a grain of salt as well, I think.

From a roster standpoint, this benefits Brendan Ryan.  There's really no one else on the team that has experience playing third base.  If he has a decent spring, he probably makes the team, whereas before, he needed a great spring and possibly some extra help.

OK, enough of the down side of yesterday.  Let's look at the positives from the box score.  All the general caveats apply, but it's still worth looking at.

First off, apparently the knee isn't bothering Brian Barton too much.  2-2, a home run and three RBI isn't a bad day.   Especially when you only play about three innings.  He's definitely going to be one to watch this spring.

Michell Boggs could have looked a little sharper, but the rest of the Precamp Six that pitched had very strong outings.

Amaury Marti added to his burgeoning reputation by hitting a pinch-hit grand slam.  With the outfield situation the way it is, he's not likely to play in SL to start the year, but he could be an option if injuries hit.

And the daily Rasmus watch:  2-2, 4 runs and an RBI.  Not a bad day at the top of the lineup, huh?

Today, the Cardinals really get it going, facing the NL East favorite Mets in a 12:05 CST start.  Per Derrick Goold, here's the lineup:

1. Adam Kennedy, 2B
2. Rick Ankiel, CF
3. Albert Pujols, 1B
4. Troy Glaus, 3B
5. Chris Duncan, LF
6. Juan Gonzalez, DH
7. Skip Schumaker, RF
8. Cesar Izturis, SS
9. Jason LaRue, C

Starting pitcher: RHP Anthony Reyes.

And out of the bullpen: RHP Hugo Castellanos; RHP Kelvin Jimenez; RHP Jason Motte; RHP Mark Worrell; LHP Jaime Garcia and, as depth, RHP Tyler Herron.

Really interested to see what Reyes does today.  I'd like to see a couple of innings, a hit, a couple of strikeouts, at the most one run given up.  We'll see what develops!

Warming Up the Winter

I've often thought I might like to make the effort to go to the Cardinals' traditional Winter Warm-up. It's baseball talk in the winter, a chance to actually see the players and hear some news. I've never been able to afford it, though, nor take out the time to get up there. Plus I'm not much on crowded areas.

The good thing about the Warm-up, combined with the internet, is that we finally get some Cardinal news. So let's take a look at what came out over the weekend.

First off, Chris Carpenter is throwing again. The whole dynamic of the season could change if he's healthy and effective earlier than schedule. He's not pushing himself too hard, which is great. It'd be outstanding if he was back in June, but I wouldn't count on it. My prediction is still mid-August, enough time for him to get back into baseball shape and let the Cardinals see what he's got for 2009.

Staying on the injury theme, it looks like Josh Kinney could be back by time the season starts. A valuable part of the 2006 bullpen, he could help bolster the 2008 version as well. It'll be interesting to see what he has when he comes back and if he can be effective.

The same article talks about the rehabbing of Chris Duncan and Braden Looper. Both sound like they are doing well and are basically ready to go, but there was no reason to think that they wouldn't be. Still, nice to hear there aren't any unexpected setbacks.

At the end of that article (wow, Goold really packed it in, didn't he?) was a note about Ryan Franklin planning to be a reliever again this year. Larry at VEB has repeatedly made the case that Franklin should start, but with the number of starting pitchers already in camp, it probably does make sense to have a solid part of the bullpen return to that role. There's nothing to say TLR won't move him into the rotation halfway through the year anyway.

Which is bigger news, that Scott Spiezio is doing well in his personal rehabilitation, put out a CD, or that he doesn't have the famous red facial hair anymore?

Then there are plenty of WWU posts over at Bird Land. Definitely check out the quotes quiz. I don't see the answers yet, but the quotes are worth reading.

Oh, and some Santana news, one that the Cardinals did inquire, the second that they'd "kick the tires" if he became a free agent.  It makes you want to see what'd happen if he didn't get traded, doesn't it?

The Warm-up finishes today, so maybe more news will be made!

Can We Do That Again?

This month really was symbolized by a couple of the almost-home-run balls hit by Albert Pujols yesterday.  They started off with a lot of promise, slightly curved and then wounded up very foul.  Though I guess the ball would have had to hit an elderly woman, breaking her hip and pitching her to the ground to be an accurate analogy.

Was it really just 10 days ago that this flawed, battered team was a win away from first place with our current ace on the mound?  What a difference losing 10 of 11 in September can make, huh?  And even those losses wouldn't bother me so much, if we hadn't lost three of four to the Cubs, keeping their postseason hopes alive.  It'd been great to sneak out with two wins, at least, and get Milwaukee back tied for the top slot.

Look, most of us knew that the Cards weren't going to October, though we held out some hope to sneak in and "shock the world" again.  But the winter winds will blow very cold if the Cubs win.  And, even though I know there are much better teams in the postseason, after the '06 Cardinals you take nothing for granted.

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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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