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Wounded Birds

Posted on March 11, 2010 at 8:06 AM
While there was plenty of news from the game yesterday, the biggest discussion point probably happened before the first pitch was ever thrown.

Albert Pujols and Matt Holliday were both scratched from yesterday's game against the Nationals.  Pujols's back still isn't quite right and Holliday has a strained rib cage muscle.  A team that looks strong offensively drops quickly into mediocre without those guys.

Now, it's not time to start sounding alarms and looking for the nearest bridge, of course.  If they are still out a week before the season starts, then I think you get worried.  Still, it's a cause for concern.  Both of those guys need to be ready to answer the bell, so that the Cards don't wind up slipping behind early.

The game itself provided some good talking points as well.  First among them was the start of Brad Penny.  After his first outing, there were a few questions about just what the Cardinals had gotten themselves into.  Those were eased yesterday with four scoreless and effective innings.  I still think Penny is in line to have a big year for the squad and seeing results like yesterday's help reinforce that in my mind.

Allen Craig made his presence known as well.  If he's going to make this team, which is still a possibility, he's going to have to hit his way there.  Hitting a home run in his first spring at-bat probably didn't hurt at all.  Craig also wound up with a RBI double later in the game and with AP and Holliday out for a bit, he looks to get quite a few at-bats this week.

Then there was Shelby Miller.  Cardinal fans have been waiting to get a glimpse of the first-round draft pick and they, along with his family, got their chance yesterday.  (At least the ones that were in Jupiter--it figures this game would be one with no TV or radio.)  Tony La Russa seems impressed, at least.  Dave Duncan is passing along good things.  With all of this, could it be that Miller won't spend much time at A ball this year, getting a promotion to Springfield mid-season or so?  It'll be interesting to keep an eye on that as the summer goes along.

I expected that he'd be sent out after this outing, but not only is he staying in camp for a while, there's a chance he'll get another outing before going down.  I expect that Miller has made quite an impression during this camp!

Cardinals take on the Marlins again today, with Kyle Lohse going.  Remember there are only two days left to express your opinion in the Cardinal Approval Ratings!

Brooms Work Fine On Nats

Posted on August 31, 2009 at 7:07 AM
For the third time in August, a weekend series resulted in a clean sweep by the Cardinals.  This sweep gave you some of everything--the dramatic walk off win, the explosive offense win, the Cy Young candidate win.  How can you ask for more?

Friday (4-3 win)
Hero: Khalil Greene.  Albert Pujols got the big, game-winning, ninth-inning blast, but he might not have been in the position to do that if it weren't for Greene's pinch-hit home run.  I sometimes  think the announcers and commentators go too far in "being nice" to Khalil due to his anxiety and everything, but there's little doubt that they were correct in saying that was huge for him.  Nice to see the curtain call as well.
Goat: Colby Rasmus.  An 0-3 with at least one really rough AB.  In the eighth, with the Cards down one (and, as such, needing baserunners) he swings at the first pitch that was in on him and hits a little dribbler to the pitcher.  Greene cleared that up with the next swing, but it still wasn't good baseball.
Notes: Another strong outing by John Smoltz.  Like I said last week, the Nationals did have some offensive pop.  Smoltz looked a little shaky early but settled in.  Be interesting to see how he continues to gain strength in his next start....Blake Hawksworth had a rough outing, giving up back to back doubles to put the Cards in the hole.  At least he was able to limit the damage...Didn't you just know that AP was going deep?  Strangely, I was pretty sure Khalil was but wasn't as confident about Albert.  Maybe his "slump" is over.

Saturday (9-4 win)
Hero: Colby Rasmus.  Sure, Matt Holliday hit the first three-run bomb, but the game was still pretty close when Rasmus went yard.  Add to that the fact that it was off a lefty reliever and was a complete bomb, mix in another hit and a stolen base and you've got to go with the rookie.
Goat: Kyle McClellan.  Most everyone did their job on Saturday.  The offense was clicking, with numerous hitters having a multi-hit game.  Mitchell Boggs basically held the Nationals in check for a while, especially after getting his lead.  However, McClellan did his best to give it all back to Washington, getting only one out but allowing a run and putting two on before exiting the game.  He was better Sunday and perhaps has had a reminder of what he needs to do, but it's still just a little dicey when he comes into a game.
Notes: Nice to see the Cards hit multiple home runs in a game that weren't solo shots....Jason Motte came a tough situation and made good.  He pitched over an inning and only allowed one hit, one that actually stayed in the park.

Sunday (2-1 win)
Hero: Adam Wainwright.  The offense wasn't there and Wainwright did only go six, but he picked up his 16th win on his birthday with another stellar outing.  It's a shock to the system when Wainwright or Carpenter don't go seven or more, but it was enough yesterday as the bullpen did its job.  He kept those Cy Young chances alive, which is a big thing.
Goat: Matt Holliday.  When only Rasmus and Pujols have hits in the game, you are probably going to find your goat on the offensive side.  Holliday wasn't the only one with 0 hits, of course, but he did leave three men on.
Notes: The Cubs losing gave the team the 10-game cushion I mentioned on Friday.  Cubs do play this evening vs. Houston, so they could get it back into single digits....Back to back good games for Colby Rasmus.  He's become the heir apparent to Jim Edmonds, not just because he plays center at a Gold Glove level, but because he's about as streaky as anyone.

The Cards get the day off to reflect on an August that saw them go 20-6 and go from tied to up 10.  There may have been better months in Cardinal history, but it's tough to beat both of those facts.  A 20 win September (and early October) would have them finishing up with 97 wins.  While you'd think that back-to-back 20 win months would be touhg, look at the schedule.

You have Milwaukee nine times in that span, a team right at .500.  Three games with Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, which usually goes well for the Birds.  A tough stretch with back to back series with Atlanta and Florida, both of whom are contending for the wild card.  Three with Houston.  Three with Colorado, also working for the wild card.  Finally, another series with Cincy, who has bottomed out this year.

The Cards have 30 games left.  20-10 would be a pretty strong stretch with this schedule. 18-12 would be .600 ball, which since they've played at a .735 clip since acquiring Holliday, seems to be doable. St. Louis right now has the second best record in the National League, just a game and a half behind the Dodgers.  So we'll have to do some West Coast scoreboard watching this September.

Of course, the big off-the-field "news" this weekend was the rift between Dave Duncan and the front office.  Anyone who has been following the Cardinals knows that Dunc was ticked at the time of the Chris Duncan trade.  Which, as a father, there is going to be some of that anger there, especially if you think your child isn't being treated fairly. 

That said, if Joe Strauss is right in his article, the more immediate problem for Duncan would likely be the lack of impact he's allowed to have at the minor league levels.  I can see where he'd want to have input on the pitching philosophy at those levels, because those are the players he'll have to deal with if they make it to the bigs, and if they've already got that background, it helps a lot.  However, you don't necessarily want to remake the whole organization in the image of one man that may or may not be around a few years from now, at best.  VEB has a better breakdown of the whole situation.

I got to do a little minor league watching yesterday, taking the family down to Little Rock to see the Arkansas Travelers take on the Springfield Cardinals.  Now, if you actually want to do scouting, you don't take a 4 1/2 year old and a 2 year old.  Just a tip to the wise.  I did get to see some of the game, though.

Lance Lynn was the starting pitcher and I was interested to see how he'd do, but he moved through the first three innings without getting a hit.  He seemed to be getting a good number of swinging strikes and left with the lead.  Pete Kozma went yard, taking one just over the wall to get the baby birds on the board.

Eduardo Sanchez, the topic of promotion talk before the John Smoltz deal, came in to pitch the eighth with a one run lead and was not impressive.  He gave up a towering home run to tie the game and a well-struck double down the left-field line in the same inning.  He did get out of a first-and-third jam to keep it tied and looked better in the ninth, but the Cardinals gave it away in the 10th, hitting a batter with the bases loaded and no outs.  (Which was fine with me by that time, because I had been standing in line so the boy could run the bases since the top of the 9th.)

Troy Glaus looks to return to St. Louis this week, though he did tweak his ankle during Saturday night's game.  It's amazing to think that, just a couple of weeks before spring training, we were counting on Glaus to be a huge part of a successful Cardinal season.  Now he's been out all year and the Cards haven't missed a beat.  You'd think people on the internet didn't know what they were talking about at times.

Someone who does know what's he's talking about is Jason from It's About The Money.  One of the members of the continually-growing Baseball Bloggers Alliance (as you can see from my blogroll, and more on the BBA later in the year), he had a great experience during the Cards/Pads series, even though he's a Yankees blogger.

Another link for you to consider is this site's Top Athlete Tourney.  Eugene was writing the Cardinal blog Riding The Pine until getting involved at this general sports site.  Check it out and I know they'd love to have your input.

We'll take a look at the Milwaukee series tomorrow.  Today, enjoy being 10 up!

Offense, Bullpen Lets Down Carpenter

Posted on August 28, 2009 at 9:14 AM
While Chris Carpenter wasn't the pitching Jedi yesterday that we in Cardinal Nation have come to expect, you have to think that in most times, with most bats, two runs in six innings is likely enough to get you a win.  Even if a guy walks the last two guys in the order, that's not sin enough for penalty, is it?

Yet it almost turned out that way for him yesterday.  Though he left with a 3-2 lead, it seemed a struggle for the offense to even get that much.  So when Kyle McClellan gave up the tying run, things looked dark.  When he allowed the go-ahead run, it was time to put away the brooms.

Those two runs were the first charged to McClellan in August.  He's only allowed one of eight inherited runners to score in that time.  Yet, for some reason, I still don't have a world of confidence when he's on the hill.  I guess the 4.15 ERA for July probably has something to do with it.  I would have rather seen Blake Hawksworth get more than one inning, but on the whole, with Ryan Franklin out of the picture, it was probably the best move Tony LaRussa could have made.

On the upside, I'm going to give the Hero tag to Julio Lugo.  He had two hits and beat out one potential double-play ball.  Nice way to break out of an ofer slump.  Hopefully that'll trigger him and, in turn, some of the rest of the offense.

Brian Burwell has a great article up about the group side sessions that go on with Cardinal starters.  I'm kinda surprised that more teams don't do something like that.  Maybe that's why the Cardinals always talk about "tipping pitches", because when so many eyes of your peers are on you, mistakes are easier to find.  It'll be interesting to see if that continues if there is a managerial or pitching coach change in the next few years.

After putting out a huge offer to Brian Fuentes last off-season, it looks like the Cardinals are going to appreciate their good fortune in not getting him by locking up Franklin to an extension.  It doesn't appear to be a bank-breaker, which is good, but since you had an option on him for 2010, why not wait and see what kind of season he has then?  I'm not too worried about more than the natural regression, but if he blows up next year, that 2011 year could be an albatross, though hopefully not an Albertross, keeping the team from signing Pujols.

It is a little interesting that the Cards are already looking to start solving next year's problems.  With so many free agents and moving pieces, they probably had to get a head start on it, though having a 9 game lead helps out in the fact they don't have to worry about it really being a distraction to the team.

Kyle Lohse is apparently doing much better and sounds like he'll be ready to come off the DL when the 15 days are up.  Sounds like the club is really going to scramble to get him and Todd Wellemeyer minor league starts.  I'm considering heading to the Arkansas Travelers game this Sunday when they play Springfield--wouldn't mind seeing either one of them there.

Cards open up with the Nationals tonight, as John Smoltz tries to keep the hype machine going against the NL's worst team.  While they may the worst team, that is more on the pitching side of things than anything else.  The team stands sixth in the NL in runs, eighth in home runs (just 4 shy of the Cardinals), and fifth in batting average.  So while the Cardinals are going to be favored in this game, it should tell us more about Smoltz when it is done.  Smoltz has already faced them once this year with disastrous results, so if the changes have paid off, we should really know.

The Cardinals face John Lannan.  None of the Cardinals have seen him much (Albert's 0-2 against him) but it's not completely a fresh slate. He's been a middle of the road starter this year with an ERA just over 4 and an ERA+ of 107.  Hopefully the Cards can get untracked against him, but it's no sure thing.

The Cubs host the Mets, which as beat up as the Mets are, may make for a good weekend on the North Side.  Then again, it is the Cubs.  We'll see if, come Monday, the Cards have a double-digit lead on the last day of the month. 

Late Night Happiness

Posted on August 18, 2009 at 6:57 AM
How nice is it to wake up in the morning and not only see that the Cards kept the lead they had when I fell asleep, but also to find out they extended their lead at the same time?

Another outstanding game for Chris Carpenter.  I think there should be a macro where you could just click a button and the Carpenter superlatives come out, because he is that consistent and that good.  It really makes you think about how much the Cards have missed the last two years with him on the shelf.  If he's around, especially in '07, St. Louis has probably played in October.

However, with the general lack of offense due to a new face and one with a knuckleball to boot, I think you have to give the Hero tag to Rick Ankiel for the surprising but welcome two-run shot that gave the Cards the lead.  Many in Cardinal Nation, in contrast to the beginning of the year, see Rick as somewhat of the weak link now that the team has been upgraded.  It was good to see him come through and get the big hit when the team needed it.

Albert Pujols now sits just one home run away from 40 on the season.  While he's hit that mark in four of his eight seasons before 2009, he hasn't made that mark since 2006.  There seems a pretty solid chance he'll break his career high of 49 from that year.  Earlier in the year, there was talk of 60, which is out the window, but 50 would still be a wonderful campaign.

Last night's Goat goes to Mark DeRosa, who was 0-4.  Is he really just hitting .228 since arriving back in the National League?  Some of his hits have been of the long ball variety and have come at good times, so that's overshadowed the fact that he's struggled somewhat.  Then again, he was hitting .215 for the Cards through July, a much more palatable .267 in August.  However, he hit 7 HR in that earlier span, just one since the calendar has turned to this month.  Seems like we can have average or power but not both.  I think, with the way this team is constructed, hits are much more important.

The Cards now sit six games ahead of the Cubs, who blew a 1-0 lead in the ninth last night to the Padres.  The only bigger lead in baseball is that of the Yankees, who lead Boston by 7.  Obviously there are no guarantees with six weeks left, but you have to like the Redbirds' position.  Well, unless you root for the baby bears, that is.

The off-the-field news was good for the Cardinals yesterday as well, as they came to terms with their first round draft pick Shelby Miller.  Miller, who automatically moves to being in the mix for the Cards' best prospect, signed for much less than rumor had suggested, coming in under $3 million.  Sounds like a win-win for everyone.

Speaking of draft picks, I think it was good for baseball that Stephen Strasburg signed with the Nationals last night.  Those fevered talks of $50 million were crazy, though the record level of $15 million isn't anything to sneeze at.  Getting a guy that talented to a team that bad is what the draft is supposed to be about.  So while he didn't get there the ideal way--many teams wouldn't have been able to even consider signing him--the end result is what you want to see.  This has nothing to do with the fact that I traded for him in my long-term keeper league earlier in the year in anticipation of his signing.

Could be a tough road for the Redbirds tonight.  Chad Billingsley returns to the mound after dealing with a hamstring injury.  The Cards have done all right against Billingsley in the past.  If Tony LaRussa's looking at the career numbers, there's a strong chance Khalil Greene will get a start somewhere in the lineup tonight.  Greene is hitting .583 with a home run in 12 ABs against the Dodger starter.  The Cardinals touched him up for six runs in less than six innings in the series in St. Louis back in July.

St. Louis counters with Mitchell Boggs.  I don't know about you, but I'm kinda disappointed LaRussa broke up Carpenter and Adam Wainwright.  It's been nice seeing them go on back to back days, though it's understandable that, with last week's off day, they'd want to keep Carp on his regular rest.  Boggs is an unknown to many of the Dodgers, though Manny Ramirez and Mark Loretta, the only two that have faced him, seem to have solved the puzzle.

It's another late night for the Birds.  Let's see if it's as rewarding.

Cards Beat Nationals, Tie Mother Nature

Posted on July 24, 2009 at 8:01 AM
Sometimes the elements just won't be denied.

The Cardinals, playing a one game series in Washington to make up a rainout from early May, dodged the raindrops last night and sat through rain delays before giving up and taking the 4-1, six inning win.  At least Mother Nature doesn't have a line in the NL Central standings.

The Hero of the game has to be Adam Wainwright, getting credit for a complete game.  It was really big that he was able to come back after the first rain delay, making sure that his start wasn't wasted and that his bullpen wasn't taxed.

Another positive sight was Rick Ankiel smashing a home run.  There are least a few signs that maybe, just maybe, Ankiel is starting to come out of his season-long slump.  The last seven days have seen him put up a .286 average with a double and a home run.  Compare that to the seven before, where he hit .063.  Before this last "hot streak", his last extra base hit was June 28.  If his bat is returning for the stretch drive, that's a huge thing for the Cardinals.

Colby Rasmus gets the Goat tag for last night.  Zero for three with five left on is a tough night, especially out of the two hole.  At least the rain kept him from making it worse--he was at bat when the second rain delay was called.

This time of year, what happens off the field is sometimes more intriguing that the actual games.  Yesterday the rumor continued to persist that the Cards were close to trading Brett Wallace for Matt Holliday.  You know what I think of that.  Most everyone I have heard from was outraged by the idea.

Not so much Post-Dispatch columnist Brian Burwell, who advocates making the trade.  Burwell's contention is that Holliday makes the Cards almost a lock for the World Series.  I'm really not sure how you can figure that one out.  Holliday's not a top level hitter.  He's good, but he's not a person that can carry a team.  Burwell says don't worry about tomorrow, do it today.  Which is a darn good way to make sure that, when Albert Pujols's contract is up, the Cards are a middle division team that won't be able to resign him.

There's talk that the Cardinals want Oakland to pay Wallace's signing bonus.  (Is that repay to the Cards?  Surely he's already received it?)  There's also talk that this deal really isn't that close to happening, which makes me feel better.

Cards head to Philadelphia today.  Joel Pineiro goes for the 'Birds.  Pineiro hasn't faced the Phillies this year and hasn't faced them just a ton in his career.  They've held their own against the Cardinal hurler, though nobody has taken him yard.

J.A. Happ goes for the Phillies.  Happ has put together a very solid season for Philadelphia and, though he hasn't faced the Cardinals this year, he did pretty good against them in his one outing last year.  Could be another tough game for the Cardinals as they kick off this stretch against division leaders Philadelphia and Los Angeles.

A Busy Day in Cardinal Nation

Posted on July 23, 2009 at 8:41 AM
Losing a game in the ninth inning is enough fodder for debate.  A trade, by itself, makes for a big day.  Put them together and you've got a lot of unrest and discussion going on in Cardinal Nation.  Let's take the game first before delving into the move of Chris Duncan to the Boston Red Sox.

Last night was a game the Cardinals really needed to win.  Having lost the first two of the series against a divisional foe that is feeling confident about a late season run, stopping the bleeding was a top priority.  Thankfully, Chris Carpenter was on the mound.  Carpenter put together eight strong innings and put the team in a great position to win.  He worked out of trouble in the seventh, though he did allow a run.  I thought they'd pull him there, but he went back out in the eighth and made quick work of the Astros.

So you've got a one-run lead in the ninth and, at least this year, that's pretty much where you want to be.  However, as happens at times, the closer got a hiccup.  Ryan Franklin allowed two runs and the game was over.  It's really tough when you realize that Lance Berkman and Carlos Lee weren't any part of that ninth inning and Miguel Tejada could have been avoided if the Cards had executed correctly.

I wasn't able to watch the whole game, but one moment that I saw stuck out to me.  The Cards were tied at 1 in the top of the sixth when Skip Schumaker doubled to start the inning.  Next up is Colby Rasmus.  Now, I know Rasmus is in a bit of slump, though he did get a hit in this game.  For some reason, Tony LaRussa figures this is a great time to sac bunt.

Rasmus bunts, but they get Schumaker at third, and then Albert comes up and raps into a double play.  While I know that Oswalt is a dominant pitcher, what exactly is the point here?  If it works, you have a runner on third...and Albert is walked.  If you let Rasmus swing away, the most likely worst situation is a grounder to short or a strikeout, leaving Skip at second...and Albert is walked, giving you two on with one out.  More likely, Rasmus gets Skip over with a grounder or actually drives him in with a hit.  To me, it seemed like a terrible bit of managing and may have wound up costing the team the game.

The Cards now only sit one game ahead of Houston and Chicago and two ahead of Milwaukee.  After this quick stop in Washington, the Cards have to go to Philadelphia for three.  As close as this division is, they could find themselves looking up at a lot of teams very quickly.
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Catching Up With The Cardinals

Posted on May 5, 2009 at 2:30 PM
Hello, my name is Cardinal70.  You might remember me from such posts as Reading The T-Shirts and Casey In Today's Baseball...... 

OK, maybe it's not been that long, but it's been a while since I've had a chance to write about the Cardinals.  Since we have a week's worth of games, I'm not going to sit down and talk about all of them.  We'll just hit the Heroes and Goats and then look at the overview and what's coming next.

Monday at Atlanta (Win 3-2)
Hero: Joel Pineiro
Goat: Albert Pujols
Notes: Normally Brendan Ryan's 0 for 4 would have given him the Goat tag, but his spectacular defense in this game spares him.  Pujols was 1-5 but left 6 men on, something that could have easily haunted the Cards.

Tuesday at Atlanta (Loss 2-1)
Hero: Yadier Molina
Goat: Kyle McClellan
Notes: Kyle Lohse had an outstanding game, but he did walk four, which is why Molina got the nod.

Wednesday at Atlanta (Win 5-3)
Hero: Ryan Franklin
Goat: Colby Rasmus
Notes: The closer doesn't get the Hero tag very often, so since he went four outs, I'll give it to him.  Adam Wainwright would have been in line but five walks is not good at all.

Thursday at Washington (Win 9-4)
Hero: Albert Pujols
Goat: Joe Thurston
Notes: Nice to see Tyler Greene make his debut, even though it came at the expense of Ryan heading to the DL.

Friday at Washington (Win 6-2)
Hero: Albert Pujols
Goat: Skip Schumaker
Notes: Albert's two extra runs gave him the slightest of nods over Chris Duncan.

Saturday at Washington (Loss 6-1)
Hero: Colby Rasmus
Goat: Chris Duncan
Notes: Duncan's 0 for 4 was bad enough, but the error didn't help matters.  I just missed watching Colby's homer, sitting down to the computer and catching it on Twitter.

Sunday at Washington, rained out

Monday vs. Philadelphia (Loss 6-1)
Hero: Joe Thurston
Goat: Kyle Lohse
Notes: If he's not using the HBP as an excuse, then I can't either.  But I do think that had to have some effect.  And a Cardinal starter has to be fully healthy to even have a chance against Ryan Howard.

So that brings us to the present.  After the jump, more talk and looking forward to tonight's game.
 
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Cardinal Comings and Goings

Posted on March 24, 2009 at 8:23 AM
The Cardinals had a pitcher arrive in camp, a pitcher leave for the minors and a pitcher leave for another team yesterday.  None of them were able to overshadow the pitcher that pitched, however.

Chris Carpenter had another stellar outing on the mound, going five innings and leading St. Louis to a 6-3 win over the Nationals on Monday.  While his spring scoreless streak was snapped at 16 2/3, he still hasn't given up an earned run this spring.  He also stepped up his strikeout game (something that was a topic of Twitter discussion yesterday) by fanning six in his five innings.  This is the real deal, I believe.  This spring has been better than any of us expected out of him and it really raises the excitement level for the coming season.

Offensively, Brendan Ryan made a case to be the occasional leadoff hitter, going 2-5 and scoring a run.  Yesterday, I mistakenly said that Joe Thurston was about the only middle infield backup option left, but obviously Ryan is there as well. 

Chris Duncan had a 2-4 day.  After numerous big games, we've not heard from him in a while so it's good to know he's still hitting over .300 for the spring.  He even stole a base, which you won't see every day.  Rick Ankiel and Yadier Molina also had two hits.

Looking at the boxscore, though, I found one hitter that stood out even though he didn't get a base hit.  Colby Rasmus came in later in the game and officially stood at 0-1.  However, he also drew a walk and stole his third base of the season.  His all around game is what is going to get him on this roster, I believe.

Talking about the roster leads us into the discussion of the pitcher movement yesterday.  First off, Dennys Reyes made his official entrance into Cardinal camp.  You have to like a guy who says on the pronunciation of his first name, "It's like the restaurant."  Of course, a jovial attitude from a big guy goes far when you are getting batters out.  Ask Ray King how long it lasts if you aren't.  Still, Reyes is off on the right foot and should get some action Wednesday or Thursday.

After pitching three scoreless innings in yesterday's game, PJ Walters was sent down to the minor league camp.  That follows Blake Hawksworth having a good outing before going down as well.  At least the pitchers make the decisions harder right before they go!  If I'm right, that means the roster stands at 32 with just less than two weeks in the spring.  You have to figure that Sunday will be one of the last cutdown days.

The Cardinals also completed the Khalil Greene trade yesterday, sending relief prospect Luke Gregerson to the Padres.  You can find the analysis over at Future Redbirds, but to me, it seems like a fairly decent cost for what could be a significant upgrade at the shortstop position.  If Greene has a good year, you'd expect there's a chance the Cardinals could sign him to an extension before the season is over, increasing their return in the deal.

On the injury front, there is good news and, if not bad news, at least news you really didn't want to hear.  The latter is that Troy Glaus has hit a wall in his rehab.  For a while there it looked like he might get into a few late spring training games, but apparently that's not going to happen now.  Which, with Cardinals and injuries, has to raise concerns even if Glaus is saying they didn't go backward in his recovery.  Hopefully he'll be back on the mend pretty soon.

Better news is that Chris Perez sounds like he's about ready to go. I imagine he's really chomping at the bit due to the fact that he's pretty much lost the closer job to Jason Motte at the moment and may be battling for the last slot on the roster.  With the fact that he has options and that he hasn't pitched, Memphis is looking like a more likely spot for him, at least temporarily, but if he's able to get six more appearances in and does well, he could force Tony La Russa's hand somewhat.

Matthew Leach has his latest roster projection up.   He has Perez going down, Joe Mather making the team as an outfielder and David Freese going north as the third baseman.  I do like the fact that he says he has a hard time seeing Rasmus not on the roster.  I'm really anxious to see what Colby can do on a regular basis.

Pip at Fungoes has an article up exploring if the Cardinals should go to a four-man rotation.  The positives of that are very compelling, but I don't know if that'd be more likely to aggrevate injuries, in Carpenter especially.  If so, you could undo all that good work by having to force in a below-replacement level pitcher.

The last approval rating:  Bill DeWitt scored a 80.2%.  I gave him an 85, because he's had a very good run and I agree with most of what he's done.  There have been a few questionable calls and I'm not sure they do a great job with the press, but on the whole, he's been a good owner in my opinion.

Today is a milestone.  It's the 500th entry I've written for C70 At The Bat.  (507 overall, with six from Mike of Stan Musial's Stance last year and one with the UCB blog swap earlier this year.)  It's been fun and I hope you've enjoyed.

Remember that the United Cardinal Blogger Radio Hour is a half-hour earlier tomorrow and that Derrick Goold will be joining us.  Hope you can join us!

A Weekend of Cardinal Baseball

Posted on March 2, 2009 at 8:43 AM
Two games, two wins this weekend for the Cardinals.  Plenty of offense to examine, but the most important stats came on the mound.

Chris Carpenter: 2 innings, no hits, no runs, 19 pitches, 13 strikes.

If you don't think those numbers rang out across Cardinal Nation like joyous bell chimes, apparently you've not been following Cardinal baseball.  To have Carpenter come out like that, like nothing had happened, is a huge thing for this upcoming season.  The fact that there's no pain or problems the day after is great as well.

There will come a point where we stop thinking about Carpenter as a recovering pitcher, hanging on every start and holding our breath, and just think of him as a pitcher, expected to go every fifth day.  That day got a lot closer on Saturday.

There was more news from that game against the Nationals, though.  Ryan Franklin relieved Carpenter and was dealing, five strikeouts in three innings.  Both this performance and Carpenter's do have to be tempered by the fact that they were playing Washington, but it's still very good to see.  Hopefully this doesn't inspire the team to move Franklin to the closer role, though.

On the second lefty front, Charlie Manning had another scoreless couple of outs.  I'm still thinking he's a dark horse to take the slot away from Royce Ring.  Keep an eye out and see if he doesn't continue to make strides.

Offensively, nine runs on nine hits (and four Washington errors).  Up to this point, the Cards still only had one homer in the spring.  That changed on Sunday, but we'll get to that later.

Tyler Greene kept his push alive to make the squad as the backup middle infielder, getting two hits.  I know he's been impressing the brass, so more games like this might make for some interesting roster decisions.  Joe Mather drove in three, Albert Pujols has a batting eye even in the spring (two walks), and Skip Schumaker got a hit and didn't make an error, though both double plays were turned after he left.

Yesterday's game against the Marlins was a slugfest, as the wind helped out the hitters tremendously.  No one got more out of the game than Brian Barton, though, who went three for five with two homers and six RBI.  Talk about making your mark!

I've got to admit, I'd like to see Barton make the squad because his right-handed bat really could come in handy, but I'm not sure how that's going to happen.  Then again, if Colby Rasmus doesn't turn it around (he did get two hits to move his average up to .211) it may be that Rasmus starts at Memphis and that'd leave a cracked door for Barton.

Yadier Molina made the most of his last game with the squad until after the World Baseball Classic, getting two hits in four trips.  Khalil Greene even got into the fun with three hits.  With the team getting 19 hits, there were a lot of multiple-hit games.  But, amazingly, no hits for Albert Pujols.  (OK, he didn't play, but still.........)

On the mound, things were a bit rougher.  Which is not surprising in a 14-10 game held in a spring training stadium with the wind blowing.  Through all that, though, Joel Pineiro only gave up one unearned run.  What are the odds?  The traditional spring training piece about a player rededicating himself, in great shape, etc. was published on Pineiro today.  Perhaps some of that will come true.  If so, that'd really strengthen the rotation.  However, I think it's fairly safe to say that nobody is holding their breath on that one.

Kyle McClellan got his first action of the spring on Sunday.  I was wondering where he'd been, given the need for arms.  Two and a third innings, but he did give up a three-run home run.  On a day like Sunday, it's hard to read much into that.

Regarding that second lefty competition, you can just about write off Ian Ostlund.  Two runs and no outs on top of his earlier bad outing doesn't really endear you to the people making the decisions.  He's got to be running third between Manning, Ring and himself for that slot.

Skip got his first error of the spring in this one and had another play that was questionable.  He's still having flashes of brilliance, but he's not likely to win Gold Gloves anytime soon.  It'll be interesting to see how that affects such a ground-ball pitching staff.

Cards take on the Rays today on XM 177.  Adam Wainwright makes his first start of the spring as we start around the rotation again.  (Wainwright was supposed to make the first start of the spring, but LaRussa and co. felt like that'd lead him to too many starts, so Blake Hawksworth got the call.)  Five weeks away from Opening Day, so things start to become just that much more serious this week.

Take the Good, Take the Bad

Posted on February 28, 2009 at 8:20 AM
Cards win, Cards win!  Always nice to get that 0 out of the win column, even if it is just the first week of spring training games.  And, really, is it ever bad to beat the Mets?

That said, it definitely wasn't an unqualified success.  For the second straight day, a starter has trouble in his second inning of work.  Todd Wellemeyer gave up three runs, but had command as he didn't walk anyone.  You have to figure (and hope) that it's still a little rust, a little about not having pitched in competition in a while.  But next time around, you'd like to see better results.

Adam Ottovino and Royce Ring didn't do much in the relief department either.  Ring allowed a bomb to a right-handed batter, something that probably doesn't happen in the regular season.  Tony LaRussa has to know Ring's splits, that he's almost worthless against righties.  However, if someone like Charlie Manning shows he can get the occasional righty out, Ring may be on the outside looking in at the end of camp.

The other lefty, Trever Miller, had a good start to his Cardinal career.  One scoreless inning with a strikeout.  PJ Walters isn't going to make the team, but he at least got some attention with his two innings yesterday.  As pressed as the Cardinals apparently are for arms, he may get more innings than normal.  What he does with them may draw enough focus that he could get a cup of coffee at some point this year.

Offensively, it was a day to forget for Colby Rasmus, who so far isn't having the spring training he had last year.  An 0-5 dropped his average under .200 and an error didn't help matters.  Lots of time to make that up, of course, but with him having options, any kind of outfield squeeze could have him starting in Memphis.

Rick Ankiel, Jared Hoffpauir and Jon Jay all had two hits yesterday.  TLR apparently thinks that Ankiel should be protection for Albert Pujols, which is understandable.  Assuming Rick's not traded this spring, of course. Ankiel held that protection job down some last year and did a fairly good job with it.  It's going to be hard to pitch around Pujols if Ankiel and Ryan Ludwick are following him.   They aren't Pujols, of course, but they can definitely hurt you more often than not.

Today's game against the Nationals will get a lot of attention because Chris Carpenter takes the mound.  Carp's just thinking about it as just another game, which is good, because that means he feels like his a pitcher, not a rehabber.  Still, it'll be very good to see him on the mound and see what he's got.  The game should be on XM 176, though yesterday's game was supposed to be on XM and for some reason wasn't.  KTRS is covering the game as well.

Matthew Leach has his first projections for the 25-man roster up at his blog. There's not much to quibble with there.  I'd really like to see Brian Barton make the team, as I believe his right handed bat and his speed give a dimension to the team that's missing with all those southpaws in the outfield.  He also has Jason Motte losing out in the bullpen numbers and Ring making the cut, but part of me still feels like we should keep an eye on Manning.

Enjoy the game today!  

Also on the Network:

√ Things to Read: 3/11 [Tremendous Upside Potential]
√ Wounded Birds [C70 At The Bat]
√ Things to Read: 3/10 [Tremendous Upside Potential]

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Heroes


2009 Top Hero: Albert Pujols (28)
2008 Top Hero: Albert Pujols (25)

Goats


2009 Top Goats: Rick Ankiel and Todd Wellemeyer (13)
2008 Top Goat: Troy Glaus (13)

    Cardinal Nation Approval Ratings (March 2009)
    Albert Pujols 97.9%
    Yadier Molina 93.4%
    Mike Shannon 91.6%
    Dave Duncan 84.2%
    Rick Ankiel 83.9%
    John Rooney 80.9%
    Bill DeWitt 80.2%
    Tony LaRussa 79.1%
    Kyle Lohse 77.3%
    Chris Duncan 69.1%
    Colby Rasmus 66.0%
    Al Hrbrosky 53.9%


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