Carp gets the nod

Chris Carpenter will be the Opening Day starting pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals when the Cardinals open their season in Cincinnati to face the Cincinnati Reds on April 5th.

Kyle McClellan's bullpen assignment was only the second-worst-kept secret in Cardinals Spring Training. The worst-kept was also officially unveiled on Monday. Chris Carpenter, who has been on track to start Opening Day since before Grapefruit League games started, was formally confirmed as the Cards' starter for April 5 in Cincinnati.

He'll be followed by Adam Wainwright, Brad Penny and Kyle Lohse in the Cardinals' first four games. The only question for the first week of games is when fifth-starter-elect Jaime Garcia will start. The fifth member of the rotation could either pitch on Saturday, April 10 or Sunday, April 11 in Milwaukee, with Carpenter making his second start the other day.

Wainwright, the other prime candidate for Opening Day honors, will get the next-best thing. Wainwright will start the Cardinals' home opener, on April 12 against the Astros. It's a convenient coincidence that each of the Redbirds' two aces can get one of the two plum assignments.

"That's the way it's mapped out," manager Tony La Russa said. "It's not our first rodeo. Maybe our last, but it's not our first."

It's grea to see Carp making the opening day start. Here's to better success than the last opening day start for him. That was the last time I drafted a pitcher in the first round of a fantasy baseball draft.

Still alive...

I'm still alive...

1980 U.S. Hockey captain Mike Eruzione addressed the club a few weeks ago.

Eruzione was in Florida on a golf outing and in the course of the conversation over a 2 1/2 hour dinner, La Russa asked if Eruzione could squeeze in a speech to the Cardinals before Thursday's workout. Replete with a DVD of the 1980 "Miracle'' La Russa played before Eruzione entered the clubhouse, the production was a big hit with the players, who asked a number of questions.

"(The U.S. Olympic victory) was the No. 1 sports highlight of our time," La Russa said. "What's better than that?"

Relief ace Ryan Franklin said he could identify with Eruzione's remarks as a member of the underdog U.S. Olympic team that beat Cuba for the baseball gold in Sydney in 2000. Franklin said, "I think the Cubans kind of took us lightly. They beat us earlier in the Olympics and then we went out there and spanked their butts. It was cool, because (Eruzione) said Russia did the same thing with them in 1980."

Eruzione, who never played professionally after scoring the game-winning goal against the Soviets, has made a good living as a motivational speaker. But he said, "I've never done that for a major-league team. I spoke to the hockey team in Vancouver. I've spoken to the women's hockey team.

"I was a little nervous because after all, these are the best players — Albert Pujols, (Matt) Holliday, (Chris) Carpenter, (Adam) Wainwright. (Baseball) was my first love, growing up."

Eruzione's theme Thursday was teamwork.

"It's a long season," Eruzione said. "These guys have a long season. A lot of people expect them to be successful this year. But it just doesn't happen overnight."

Cardinals ace Carpenter, a hockey player through his high school days in New Hampshire, said, "I hope everybody listened because it was a pretty neat message."

La Russa said that Eruzione talked of throwing out the first pitch before a game in the Boston Red Sox-New York Yankees American League Championship Series in 2004. "And then he couldn't remember who (the Red Sox) played in the World Series," La Russa said, dryly.

Jim Edmonds to be a Cardinal again?

Via Matthew Leach:

Maybe Jim Edmonds was dead serious. Maybe it was all an elaborate put-on. When it comes to Edmonds and Cardinals manager Tony La Russa, it can be tough to tell. This much is certain: Edmonds said on Sunday night that he wants to come back and play for the Cardinals in 2010.

The long-time Angels and Cards star hasn't played since 2008. Before that year, St. Louis traded him to San Diego. After the Padres released him, he signed on with the Cubs, with whom he played his last game on Sept. 26, 2008.

On Sunday night at the annual "Stars to the Rescue" benefit for La Russa's Animal Rescue Foundation, Edmonds said he was "challenging" La Russa to let him rejoin his old team.

The exchange started after the final bows for the event, which featured country star Dierks Bentley and comedienne Kathleen Madigan, among others. La Russa said that "someone" had sent him a text and wanted to come onstage. That someone turned out to be Edmonds, who made his way from his seat at the opposite end of the arena.[...]

"I'm challenging him to let me come back and play for the Cardinals again for free," Edmonds said to the crowd at Chaifetz Arena in St. Louis.

Edmonds then modified his offer to playing for the league minimum, rather than for free. He and La Russa engaged in some playful banter, and at the end, La Russa quipped that he wished he had a rewind button so that he could simply skip Edmonds appearance -- but he said it with a grin.[...]

On stage on Sunday, though, Edmonds referred to La Russa as like a father figure to him, and the warmth in their relationship, rather than any strain, dominated the scene.

Neither La Russa nor general manager John Mozeliak could be reached for comment after the event ended.

Albert Pujols takes home 3rd MVP

Albert Pujols takes home his third MVP award.

Long since established as one of baseball's great players, Pujols emerged as the game's dominant figure in 2009. On Tuesday, the Baseball Writers' Association of America once again recognized him as such, naming Pujols the National League Most Valuable Player in a unanimous decision.

Pujols received all 32 first-place votes, good for 448 ballot points. Marlins shortstop Hanley Ramirez garnered 15 second-place votes and 233 points. First baseman Ryan Howard of the Phillies was a close third with 217 points. He was followed by Brewers first baseman Prince Fielder and Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki.

"It's an award you give to one person, but I believe if it wouldn't have been for the help my teammates have given me for the past year, I wouldn't be standing up here," Pujols said. "I always say, if I could split this award and give a piece to every single player that had an impact with this organization, I would do that."

It's the second straight year that Pujols has won the award, and the third time overall. He is the 10th player in history to win three MVPs, and the fifth to win it three times in the National League. He is the 12th player to win back-to-back MVP awards. The last was Barry Bonds, who won it four straight years from 2001-04.

"When you think about the year we had, to have it end in this fashion is really quite remarkable," general manager John Mozeliak said. "It's historic what he's achieved and we're very fortunate to be a part of that."

Every three-time MVP who is eligible for Hall of Fame enshrinement has been elected to the Hall. Alex Rodriguez and Bonds have not come up for election yet. Now Pujols makes 10, and he's building his Cooperstown case every year.

"There's three things that as a professional athlete you want," Pujols said. "You want to get to the big leagues, and I accomplished that. Winning a World Series ring, I got that. And then getting to the Hall of Fame. That's everybody's dream. Every athlete, they want to be up there in the Hall of Fame, mentioned with the greatest players to ever play this game."

The award puts Pujols on a level with a number of the game's greats, but in St. Louis, a third MVP has a special resonance. Stan Musial is the only other Cardinals player with three MVP awards, and with every year, Pujols inches a little closer to Musial's place as the greatest Cardinal ever.

Comiskey

Check out excerpts from Evaluating Baseball's Managers by Chris Jaffe over at Hardball Times.

The excerpt deals with Charles Comiskey

Tony LaRussa extends contract

ESPN reports that Tony La Russa will return to manage the St. Louis Cardinals during the next season.

Tony La Russa will return as manager of the St. Louis Cardinals, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Saturday night, citing unnamed sources.

La Russa told the Post-Dispatch he had not discussed a contract with team chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. But he expects to have a decision soon.

"I'm coming to an understanding of what I'm doing and intend to get it settled one way or the other shortly," La Russa told the Post-Dispatch.

La Russa, who during the offseason lives in Alamo, Calif., east of Oakland, was scheduled to arrive in St. Louis for a Bruce Springsteen concert Sunday night.

La Russa is the Cardinals' winningest manager (1,232 games). He ranks third all-time with 2,552 managerial wins behind Connie Mack and John McGraw. He led the Cardinals to a World Series title in 2006.

The 65-year-old La Russa has been mulling his future since the NL Central champion Cardinals were swept in the division series by the Los Angeles Dodgers on Oct. 10. His two-year, $8.5 million contract expires at the end of the month.

A seperate report confirms McGwire's joining the staff.

Sources said Hal McRae, the team's hitting coach, has been fired. Mark McGwire, the former Cardinals slugger, is expected to replace him.

Mark McGwire to replace Hal McRae as hitting coach?

That seems to be the latest from FanHouse. McGwire has been rather private since his appearance before Congress a few years ago.

Mark McGwire will end his baseball exile and accept a position with the St. Louis Cardinals as their hitting coach, a Cardinals source confirmed to FanHouse's Ed Price Sunday afternoon. He'll replace Hal McRae, who's held the position for five years. The story initially appeared on Brian McRae's Twitter account, though it's since been deleted.

McGwire played 4 1/2 seasons with St. Louis, in which he hit 220 home runs and briefly set the single-season MLB record with his 70 homers in 1998. Of course, since then he's been surrounded by steroid rumors and has more or less dropped entirely off of the baseball radar after his Congressional testimony in 2005.

This news seems to make it pretty clear that Tony La Russa, who's been close with McGwire after managing him both in Oakland and St. Louis, should be back in 2010 as the Cardinals manager. There was initially some question about that, but a report by Joe Strauss Sunday morning pointed pretty strongly towards La Russa's return. It's hard to imagine any way McGwire accepts this job without La Russa in St. Louis.

I know I'm slacking...

Here goes some more recaps...

September 11, 2009
Atlanta 1, St. Louis 0
Losing pitcher - Joel Pineiro (14-10)

September 12, 2009
Atlanta 7, St. Louis 6
Losing pitcher - Ryan Franklin (2-3)

The Cards move on to a 84-59 record.

September 14, 2009
Florida 6, St. Louis 11
Winning pitcher - Blake Hawksworth (4-0)

September 15, 2009
Florida 2, St. Louis 1
Losing pitcher - Adam Wainwright (18-8)

September 16, 2009
Florida 5, St. Louis 2
Losing pitcher - Joel Pineiro (14-11)

The Cards move to 85-62 on the season.

September 18, 2009
Chi. Cubs 2, St. Louis 3
Winning pitcher - Ryan Franklin (3-3)

September 19, 2009
Chi. Cubs 1, St. Louis 2
Winning pitcher - Ryan Franklin (4-3)

September 20, 2009
Chi. Cubs 6, St. Louis 3
Losing pitcher - Mitchell Boggs (2-3)

The Cards finish the series against the Cubs for the year and move to 87-63 on the season.

September 21, 2009
St. Louis 7, Houston 3
Winning pitcher - Kyle Lohse (6-8)

September 22, 2009
St. Louis 11, Houston 2
Winning pitcher - Joel Pineiro (15-11)

September 23, 2009
St. Louis 0, Houston 3
Losing pitcher - John Smoltz (3-7)

The Cards finish the series 89-64 on the season.

September 25, 2009
St. Louis 1, Colorado 2
Losing pitcher - Trever Miller (4-1)

September 26, 2009
St. Louis 6, Colorado 3
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (19-8)
SV - Ryan Franklin (38)

September 27, 2009
St. Louis 3, Colorado 4
Losing pitcher - Kyle Lohse (6-9)

The Cards finish the series at 90-66 on the season.

September 29, 2009
St. Louis 2, Cincinnati 7
Losing pitcher - Joel Pineiro (15-12)

September 30, 2009
St. Louis 1, Cincinnati 6
Losing pitcher - John Smoltz (3-8)

October 1, 2009
St. Louis 13, Cincinnati 0
Winning pitcher - Chris Carpenter (17-4)

The Cards move on to 91-68 on the season.

October 2, 2009
Milwaukee 12, St. Louis 6
Losing pitcher - Kyle McClellan (4-4)

October 3, 2009
Milwaukee 5, St. Louis 4
Losing pitcher - Kyle Lohse (6-10)

October 4, 2009
Milwaukee 9, St. Louis 7
Losing pitcher - Todd Wellemeyer (7-10)

The Cards finish the season with a 91-71 record. They won the NL Central and face the Los Angeles Dodgers tonight in the NLDS.

Cards vs. Brewers

September 7, 2009
St. Louis 3, Milwaukee 0
Winning pitcher - Chris Carpenter (16-3)

September 8, 2009
St. Louis 4, Milwaukee 3
Winning pitcher - Blake Hawksworth (3-0)
SV - Kyle McClellan (3)

September 9, 2009
St. Louis 5, Milwaukee 1
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (18-7)

The Cards finished the series with a 84-57 record.

All the recaps in one post

Things will go quicker this way...

DODGERS
July 27, 2009
Los Angeles 1, St. Louis 6
Winning pitcher - Chris Carpenter (9-3)
SV - Ryan Franklin (23)

July 28, 2009
Los Angeles 0, St. Louis 10
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (12-6)

July 29, 2009
Los Angeles 2, St. Louis 3
Winning pitcher - Blake Hawksworth (1-0)

July 30, 2009
Los Angeles 5, St. Louis 3
Losing pitcher - Dennys Reyes (0-2)

The Cards take three games out of four, and finish the series with a 56-49 record.

ASTROS
July 31, 2009
Houston 3, St. Louis 4
Winning pitcher - Trever Miller (3-0)
SV - Ryan Franklin (24)

August 1, 2009
Houston 1, St. Louis 3
Winning pitcher - Chris Carpenter (10-3)

August 2, 2009
Houston 2, St. Louis 0
Losing pitcher - Adam Wainwright (12-7)

The Cards win two and move on to 58-50.

METS
August 4, 2009
St. Louis 12, N.Y. Mets 7
Winning pitcher - Kyle McClellan (3-2)

August 5, 2009
St. Louis 0, N.Y. Mets 9
Losing pitcher - Kyle Lohse (4-7)

The Cards split the series and move to 59-51.

PIRATES
August 7, 2009
St. Louis 6, Pittsburgh 4
Winning pitcher - Chris Carpenter (11-3)
SV - Ryan Franklin (25)

August 8, 2009
St. Louis 5, Pittsburgh 3
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (13-7)
SV - Ryan Franklin (26)

August 9, 2009
St. Louis 7, Pittsburgh 3
Winning pitcher - Joel Pineiro (10-9)
SV - Kyle McClellan (2)

The Cards take 3 and move to 62-51 on the year.

REDS
August 10, 2009
Cincinnati 1, St. Louis 4
Winning pitcher - Kyle Lohse (5-7)
SV - Ryan Franklin (27)

August 11, 2009
Cincinnati 5, St. Louis 4
Losing pitcher - Mitchell Boggs (1-1)

August 12, 2009
Cincinnati 2, St. Louis 5
Winning pitcher - Chris Carpenter (12-3)
SV - Ryan Franklin (28)

The Cards move to 64-52 on the year.

PADRES
August 14, 2009
San Diego 2, St. Louis 9
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (14-7)

August 15, 2009
San Diego 4, St. Louis 7
Winning pitcher - Joel Pineiro (11-9)
SV - Ryan Franklin (29)

August 16, 2009
San Diego 5, St. Louis 7
Winning pitcher - Trever Miller (4-0)

The Cards move to 67-52 on the season.

DODGERS
August 17, 2009
St. Louis 3, Los Angeles 2
Winning pitcher - Chris Carpenter (13-3)
SV - Ryan Franklin (30)

August 18, 2009
St. Louis 3, Los Angeles 7
Losing pitcher - Mitchell Boggs (1-2)

August 19, 2009
St. Louis 3, Los Angeles 2
Winning pitcher - Kyle McClellan (4-2)
SV - Ryan Franklin (31)

The Cards move to 69-53 on the year.

PADRES
August 20, 2009
St. Louis 5, San Diego 1
Winning pitcher - Joel Pineiro (12-9)

August 21, 2009
St. Louis 0, San Diego 4
Losing pitcher - Kyle Lohse (5-8)

August 23, 2009
St. Louis 5, San Diego 2
Winning pitcher - John Smoltz (3-5)
SV - Ryan Franklin (32)

The Cards move on to 72-54 on the season.

ASTROS
August 25, 2009
Houston 0, St. Louis 1
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (15-7)
SV - Ryan Franklin (33)

August 26, 2009
Houston 2, St. Louis 3
Winning pitcher - Joel Pineiro (13-9)
SV - Ryan Franklin (34)

August 27, 2009
Houston 4, St. Louis 3
Losing pitcher - Kyle McClellan (4-3)

The Cards move to 74-55.

NATIONALS
August 28, 2009
Washington 2, St. Louis 3
Winning pitcher - Jason Motte (4-4)

August 29, 2009
Washington 4, St. Louis 9
Winning pitcher - Mitchell Boggs (2-2)

August 30, 2009
Washington 1, St. Louis 2
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (16-7)
SV - Ryan Franklin (35)

The Cards move to 77-55.

BREWERS
September 1, 2009
Milwaukee 6, St. Louis 7
Winning pitcher - Joel Pineiro (14-9)
SV - Ryan Franklin (36)

September 2, 2009
Milwaukee 3, St. Louis 10
Winning pitcher - Chris Carpenter (15-3)

September 3, 2009
Milwaukee 4, St. Louis 3
Losing pitcher - John Smoltz (3-6)

The Cards move to 79-56.

PIRATES
September 4, 2009
St. Louis 14, Pittsburgh 7
Winning pitcher - Adam Wainwright (17-7)

September 5, 2009
St. Louis 2, Pittsburgh 1
Winning pitcher - Blake Hawksworth (2-0)
SV - Ryan Franklin (37)

September 6, 2009
St. Louis 5, Pittsburgh 6
Losing pitcher - Ryan Franklin (2-2)

The Cards finish the series with a season record of 81-57.