Cardinal Award Ballot

I've joined up with my fellow Cardinal bloggers and have filled out the 2007 Cardinal Blogger Award Ballot.

1. Cardinal Pitcher of the Year
*Ryan Franklin

2. Cardinal Player of the Year
*Albert Pujols

3. Game of the Year
*August 16 at Mil—2 home runs from Molina, 7 scoreless by Wainwright

4. Cardinal Rookie of the Year
*Brendan Ryan

5. Surprise of the Year
*Third-place finish


6. Cardinal Blog of the Year (no voting for yourself!)
*Viva El Birdos

7. Surprise Player of the Year
*Ryan Franklin

8. Disappointing Player of the Year
*Chris Carpenter

9. New Cardinal Acquisition of the Year
*Joel Pineiro

10. Most Anticipated Cardinal
*Colby Rasmus

Burwell's new book

I just finished reading Bryan Burwell's new book and while I was pleased with much of it, I cannot get over his strong dislike of Mark McGwire.

For the most part, I found his arguments valid and was interested in seeing how Stan the Man's statue came to be and why. I completely agree with the players selected for the all-time St. Louis team and that the MV3 were all listed. The Steve Carlton trade was easily one of the worst in Cardinals history and in the next few years, we will see if the Mulder trade is around that mark as well.

But, for the die-hard fan, I strongly recommend this book.

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Welcome back, Tony

It's great that Tony La Russa has decided to return to the St. Louis Cardinals. Sadly, Walt Jocketty won't be coming back.

I'm taking somewhat of an off-season hiatus and blogging when I can.

But how do you feel about Tom Glavine becoming a pitcher for the Cardinals?

Now the Cards can plow ahead with their plans for ’08. The retention of pitcher Joel Pineiro was an excellent first move. (And an early indicator that La Russa would return.) Pineiro bought what Duncan was selling and he did good work for this team.

Interim Cards GM John Mozeliak got the green light to give Pineiro a two-year, $13 million deal to keep him out of free agency. DeWitt’s approval proved he really is willing to bump his payroll up a notch for next season.

Now the Cards can move on to other issues, like what to do about free-agent shortstop David Eckstein, how to fill the void left by Juan Encarnacion’s eye injury and what else can be done to shore up the pitching rotation.[...]

He wants his new GM to work with player development czar Jeff Luhnow to make this happen. He needs his manager to buy into that commitment.

La Russa has no trouble integrating young players. We saw that last year, when pitchers Adam Wainwright, Tyler Johnson, Josh Kinney and Anthony Reyes played huge postseason roles.

We saw it again this season as Chris Duncan, Brendan Ryan and Rick Ankiel assumed big roles. Albert Pujols, Yadier Molina and Brad Thompson grew on La Russa’s watch, too, as Tony proved willing to give younger players lots to do.[...]

Albert Pujols battles on for La Russa, which is all you need to know. Jim Edmonds and Jason Isringhausen want to finish their careers in this program, which is also telling. Future Hall of Famer Tom Glavine has shown some interest in finishing his career here, too.

Cards vs. Pirates

September 28, 2007
St. Louis 6, Pittsburgh 1
Winning pitcher - Russ Springer (8-1)

September 29, 2007
St. Louis 7, Pittsburgh 3
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (14-12)
HR: Rick Ankiel (11)

September 30, 2007
St. Louis 6, Pittsburgh 5
Winning pitcher - Kip Wells (7-17)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (32)
HR: Scott Spiezio (4)

Milestone watch:
Scott Spiezio needs 4 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Jim Edmonds needs 2 hits for 1,800 career hits.

And that is the season for 2007.

Cards vs. Mets (Makeup Game)

September 27, 2007
St. Louis 3, N.Y. Mets 0
Winning pitcher - Joel Pineiro (7-5)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (31)

Milestone watch:
Scott Spiezio needs 6 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Jim Edmonds needs 4 hits for 1,800 career hits.
Albert Pujols needs 1 runs for to tie for 10th in club history with 845 Cardinal runs.

Cards vs. Brewers

September 24, 2007
St. Louis 5, Milwaukee 13
Losing pitcher - Adam Wainwright (13-12)
HR: Gary Bennett (2)

September 25, 2007
St. Louis 1, Milwaukee 9
Losing pitcher - Braden Looper (12-12)

September 26, 2007
St. Louis 7, Milwaukee 3
Winning pitcher - Brad Thompson (8-6)
HR: Albert Pujols (32)

Milestone watch:
Scott Spiezio needs 6 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Jim Edmonds needs 4 hits for 1,800 career hits.
Albert Pujols needs 1 runs for to tie for 10th in club history with 845 Cardinal runs.

Cards vs. Astros

September 20, 2007
Houston 18, St. Louis 1
Losing pitcher - Braden Looper (12-11)

September 21, 2007
Houston 6, St. Louis 3
Losing pitcher - Joel Pineiro (6-5)

September 22, 2007
Houston 4, St. Louis 7
Winning pitcher - Brad Thompson (7-6)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (30)
HR: Rick Ankiel (10)

September 23, 2007
Houston 3, St. Louis 4
Winning pitcher - Kelvin Jimenez (3-0)

Milestone watch:
Scott Spiezio needs 9 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Jim Edmonds needs 4 hits for 1,800 career hits.
Albert Pujols needs 4 runs for to tie for 10th in club history with 845 Cardinal runs.

Cards vs. Phillies

Again, my schedule has kept me busy so I apologize for the lack of updates!

September 17, 2007
Philadelphia 13, St. Louis 11
Losing pitcher - Brad Thompson (6-6)
HR: Ryan Ludwick (14)

September 18, 2007
Philadelphia 7, St. Louis 4
Losing pitcher - Mike Maroth (5-7)

September 19, 2007
Philadelphia 1, St. Louis 2
Winning pitcher - Randy Flores (3-0)

Milestone watch:
Scott Spiezio needs 10 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Jim Edmonds needs 5 hits for 1,800 career hits.
Albert Pujols needs 4 runs for to tie for 10th in club history with 845 Cardinal runs.

Cards vs. Cubs

September 14, 2007
Chi. Cubs 5, St. Louis 3
Losing pitcher - Adam Wainwright (13-11)
HR: Jim Edmonds (12), Ryan Ludwick (13), Albert Pujols (31)

September 15, 2007 - Game 1
Chi. Cubs 3, St. Louis 2
Losing pitcher - Ryan Franklin (4-4)

September 15, 2007 - Game 2
Chi. Cubs 3, St. Louis 4
Winning pitcher - Joel Pineiro (6-4)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (29)

September 16, 2007
Chi. Cubs 4, St. Louis 2
Losing pitcher - Mark Mulder (0-3)

Milestone watch:
Scott Spiezio needs 12 hits for 1,000 career hits--Spiezio is now on the restricted list.
David Eckstein needs 3 runs for 500 career runs.
Jim Edmonds needs 5 hits for 1,800 career hits.
Albert Pujols needs 6 runs for to tie for 10th in club history with 845 Cardinal runs.

Cards vs. Reds

September 11, 2007
St. Louis 2, Cincinnati 7
Losing pitcher - Mark Mulder (0-2)
HR: David Eckstein (3), Ryan Ludwick (12)

September 12, 2007
St. Louis 1, Cincinnati 5
Losing pitcher - Anthony Reyes (2-14)

September 13, 2007
St. Louis 4, Cincinnati 5
Losing pitcher - Kip Wells (6-17)

Milestone watch:
Scott Spiezio needs 14 hits for 1,000 career hits--Spiezio is now on the restricted list.
David Eckstein needs 3 runs for 500 career runs.
Jim Edmonds needs 8 hits for 1,800 career hits.
Albert Pujols needs 8 runs for to tie for 10th in club history with 845 Cardinal runs.

Cards vs. Cubs (Makeup game)

September 10, 2007
St. Louis 3, Chi. Cubs 12
Losing pitcher - Joel Pineiro (5-4)
HR: Jim Edmonds (11), So Taguchi (3)

Milestone watch:
Scott Spiezio needs 14 hits for 1,000 career hits--Spiezio is now on the restricted list.
David Eckstein needs 5 runs for 500 career runs.
Jim Edmonds needs 9 hits for 1,800 career hits.
Albert Pujols needs 9 runs for to tie for 10th in club history with 845 Cardinal runs.

Cards vs. Diamondbacks

September 7, 2007
St. Louis 2, Arizona 4
Losing pitcher - Adam Wainwright (13-10)
HR: Jim Edmonds (10)

September 8, 2007
St. Louis 8, Arizona 9
Losing pitcher - Todd Wellemeyer (3-3)
HR: Aaron Miles (2)

September 9, 2007
St. Louis 5, Arizona 6
Losing pitcher - Ryan Franklin (4-3)

Milestone watch:
Scott Spiezio needs 14 hits for 1,000 career hits--Spiezio is now on the restricted list.
David Eckstein needs 6 runs for 500 career runs.
Jim Edmonds needs 10 hits for 1,800 career hits.
Albert Pujols needs 9 runs for to tie for 10th in club history with 845 Cardinal runs.

Cards vs. Pirates

September 3, 2007
Pittsburgh 11, St. Louis 0
Losing pitcher - Kip Wells (6-16)

September 4, 2007
Pittsburgh 2, St. Louis 6
Winning pitcher - Joel Pineiro (5-3)
SV - Ryan Franklin (1)
HR: Russell Branyan (10)

September 5, 2007
Pittsburgh 8, St. Louis 2
Losing pitcher - Mark Mulder (0-1)
HR: Rick Ankiel (7)

September 6, 2007
Pittsburgh 4, St. Louis 16
Winning pitcher - Kelvin Jimenez (2-0)
HR: Rick Ankiel (8, 9)

Milestone watch:
Scott Spiezio needs 14 hits for 1,000 career hits--Spiezio is now on the restricted list.
David Eckstein needs 6 runs for 500 career runs.
Jim Edmonds needs 12 hits for 1,800 career hits.
Albert Pujols needs 10 runs for to tie for 10th in club history with 845 Cardinal runs.

Cards vs. Reds

August 31, 2007
Cincinnati 5, St. Louis 8
Winning pitcher - Randy Flores (2-0)
HR: Rick Ankiel (5), Yadier Molina (5)

The home run by Ankiel was his first career grand slam.

Tony La Russa tied Red Schoendienst with the win tonight. Our prayers go out to Juan Encarnacion.

September 1, 2007
Cincinnati 3, St. Louis 11
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (13-9)
HR: Yadier Molina (5)

Tony La Russa passed Schoendienst for first all-time in club history. In other news, this was seen on sports highlight shows following the The Comedy of Errors.

September 2, 2007
Cincinnati 2, St. Louis 3
Winning pitcher - Braden Looper (12-10)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (28)
HR: Rick Ankiel (6)

The Cards took care of business with a sweep of the Reds.

Milestone watch:
Scott Spiezio needs 14 hits for 1,000 career hits--Spiezio is now on the restricted list.
Tony a Russa needs 1 win to tie Red Schoendienst with 1,401 all-time in Cardinal history.
David Eckstein needs 11 runs for 500 career runs.
Jim Edmonds needs 12 hits for 1,800 career hits.
Albert Pujols needs 12 runs for to tie for 10th in club history with 845 Cardinal runs.

Cards vs. Astros

August 28, 2007
St. Louis 7, Houston 0
Winning pitcher - Braden Looper (11-10)
HR: Chris Duncan (21)

August 29, 2007
St. Louis 0, Houston 7
Losing pitcher - Kip Wells (6-15)

August 30, 2007
St. Louis 1, Houston 2
Losing pitcher - Joel Pineiro (4-3)

Milestone watch:
Scott Spiezio needs 14 hits for 1,000 career hits--Spiezio is now on the restricted list.
Tony La Russa needs 1 win to tie Red Schoendienst with 1,401 all-time in Cardinal history.
David Eckstein needs 13 runs for 500 career runs.
Jim Edmonds needs 15 hits for 1,800 career hits.
Albert Pujols needs 14 runs for to tie for 10th in club history with 845 Cardinal runs.

Cards vs. Braves

August 24, 2007
Atlanta 7, St. Louis 2
Losing pitcher - Kip Wells (6-14)

August 25, 2007
Atlanta 4, St. Louis 5
Winning pitcher - Russ Springer (7-1)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (26)

August 26, 2007
Atlanta 1, St. Louis 4
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (12-9)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (27)
HR: Juan Encarnacion (9)

This was the 200th save as a member of the Cardinals for Jason Isringhausen.

Milestone watch:
Scott Spiezio needs 14 hits for 1,000 career hits--Spiezio is now on the restricted list.
Jason Isringhausen needs 2 saves for 200 Cardinal saves.
Tony La Russa needs 1 win to tie Red Schoendienst with 1,401 all-time in Cardinal history.
David Eckstein needs 13 runs for 500 career runs.
Jim Edmonds needs 16 hits for 1,800 career hits.
Albert Pujols needs 15 runs for to tie for 10th in club history with 845 Cardinal runs.

Cards vs. Marlins

August 21, 2007
Florida 2, St. Louis 5
Winning pitcher - Troy Percival (3-0)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (24)
HR: Ryan Ludwick (11), Albert Pujols (29)

August 22, 2007
Florida 4, St. Louis 6
Winning pitcher - Russ Springer (6-1)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (25)
HR: Jim Edmonds (9), Yadier Molina (4), Albert Pujols (30)

August 23, 2007
Florida 11, St. Louis 3
Losing pitcher - Anthony Reyes (2-13)

Milestone watch:
Scott Spiezio needs 14 hits for 1,000 career hits--Spiezio is now on the restricted list.
Jason Isringhausen needs 4 3 saves for 200 Cardinal saves.
Tony La Russa needs to manage 1 game to pass Bucky Harris for 3rd all time with 4,408 games managed.
Tony La Russa needs 5 2 wins to tie Red Schoendienst with 1,401 all-time in Cardinal history.
David Eckstein needs 15 runs for 500 career runs.
Jim Edmonds needs 18 hits for 1,800 career hits.
Albert Pujols needs 16 runs for to tie for 10th in club history with 845 Cardinal runs.

Cards vs. Cubs

August 17, 2007
St. Louis 1, Chi. Cubs 2
Losing pitcher - Braden Looper (10-10)
HR: Albert Pujols (26)

August 18, 2007
St. Louis 3, Chi. Cubs 5
Losing pitcher - Anthony Reyes (2-12)
HR: Juan Encarnacion (8), Albert Pujols (27), Brendan Ryan (4)

August 19, 2007
POSTPONED

August 20, 2007
St. Louis 6, Chi. Cubs 4
Winning pitcher - Joel Pineiro (4-2)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (23)
HR: Rick Ankiel (4), Albert Pujols (28)
Milestone watch:
Scott Spiezio needs 14 hits for 1,000 career hits--Spiezio is now on the restricted list.
Jason Isringhausen needs 5 4 saves for 200 Cardinal saves.
Tony La Russa needs to manage 1 game to tie Bucky Harris for 3rd all time with 4,408 games managed.
Tony La Russa needs to manage 1 game to pass Bucky Harris for 3rd all time with 4,408 games managed.
Tony La Russa needs 6 5 wins to tie Red Schoendienst with 1,401 all-time in Cardinal history.

Cards vs. Brewers

August 14, 2007
St. Louis 12, Milwaukee 4
Winning pitcher - Kip Wells (6-13)

August 15, 2007
St. Louis 8, Milwaukee 3
Winning pitcher - Joel Pineiro (3-2)
HR: Jim Edmonds (8), Albert Pujols (25), Scott Rolen (8)

The home run by Pujols was the 275th of his career.

What a great night--the MV3 went yard!

August 16, 2007
St. Louis 8, Milwaukee 0
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (11-9)
HR: Yadier Molina 2 (3)

And a great sweep of the Brewers!

Milestone watch:
Albert Pujols needs 1 home run for 275 career home runs.
Scott Spiezio needs 14 hits for 1,000 career hits--Spiezio is now on the restricted list.
Jason Isringhausen needs 5 saves for 200 Cardinal saves.
Tony La Russa needs to manage 3 games to tie Bucky Harris for 3rd all time with 4,408 games managed.
Tony La Russa needs 6 wins to tie Red Schoendienst with 1,401 all-time in Cardinal history.

Cards vs. Dodgers

August 10, 2007
Los Angeles 2, St. Louis 1
Losing pitcher - Adam Wainwright (10-9)

August 11, 2007
Los Angeles 1, St. Louis 6
Winning pitcher - Braden Looper (10-9)
HR: Rick Ankiel 2 (3)

August 12, 2007
Los Angeles 2, St. Louis 12
Winning pitcher - Anthony Reyes (2-11)
HR: Ryan Ludwick (10), Brendan Ryan (3)

Milestone watch:
Albert Pujols needs 1 home run for 275 career home runs.
Scott Spiezio needs 14 hits for 1,000 career hits--Spiezio is now on the restricted list.
Jason Isringhausen needs 5 saves for 200 Cardinal saves.
Tony La Russa needs to manage 6 games to tie Bucky Harris for 3rd all time with 4,408 games managed.
Tony La Russa needs 9 wins to tie Red Schoendienst with 1,401 all-time in Cardinal history.

Cards vs. Padres

August 6, 2007
San Diego 5, St. Louis 10
Winning pitcher - Braden Looper (9-9)
HR: Ryan Ludwick (9), Scott Rolen (7)

The Cards tied a major league record with ten consecutive hits.

August 7, 2007
San Diego 4, St. Louis 0
Losing pitcher - Anthony Reyes (1-11)

Jim Edmonds reached 1,000 Cardinal hits with a single during the 8th inning.

August 8, 2007
San Diego 1, St. Louis 2
Winning pitcher - Kip Wells (5-13)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (22)

August 9, 2007
San Diego 0, St. Louis 5
Winning pitcher - Joel Pineiro (2-2)
HR: Rick Ankiel (1)

Might I just say how great it is to have Rick Ankiel back in the major leagues!

Milestone watch:
Jim Edmonds needs 3 hits for 1,000 hits as a Cardinal.
Albert Pujols needs 1 home run for 275 career home runs.
Scott Spiezio needs 15 14 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Jason Isringhausen needs 6 5 saves for 200 Cardinal saves.
Tony La Russa needs to manage 13 10 games to tie Bucky Harris for 3rd all time with 4,408 games managed.
Tony La Russa needs 14 12 wins to tie Red Schoendienst with 1,401 all-time in Cardinal history.

Cards vs. Nationals

August 3, 2007
St. Louis 2, Washington 3
Losing pitcher - Ryan Franklin (4-1)

August 4, 2007
St. Louis 1, Washington 12
Losing pitcher - Joel Pineiro (1-2)
HR: Adam Kennedy (3)

August 5, 2007
St. Louis 3, Washington 6
Losing pitcher - Ryan Franklin (4-2)
HR: Ryan Ludwick (8), Adam Wainwright (1)

Milestone watch:
Jim Edmonds needs 9 3 hits for 1,000 hits as a Cardinal.
Albert Pujols needs 1 home run for 275 career home runs.
Scott Spiezio needs 15 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Jason Isringhausen needs 6 saves for 200 Cardinal saves.
Tony La Russa needs to manage 16 13 games to tie Bucky Harris for 3rd all time with 4,408 games managed.
Tony La Russa needs 14 wins to tie Red Schoendienst with 1,401 all-time in Cardinal history.

Cards vs. Pirates

July 31, 2007
St. Louis 6, Pittsburgh 4
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (10-8)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (21)

August 1, 2007
St. Louis 1, Pittsburgh 15
Losing pitcher - Braden Looper (8-9)
HR: Aaron Miles (1)

August 2, 2007
St. Louis 4, Pittsburgh 5
Losing pitcher - Brad Thompson (6-5)
HR: Albert Pujols (24)

Milestone watch:
Jim Edmonds needs 9 hits for 1,000 hits as a Cardinal.
Scott Spiezio needs 15 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Jason Isringhausen needs 6 saves for 200 Cardinal saves.
Tony La Russa needs to manage 19 16 games to tie Bucky Harris for 3rd all time with 4,408 games managed.
Tony La Russa needs 15 14 wins to tie Red Schoendienst with 1,401 all-time in Cardinal history.

Cards vs. Brewers

July 27, 2007
Milwaukee 12, St. Louis 2
Losing pitcher - Mike Maroth (5-6)

July 28, 2007
Milwaukee 6, St. Louis 7
Winning pitcher - Russ Springer (5-1)

July 28, 2007
Milwaukee 2, St. Louis 5
Winning pitcher - Anthony Reyes (1-10)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (20)

July 29, 2007
Milwaukee 5, St. Louis 9
Winning pitcher - Ryan Franklin (4-0)

Milestone watch:
Jim Edmonds needs 11 9 hits for 1,000 hits as a Cardinal.
Scott Spiezio needs 16 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Albert Pujols needs 1 RBI to pass Joe Medwick for 8th all-time in Cardinal history with 814 RBI.
Albert Pujols needs 3 RBI to pass Ray Lankford for 7th all-time in Cardinal history with 814 RBI.
Scott Rolen needs 1 RBI for 1,000 career RBI.
Jason Isringhausen needs 7 6 saves for 200 Cardinal saves.
Tony La Russa needs to manage 19 games to tie Bucky Harris for 3rd all time with 4,408 games managed.
Tony La Russa needs 15 wins to tie Red Schoendienst with 1,401 all-time in Cardinal history.

Cards vs. Cubs

July 14, 2007
Chi. Cubs 4, St. Louis 3
Losing pitcher - Kip Wells (4-13)

July 25, 2007
Chi. Cubs 7, St. Louis 1
Losing pitcher - Adam Wainwright (9-8)

July 26, 2007
Chi. Cubs 1, St. Louis 11
Winning pitcher - Braden Looper (8-8)
HR: Chris Duncan (20), Albert Pujols (230), Scott Rolen (6)

Milestone watch:
Jim Edmonds needs 11 hits for 1,000 hits as a Cardinal.
Scott Spiezio needs 16 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Albert Pujols needs 5 0 RBI to tie Joe Medwick for 8th all-time in Cardinal history with 814 RBI
Albert Pujols needs 1 RBI to pass Joe Medwick for 8th all-time in Cardinal history with 814 RBI
Scott Rolen needs 4 1 RBI for 1,000 career RBI.
Jason Isringhausen needs 7 saves for 200 Cardinal saves.

Cards vs. Braves

July 19, 2007
St. Louis 1, Atlanta 10
Losing pitcher - Mike Maroth (5-5)

July 20, 2007
St. Louis 4, Atlanta 2
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (9-7)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (19)
HR: Albert Pujols (21)

July 21, 2007
St. Louis 6, Atlanta 14
Losing pitcher - Braden Looper (7-8)
HR: Chris Duncan (19)

July 22, 2007
St. Louis 7, Atlanta 2
Winning pitcher - Jason Isringhausen (4-0)
HR: Albert Pujols (22), Scott Rolen (5), Skip Schumaker (2)

Milestone watch:
Jim Edmonds needs 13 11 hits for 1,000 hits as a Cardinal.
Scott Spiezio needs 16 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Albert Pujols needs 8 5 RBI to tie Joe Medwick for 8th all-time in Cardinal history with 814 RBI
Scott Rolen needs 7 4 RBI for 1,000 career RBI.
Jason Isringhausen needs 8 7 saves for 200 Cardinal saves.

Cards vs. Marlins

July 16, 2007
St. Louis 5, Florida 3
Winning pitcher - Braden Looper (7-7)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (18)
HR: Chris Duncan (18), Adam Kennedy (2)

July 17, 2007
St. Louis 0, Florida 4
Losing pitcher - Brad Thompson (6-4)

July 18, 2007
St. Louis 6, Florida 0
Winning pitcher - Kip Wells (4-12)

Seriously, who replaced Kip Wells last night? That was unbelievable! He pitched 8 innings of two-hit play for a change and picked up his 4th win of the season.

In some sad news, Scott Rolen is getting his shoulder looked at and he should be able to play by the end of the weekend series against the Braves but in all honesty, we have no idea.

The Cardinals are still working to sign first round draft pick Peter Kozma.

The Cardinals hope to sign first-round draft pick Pete Kozma within the next week, general manager Walt Jocketty said.

The urgency to sign Kozma, a prep shortstop from Oklahoma, is increasing because of new rules that set a deadline of Aug. 15 for teams to sign their draft picks.

If the Cardinals don't sign Kozma, they would receive their pick back and select 18th next summer.

Jocketty said he does not think Kozma will be unsigned by the deadline. The player taken two picks ahead of Kozma received a $1.4 million signing bonus and the Cardinals' next pick, 36th overall, received a $650,000 bonus.

The same goes for Mike Stutes.

Milestone watch:
Jim Edmonds needs 13 hits for 1,000 hits as a Cardinal.
Scott Spiezio needs 16 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Albert Pujols needs 8 RBI to tie Joe Medwick for 8th all-time in Cardinal history with 814 RBI
Scott Rolen needs 7 RBI for 1,000 career RBI.
Jason Isringhausen needs 9 8 saves for 200 Cardinal saves.

Cards vs. Phillies

The second half of the 2007 Major League Baseball season is underway! The Cards start the second half with a record of 40-45.

July 13, 2007
St. Louis 3, Philadelphia 13
Losing pitcher - Kip Wells (3-12)
HR: Albert Pujols (17)

July 14, 2007
St. Louis 4, Philadelphia 10
Losing pitcher - Mike Maroth (5-4)
HR: Albert Pujols (18)

July 15, 2007
St. Louis 10, Philadelphia 2
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (8-7)
HR: Albert Pujols 2 (20), Chris Duncan (17), Juan Encarnacion (7), Adam Kennedy (1), Ryan Ludwick (7)

Albert Pujols, fresh off the home run derby and All-Star game, has started the second half red-hot by hitting four home runs in 3 games after going 77 at bats in 22 games without hitting a home run. That was his longest drought since September 9-28, 2005 where he did not go yard for 68 at bats in 18 games.

Scott Spiezio was placed on the DL.

Milestone watch:
Jim Edmonds needs 13 hits for 1,000 hits as a Cardinal.
Scott Spiezio needs 16 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Albert Pujols needs 4 0 RBI to tie Lou Brock for 9th all-time in Cardinal history with 814 RBI.
Albert Pujols needs 8 RBI to tie Joe Medwick for 8th all-time in Cardinal history with 814 RBI
Scott Rolen needs 8 7 RBI for 1,000 career RBI.
Jason Isringhausen needs 9 saves for 200 Cardinal saves.

All-Star rant

Well, the American League has continued in their humiliation of the National League with a 5-4 win in San Francisco's AT&T Park last night. Despite a botched play by Brian Roberts, which led to Dmitri Young being safe at first, and then a 3-1 pitch to Alfonso Soriano for a home run to give the NL a one-run deficit, the NL just couldn't hang on. J.J. Putz gave up two straight walks before Francisco Rodriguez came in and gave up another one leading to bases loaded for the Phillies outfielder Aaron Rowand. Rowand hit a deep fly ball but, unfortunately for us, it found a glove.

Josh Beckett was the winning pitcher. Chris Young (Padres) the losing pitcher. Francisco Rodriguez picked up the save.

The Ted Williams All-Star Game Award, presented by Chevrolet, was awarded to Seattle Mariners outfielder Ichiro Suzuki for his three hits, 2 RBIs, and the first ever inside the park home run in All-Star game history. He became the second Mariner to win the MVP award, becoming the first to do so since Ken Griffey, Jr. won it in 1992.

Now, here comes a rant, that is need.

Someone commented on my facebook wall saying TLR can't manage. So I wrote this on his wall:

Garner messed up last year by not putting Rolen in for defense. Pujols was saved in the event that the game went longer than planned and would be up to pinch-hit for the pitcher's spot. Now what we, as baseball fans need to do, is start voting the best players as opposed to our favorite players. I didn't vote for Eckstein, Rolen, or Edmonds this year like I usually do because they aren't the best players of their position. After losing the game last year, I decided I would only vote for the best players at every position instead of my favorite. I hope other fans start picking up on that because that will only make the game better.

Furthermore, had Rowand hit it elsewhere, that would have tied the game and maybe won it for the NL. -- end facebook comment on wall

Granted, my initial votes did have Rolen and Edmonds. But since I was in Israel fpr much of June, I didn't use all 25 of my votes. I may have had 15 votes left. Oh, well. But knowing what I know know, some of those votes would definitely have been different.

Sure, Yadier Molina is a great defensive catcher and that helps when picking off runners. But when the game, and home field advantage, is on the line, would you rather have Yadi or Russell Martin? I think I would rather have Russell Martin of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

If I think D-Lee or Prince Fielder are having a better year than Albert Pujols is at first, then, yes, I would vote for them.

Nats blog interviews broadcaster Bob Carpenter

A Washington Nationals blog, 3 Girls with Heart, interviewed former Cardinals broadcaster Bob Carpenter.

Q. Did you always want to be a sports broadcaster?

A. In high school I realized I wasn’t good enough to play baseball and decided that calling games would be a great fit. I love the game. In 1984 I got my first job in the industry with the Cardinals, in my hometown; it was on a cable network. By 1995 I was back with the Cardinals and stayed for 12 years. Eventually more and more games were being moved to cable channels and I wanted something more full time. I heard about an opening in Washington, and sent in my resume. I interviewed on a cold, dreary day in February 06 first in Baltimore at the MASN offices and then at RFK. I spent the night in Baltimore and flew home in the next day. Two weeks later I received the call that I had gotten the job.

Q. So how do you like Washington?

A. I love the city, just not the traffic! I am appreciative that the people and friends here made me feel welcome.

It's a good read.

Midseason Awards Picks

Back in March, I made my predictions for the annual baseball awards. At this point in the season, folks always come out with new predictions...myself included.

National League
My picks were a bust the first month into the season. Pujols is human. Carp hasn't pitched since the first day of the season and Tony La Russa is not deserving of Manager of the Year at all. As for Troy Tulowitzki of the Colorado Rockies, he's not the best rookie out there.

As of now, these would be who I would give awards to at the end of the season.

Rookie of the Year: Hunter Pence, Houston Astros (.342, 11 HR, 42 RBI)
Most Valuable Player: Chase Utley, Philadelphia Phillies (.325, 15, 68)
Cy Young: Jake Peavy, San Diego Padres (9-3, 2.19, 125)

American League
Of all my preason picks, Alex Gordon had the slowest start ever! He did have a great month in June, average-wise, but he will have to step it up a notch for the rest of the season. Morneau is the same as last year and will remain with a strong chance. Currently, Morneau is 3rd in all of the major leagues for RBIs, home runs, and doesn't strike out all that much. As for Santana, he'll likely get it at the end of the season but not as of this point in time.

Rookie of the Year: Dustin Pedroia, Boston Red Sox (.318, 3 HR, 25 RBI)
Most Valuable Player: Justin Morneau, Minnesota Twins (.295, 24, 74)
Cy Young: Dan Haren, Oakland Athletics (10-3, 2.30, 101)

If the season were to end today, here's who would have made the playoffs.

National League Division Champions:
East: New York Mets
Central: Milwaukee Brewers
West: San Diego Padres
Wild Card: Los Angeles Dodgers

American League Division Champions:
East: Boston Red Sox
Central: Detroit Tigers
West: Los Angeles Angels
Wild Card: Cleveland Indians

National Midseason Awards

I'll have mine up later today but here's what Yahoo and Jayston Stark of ESPN had to say.

Jayson Stark
NL MVP: Matt Holliday, Colorado Rockies
AL MVP: Magglio Ordonez, Detroit Tigers
NL CY: Brad Penny, Los Angeles Dodgers
AL CY: Dan Haren, Oakland Athletics
NL ROY: Hunter Pence, Houston Astros
AL ROY: Hideki Okajima, Red Sox

Yahoo's mid-season and revised end of season picks (mainly Jeff Passan, Tim Brown and Mark Pesavento)
NL MVP (mid): Prince Fielder, Milwaukee Brewers
NL MVP (end): Chase Utley, Philadelphia Phillies
AL MVP (mid): Alex Rodriguez, New York Yankees
AL MVP (end): Vladimir Guerrero, Los Angeles Angels
NL CY (mid): Chris Young and Jake Peavy, San Diego Padres
NL CY (end): Chris Young, San Diego Padres
AL CY (mid): Dan Haren, Oakland Athletics
AL CY (end): Johan Santana, Minnesota Twins
NL ROY (mid): Ryan Braun, Milwaukee Brewers
NL ROY (end): Ryan Braun, Milwaukee Brewers
AL ROY (mid): Dustin Pedroia, Boston Red Sox
AL ROY (end): Daisuke Matsuzaka, Boston Red Sox
NL MOY (mid): Bud Black, San Diego Padres
NL MOY (end): Bud Black, San Diego Padres
AL MOY (mid): Mike Scioscia, Los Angeles Angels
AL MOY (end): Mike Scioscia, Los Angeles Angels

Cards vs. Giants

July 6, 2007
San Francisco 4, St. Louis 3
Losing pitcher - Mike Maroth (5-3)

July 7, 2007
San Francisco 7, St. Louis 6
Losing pitcher - Braden Looper (6-7)
HR: Skip Schumaker (1)

July 8, 2007
San Francisco 0, St. Louis 7
Winning pitcher - Todd Wellemeyer (3-2)

Milestone watch:
Jim Edmonds needs 13 hits for 1,000 hits as a Cardinal.
Scott Spiezio needs 18 17 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Albert Pujols needs 5 4 RBI to tie Lou Brock for 9th all-time in Cardinal history with 814 RBI.
Scott Rolen needs 9 8 RBI for 1,000 career RBI.
Jason Isringhausen needs 9 saves for 200 Cardinal saves.

As we head in to the all-star break, the Cardinals have a 39-45 record which could possibly be 40-45 or 39-46 by day's end.

Kip Wells may have been the biggest bust since Walt Jocketty signed Junior Spivey to the Cardinals organization. Anthony Reyes lost his form in the off-season. I don't know what's going on with him. The MV3 are definitely not the same and as we found out, Albert Pujols is not Super-Man.

Rick Ankiel is getting back to his old form, well, save for the fact that it's as a hitter and not the top prospect pitcher he once was. In fact, here is the complete Ankiel timeline. I await the day that I see him in the majors once again.

Cardinals star outfielder Jim Edmonds' future is uncertain. Jim Edmonds is one of the best center-fielders of this generation. With as many gold gloves as he has, he should be elected on the first, second, or third ballot to the Hall of Fame.

So it's been a while...

It's been about three weeks and I am finally getting back into the flow of things, mainly catching up on sports news since I was pretty much out of the loop for at least two of the three weeks as I was overseas before coming back home and then leaving for a family vacation. I won't lie. I completely forgot to post the Darryl Kyle and Jack Buck tributes until after I got back home and realized what day it was.

Rather than post for each series, I'm just going to do one giant post for all the series that I've missed out on the past few weeks. It makes my life much easier.

June 12, 2007
St. Louis 1, Kansas City 8
Losing pitcher - Brad Thompson (4-2)
HR: Ryan Ludwick (2)

June 13, 2007
St. Louis 7, Kansas City 3
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (5-5)

June 14, 2007
St. Louis 8, Kansas City 17
Losing pitcher - Kip Wells (2-11)
HR: Chris Duncan (11), Albert Pujols (16)

June 15, 2007
St. Louis 3, Oakland 14
Losing pitcher - Braden Looper (6-6)

June 16, 2007
St. Louis 15, Oakland 6
Winning pitcher - Russ Springer (2-0)
HR: Chris Duncan (12)

June 17, 2007
St. Louis 10, Oakland 6
Winning pitcher - Russ Springer (3-0)
HR: Ryan Ludwick (3), Scott Spiezio (3)

June 18, 2007
Kansas City 5, St. Louis 3
Losing pitcher - Adam Wainwright (5-6)
HR: Scott Rolen (4)

June 19, 2007
Kansas City 1, St. Louis 5
Winning pitcher - Brad Thompson (5-2)
HR: Chris Duncan (13)

June 20, 2007
Kansas City 6, St. Louis 7
Winning pitcher - Kip Wells (3-11)
HR: Ryan Ludwick (4)

June 22, 2007
Philadelphia 6, St. Louis 0
Losing pitcher - Anthony Reyes (0-9)

June 23, 2007
Philadelphia 3, St. Louis 8
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (6-6)
HR: Chris Duncan (14), Juan Encarnacion (5)

June 24, 2007
Philadelphia 5, St. Louis 1
Losing pitcher - Brad Thompson (5-3)

June 25, 2007
St. Louis 1, N.Y. Mets 2
Losing pitcher - Russ Springer (3-1)

June 26, 2007
St. Louis 5, N.Y. Mets 3
Winning pitcher - Brad Thompson (6-3)
SV - Randy Flores (1)
HR: Brendan Ryan (1)

June 27, 2007
St. Louis 0, N.Y. Mets 2
Losing pitcher - Anthony Reyes (0-10)

June 29, 2007
St. Louis 4, Cincinnati 2
Winning pitcher - Troy Percival (1-0)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (15)

June 30, 2007
St. Louis 1, Cincinnati 5
Losing pitcher - Adam Wainwright (6-7)

July 1, 2007
St. Louis 11, Cincinnati 7
Winning pitcher - Troy Percival (2-0)
HR: Chris Duncan (15), Ryan Ludwick 2 (5, 6)

July 2, 2007
St. Louis 11, Arizona 3
Winning pitcher - Russ Springer (4-1)

July 3, 2007
Arizona 7, St. Louis 1
Losing pitcher - Todd Wellemeyer (2-2)

July 4, 2007
Arizona 4, St. Louis 5
Winning pitcher - Ryan Franklin (3-0)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (16)
HR: Chris Duncan (16), Brendan Ryan (2)

July 5, 2007
Arizona 2, St. Louis 3
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (7-7)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (17)
HR: Juan Encarnacion (6)

Milestone watch:
Adam Kennedy needs 3 0 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Scott Rolen needs 1 hits for 1,500 career hits.
Jim Edmonds needs 15 13 hits for 1,000 hits as a Cardinal.
Albert Pujols needs 2 RBI for 800 career RBI and 7 0 games for 1,000 career games played.
Scott Spiezio needs 30 18 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Albert Pujols needs 8 5 RBI to tie Lou Brock for 9th all-time in Cardinal history with 814 RBI.
Scott Rolen needs 10 9 RBI for 1,000 career RBI.
Jason Isringhausen needs 10 9 saves for 200 Cardinal saves.

Barring someone pulling out of the annual midseason classic, this year is the first year since 1998 that the defending world champions only sent one representative to the All Star Game (1998, Edgar Renteria, Florida Marlins; 2007, Albert Pujols, St. Louis Cardinals). The last time that the Cardinals had only one player was 2002 with Matt Morris. Kelly Stinnett has opted against reporting to Triple A Memphis and Tomo Ohka has been given his unconditional release from the club. Stinnett was only signed since Yadier Molina was on the DL. Kip Wells pitched the longest relief outing for the Cardinals on Tuesday, July 3rd, since Sterling Hitchcock did so on August 26, 2003. Given his poor record this season, the Cardinals opted to move Wells to the bullpen. Jason Isringhausen has been lights out, getting 16 saves in 18 chances. The Cardinals traded a player to be named later for Mike Maroth from the Detroit Tigers.

This season, the Cardinals have used nine different starting pitchers (Carpenter, Keisler, Looper, Maroth, Reyes, Thompson, Wainwright, Wellemeyer, and Wells), and 22 pitchers overall including utilityman Scott Spiezio. The Cardinals finished the month of June with a 13-13 record and currently are sporting a 38-43 record and are 8.5 games behind the Milwaukee Brewers.

In Memory: Darryl Kile

Darryl Kile (December 2, 1968 – June 22, 2002)) played his last game on June 18, 2002, the same day that Jack Buck died. Darryl tragically died five years ago today in Chicago. Less than five years afterwards, we went through it all over again with Josh Hancock's sad and untimely tragic death.

Joe Buck broke the news on Fox that day. And it was Joe Girardi who made the announcement at Wrigley:

"I thank you for your patience. We regret to inform you because of a tragedy in the Cardinal family, that the commissioner has cancelled the game today. Thank you.... Please be respectful. You will find out eventually what has happened, and I ask that you say a prayer for the St. Louis Cardinals' family."

Houston Astros: 1991-1997
Colorado Rockies: 1998-1999
St. Louis Cardinals: 2000-2002

Career record: 128-115 with 1,618 K's



The following was posted on CardNilly.com. It's so awesome yet sad at the same time. I always get chills whenever I think of DK and his short time on earth.

In Memory: Jack Buck

With what we have been through this season with the loss of Josh Hancock, it's time once again to remember the life of legendary broadcaster Jack Buck (August 21, 1924 – June 18, 2002)) died.


  From Baseball Almanac, a list of Jack Buck quotations:
"After all of these years, I realize my energy comes from the people at the other end."

"Go crazy, folks! Go crazy!" - Game 5 1985 NLCS (Ozzie Smith hit a game winning home run)

"I don't think there is anyone in any sport who combined the supreme talent with a great personality. He is also is one of the most beautiful people who ever walked the face of the earth. I don't think there's anybody who compares to Stan Musial on both fronts."

"It's such a beautiful sport, with no politics involved, no color, no class. Only as a youngster can you play and as a pro can you win. The game has kept me young, involved and excited and for me to be up here with gems of baseball"

"It (George Steinbrenner's new yacht) was a beautiful thing to observe with all thirty oars working in unison."

"Kid (White Sox broadcaster John Rooney), you better slow down. You're going to wear 'em out in a week, and you've got to be out there for one-hundred sixty-two."

"That's a winner."

"The biggest kick I get is to communicate with those who are exiled from the game — in hospitals, homes, prisons — those who have seldom seen a game, who can't travel to a game, those who are blind."

"When Harry and I were doing the games together, we were as good as a team as there ever was. His style and mine were so different that it made for a balanced broadcast. The way we approached the job, with the interest and love both of us had for the game, made our work kind of special." - from Jack Buck - That's A Winner (1999)

On Hiatus...

I am in Israel from June 13-24 and on vaction to Philly-Baltimore from June 27-July 1.

Normal blogging will resume on July 2nd.

Cards vs. Angels

June 8, 2007
LA Angels 10, St. Louis 6
Losing pitcher - Tyler Johnson (1-1)
HR: Chris Duncan (10), Albert Pujols (13), Kelly Stinnett (1)

June 9, 2007
LA Angels 9, St. Louis 3
Losing pitcher - Braden Looper (6-5)
HR: Jim Edmonds (7), Juan Encarnacion (4)

June 10, 2007
LA Angels 6, St. Louis 9
Winning pitcher - Todd Wellemeyer (2-1)
HR: Albert Pujols 2 (14, 15), Scott Spiezio (2)

Milestone watch:
Adam Kennedy needs 4 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Scott Rolen needs 2 1 hits for 1,500 career hits.
Jim Edmonds needs 18 15 hits for 1,000 hits as a Cardinal.
Albert Pujols needs 2 RBI for 800 career RBI and 7 games for 1,000 career games played.

Cards vs. Reds

June 5, 2007
Cincinnati 3, St. Louis 4
Winning pitcher - Jason Isringhausen (3-0)
HR: Juan Encarnacion (3)

June 6, 2007
Cincinnati 4, St. Louis 6
Winning pitcher - Tyler Johnson (1-0)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (14)
HR: Ryan Ludwick (1), Albert Pujols (12)

June 7, 2007
Cincinnati 5, St. Louis 1
Losing pitcher - Adam Wainwright (4-5)

The Cards were able to take 2 out of 3 from the Reds.

Milestone watch:
Adam Kennedy needs 8 4 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Scott Rolen needs 5 2 hits for 1,500 career hits.
Jim Edmonds needs 21 18 hits for 1,000 hits as a Cardinal.
Jason Isringhausen needs 16 15 saves for 278 saves to tie for 23rd on the all-time list.

Regarding the draft, the Cardinals selected Peter Kozma as their first round pick on Thursday.

The Cardinals went off the map a little bit with their first pick in the 2007 First-Year Player Draft. St. Louis selected shortstop Peter Kozma of Owasso (Okla.) High School with the No. 18 overall choice, bucking nearly all pre-Draft projections.

After that, though, the Cardinals' Draft looked a whole lot like a Cardinals Draft. Four of the remaining six St. Louis selections were college pitchers, starting with supplemental first-rounder Clayton Mortensen from Gonzaga.

After Mortensen, the Redbirds took two more right-handers in the second round: David Kopp from Clemson and Jess Todd from the University of Arkansas. Daniel Descalso, a third baseman from the University of California-Davis, was the Cards' third-round pick.

The team's most intriguing pick of day one may have been the fourth-rounder. Outfielder Kyle Russell from the University of Texas set a school record and led Division I with 28 home runs for the Longhorns. He's a draft-eligible sophomore, so he could be a difficult sign, but he's a player with tremendous potential. The Cardinals rated Russell as one of their top-20 players, and only waited until the fourth round because of money concerns.

Righty Thomas Eager from Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo was the Cards' fifth-round pick, their final choice of the day.

One of their picks on Friday included Antone DeJesus from UK.

Cards vs. Astros

June 1, 2007
St. Louis 8, Houston 1
Winning pitcher - Ryan Franklin (2-0)
HR: Gary Bennett (1), Juan Encarnacion (1)

Friday night's victory was the 1,000th win under the Tony La Russa managerial era.

June 2, 2007
St. Louis 3, Houston 8
Losing pitcher - Kip Wells (2-10)
HR: Jim Edmonds (6)

June 3, 2007
St. Louis 8, Houston 6
Winning pitcher - Jason Isringhausen (2-0)
HR: David Eckstein (2), Juan Encarnacion (2), Albert Pujols 2 (11), So Taguchi (2)

Pujols is definitely showing up again. Now if we can get the rest of the offense to produce, maybe he will get his 100 runs and 100 RBIs again this season like he has for his first six seasons.

Milestone watch:
Adam Kennedy needs 8 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Scott Rolen needs 5 hits for 1,500 career hits.
Jim Edmonds needs 23 21 hits for 1,000 hits as a Cardinal.
Jason Isringhausen needs 16 saves for 278 saves to tie Todd Jones for 23rd on the all-time list.

The Cardinals are in no rush to get Colby Rasmus up to the majors quite yet.

Lo and behold, as if playing the part of Roy Hobbs in the movie "The Natural," Colby Rasmus delivered, depositing his second solo home run of the evening — a tying shot at that, in the ninth inning no less, with two outs and two strikes — and then bashing his way straight into the next night with seven RBIs.

With that and a torrid stretch over nearly five weeks in which he buzzed along at a ridiculous .354 clip, Rasmus sent the dot-com commandoes of Cardinal Nation into a frenzy as fan message boards screamed for an instant promotion to Triple-A Memphis in hopes that Rasmus would reach St. Louis later this season.

However, the man who will make the decision to push Rasmus on to Memphis is not booking him on the next flight out of town. Rasmus entered Saturday leading the Texas League in RBIs (35), doubles (20), extra-base hits (31) and slugging percentage (.583). Oh, and he ranked third in home runs (10), too.

"I expected he would have success this year at Double-A; I didn't expect he would do it so quickly," St. Louis Cardinals farm director Jeff Luhnow said. "But we're in no rush to move him up. And it's not like he's going to regress in Double-A by staying the whole year."

Luhnow said the master plan entering the season called for Rasmus to remain in Springfield all summer, and he would like to stick to that plan, mainly because Memphis' abundance of outfielders, notably center fielders Skip Schumaker and Rick Ankiel, need at-bats should St. Louis come calling.

The Cardinals presented their Roger Dean Stadium employees with World Series rings.

Cards vs. Rockies

May 28, 2007
St. Louis 2, Colorado 6
Losing pitcher - Kip Wells (2-9)
HR: So Taguchi (1)

May 29, 2007
St. Louis 3, Colorado 8
Losing pitcher - Braden Looper (6-4)
HR: Jim Edmonds (4), Scott Eolen (3)

May 30, 2007
St. Louis 8, Colorado 4
Winning pitcher - Todd Wellemeyer (1-1)
HR: Jim Edmonds (5), Albert Pujols (9)

That was Wellemeyer's first start since when he was in the minor leagues. Jim Edmonds appears to be cranking it up a little bit.

May 31, 2007
St. Louis 7, Colorado 3
Winning pitcher - Brad Thompson (4-1)

Milestone watch:
Adam Kennedy needs 9 8 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Scott Rolen needs 12 5 hits for 1,500 career hits.
Jim Edmonds needs 28 23 hits for 1,000 hits as a Cardinal.
Jason Isringhausen needs 16 saves for 278 saves to tie Todd Jones for 23rd on the all-time list.

Cards vs. Nats

May 25, 2007
Washington 5, St. Louis 4
Losing pitcher - Anthony Reyes (0-8)
HR: Jim Edmonds (3), Albert Pujols (8)

May 26, 2007
Washington 6, St. Louis 8
Winning pitcher - Brad Thompson (3-1)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (13)

May 27, 2007
Washington 7, St. Louis 2
Losing pitcher - Adam Wainwright (4-4)
HR: Scott Spiezio (1)

Milestone watch:
Adam Kennedy needs 11 9 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Scott Rolen needs 16 12 hits for 1,500 career hits.
Jim Edmonds needs 31 28 hits for 1,000 hits as a Cardinal.
Jason Isringhausen needs 17 16 saves for 278 saves to tie Todd Jones for 23rd on the all-time list.

Not surprisingly, Anthony Reyes was optioned down to Memphis after ten starts in a row without picking up a win. Todd Wellemeyer replaced him in the rotation. Troy Cate was called up to replace his spot on the roster.

Cards vs. Pirates

Finally, we swept a team! The seaosn is starting to turn around.

May 22, 2007
Pittsburgh 4, St. Louis 9
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (4-3)
HR: Chris Duncan (8)

Duncan is leading the team with eight home runs. Pujols is, well, I don't know.

May 23, 2007
Pittsburgh 3, St. Louis 5
Winning pitcher - Kip Wells (2-8)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (11)
HR: Chris Duncan (9), David Eckstein (1), Jim Edmonds (2)

Kip Wells has more than one win now. This is good news of Wells is starting to find his stuff.

May 24, 2007
Pittsburgh 1, St. Louis 3
Winning pitcher - Braden Looper (6-3)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (12)

Yadier Molina has a 15 game hitting streak going on and is batting .304.

Milestone watch:
Adam Kennedy needs 12 11 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Scott Rolen needs 20 16 hits for 1,500 career hits.
Jim Edmonds needs 33 31 hits for 1,000 hits as a Cardinal.
Jason Isringhausen needs 19 18 saves for 278 saves to tie Todd Jones for 23rd on the all-time list.

Cards vs. Tigers

Interleague play is amongst us.

May 18, 2007
St. Louis 4, Detroit 14
Losing pitcher - Braden Looper (5-3)
HR: Albert Pujols (7)

May 19, 2007
St. Louis 7, Detroit 8
Losing pitcher - Anthony Reyes (0-7)

Reyes needs to work on his mechanics or something because he used to be the top prospect in the organization.

May 20, 2007
St. Louis 3, Detroit 6
Losing pitcher - Brad Thompson (2-1)
HR: Chris Duncan (7)

Milestone watch:
Adam Kennedy needs 13 12 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Scott Rolen needs 20 hits for 1,500 career hits.
Jim Edmonds needs 35 33 hits for 1,000 hits as a Cardinal.
Jason Isringhausen needs 19 saves for 278 saves to tie Todd Jones for 23rd on the all-time list.

Cards vs. Dodgers

May 14, 2007
St. Louis 8, Los Angeles 4
Winning pitcher - Brad Thompson (2-0)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (10)
HR: Chris Duncan (6)

That game was the 9,000th franchise win.

May 15, 2007
St. Louis 7, Los Angeles 9
Losing pitcher - Adam Wainwright (3-3)

May 16, 2007
St. Louis 4, Los Angeles 5
Losing pitcher - Kip Wells (1-8)

Milestone watch:
Adam Kennedy needs 16 13 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Scott Rolen needs 24 20 hits for 1,500 career hits.
Jim Edmonds needs 37 35 hits for 1,000 hits as a Cardinal.
Jason Isringhausen needs 18 17 saves for 276 saves to tie Todd Jones for 23rd on the all-time list.
The St. Louis Cardinals are 1 win shy of 9,000 franchise wins during the regular season.

I know I'm behind

I'll be completely caught up by Wednesday.

Cards vs. Padres

May 11, 2007
St. Louis 0, San Diego 7
Losing pitcher - Kip Wells (1-7)

I am starting to become concerned with Kip Wells. He's struggling as bad as Mike Pelfrey of the Mets, except that Wells has only one win.

May 12, 2007
St. Louis 5, San Diego 0
Winning pitcher - Braden Looper (5-2)

Looper has been impressive. I cannot say that enough.

May 13, 2007
St. Louis 0, San Diego 3
Losing pitcher - Anthony Reyes (0-6)

Milestone watch:
Adam Kennedy needs 18 17 16 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Scott Rolen needs 1 stolen base for 100 career stolen bases.
Scott Rolen needs 26 25 24 hits for 1,500 career hits.
Jim Edmonds needs 39 37 hits for 1,000 hits as a Cardinal.
Jason Isringhausen needs 18 saves for 276 saves to tie Todd Jones for 23rd on the all-time list.
The St. Louis Cardinals are 1 win shy of 9,000 franchise wins during the regular season.

Cards vs. Rockies

The sad news is that Chris Carpenter is out for another three months. Ryan Ludwick was called up with Preston Wilson going on the DL.

May 7, 2007
Colorado 3, St. Louis 2
Losing pitcher - Brian Falkenborg (0-1)

May 8, 2007
Colorado 1, St. Louis 4
Winning pitcher - Kelvin Jimenez (1-0)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (9)

May 9, 2007
Colorado 2, St. Louis 9
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (3-2)

Milestone watch:
Adam Kennedy needs 20 19 18 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Scott Rolen needs 1 stolen base for 100 career stolen bases.
Scott Rolen needs 27 26 hits for 1,500 career hits.
Jim Edmonds needs 43 40 39 hits for 1,000 hits as a Cardinal.
Jason Isringhausen needs 18 saves for 276 saves to tie Todd Jones for 23rd on the all-time list.
The St. Louis Cardinals are 4 3 2 wins shy of 9,000 franchise wins during the regular season.

Veteran Cardinal Jim Edmonds spoke recently saying he was unaware of Hancock's issues.

Monday's notes:

Colorado Rockies @ St. Louis Cardinals
Busch Stadium (outdoor) 8:10 p.m. ET (partly cloudy, high of 83 degrees)
Jeff Francis, LHP (1-4) versus Anthony Reyes, RHP (0-5)

Notable Injuries: Preston Wilson, OF (knee, DL)

Game Story: Francis has been getting bombed by pretty much every team he has faced, but it's not as bad as it looks. Atlanta, San Francisco and San Diego are tough offenses for a left-hander. The Cardinals have a .593 OPS against lefties, 29th in the majors. Part of that is almost assuredly a small sample size, but it's still Neifi Perez bad. Francis might not look pretty doing it, but a quality start is well within his reach Monday. Reyes has been mediocre, but hasn't looked bad in facing good offenses in three straight starts (Milwaukee, Chicago twice). He too can notch a quality start against a subpar offense.

Wednesday notes, yea, I'm slacking...

Colorado Rockies @ St. Louis Cardinals
Busch Stadium (outdoor) 1:10 p.m. ET (50 percent chance of rain, high of 81 degrees)
Jason Hirsh, RHP (2-2) versus Adam Wainwright, RHP (2-2)

Notable Injuries: Willy Taveras, OF (groin, day-to-day)

Game Story: You can make a living spot starting average pitchers against below-average teams, and Hirsh is the perfect proof. While his peripherals don't support his 3.82 ERA and 1.27 WHIP, four of his starts have been against poor offenses. The Cardinals will be No. 5; they have the fewest runs scored in the majors. Chris Duncan (five HRs, .927 OPS) is the best player on the team right now, and he's available in 64.2 percent of ESPN leagues. Wainwright is struggling, but it is always nice to face Colorado away from Coors. Wainwright's line may not look pretty, but it should result in a quality start, though do make note of Troy Tulowitzki's current nine-game hitting streak.

Cards vs. Astros

Due to graduation and the Kentucky Derby festivities, I got behind. I'll get back up to date tomorrow at the latest.

May 4, 2007
Houston 2, St. Louis 3
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (2-2)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (7)

It was so nice to see a win again, especially on Graduation Day.

May 5, 2007
Houston 13, St. Louis 0
Losing pitcher - Kip Wells (1-6)

Uh, Kip Wells? I want to give this guy a chance in the rotation but I think we can do better than Kip Wells.

May 6, 2007
Houston 1, St. Louis 3
Winning pitcher - Braden Looper (4-2)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (8)

Another nice win...now why did I have them on the fantasy team bench?

Milestone watch:
Adam Kennedy needs 23 20 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Scott Rolen needs 1 stolen base for 100 career stolen bases.
Scott Rolen needs 27 hits for 1,500 career hits.
Jim Edmonds needs 43 hits for 1,000 hits as a Cardinal.
Jason Isringhausen needs 1 save for 256 saves to tie Todd Worrell for 24th on the all-time list.
Jason Isringhausen needs 18 17 saves for 274 saves to tie Todd Jones for 23rd on the all-time list.
The St. Louis Cardinals are 6 4 wins shy of 9,000 franchise wins during the regular season.

Cards vs. Brewers

The rest of the season will be tough and very reminiscent to that of the events that followed June 22, 2002, when we lost Darryl Kile. An emotional Jeff Suppan gets the start for the Milwaukee Brewers while the St. Louis Cardinals will start either Braden Looper or Kip Wells.

April 30, 2007
St. Louis 1, Milwaukee 7
Losing pitcher - Kip Wells (1-5)

Monday's game was more about just playing the game than a win or a lose, given the weekend's tragedy for the second time in five years. The Cardinals finished the month of April with a 10-14 record.

May 1, 2007
St. Louis 2, Milwaukee 12
Losing pitcher - Braden Looper (3-2)
HR: Chris Duncan (5)

Looper was effective until about thr 4th or 5th inning when the wheels fell apart completely. I can't explain the performance other than there is usually one or two innings that just go bad while the rest of the game from a defensive standpoint is fine. Our offense just isn't performing and as such, Skip Schumaker led off the game unlike David Eckstein. This was the first start since joining the Cardinals that Eckstein batted in a slot other than leadoff.

May 2, 2007
St. Louis 0, Milwaukee 4
Losing pitcher - Anthony Reyes (0-5)

Four runs on four hits. I can't explain this five game losing streak. I honestly cannot. While I want to give the team a free pass given the tragedy over the weekend, I can't. It's hard to follow these games with a Royals-esque losing record. It's not like the Cardinals to be playing this poorly.

Milestone watch:
Adam Kennedy needs 24 23 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Scott Rolen needs 1 stolen base for 100 career stolen bases.
Scott Rolen needs 27 hits for 1,500 career hits.
Jim Edmonds needs 43 hits for 1,000 hits as a Cardinal.
Jason Isringhausen needs 1 save for 256 saves to tie Todd Worrell for 24th on the all-time list.
The St. Louis Cardinals are 6 wins shy of 9,000 franchise wins during the regular season.

Tuesday notes:

St. Louis Cardinals @ Milwaukee Brewers
Miller Park (indoor/retractable roof) 8:05 p.m. ET
Braden Looper, RHP (3-1) versus Ben Sheets, RHP (1-2)
Notable Injuries: none

Game Story: If the Kip Wells experiment has been a bust so far, the Looper one has been a smashing success. Looper has kept the ball down and has a .200 BAA. The last time he held batters to that kind of average was & uh-oh. Yeah, he never has come close to those numbers, which makes me leery of his success. Milwaukee will be a good test as the Brewers hitters have been successful against Looper, especially Rickie Weeks (4-for-7). Start your Brewers. Sheets is healthy, but all Cardinals hitters except Scott Rolen and Jim Edmonds have hit him hard. Start all the other guys, especially Chris Duncan (5-for-9, 1 HR).

Wednesday notes:

St. Louis Cardinals @ Milwaukee Brewers
Miller Park (indoor/retractable roof) 1:05 p.m. ET
Anthony Reyes, RHP (0-4) versus Chris Capuano, LHP (4-0)

Notable Injuries: Rickie Weeks, 2B (finger, day-to-day)

Game Story: Reyes has ace-starter upside in the long term, but let's stress the word long. He has fallen short of a quality-start effort in each of his four starts, though just short each time. The Brewers' Geoff Jenkins (4-for-9, 3 HRs) positively owns him, and is a must-start. So are Bill Hall and J.J. Hardy, as Reyes has struggled against right-handers (.283/.886 rates). Capuano, meanwhile, should capitalize on a home start; he's 10-4 with a 3.63 ERA in his last 19 turns at Miller Park. Plus, he'll be facing the struggling Cardinals, who might still be distracted and should be without Chris Duncan against a left-hander. Albert Pujols and Scott Rolen should be about it for fantasy.

Dennis Dove called up

Dennis Dove was called up to fill the slot of the late Josh Hancock and is expected to be in uniform tonight for the St. Louis Cardinals-Milwaukee Brewers game.

"To lose a guy like that, it hurts," Dove told the Memphis Commercial Appeal. "Josh was a good guy, nice to everybody."

Of his promotion to the majors, Dove told the newspaper: "I hate that it happened this way. It's a dream come true, pretty much. To say it wasn't, I'd be lying. It's awesome. ... But it's also a very sad day for all of us."

Dove is a 6-foot-4, 205-pound righthander. In 2006, he made 54 appearances combined in Class A and AA, going 3-6 overall with a 4.11 ERA and 71 strikeouts in 65 innings.

RIP: Josh Hancock

Last season, when the St. Louis Cardinals were in Cincinnati to play the Cincinnati Reds, I decided to head over to the game since it was finals week and I didn't have a final that Tuesday. I was lucky enough to get Josh Hancock's autograph. I heard the news, oh, two hours ago or so, and I am in a state of shock and disbelief following the tragic death of St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher Josh Hancock.

Tonight's game has been postponed as a result of today's tragedy to the St. Louis family. May Josh Hancock rest in peace.

ETA:

Deadspin has a must-read tribute.

Cards vs. Cubs

Round 2 of the series begins Friday night. For viewers that don't live in the St. Louis TV market: Friday is on WGN. Saturday is on FOX except in markets where FOX thinks you want the Yankees-Red Sox game. Sunday night is on ESPN.

April 27, 2007
Chi. Cubs 5, St. Louis 3
Losing pitcher - Anthony Reyes (0-4)
HR: Yadier Molina (1)

Albert Pujols is starting to pick it up as well as Jim Edmonds in terms of offense. But Yadier Molina's bat has been very hot in the month of April at times.

April 28, 2007
Chi. Cubs 8, St. Louis 1
Losing pitcher - Adam Wainwright (1-2)
HR: Albert Pujols (6)

I don't think that Adam Wainwright has quite figured out the Chicago Cubs yet. In 11 games and two starts against the Chicago Cubs, he hasn't pitched as well as one would have liked. Maybe TLR can avoid him in the rotatuon against the Cubs in the future? Coming into the game, he has a 7.24 ERA against them. Once again, we had a bad inning, defensively, with the Cubs scoring 7 runs.

Albert Pujols hit his 6th home run of the season to lead off the 7th inning. It's a shame that it had to be a lead-off home run as opposed to runners on. It was his 256th career home run which places him in second place outright on the Cardinals all-time list. Molina doesn't have the luck today like he did yesterday. Pujols is hitting much better in the past week. Jim Edmonds had a great game, offensively speaking, going 2-4. The Cardinals, it's hard to say at the moment, need to start heating it up. I thought we were going to break out of our horrible non-Sunday slump with the two games against the Reds this week.

At some point, you have to realize that Preston Wilson is almost always an automatic out and he needs to be DFA'd as soon as possible.

I don't know how I feel about our chances with Rich Hill pitching tomorrow. All I know is that I am going to bench Adam Wainwright during his next start and hopefully, he plays better than he did in his last two starts.

Milestone watch:
Albert Pujols needs 1 home run to take sole posession of 2nd place all-time with 256 on the Cardinals home runs list.
Adam Kennedy needs 26 24 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Scott Rolen needs 1 stolen base for 100 career stolen bases.
Jason Isringhausen needs 1 save for 256 saves to tie Todd Worrell for 24th on the all-time list.
The St. Louis Cardinals are 6 wins shy of 9,000 franchise wins during the regular season.

ESPN Fantasy game notes for Friday:

Chicago Cubs @ St. Louis Cardinals
Busch Stadium (outdoor) 8:10 p.m. ET (partly cloudy, low of 55 degrees)
Jason Marquis, RHP (2-1) versus Anthony Reyes, RHP (0-3)

Notable Injuries: None

Game Story: It's Marquis' first trip back to St. Louis since he left there as a free agent in the offseason, and don't forget, he had a 6.91 ERA in 17 starts at the Cardinals' new ballpark. He's off to a hot start but the command isn't quite there, so Chris Duncan and Jim Edmonds are well worth keeping active. As for Reyes, how much longer can we afford to wait for him to make good on his breakout potential? The Cubs have beaten him all three times they've seen him, and Michael Barrett (2-for-5, 1 HR) and Matt Murton (2-for-4, 1 HR) have handled him nicely. Steer clear of Reyes in this one.

On Friday, Kelvin Jiminez was called up and Randy Keisler was optioned down to Memphis. After Thursday's game, this is not a surprise.

Saturday notes:

Chicago Cubs @ St. Louis Cardinals
Busch Stadium (outdoor) 3:55 p.m. ET (partly cloudy, with a high of 73 degrees)
Carlos Zambrano, RHP (1-2) versus Adam Wainwright, RHP (1-1)

Notable Injuries: none

Game Story: The Cardinals' lineup is top heavy, leaning on Albert Pujols and Scott Rolen to carry their offense. Duncan is one of their heavier parts, who hits right-handers quite well, so if he is forced to miss the game, Zambrano should not have much trouble with the lineup. Wainwright has allowed 13 walks in 25 innings, and the Cubs beat him up (12 hits, seven earned runs) in his last start; you have to bench him until he shows better.

Sunday notes:

Chicago Cubs @ St. Louis Cardinals
Busch Stadium (outdoor) 8:05 p.m. ET (mostly clear, low of 53 degrees)
Rich Hill, LHP (3-1) versus Kip Wells, RHP (1-4)

Notable Injuries: none

Game Story: Hill has held Albert Pujols to 0-for-5 so far, and face it, he's a stud. Feel free to sit your Cardinals. As for Wells, so far the experiment isn't working (the experiment to turn Kip Wells into a decent pitcher, that is). Perhaps later in the season he'll show more talent, but right now he's throwing batting practice. Start all of your Cubs, especially Jacque Jones (8-for-19, 2 HRs).

Rick Majerus to SLU done deal?

It's looking like Rick Majerus is headed back into coaching at St. Louis University.

Cards vs. Reds

Thankfully, I can watch the games in this series since two of three are televised on FSN Ohio.

Albert Pujols record set last April is now the National League record as I fully expect that Alex Rodriguez will break it sometime this week.

Next Monday's game has been moved an hour earlier as ESPN will be televising it on Monday Night Baseball.

April 24, 2007
Cincinnati 10, St. Louis 3
Losing pitcher - Kip Wells (1-4)

April 25, 2007
St. Louis 5, Cincinnati 2
Winning pitcher - Randy Flores (1-0)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (5)

Braden Looper has been very effective and he should have gotten the win had it not been for the lack of run support. All but one run came in the eighth inning. Who in the right mind was thinking that Braden Looper was going to be the staff ace with Carpenter on the mound?

Other key things to point out: Chris Duncan is the real deal going 2-3 with a run (.333), Jim Edmonds went 1-3 with an RBI but made some great catches, and Scott Rolen's average is where it should be by now but it could be a bit higher. Pujols always said that Yadier Molina could hit. Albert Pujols batting average is getting back up to par.

April 26, 2007
St. Louis 7, Cincinnati 5
Winning pitcher - Randy Flores (1-0)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (6)

Skip Shumaker had a great day going 3-5 with 2 RBI. As I expected, David Eckstein had a day off, probably due to low career numbers against Kyle Lohse. Cardinals with more than one hit: Miles, Skip, Pujols, Spiezio, Kennedy. Rolen has two walks. Duncan and So had pinch hits leading to runs. Except for our pitchers, not a single player right now is hitting below .200! Izzy managed to get a save despite a rain delay. Bring on the Cubs!

Milestone watch:
Albert Pujols needs 1 home run to take sole posession of 2nd place all-time with 256 on the Cardinals home runs list.
Adam Kennedy needs 29 28 26 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Scott Rolen needs 1 stolen base for 100 career stolen bases.
Jason Isringhausen needs 3 2 1 save for 256 saves to tie Todd Worrell for 24th on the all-time list.

ESPN's fantasy watch for Tuesday's game:

Busch Stadium (outdoor) 8:10 p.m. ET (60 percent chance of thunderstorms, low of 60 degrees)
Aaron Harang, RHP (2-0) versus Kip Wells, RHP (1-3)

Notable Injuries: none

Game Story: When I say big Cardinals' bats, you of course automatically think Albert Pujols and David Eckstein, and you should start both against Harang. However, think seriously about sitting everyone else, especially Scott Rolen (3-for-31), Yadier Molina (3-for-25) and Jim Edmonds (6-for-28). Anyone else waiting for Ken Griffey Jr. to contribute positively to their team? Yeah, me, too. Perhaps this is the day he does it (9-for-23, 5 HRs against Wells). Also, Scott Hatteberg (5-for-6) likely starts over Jeff Conine (2-for-18). And yes, I was kidding about David Eckstein, but not about starting him.

Here is what ESPN says about the Wednesday night game:

Busch Stadium (outdoor) 8:10 p.m. ET (80 percent chance of rain, low of 55 degrees)
Bronson Arroyo, RHP (0-2) versus Braden Looper, RHP (3-1)

Notable Injuries: Ken Griffey Jr., OF (illness, day-to-day)

Game Story: There's a running theme today, and it's bad weather, with this game the one I'd call most likely to be washed out based on the forecast. If it gets in, though, this should be a nice matchup for Chris Duncan, 3-for-6 with a home run against Arroyo. Beyond your regular Cardinals and Reds, though, don't go crazy. Looper and Arroyo are both pitching well, and the main thing to exploit here is Looper's historical tendency to struggle against lefty sluggers. Adam Dunn, Josh Hamilton and Ken Griffey Jr. could each be in for big games, assuming Griffey is healthy enough to play.

Thursday's notes:

Busch Stadium (outdoor) 1:10 p.m. ET (70 percent chance of thunderstorms, high of 66 degrees)
Kyle Lohse, RHP (1-0) versus Randy Keisler, LHP (0-0)

Notable Injuries: none

Game Story: The trick to Lohse's season has been that although he's been hittable, he hasn't been issuing walks. Whether he continues this remains to be seen, but trust me, as the weather heats up, Lohse's fly balls will leave the park. So yes, when Lohse kills your ERA, you might commiserate with Al Gore. Start your Cards, and in particular Adam Kennedy (9-for-22) and Scott Spiezio (5-for-16, 1 HR) and sit David Eckstein (1-for-10). The Reds have been bottom-of-the-league awful against lefties, which makes Keisler a nice stealth spot starter. The only Reds worth considering are Jeff Conine and Alex Gonzalez.

Cards vs. Cubs

April 20, 2007
St. Louis 2, Chi. Cubs 1
Winning pitcher - Braden Looper (3-1)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (4)
HR: Preston Wilson (1)

Looper has been, surprisingly, effective.

April 21, 2007
St. Louis 0, Chi. Cubs 6
Losing pitcher - Anthony Reyes (0-3)

Why did we opt against resigning Jason Marquis?

April 22, 2007
St. Louis 12, Chi. Cubs 9
Winning pitcher - Jason Isringhausen (1-0)
HR: Chris Duncan (4), Jim Edmonds (1), Albert Pujols (5), Scott Rolen (2)

For fans outside of the Cardinals viewing area, you can watch the game on WGN. The game was an interesting one, and the third one that was aired on a station that is on cable systems nationwide. Jim Edmonds tied it up at 2-2 with a home run in the second inning.

The fourth inning saw Adam Kennedy double to deep right field and driving in Albert Pujols and Scott Rolen.

In the fifth inning, home runs were flying all over the place. Chris Duncan went deep, driving in Aaron Miles. Scott Rolen went yard with a solo shot.

The runs were not over yet. At 7 all, Scott Rolen triples to deep right field, and both Chris Duncan and Albert Pujols scored. Rolen would finish the day with a career high 6 hits, bringing his average up to .268, and a double shy of the cycle.

The leads were going back and forth. In the ninth inning, with Isringhausen down to the final out, a fly ball was hit towards shallow right field but because of the Chicago wind, it never quite made it to a glove and we went into extra innings with a 9-9 tie game. The box score makes it seem worse than it actually was for Isringhausen.

In the 10th inning, Pujols went deep for his fifth home run of the season to take the 12-9 lead with 3 RBI. Wilson and Eckstein scored on the home run. It was the 255th of his career and it ties him with Ken Boyer for second all time on the Cardinals' all-time home runs list.

The MV3 all have batting averages over .200 now. It's not where it should be but it's a start. The last time that the MV3 of Pujols, Edmonds, and Rolen went yard was July 2, 2006, against the Kansas City Royals in a 9-7 game.

The Cardinals go back to Busch with a 8-10 record this season.

Milestone watch:
Albert Pujols needs 1 home run to tie Ken Boyer for 2nd on the Cardinals all-time home runs list with 255.
Adam Kennedy needs 32 31 30 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Scott Rolen needs 1 stolen base for 100 career stolen bases.
Jason Isringhausen needs 4 3 saves for 256 saves to tie Todd Worrell for 24th on the all-time list.

During the series with the Giants, Mark Sweeney and Steve Kline made sure to greet Red Schoendienst.

First baseman-outfielder Mark Sweeney and left-hander Steve Kline, both former Cardinals, made sure to pay their respects to St. Louis legend Red Schoendienst before the series ended. Schoendienst, 84, continues to suit up for batting practice in his role as special assistant to general manager Walt Jocketty. Schoendienst was a 10-time All-Star infielder and managed the Cardinals to a World Series victory in 1967 and the National League pennant in 1968.

"He's baseball," Sweeney said of Schoendienst. "He's got passion and that's what we all have to learn from. It's very infectious. To see him in uniform is pretty awesome, too."

Walt is urging the fans to show some patience.

Cards vs. Giants

Okay, I got behind on things...it's the last week and a half of the semester before finals.
April 18, 2007
St. Louis 5, San Francisco 6
Losing pitcher - Josh Hancock (0-1)
HR: Albert Pujols (4)

First things first, you don't pitch to Barry Bonds ever again. I was watching on MLB Gameday and as soon as I saw it come up on game day, I had a feeling Ryan Franklin made a mistake.

April 19, 2007
St. Louis 2, San Francisco 6
Losing pitcher - Kip Wells (1-3)
HR: Kip Wells (1)

Milestone watch:
Albert Pujols needs 2 1 home run to tie Ken Boyer for 2nd on the Cardinals all-time home runs list with 255.
Adam Kennedy needs 32 31 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Scott Rolen needs 1 stolen base for 100 career stolen bases.
Jason Isringhausen needs 4 saves for 256 saves to tie Todd Worrell for 24th on the all-time list.

Tony La Russa has selected Bruce Bochy to serve as a coach during this summer's All-Star Game.

Manager Bruce Bochy has accepted an invitation from National League manager Tony La Russa to be a coach for the 2007 All-Star Game in San Francisco, sources said.

La Russa gets to manage the All-Star team and select the coaches because his St. Louis Cardinals won the NL pennant en route to winning the World Series last season. The All-Star skipper often asks the manager of the team hosting the game to be a coach.

Bochy would not comment nor even confirm his selection Tuesday because there has been no official announcement on coaches for the July 10 game. He managed the NL All-Stars in 1999 at Fenway Park after his San Diego Padres won the pennant in 1998.

Cards vs. Pirates

April 16, 2007
Pittsburgh 3, St. Louis 2
Losing pitcher - Anthony Reyes (0-2)

Anthony Reyes did not pitch so well on Monday's game against the Pirates.

April 17
Pittsburgh 6, St. Louis 1
Losing pitcher - Adam Wainwright (1-1)

I thought we got rid of Jason Marquis during offseason. Am I wrong here? Pujols picked up his 500th career walk and Jim Edmonds played in his 1,000th game as a Cardinal. Has it really been that long?

Milestone watch:
Albert Pujols needs 2 home runs to tie Ken Boyer for 2nd on the Cardinals all-time home runs list with 255.
Albert Pujols needs 2 1 walks for 500 career walks.
Jim Edmonds needs 2 1 games to reach 1,000 games played as a St. Louis Cardinal.
Adam Kennedy needs 33 32 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Scott Rolen needs 1 stolen base for 100 career stolen bases.
Russ Springer needs 1 strikeouts for 500 National League Strikeouts.
Jason Isringhausen needs 4 saves for 256 saves to tie Todd Worrell for 24th on the all-time list.

Jackie Robinson Day

JACK ROOSEVELT ROBINSON 
BROOKLYN N.L. 1947 TO 1956 
LEADING N.L. BATTER IN 1949. HOLDS 
FIELDING MARK FOR SECOND BASEMAN 
PLAYING IN 150 OR MORE GAMES WITH .992. 
LED N.L. IN STOLEN BASES IN 1947 AND 
1949. MOST VALUABLE PLAYER IN 1949. 
LIFETIME BATTING AVERAGE .311. JOINT 
RECORD HOLDER FOR MOST DOUBLE PLAYS 
BY SECOND BASEMAN, 137 IN 1951. 
LED SECOND BASEMAN IN DOUBLE 
PLAYS 1949-50-51-52.

I've been watching a lot of the coverage today on television and I think John Kruk may have said it the best during Baseball Tonight. This should not be something that is celebrated by baseball every ten years. It should be done every year.

April 15th should be a national holiday to commemorate the achievements that Jackie Robinson made. Every year. Not just every ten years.

Cards vs. Brewers

Friday's game was rained out and as a result of the weather, it pushed Saturday's game to an evening start.

April 14, 2007
Milwaukee 3, St. Louis 2
Losing pitcher - Kip Wells (1-2)

April 15, 2007
Milwaukee 2, St. Louis 10
Winning pitcher - Braden Looper (2-1)
HR: Albert Pujols (2, 3), Chris Duncan (3)

Pujols is breaking out of a slump and Duncan is on a roll.

Milestone watch:
Albert Pujols needs 4 3 2 home runs to tie Ken Boyer for 2nd on the Cardinals all-time home runs list with 255.
Albert Pujols needs 2 walks for 500 career walks.
Jim Edmonds needs 4 3 2 games to reach 1,000 games played as a St. Louis Cardinal.
Adam Kennedy needs 36 35 33 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Scott Rolen needs 1 stolen base for 100 career stolen bases.
Russ Springer needs 1 strikeouts for 500 National League Strikeouts.
Jason Isringhausen needs 4 saves for 256 saves to tie Todd Worrell for 24th on the all-time list.

Cards vs. Pirates

April 9, 2007
St. Louis 3, Pittsburgh 0
Winning pitcher - Braden Looper (1-1)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (2)

April 10, 2007
St. Louis 3, Pittsburgh 2
Winning pitcher - Brad Thompson (1-0)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (3)

April 11, 2007
St. Louis 3, Pittsburgh 2
Winning pitcher - Ryan Franklin (1-0)
HR: Chris Duncan (2)

Milestone watch:
Albert Pujols needs 4 home runs to tie Ken Boyer for 2nd on the Cardinals all-time home runs list with 255.
Albert Pujols needs 4 3 walks for 500 career walks.
Jim Edmonds needs 7 6 5 games to reach 1,000 games played as a St. Louis Cardinal.
Adam Kennedy needs 36 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Scott Rolen needs 1 stolen base for 100 career stolen bases.
Russ Springer needs 2 strikeouts for 500 National League Strikeouts.
Jason Isringhausen needs 1 save for 250 saves as a St. Louis Cardinal.
Jason Isringhausen needs 2 1 saves for 252 saves to tie Dave Righetti for 25th on the all-time list.
Jason Isringhausen needs 4 saves for 256 saves to tie Todd Worrell for 24th on the all-time list.
David Eckstein needs 1 run for 500 career runs.

Cardinals staff and alumni have recieved their rings.

Then the Cardinals' players, coaches, trainers and support personnel who were part of the wild 2006 championship ride fairly bounded out of the first-base dugout before the Cardinals-New York Mets game Tuesday night at Busch Stadium to get their World Series rings — the last, and most striking, of the spoils for the club's 10th World Series title.

Hall of Famers Bruce Sutter, Lou Brock, Bob Gibson, Red Schoendienst and Stan Musial also were presented rings, although their World Series days were well behind them.

Sutter, a staple of the 1982 World Series champion Cardinals and a newly minted Hall of Famer last year, said he was surprised — and flattered — that the Cardinals would give him a 2006 World Series ring.

Star pitcher Chris Carpenter was placed on the DL and Albert Pujols is still struggling to find his swing which proves to show, he's only human.

Cards vs. Astros

Due to Pesach, I fell behind a bit and am now catching up on things. Sorry for the inconvenience.

April 6, 2007
St. Louis 4, Houston 2
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (1-0)
SV - Jason Isringhausen (1)
HR: Chris Duncan (1)

April 7, 2007
St. Louis 1, Houston 5
Losing pitcher - Anthony Reyes (0-1)

April 8, 2007
St. Louis 10, Houston 1
Winning pitcher - Kip Wells (1-1)
HR: Albert Pujols (1)

Milestone watch:
Albert Pujols needs 5 4 home runs to tie Ken Boyer for 2nd on the Cardinals all-time home runs list with 255.
Jim Edmonds needs 9 8 games to reach 1,000 games played as a St. Louis Cardinal.
Adam Kennedy needs 38 36 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Scott Rolen needs 1 stolen base for 100 career stolen bases.
Russ Springer needs 2 strikeouts for 500 National League Strikeouts.
Jason Isringhausen needs 1 save for 250 saves as a St. Louis Cardinal.
Jason Isringhausen needs 2 saves for 252 saves to tie Dave Righetti for 25th on the all-time list.

Cards vs. Mets

Due to technical difficulties, I was unable to blog on Monday before going about 48 hours with no computer in accordance with Judaic law due to the Yom Tov days of Passover.

College basketball ended on Monday. Football ended in February. It's only appropriate that baseball season started this week and gives me something to look forward to each day.

The season starts with Josh Kinney, Mark Mulder, and Juan Encarnacion on the DL.

April 1, 2007
N.Y. Mets 6, St. Louis 1
Losing pitcher - Chris Carpenter (0-1)

April 3, 2007
N.Y. Mets 4, St. Louis 1
Losing pitcher - Kip Wells (0-1)
HR: Scott Rolen (1)

April 4, 2007
N.Y. Mets 10, St. Louis 0
Losing pitcher - Braden Looper (0-1)

Milestone watch:
Albert Pujols needs 5 home runs to tie Ken Boyer for 2nd on the Cardinals all-time home runs list with 255.
Jim Edmonds needs 10 games to reach 1,000 games played as a St. Louis Cardinal.
Adam Kennedy needs 38 hits for 1,000 career hits.
Scott Rolen needs 1 stolen base for 100 career stolen bases.
Russ Springer needs 3 strikeouts for 500 National League Strikeouts.
Jason Isringhausen needs 1 save for 250 saves as a St. Louis Cardinal.

Due to problems with his elbow, Chris Carpenter will miss his next scheduled start (Friday).

Talks with David Eckstein look stalled for the time being.

In some areas, you will be able to watch the St. Louis Cardinals on FSN South and Sports South.

After 572 relief appearances, Braden Looper will make his first start in the majors.

Final Spring Training Report

March 27, 2007
Los Angeles 0, St. Louis 3
Winning pitcher - Chris Carpenter (1-1)
SV - Randy Flores (2)
HR: Albert Pujols (1)

March 28, 2007
St. Louis 5, Baltimore 1
Winning pitcher - Braden Looper (2-0)
HR: Tagg Bozied (1)

March 29, 2007
St. Louis 4, Florida 4

March 30, 2007
St. Louis 6, Memphis 2
Winning pitcher - Josh Hancock (1-0)
HR: Gary Bennett (1)

March 31, 2007
Cleveland 1, St. Louis 5
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (4-2)
HR: Albert Pujols (2)

The final spring training record for 2007 is 16-10.

The Cards were excited to be a part of the Civil Rights game.

Former Cardinals Larry Walker and Cal Eldred, who both retired at the end of the 2005 season, recieved rings by the Cardinals.

When general manager Walt Jocketty told Larry Walker that the club was going to present him with a World Series ring Tuesday, the usually jovial Walker "was at a loss for words."

"I'm very grateful," said Walker, who played 1 1/2 years with the Cardinals before retiring after the 2005 season. "My wife cried. It's kind of weird. I didn't play for the team. I played 16 years or whatever trying to get a World Series ring and I didn't get one. The first year I don't play, I do. I should have retired 10 years ago."

Former Cardinals pitcher Cal Eldred, who also retired after the 2005 season, also will get a ring.

Ricardo Rincon was released by the Cardinals. It doesn't surprise me given how well left-handed relievers Tyler Johnson and Randy Flores did in the 2006 season.

Redbird Report

March 20, 2007
St. Louis 13, Los Angeles 0
Winning pitcher - Anthony Reyes (3-0)
HR: Chris Duncan (5), Yadier Molina (1)

March 22, 2007
Florida 2, St. Louis 1
Losing pitcher - Chris Carpenter (0-1)

March 23, 2007
St. Louis 1, N.Y. Mets 2
Losing pitcher - Ryan Franklin (1-1)

March 24, 2007
St. Louis 4, Washington 2
Winning pitcher - Josh Hancock (1-0)
SV - Kelvin Jimenez (2)

March 25, 2007
Baltimore 6, St. Louis 5
Losing pitcher - Russ Springer (0-1)

March 26, 2007
St. Louis 3, Florida 1
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (3-2)
SV - Brad Thompson (1)

Busch Stadium is now smoke-free.

UNLV's head basketball coach Lon Kruger was recently in St, Louis for the NCAA Tournament. Turns out that he used to play baseball.

Kruger, 54, can't wait to get to St. Louis and watch UNLV practice this afternoon.

"We've always enjoyed St. Louis," he said of his family, which includes son Kevin, a starting guard for the Rebs. "I have some former teammates (mostly baseball ones) and a lot of friends there."

Kruger grew up in Kansas, but he had a soft spot in his heart for the St. Louis Cardinals. After all, they signed him to a Class A contract in 1974. Kruger chose to play basketball in Israel and his baseball career fizzled.

Yet the next phase of his basketball career was just beginning. Good thing, too

"I was a Cardinals and Royals fan," said Kruger, a pitcher. "But after the Cardinals signed me, I didn't get back in time for spring training because I was playing basketball overseas."

The Cards didn't lose any sleep over Kruger's absence and he surmised it was time to get serious about basketball. He began to wonder if coaching suited him.

Cardinals Roundup

When the season starts, I hope to have more frequent posts. However, with the opening of the season coinciding with Passover, it won't be all that easy to do.

Here's recaps from spring training games since my last post.

March 12, 2007
Atlanta 1, St. Louis 3
Winning pitcher - Ryan Franklin (1-0)
SV - Dennis Dove (1)
HR: Rick Ankiel (1)

March 13, 2007
St. Louis 2, Minnesota 5
Losing pitcher - Ricardo Rincon (0-1)

March 14, 2007
St. Louis 2, Washington 2
HR: Scott Rolen (1)

March 15, 2007
Los Angeles 3, St. Louis 2
Losing pitcher - Adam Wainwright (2-1)
HR: Chris Duncan (3)

March 16, 2007
St. Louis 6, Atlanta 6
HR: Chris Duncan 4, Edgar Gonzalez (3)

March 17, 2007
St. Louis 9, Atlanta 5
Winning pitcher - Brian Falkenborg (2-0)
HR: Scott Spiezio (2)

March 18, 2007
N.Y. Mets 4, St. Louis 5
Winning pitcher - Andy Cavazos (1-0)
SV - Randy Flores (1)

Dennis Dove is enjoying his experience in spring training so far.

Jim Edmonds and Juan Encarnacion will likely be on the DL when the season begins.

Adam Kennedy is expected to be the starter at 2B for most of the season.

La Russa is happy with Braden Looper's outings during spring training.

The Cardinals sent Rick Ankiel and Randy Keisler down to Memphis.

2007 Awards and Championship Predictions

It's that time of year to predict who I believe will take home some extra gear at the end of the 2007 season. Some of my choices were very hard, especially when it comes to the AL Rookie of the Year award.

First, the awards.

National League
Rookie of the Year: Troy Tulowitzki, Colorado Rockies
There are plenty of quality rookies out there that are expected to make the opening day roster. I like what I see in the prior stats of Troy Tulowitzki, Mike Pelfrey, and Chris B. Young. Factor in the Colorado air and I think that Troy Tulowitzki will put up some very great rookie numbers. Tulowitzki is compared a lot to the 2004 AL ROY Bobby Crosby. Pelfrey is my second choice as it's not yet known as to whether or not he will make the opening day roster for the New York Mets but when you add on all the other stuff, he's a top candidate for the award.

Most Valuable Player: Albert Pujols, St. Louis Cardinals
Pujols is the best player in baseball and he's a player who will rank in the top three for average, home runs, and RBI's. At the end of the season, it will be the Cardinals and not the Phillies playing in the postseason.

Cy Young Award: Chris Carpenter, St. Louis Cardinals
Carpenter will finish this season with stats similar to or better than he performed in 2005, and much better than 2006. Carp would have had better numbers, win-wise, in 2006 had Isringhausen not been injured.

Manager of the Year: Tony La Russa, St. Louis Cardinals
There's no Joe Girardi to compete but La Russa will find a way to get the National League to win the All-Star Game.

American League
Rookie of the Year: Alex Gordon, Kansas City Royals
This was a hard decision for me in choosing between Gordon and Delmon Young. Here's a look at Sportsline for their stats in 2006. Look at the stats alone in Double A for Alex Gordon in 130 games: .325-29 HR-101 RBI -111 R-22 SB(.427 OBP-.588 SLG). Sportsline calls him the left-handed David Wright. They also say that he can put up numbers similar to that of Albert Pujols, and I agree. Believe me when I say that Alex Gordon is the player that Kansas City needs to build around. He's on all my fantasy baseball teams as he is the real deal. Look for a great season out of him this season. KC was wise to let him wait to this season to make the majors and move Mark Teahen to the outfield.

Most Valuable Player: Justin Morneau, Minnesota Twins
This, too, was a tough decision as there are so many MVP-caliber players out there like Morneau, Jeter, Ortiz, Mauer. I think that Morneau will repeat here.

Cy Young Award: Johan Santana, Minnesota Twins
'Nuff said. This guy is the best pitcher in the American League right now although Roy Halladay ranks up there as well. Halladay would be my runner up choice.

Manager of the Year: Ron Gardenhire, Minnesota Twins
I don't know why but I just got this feeling that it's gonna be a breakout year for the Twins again.

All-Star Game: National League
They will find a way to win.

National League Division Champions:
East: New York Mets
Central: St. Louis Cardinals
West: San Diego Padres
Wild Card: Los Angeles Dodgers

American League Division Champions:
East: Toronto Blue Jays
Central: Minnesota Twins
West: Oakland Athletics
Wild Card: Kansas City Royals

World Series: St. Louis over Minnesota in 5 games