Commish on the news

Rick Hummel had two very good articles on the news today.

The first was Bob Gibson and Whitey Herzog's reactions to Pujols' leaving for Anaheim.

Bob Gibson, the Cardinals' Hall-of-Fame pitcher, said today he would have liked to have seen Albert Pujols stay in St.Louis, but with the kind of money being offered, it's hard to turn down the kind of offer that the Angels made.

"I hate to see him go, I really do. He should have been a Cardinal for life," Gibson said. "It's tough to turn that (kind of money) down."

Will it be a hard day for St. Louis fans?

"I would think it's got to be a hard day for Pujols, too. Aside from the fact that you're making a lot of more money, there's got to be a lot of emotional things there.

"He's got a lot of ties in St. Louis -- his family, his friends, so many organizations ... "[...]

Herzog said he was "worried" last spring when the Cardinals didn't re-sign Pujols. "That was big," said Herzog. "I thought at the time they should have come to a deal. Maybe say, ‘You'll be Cardinal for life and you'll get ‘x' amont of dollars till you're 65 years old.'

"But still I thought a deal might be worked out. I thought he could come back because of his ties to St. Louis and that it's a great place to play.

"What it boils down to again is that money talks.

"I don't blame the Cardinals. They made a helluva offer although I don't know how they would have structured it.

"I'm sure a lot of people in St. Louis are up in arms and calling the Cardinals cheapstakes. I don't think that's true. I think they negotiated a very fair contract."

But, said Herzog, "You can't deny what Albert did. He had a gimpy leg and a bad elbow and played every day. He was the Cardinals."

The second article was showing where Pujols stands in St. Louis compared to Stan "The Man" Musial.

If Pujols' next 10 years would have been anything like his first 11, the Cardinals' first baseman legitimately could have challenged, at least statistically, the revered Musial as the Greatest Cardinal of Them All."

Now, with Pujols fleeing to the Los Angeles Angels, Musial, as he has had for the last 50 or 60 years, will hold that title in undisputed fashion -- for our lifetimes and those of many others.

Pujols would have had to step it up a bit to catch Musial for career batting average as a Cardinal. He finished three points behind at .328 and 1,557 hits behind at 3,630-2,073.

Home runs would have been no contest. Musial wound up his 22-season career with 475 homers as a Cardinal. Pujols already has 445 on his way probably to 700 or more.

Runs batted in, the third part of a hitter's trifecta, also would have fallen to Pujols. Musial ended with 1,949. Pujols already has 1,329 and would have had to average only 70 or so RBIs a year to pass Musial there.

Cards statements on Pujols

Cardinals Chairman and CEO Bill DeWitt, Jr.:
“We are disappointed that we were unable to reach an agreement to keep Albert Pujols in St. Louis. Albert is a great champion and we will always be thankful for his many achievements in a Cardinals uniform, as well as his contributions to the St. Louis community. I have the highest regard for Albert both personally and professionally, and appreciate his direct involvement in this process. I would like our fans to know that we tried our best to make Albert a lifetime Cardinal but unfortunately we were unable to make it happen.”

Cardinals Sr. Vice President & General Manager John Mozeliak:
“Albert has been a special player in this organization since the moment he was drafted over 12 years ago. His accomplishments on and off the field have been spectacular. I wish him well in the next phase of his career.”

Pujols leaves Cards, goes Hollywood

Albert Pujols has decided to leave the greatest baseball city in the world to head west to Los Angeles, where he will play for the Angels.

Reports are that it is a 10 year deal for $250 million. I'm also hearing reports that there is no opt-out contained in the contract.

It cements the fact that Stan Musial remains the greatest Cardinal of all time. If there is one thing that fans appreciate the most, it's the guys that put their heart and soul into the organization and don't care about how high their salary is.

Mark McGwire fell in love with the city and the fans--he gave the club a hometown discount.

Ten years at a quarter-billion dollars, honestly, is too much to pay especially when you look at the age factor and injury factor.

Could St. Louis still be a contender for the playoffs next season? It's hard to say. We're losing a lot of offensive production in Albert Pujols' departure for Hollywood.

Albert Pujols is one of the once-in-a-generation players and will surely be a lock for the Hall of Fame but I don't place him in the same category as Lebron James but this is one of those that will take some time to really digest.

Curt Schilling says Pujols would do better in St. Louis than Hollywood.

The legacy factor is where one must really think about things. Pujols could have been the greatest Cardinal of all time but as of now, he is in second place to many of Stan's numbers.

2012 BBWAA Hall of Fame Ballot

The candidates on the ballot this winter for induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame next summer include:
Jeff Bagwell
Jeromy Burnitz
Vinny Castilla
Juan Gonzalez
Brian Jordan
Barry Larkin
Javy Lopez
Edgar Martinez
Don Mattingly
Fred McGriff
Mark McGwire
Jack Morris
Bill Mueller
Terry Mulholland
Dale Murphy
Phil Nevin
Rafael Palmeiro
Brad Radke
Tim Raines
Tim Salmon
Ruben Sierra
Lee Smith
Alan Trammell
Larry Walker
Bernie Williams
Tony Womack
Eric Young

Of that list, those appearing on the first time are Williams, Mueller, Sierra, Castilla, Salmon, Lopez, Womack, Mulholland, Radke, Burnitz, Jordan, Young and Nevin.

Returning candidates: Don Mattingly, Fred McGriff, Mark McGwire, Dale Murphy, Tim Raines, Alan Trammell, Edgar Martinez, and Lee Smith.

At some point over the next few days or weeks, I'll look at their stats and tell you who I would vote for.

Jeff Luhnow set to take over Houston Astros

According to sources, Jeff Luhnow has been named as the new General Manager of the Houston Astros. This now makes two GMs in the NL Central that have come from the Cardinals organization.

Someone tweeted the information, then went ahead to delete the tweet before making their account private. When dealing with social media, it's important to remember that actions have consequences. The tweet was made and the damage was done. We offer our congrats to Jeff Luhnow nonetheless.

Mark Buehrle

The Cardinals are shopping either Kyle Lohse or Jake Westbrook to possibly make room for pitcher Mark Buehrle. I like the idea that this could very well happen. I've been wanting Buehrle to join the Cardinals for several years now. He's a hometown kid. The question is: What kind of hometown discount would he take?

Ron Santo inducted to HOF

Ron Santo has finally got his due. Too late in my opinion as he is not alive to see it. I may be a die-hard St. Louis fan but I know HOF-caliber ballplayers when I see them.

Santo was the lone candidate among a ballot of 10 men, whose greatest contributions were realized between 1947 and 1972, to receive the 12 votes necessary to earn 75 percent and election to the Hall of Fame by the Golden Era Committee. Santo received 15 votes from the 16-member electorate and will be enshrined into the Baseball Hall of Fame on July 22nd in Cooperstown.

"The numbers of are there," said Committee member and Hall of Famer Billy Williams. "Everybody saw the numbers, the home runs, the Gold Gloves. And I think everyone looked at it with a different view saying, 'This guy should be in the Hall of Fame.'"

Santo died on December 3, 2010, but his wife believes he is celebrating today.

"I am sure he is smiling down on this day," she said. "I am a believer in what's meant to be. I believe he was meant to be in the Hall, unfortunately it couldn't be during his lifetime. But I think the message is to never give up. This was always his dream."

Santo becomes the 12th major league third baseman to be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, the first elected at the position since Wade Boggs in 2005. Including three selections from the Negro leagues, there are now 15 third basemen in the Hall of Fame. In 15 major league seasons, Santo compiled a .277 lifetime batting average, with 2,254 hits in 2,243 games, while totaling 1,331 runs batted in and 365 doubles.[...]

Santo played for 14 seasons with the Chicago Cubs and one with the Chicago White Sox and was a nine-time All-Star. He hit 342 career home runs and won five Rawlings Gold Glove Awards for his defense at third base. He was honored by the Cubs Walk of Fame, becoming a member of the inaugural Class of 1992 and was selected to the club's all-century team in 1999. He was also a Cubs broadcaster for 21 years.[...]

"[During the voting process], some people brought out more than the numbers of Ron Santo," said Williams. "And talked about what he did for the community."

Here's how the voting went down:

Results of the Golden Era Ballot (12 votes needed for election): Ron Santo (15 votes, 93.75%); Jim Kaat (10 votes, 62.5%); Gil Hodges (9 votes, 56.25%); Minnie Minoso (9 votes, 56.25%); Tony Oliva (8 votes, 50%); Buzzie Bavasi, Ken Boyer, Charlie Finley, Allie Reynolds and Luis Tiant each received less than three votes.

The 16-member Golden Era Committee was comprised of Hall of Fame members Hank Aaron, Pat Gillick, Al Kaline, Ralph Kiner, Tommy Lasorda, Juan Marichal, Brooks Robinson and Billy Williams; major league executives Paul Beeston (Blue Jays), Bill DeWitt (Cardinals), Roland Hemond (Diamondbacks), Gene Michael (Yankees) and Al Rosen (retired); and veteran media members Dick Kaegel, Jack O'Connell and Dave Van Dyck. Hall of Fame Chairman of the Board Jane Forbes Clark served as the non-voting chairman of the Golden Era Committee.

McLaughlin's future

Count me in as one that is pulling for Dan McLaughlin to return to the broadcast booth next season.

Holliday on WS win

All winners in the DVD promotional giveaway have been notified and should expect to get their DVDs this week.

Matt Holliday speaks about winning the World Series.

“It was frustrating,” he said. “It was heartbreaking to get to a Game 7 of a World Series and to realize that I had no chance to play.”

So, how did the Stillwater native balance the disappointment and the delirium?

Holliday insists it wasn't that hard. Maybe he's being modest about that. Maybe celebrating on the field and smiling in the clubhouse and spraying teammates with champagne and riding through the streets of St. Louis during the victory parade were some of the most difficult things he's ever done.

Or maybe the way he handled all of that is further evidence of why he's known as one of the good guys in baseball.

2011 World Series Highlight Film Review

You know, I had this crazy feeling that if we won the World Series that Mad Men star Jon Hamm, a Cardinals fan, would narrate the DVD film. He was not as well known in 2006 when we won seeing as Mad Men would not air until 2007. In any event, his voices provides a nice feeling while watching the highlight film.

The set comes with 2 DVDs. The second one featuring the complete instant classic that we call Game 5 of the NLDS--the winner-take-all duel between Chris Carpenter and Roy Halladay. It's interesting that that game is included as it's the only game that I didn't record due to Yom Kippur and now I have the chance to watch it in it's entirety thanks to this set. Now, if you are so inclined to get the bluray, it's all on the same disc and that comes out on December 6, 2011.

The first 15 minutes takes us from Spring Training's new hope up until the start of the World Series. It's Jon Hamm's narration that truly does serve as a bridge between the highlights. I really credit the writer (senior writer Jeff Scott) in this instance because they did a damn fine job.

Throughout the film, there are numerous interviews from the players, coaching staff, and those that cover baseball such as Bryan Burwell, Tom Verducci, and Ken Rosenthal. I didn't mind the media interviews as I felt it added to the narrative.

After Game 1, Jason Motte gets his own film crew prior to Game 2. No telling how much he actually paid for his meal.

I love how it shows a press clip just before the Game 5 coverage where Tony La Russa gets asked about the phones 6 days before Game 5. Talk about great editing!

Game 6 alone gets comments from several players describing the whole weirdness of the first several innings with each team capitalizing on the other team's mistakes. Even the final few innings, we hear the calls from all of the broadcast crews especially during the David Freese triple in the bottom of the 9th, the 10th inning when Jon Jay helps take the lead for the Cards, and finally the walk off by David Freese to save the series in the 11th inning.

Following Game 7 and the celebration footage, we're treated to footage from the parade and rally. As a sidenote, the editing and interviews were finished after Tony retired.

While I'm watching this, the premiere is going on at the Peaboxy in St. Louis. From what I am reading on twitter, and I have to echo the thoughts of some of my fellow Cardinal bloggers in the fact that MLB Productions will did outdo themselves this time around. This comes from someone who owns the 2006 highlight film. I'm not sure if it's the writing, editing, or both. Plus, it has Jon Hamm narrating and right now, that's the actor you want to narrate a film about the Cardinals.

The exclusive interviews included in the film really take it to a different level. I might add more to this post as I watch the bonus features but the film alone is worth the purchase.

Every game really does get it's justice so if you have a tight budget and cannot afford the 8 disc collector's set, I can say that I HIGHLY RECOMMEND this 2 DVD set without reservation.

PICTURE: I'm watching on a bluray player that upconverts standard DVDs to 1080pi and it is just as if I were watching the HD broadcast on TBS or FOX of the actual games.

AUDIO: President in Dolby 5.1

BONUS FEATURES:
*This Week in Baseball - Dave Duncan
*This Week in Baseball - Lance Berkman
*Prime 9 - La Russa segment
*NLDS Game 5 Last Out and Celebration
*NLCS Game 6 Last Out and Celebration
*World Series Game 3 - Pujols 3 Home Runs
*World Series Game 6 - Freese triple to tie
*World Series Game 6 - Berkman single to tie again
*World Series Game 6 - Freese Walk Off Home Run
*World Series Game 6 - Freese and Berkman Presser
*World Series Game 7 - Freese double to tie
*World Series Game 7 - Last out and celebration

The running time is 4 hours total, most of which is Game 5. The highlight film itself is closer to 90 minutes.