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UCB June Project: Cardinal Memories

Today, that intrepid group known as the United Cardinal Bloggers are coordinating again to have a "theme of the day", as it were.  This time, we are all talking about our personal Cardinal memories.  Whether they were watching on TV, where we were when, or just our own times at the ball park, they are entries worth reading and give you a glimpse of what your favorite blogger is like behind the scenes, as it were.  You can check out this post at our official site for links to all that are participating.  Continue Reading

Let The Offense Come Forth

Here we go now!

The Cardinal offense, which had been dormant for weeks now, finally broke through the barriers in Milwaukee last night, totaling 8 runs in getting the Brewer monkey off of their back.  To put it in perspective, that's more than the Cards had scored in the last three games combined.  Since the last time they'd put six on the scoreboard, the Cards had 34 runs.  The problem was, that was over 13 games, a tidy 2.6 runs a game.  So having the bats break out with four homers last night was a huge relief.

It's nice to have the problem of trying to figure out just who should be the Hero.  Normally, I'd go with Adam Wainwright, because I'm a huge pitching guy and he continued the amazing run of starts last night.  The starters are just plowing through people right now.  When you can go eight games and your combined ERA from that group is under one, you are doing something right.

Still, the offense was the story last night, so the Hero should come from that group.  There were a lot of unlikely heroes to choose from.  Joe Thurston went two for three with three runs scored.  Colby Rasmus went two for five with a home run and a double.  Chris Duncan had two hits, including the home run that pushed the Cards over the six-run barrier.  Skip Schumaker, who actually has been hitting, continued with a three hit night.

However, for getting his first home run, in a spot where it gave the Cardinals an early lead, the Hero tag goes to Nick Stavinoha.  He may not be up much longer (more on that in a bit) but he's started to show he can be an asset at this level.

Not a lot to choose from for the Goat.  In fact, it's pretty obvious it has to be Yadier Molina.  0-4 with three left on, not including a double play in his last AB.  Yadi just doesn't seem comfortable in the four hole in the lineup.  We'll see if he gets more time there this week, though today's game should be the last without Ryan Ludwick, who should slide into that role on his return.

News on the injury front.  First off, John Mozeliak has come out and said what I and a lot of observers have been saying for a while, that the chance of Troy Glaus returning this season is not good.  Apparently they aren't hearing any more than we outside the organization are, which really doesn't bode well.  It's a good sign that Mozeliak is at least willing to write him off sooner than some of the rehab cases in the past.  Sure, it'd be nice to have him back, but you can't wait.  This offense needs a boost from third base, whether it's a trade or it's the promotion of Brett Wallace in a month or so.

The second bit of news is that Kyle Lohse has been scratched from his next start.  The pitch that Ron Mahay hit him with in Saturday's game is still causing him some problems.  Short-term, it doesn't cause too many problems for the Cards.  With an off-day tomorrow, everyone can just move up in the rotation and stay on their regular rest.  Joel Pineiro will take Friday's game and then Chris Carpenter and Wainwright will finish up the San Francisco series. 

(Using Carp and Waino both in the Giants series might be like using a sledgehammer on an ant, since San Fran sits dead last in the NL in runs as it is.  Of course, they've scored 17 more runs than the Cards have in May, so it could be another pitching series.)

Long-term, if Lohse can't take his turn in the rotation against Cincinnati, the team would likely place him on the DL (retroactive to the 24th) and promote someone, likely Mitchell Boggs.  Though I'd like to see them finally give Blake Hawksworth a shot, since he's having a fairly decent year in Memphis.  I don't expect a lot out of him, but it'd be great to see him at least get one game in the bigs.

The first update of All-Star voting was released and Albert Pujols and Molina are leading the pack, with AP the leading vote getter at the moment.  A lot of Cardinals and Brewers in the top five at each position, but I believe that has something to do with the number of home games they had, figuring that most of the fans vote a straight home team ticket.  About the only explanation for Skip being third among second basemen.

A Facebook friend of mine highlighted these links last night and I really enjoyed seeing Ozzie Smith talk a little about his career and then get out there and give some fielding instruction.  Segments like this are why I really miss not having the MLB Network.  Having the in-depth coverage of the game would be so great to watch.

Cards have an afternoon game against the Brewers this afternoon as they try and keep the bats active.  Todd Wellemeyer had an outstanding performance last time out.  Before anyone starts thinking that he's turned a corner or is back to being Todd Wellemeyer, check out his game log.  He's thrown three good games this season, two of them back to back. In other words, it's a little premature to think he's got it figured out.

Going up against the Brewers today isn't necessarily going to help.  He's limited the damage on a whole to the team in his career, but Prince Fielder and Ryan Braun can give him nightmares.  Fielder has hit .364 against him while Braun is hitting .700--yes, .700!--against him with a home run.  (Seven for 10, if you are wondering.)  If he can manage those threats, he could be on his way.  The Brew Crew got him for five runs in four and two thirds earlier in the year, when Wellemeyer walked 7.  If nothing else, his control should be better today.  The biggest key with Wellemeyer--the first couple of innings.  If he can get into the third with a run or less given up, he's in line for a good day.

The Cardinals get to face Manny Parra this afternoon.  During his career, he's given up a lot of hits to St. Louis.  The team is hitting a whopping .329 against him.  However, save for Pujols going deep, he's kept the Cards in the park.  As long as they can get their hits, though, they might be able to put up some runs against him.  They weren't able to last time, as he only allowed two runs in six innings.

Remember tonight is UCB Radio Hour with author Rob Rains!  Mike from Stan Musial's Stance and I will talk to him to kick off the show, then we'll talk Cardinal baseball afterwards.  Give us a call between 9:30 and 10:30 Central at 646-929-1758!

UCB Progressive Game Blog: Wrapup

So the Cards continue their amazing pitching run, posting another 5-0 win against the Royals.  The On The Run people can breathe easier for another day, as the Cards have now gone two weeks without hitting the serious number.

Sweep! Sweep! Sweep!

There's nothing quite like a sweep of the Cubs to kick off a long weekend.  Or, really, any weekend!

A Welcome Return

Chris Carpenter took the mound last night.  If you could tell that it'd been over a month since he'd pitched, you are a better observer than I am.

Carpenter kept his perfect 0.00 ERA for the season, going five scoreless while striking out four.  He was never really challenged and threw 41 strikes in his 67 pitches.  I would have liked to see him get out there for the sixth, but it's not surprising that Tony LaRussa would keep a short leash on him coming back from injury.

If Adam Wainwright shows tonight that the corrections he made that were so effective against the Brewers are permanent, having Carpenter and Wainwright back to back in a rotation should keep the Cardinals from any extensive losing streaks.  The bullpen, in theory, will get some rest on those days as well, which may help them be more effective when needed.  It's a ripple effect that could spread throughout the whole team.

Offensively, again it was a quiet night.  It's a good thing that Carpenter and Joel Pineiro have kept the Cubs off the board, otherwise there'd be some problems.  The Cards have scored only 19 runs in their last 8 games, keeping the people at On The Run from giving out 25 cent drinks since last Monday.  We'll have to give the Goat to Yadier Molina, who went 0-2 and left three men on, not including the double play he hit into.

A man who could be part of the reemergence of the offense is Rick Ankiel, but he was not activated from the disabled list last night as was expected.  Ankiel is going to be reevaluated in the next day or so and hopefully will rejoin the team then, though last night was the first time I had heard anything about the oblique strain.  Not that it was surprising, just that it hadn't been mentioned.  It'd be good to see him back this weekend against the Royals.

There was a pregame interview with John Mozeliak on Fox Sports Midwest and he said something that was a little interesting, at least in my mind.  He was asked about Brett Wallace and his promotion and when we might see him in St. Louis.  Mozeliak, while saying it was premature to talk about it, did indicate that if Troy Glaus is out for the season and Wallace hits at AAA like expected, he could be in the conversation for the latter half of the year.  There's a lot of talk about Wallace around the net right now.  Future Redbirds questions the callup.  Jerry Crasnick puts him on the list of coming attractions.  Ken Rosenthal suggests he's the kind of guy Boston is looking for in return for one of their young pitchers.

Albert Pujols was ranked the top player in baseball by Sporting News.  Tell us something we don't know, why don't you.

Cards look for the ever-sweet sweep of the Cubs tonight behind Wainwright.  You have to hope that Wainwright's got whatever problems he had behind him, because the Cubs are a team that, in the past, he's struggled with.  He's been able to keep them in the yard, but they hit him at a good clip.  He's already seen the Cubs twice this year, going 1-0 in 13 innings but allowing 7 runs (5 earned).  Increased command will help as well, as he's walked five Cubs this year.

Sean Marshall goes for the Cubs and likely keeps the Cards under six runs yet again.  The Cards did get to him for three runs in five innings in his only start against them in '09, but historically the Cards are only hitting .260 against him and he's been one of the few pitchers to keep Pujols at bay.  Should be another low-scoring affair tonight as well.

A note that the UCB has its progressive game blog coming up on Saturday.  You can read more about it and see the lineup of blogs over here.

UCB Debate Day: Trade Ankiel

I know I've been away from the blog the last few days.  Work and other things have conspired against me, and it may be this weekend before I get a chance to catch up.  Rest assured that Heroes and Goats will return soon.  Until then, I hope this will help tide you over!

Today is another United Cardinal Bloggers project day. This time, the UCB takes up different issues in Cardinal Nation and debates them across blogs. You can find the list of all the questions and debate matchups here.

The statement up for debate between me and Kathy of Redbird Chatter is that the Cardinals should try to trade Chris Duncan instead of Rick Ankiel. I will be taking the con side of this, stating that Ankiel should be the one traded.

This is a hard one for me. I've never been a huge Duncan supporter and I've been an Ankiel fan since before he came up in '99. If given a choice, I'd love to see Rick stay in Cardinal red for a long time to come. However, the four-outfielders-for-three-slots merry-go-round is starting to get old and the best way to relieve that situation is a trade.

There are two reasons why Ankiel is the better player to trade. One, he should bring back a higher return and two, he's a free agent at the end of the year.

While Ankiel has not had as strong of a 2009 as Duncan, he still would be an attractive target for a team, especially one with deep enough pockets to tempt Scott Boras out of his "must hit free agency" mindset. Ankiel is a center fielder with much more range and fielding ability than Duncan, he has a stronger offensive pedigree, and arguably has more upside than Duncan.

Teams get excited about athletic center fielders. Teams have limited first base/DH types somewhere in their system, though perhaps not to the level that Duncan is. Still, you have to think that, even with his impending free agency, Ankiel would bring more in return, especially if he is moved well before the trading deadline.

Wouldn't you rather have Duncan plus, say, Philip Hughes* versus Ankiel and a Double-A prospect? Which helps the team more this year?

*Note, all trade possibilities are constructs of my imagination and therefore are not necessarily realistic. Still, the principle holds.

Of course, while his pending free agency is a detriment to what the Cardinals might receive back in a trade, the fact that in a few months, he could walk away from the team with nothing to show for it is probably the biggest reason you move him now.

While it's possible that Ankiel might wind up as a Type A or B free agent, there are no guarantees of that. The extra draft picks would be nice, but getting tangible returns, something that could help you this year, would be nicer. To eliminate the risk and to maximize their asset, the team should trade Ankiel sooner rather than later.

All of this assumes that Ankiel will not sign an extension in the middle of the season, something Boras has said won't happen. If that fact changes, of course, then many of the calculations above would change as well. As it stands right now, though, Rick Ankiel is the most attractive trade bait John Mozeliak could dangle.

Write It In Red: Cardinal Roster Set

The Cardinals made their final cuts yesterday to get to their opening day roster size of 25 men.  The makeup of that roster was a bit of a surprise, however.

Just weeks after Joe Mather was all but anointed the Opening Day third baseman, he starts the year in AAA Memphis while Brian Barden, Brendan Ryan and Joe Thurston all go north with the big club.

It's interesting to see so many middle infield types making up the bench.  Right now there's just one extra outfielder, though obviously some, like Thurston, have seen some time in the outfield as well.  There won't be a lot of pop on the bench, as Tony LaRussa will have to really decide when to use his power bat, which will usually be Chris Duncan or Colby Rasmus.

I wonder if part of this isn't as insurance on Skip Schumaker and his transition.  Of course, Skip can always go to the outfield as well, especially late in games when defense is more important.  Still, I'd expect that if Mather gets off to a strong start at Memphis, he'd swap places with one of those infielders before the end of April.

The best news, in my mind, was that Colby Rasmus was going north.  I know he's still going to have to fight for at-bats and won't necessarily be in there every day, but we've been waiting a long time to see him on the big stage and I'm glad that we'll get that opportunity this year.

So here are the guys that get to ride in the red convertibles around Busch Stadium on Monday:

C: Yadier Molina, Jason LaRue
IF: Albert Pujols, Schumaker, Khalil Greene, David Freese, Barden, Ryan, Thurston
OF: Ryan Ludwick, Rick Ankiel, Duncan, Rasmus
SP: Adam Wainwright, Chris Carpenter, Joel Pineiro, Kyle Lohse, Todd Wellemeyer
RP: Trever Miller, Dennys Reyes, Jason Motte, Josh Kinney, Ryan Franklin, Brad Thompson, Kyle McClellan

Ladies and gentlemen, your 2009 St. Louis Cardinals!

Before all the cuts yesterday, though, they did play one last game in Roger Dean Stadium.  Really was the last one there, because next year the name will be different, though what it will be hasn't been determined.

There's no doubt Rasmus was the star of the game.  He got his first home run of the spring in the first, a sac fly RBI later to again give the Cardinals the lead, then doubled in another run and later scored in the four-run ninth.  Don't know if he was wanting to make sure he wasn't cut or what, but if there was any question, that likely settled it.

Wellemeyer threw five innings and was more effective than he's been at times this spring, but still wasn't superb. Three runs in those five innings, though he did strike out three.  The bullpen came through, though, with Kinney, Franklin, Miller and Motte coming through for four scoreless innings.  Motte struck out two and locked down the save, his fifth of the spring.

In other news, sounds like Carpenter is getting better.  If it were a regular season game tonight, he'd probably pitch, but there's no reason to risk aggrevating it for a game against the Redbirds.  More and more this sounds like it really is a minor injury and nothing to be terribly concerned with.  At least until Thursday.

Cards play in Memphis tonight and tomorrow, take Sunday off and then get to it for real on Monday.  Remember to check out the United Cardinal Bloggers website for all our predicitions, with today having the postseason under the microscope.  Also, there's a special two-hour United Cardinal Bloggers Radio Hour on Sunday, from 8-10 Central.  We'll get you ready for the season and will have special guest Matthew Leach on the show as well.  Hope you'll join us!

UCB Project: Postseason Predictions

OK, we've done our tour around the leagues, picking where the teams will finish.  But what will October bring us?

We have the Red Sox, Twins, and Angels winning their divisions.  I expect that the Yankees will get the wild card.  That should give us a Red Sox/Twins and Angels/Yankees LDS.

While it would be nice to think that the Twins could send Red Sox Nation to an early winter, I can't see that happening.  In a short series, it's usually about the pitching and the Sox go at least three deep.  Scott Baker and Francisco Liriano can help the Twins stay close, but eventually the Sox win out.  Let's say in 4.

On the other side, it's a tough series between the Angels and Yankees.  CC Sabathia has been known to blow up in the postseason, which might be a problem for the New Yorkers.  Still, I think they are the better team and will win in 5.

Which gives us another Red Sox/Yankees LCS.  I didn't say these predictions are what I'm rooting for, just the way it seems to me that it'll play out.

It's interesting that, in the span of just a few years, the roles have been so totally reversed in this meeting.  It used to be that the Yanks were the ones assured of winning, of going on and adding to their World Series totals.  Then 2004 happened.  Now the Sox would be the favorites and would be looking for another trip, but the Yankees are the hungry ones.  I think they finally return to the Series, taking it in 6 games.

On the National League side, we've got the Phillies, Cubs and Dodgers going as division champs.  As much as I think the Cardinals will be competitive this year, I don't think they'll have enough wins to beat out the Mets for the wild card.

I'm guessing that means Phillies/Cubs and Dodgers/Mets.  The Phillies continue Chicago's futility, taking them out in three games.  I still like Philadelphia's pitching better in the short series, at least on paper.  If Carlos Zambrano or Rich Harden come out firing, it could be different, but right now, we'll stick with Philly.

Dodgers/Mets would probably be a good one.  Tough to argue with the Mets and Santana, though the Dodgers do have a good staff.  I think this one goes five games, with the Mets just pulling it out.

So that means the second round of the playoffs is an all-East affair (90% of the country tunes out, leaving just the northern corner to care).  The Mets are able to avenge the last couple of years, taking out the Phillies in 6.

Which leaves us with the unpalatable notion of a New York/New York World Series.  Again, not what I'd like to see.  One of these will add to the short list of teams that have won a World Series the first year in a new ballpark.  (Yankees '27, Cardinals '06).  My guess is the Yankees in 5, leading to a long offseason of stories about buying championships and overspending.

Quickly, let's look at the awards.

MVP: Mark Teixieria (AL), Albert Pujols (NL)
Cy Young: Roy Halladay (AL), Johan Santana (NL)
ROY: Matt Wieters (AL), Cameron Maybin (NL)
Manager of the Year: Ron Gardenhire (AL), Joe Torre (NL)

Hope you've enjoyed this week's UCB predictions. Check them all out at the official site! 

UCB Project: NL West Predictions

We hit the last division in baseball today.  If you've missed the rest of the week, you can find my AL predictions here, as well as the NL East and Central.

As with the others, I ranked the players against their counterparts on a 1-5 scale.  The team with the lowest total gets top billing.

  Continue Reading

Cardinals Heading Down the Stretch

The Cardinals beat the Orioles yesterday 7-3 as they started their stretch of "lasts" in Florida.  Yesterday was the last road trip and likely the last time the regular lineup won't at least start a game, with Albert Pujols and Khalil Greene staying home.

Chris Duncan brought out his bat again, clubbing a three-run home run that was instrumental in the Cardinals pulling away.  He also had another hit and brought his spring average up over the .300 mark.

Also noteworthy offensively was Ryan Ludwick getting two hits.  The Cardinals really need his bat to be at least somewhat like it was last year.  This lineup could be dangerous from top to bottom if he starts clicking as well.

According to those Twittering from the scene, Adam Wainwright didn't look quite as sharp as his early results were indicating, and a final line of seven hits and two runs in five innings isn't exactly stellar.  There didn't seem to be any reason for the outing, though, and it could have been somewhat a lack of focus due to it being the last start of a long spring.

Wainwright was also named Opening Day starter by Tony LaRussa yesterday.  In other news, the sun set in the west last night.  Apparently Kyle Lohse was in the running for it as well, but I don't think anyone expected him to get it.  The rest of the rotation was lined out, with Lohse going in the second game, Todd Wellemeyer the third, Chris Carpenter finishes the four-game set with Pittsburgh, and Joel Pineiro gets the opener of the Houston series.

And looking at the early rotation, you notice that nothing in Cardinal camp is accidental.  Those top four will face the Cubs in the second weekend of the season.

I've wondered who the new Cardinal whipping boy would be.  There's always someone that gets the fans riled up, whether with cause or not.  J.D. Drew was like that, then at times Scott Rolen and Adam Kennedy.  I'm guessing this year's will be Brad Thompson, at least when he's with the big club.  He may be mine, at least.  Two walks and two hits in two innings yesterday, allowing a run.  I hope we won't see him in too many close situations this year.

In news that you never really want to hear, the Cardinals have no idea when Troy Glaus will be joining the team.  The comments about June start making you think that if he's back by the All-Star Break, it's a pretty good deal for the team.  It looks like David Freese will get an extended showing at third.  I'd think, with this longer recovery time for Glaus, he better keep an eye on Brett Wallace.  The Cards wouldn't bring Wallace up for just a month.  If Freese struggles and Glaus looks like he might be out a long time, they might think about it.

Of course, I talk about the regulars playing, but here's the lineup for the final "home" game of the Florida spring.

Barden 3B
Ankiel CF
Pujols 1B
Greene SS
Ludwick RF
Duncan LF
LaRue C
Lohse P
Schumaker 2B

Brian Barden is still battling for that last roster slot, so a good performance today, especially with Johan Santana starting, could go a long way.  This is the second time LaRussa has slid Khalil Greene into that cleanup role.  Pretty interesting since the idea was to keep him from thinking home runs.  I wouldn't think that'd be what would happen in the regular season, but I don't know.

Tonight is the UCB Radio Hour, this week hosted by me.  My apologies in advance, since it's my first time to have the host duties.  We are schedule to have Pat from Where Have You Gone, Andy Van Slyke? on to discuss the Cardinals' Opening Day opponent.  You may remember Pat from the Playing Pepper series.

We'll also talk a little about today's game, how the roster looks, and our spring surprises and disappointments.  Your calls will help a lot, especially if you don't want to listen to me monologue for an hour!

Also, the UCB continues the predictions, today with the NL Central.  Mine are below and you find the rest from this index post.

Also on the Network: √ The lineup gets a pickmeup [Feeling Dodger Blue] √ 7/2/09: Zito Betrayed [El Lefty Malo] √ Andre Miller's Disappearing Leverage [Depressed Fan] √ 7/1/09: A Tolerable Loss [El Lefty Malo] √ Progress So Far? [Depressed Fan] √ St. Louis Loves Their Colby Jack [C70 At The Bat] √ Peace, Ben. It's been real. [Tremendous Upside Potential] √ 2009 Free Agents, Position-By-Position [Depressed Fan]