Baseball College

Can you believe it? I sure can’t.

Let me give you a rundown of the way my day went. I was unable to post a game 5 preview because I had to take a section of the CPA exam. Needless to say, in the hours before the test, I was very nervous. Once the test was over, I had a work party for my girlfriend that I was required to attend, which also makes me a little nervous because I know I’m going to be uncomfortable for about 95% of the party. As soon as that was over, it was time to get nervous for game 5. All in all, one of the most nervous days of my life, but one of the most rewarding as well.

I am now 24 years old and was born on game 1 of the 1982 World Series, a game which the Cardinals lost 10-0 to the Milwaukee Brewers. I really thought that was a bad omen for me and Cardinal fans in general, and for 24 years, it was. This World Series win is something that blows my mind and puts me on cloud nine at the same time.

I’ve been waiting for this day to come my whole life, and it is here when I least expected it. It comes when a team that wins 83 games in the regular season comes to life at the right time. It comes when a team that loses their closer (blessing in disguise) has to turn to a lanky rookie to close out games. It comes in a year when “the experts are idiots” according to a sign hung at Busch Stadium last night. Nobody picked the Cardinals to win, and I think that’s what makes this so sweet. ESPN.com had their playoff predictions, and one out of 18 “experts” picked the Cardinals to win in the first round.

I have a lot of respect for what the Tigers have done in the last few years, and I have all the respect in the world for Jim Leyland. That being said, I almost feel bad about all the errors they committed in the World Series. It was getting downright unbelievable towards the end, and I just hope that the reflections on this World Series give credit to the Cardinals for playing well, not getting lucky on account of the Tigers’ misfortune.

2006 is in the books in the baseball world, and what a way to end it. Our 10th World Championship after a 24 year wait - how sweet it is!

In the words of you know who, “Go Crazy Folks!” Go crazy.

I’ve been away from the deck (if you will) for a couple months now as life events have kept me from writing on my beloved Cardinals. However, just in the nick of time, I’m back to write about this most improbable trip to the 2006 World Series.

I was fortunate enough to get tickets for game 5 of the NLCS, and what a game that was! I was sitting right along the left field line, so the foul pole was a bit in the way. The scene was absolutely crazy with all those people waving their towels and screaming at the top of their lungs. It was definitely the most intense, most important, most entertaining game I’ve ever been to. I’ve been to three other playoff games, Game 1 of the 2000 NLCS, Game 4 of the 2004 WS, and Game 2 of the 2005 NLDS, but absolutely none of them even come close to comparing to this one.

We got to the park early and walked around the stadium at field level, seeing all kinds of players closer up than I’ve ever seen them before. El Duque was throwing a softball around in the outfield before the game - I guess that’s some sort of training that he does to keep his arm in shape. Oliver Perez and Billy Wagner were running sprints within arm’s length of me - another cool sight to see. Hmmm, maybe I should’ve tripped Perez so he couldn’t have pitched a gem against us in Game 7.. nah, didn’t really matter anyway.

You all know how the game went - intense all the way to the finish, and that’s that.

As for game 7, can you believe it? I had some sort of feeling that either Reyes, Beltran, or Delgado would have a chance to end the game, and two of them got that chance. Some people are going to say, “how do you get paid so much money to watch strike three go by?” Well, that curve ball from Wainwright was the nastiest pitch I’ve ever seen him throw, so I am pretty sure he’s not the only rich #3 hitter that would’ve been frozen by that pitch.

What a fantastic series, a series that went completely backwards from the way it should have gone. Weaver v Glavine in game 5, Weaver wins. Carpenter v Maine in game 6, Maine wins. Suppan against Perez in game 7, both get a no decision, dueling each other to the finish. Yadier Molina hits the series winning home run because he’s the least potent hitter in our lineup (at least in the regular season).

It’s been a wild ride, but it’s not over yet! Cards in 7, mark it down.

How are we doing against the NL Central this year?  25-30.  Against the Cubs, the second worst team in the NL, 3-10.  Against the Pirates, the worst team in the NL, a barely over .500 7-5.  This weekend’s sweep was again, hard to watch, just like all the other series’ sweeps we’ve witnessed this year.

Valatan over at VEB writes a very good post about the fact that we don’t need to be the best team in the league to win the WS; we just need to get hot at the right time.  Getting hot at the right time is all well and good, but with the lifeless baseball this team is playing, a brand of baseball that can’t beat the worst team in the NL, how are we going to get hot at the right time, or, ever?

I mentioned in my last post/rant/vent that I think Mark Mulder is the key to our playoff chances.  I’ve decided to add a new key to our chances:  losing first place.

If the Cardinals happen to play poorly against the Reds in this upcoming series and suck against the Cubs over the weekend, it is very possible that we will be out of first place.  With all the crappy baseball the Cardinals have played over the course of the year, they have had no reason to play with a sense of urgency.  The most pressure being applied to them is by a team who is playing little better than .500 baseball, and after all the poor baseball the Cardinals have played, the Reds still find themselves trailing these birds in the standings.

If and when the Reds overtake the Cardinals in the standings, I believe the Cardinals will be forced to play a more inspired brand of baseball.  If losing first place for a period of time cannot inspire them, I believe that we should set our sights on the 2007 version of this team, because the emotion and passion is completely drained.

Is there a single facet of this team that has proven to be reliable throughout the course of this season?  I realize 162 games is a long time, and it is very hard to remain consistent throughout, but I have seen very little consistency at any point this year.

Our ace pitcher can’t be relied upon anymore.  Maybe that’s a bit extreme, but his last 3 starts have been absolutely nothing to write home about, and as the ace, when given a lead, you must protect it.

Obviously, our bullpen can’t be relied upon.  I’ve never put a ton of stock in Jason Isringhausen because he makes me pull my hair out every time he gets a save.

Our offense had chances to put the game away tonight, and didn’t.  They put some runs on the board tonight, but I think I would hear little argument after saying the Cardinals have been less than impressive at the plate this year, especially recently.

Our defense has been ok - but I can remember games, namely against the Cubs, where our defense cough Scott Rolen cough has blown a game for us.

Is there any relief in sight?  Mark Mulder, possibly, could give this team a kick start.  On the other hand, it’s been documented that the team chemistry within the clubhouse sucks, and albeit an intangible, I believe it’s a very important part of a team’s success.

Except for Pujols’ heroics earlier in the season, I’ve really disliked this team as a whole, period.  I don’t know what it is, but there just isn’t a whole lot to get excited about.  I want them to get to the playoffs, but I don’t think I’ll be as heartbroken as I may have been a year or two ago if they fail to get there.

It was a necessary rant for me, my apologies.

PS: The Walk-Off HR was absolutely murdered… at least it wasn’t a cheap bandbox home run that we see so often in Cincinatti.

Nobody knew it, but I made it down to the New Busch for the first time this past weekend.  I took in the Friday and Saturday game, so yes, I was a part of snapping this ugly 8 game losing streak.  I was sitting in the nosebleed seats on Friday night on the first base line, but the nosebleeders still give you a very good view of the field.  Saturday night, interestingly enough, I got a bloody nose at the game, but I was sitting right behind the Cardinals bullpen, 2 rows up.  Go figure.  A few observations about the game from a first hand perspective:

1.  David Eckstein does not look comfortable at the plate, and at times it looks like he’s trying to find a quick way to get himself out of the batters box.  He’s not being as patient, not fighting off as many pitches, and swinging much more early in the count.  That’s a bit scary, because the leadoff hitter sets the tone for a game quite often.

2.  Chris Duncan is a bad defensive left fielder, and an even worse defensive right fielder.

3.   Pujols is still not quite right.  He’s still hitting a lot of foul pop ups, those pop ups typically being laser beams when he’s on.

4.  Edmonds catch on Saturday night was incredible.

A few other tidbits from the weekend involved me getting an autograph and picture with So Taguchi and John Rodriguez.  So was as friendly as you would expect him to be, all smiles, very respectful.  John Rodriguez, on the other hand, responded to my politeness with some form of grunting, mumbling, what have you.  He seemed like he thought he was better than I, and while he’s got my number on the diamond, I don’t think he can make the claim that he’s a better person than I after 15 seconds of conversation.  The autographs and pictures were an organized thing, being held just behind the new team store at Busch.

All in all, a good first weekend in the New Busch - all things considered, I’m fine with a 2 game split in my stay there.  I wasn’t sure we would get one while I was there.

How the hell are we still in first place right now? It isn’t because of the stellar at bats we’re getting from our lead-off man, nor is it the power of Scott Rolen. We are still in first place because our competition can’t capitalize on our horribleness. For instance, let’s take our only remaining serious competition, the Reds.

During our 8 game losing streak back in June, the Reds could only muster a 3-4 record. In our recent six game slide, the Reds are a mere 2-4. This means that the Reds only gained 5 games on us when they had potential to gain 14. Being realistic, had they played their typical baseball, they would’ve gone 8-5 or, more likely, 7-6, which would leave them a half game or a game and a half out.

For some reason, 3 1/2 games seems like a much more comfortable lead. However, maybe the Reds taking over the Central lead would be a little kick in the ass for this lifeless ballclub we refer to as the 2006 Cardinals. We’ve tried picking up too many players off the scrap heap, and even though we’re still in first place, it does seem like it is coming back to haunt us each time these players step on to the field. I don’t think a guy like an August acquisition of Shawn Green would help that much, and to be honest, I really feel like only one thing can give us a shot at participating in the 2006 fall classic:

Mark Mulder.

If Mulder comes back healthy with some life on his pitches, it will allow the Cardinals to bump Weaver (if they bump Reyes I’ll go bonkers) out of the rotation, thus giving us a legitimate chance to win day in and day out, and will give Weaver a chance to fix whatever the hell is wrong with him. We have only seen glimpses of Mark Mulder at his finest, and although it’s a long shot, if we could see him at his finest once again down the stretch, we might just be playing baseball deep in the month of October.

**EDIT** I guess Bryan Burwell agrees - one of the first times I’ve agreed with him on something Cardinals related in quite some time.

If you haven’t yet heard, Jorge Sosa is coming to St Louis from Atlanta in return for triple A reliever Rich Scalamandre I guess my question is: why waste time on this deal? Is it a precursor for something else, or is Cardinal management just trying to appear busy at the trade deadline even though they have no intent on improving this ballclub further?

If Sosa stays in the bullpen, fine, but if he is thrown into the rotation, I will ask my question again…. Why waste time on this deal?

Welcome to STL Jorge, I guess.

Here’s the recap on the Luna/Belliard trade from the Cardinal blogopsphere:

*****

The Birdwatch enjoys the idea of pushing Aaron Miles that much closer to triple A.

Diaspora feels that the Cards are merely just…. shuffling? their players around.

Get Up Baby thinks that our manager has limitations - and on this trade topic I can’t disagree with Get Up.

VEB thinks the trade may help marginally at best, and does some summing up from the media’s perspective as well.

26th Man wonders if our focus is in the right place - good point 26.

In Walt We Trust has plenty to hate and a bit to like about this trade.

Reverend Redbird keeps it gangsta’ with his post title - as for the trade, he’s not a huge fan. Is anyone really though?

*****

General concensus is - ok trade, but is that the best we can do? Also, why do we love veteran players so much? Are youthful players incapable of getting the job done? Miles playing less will mean more for the Cardinals offense, hopefully.

Will the deadline bring anything more for the Cardinals? I’m locked in to ESPN’s trade deadline coverage and will be one of the first (hopefully) to report a deal that goes down in Cardinal nation. Let’s hope there is one, and let’s hope it’s more significant than the Luna deal.

This is not how I wanted to spend my Friday evening.  A few points:

1.  So Taguchi - This is something I never thought I would see out of one of the most fundamentally sound outfielders in the game.  An extremely shallow fly ball by Matt Stairs with runners on 1st and 3rd was caught by Taguchi, but he didn’t get behind it and get his momentum going forward like he should have.  I’m guessing he was assuming that the runner on third wouldn’t tag since the fly ball was so shallow, but he did, Taguchi made a 15 hop throw to the plate, and the Royals took the lead.

2.  Jim Edmonds - looks absolutely terrible at the plate, thank god Burgos threw a pitch in his soup can hot zone in the 10th for his lone hit of the game.  He better figure out something quickly, or his stay in the two hole will be really short lived.

3.  Angel Hernandez - I am not one to gripe about umpiring, bad calls, etc., but I can’t let this one go.  Loogy Johnson threw a pitch that split the heart of the plate with two strikes which would’ve made the 9th inning a lot less interesting, but Hernandez called it a ball.  Molina had already started his wind up to throw it around the horn.  Hernandez then proceeds to brush off the plate, facing Molina, scolding him the whole time, like it was Yadi’s fault he missed a blatantly obvious strike call.  Tssk Tssk Angel, don’t do that again.

4.  Ninth Inning - Yes, the bases were loaded with one out in the ninth, no we didn’t score, yes, both of our pinch hitters struck out, but I have to tip my hat to both of them.  Burgos throws all sorts of gas with a decent enough off speed pitch, and both hitters, Spezio and Miles, took their at bats 7+ pitches.

My pro of the night goes to Jeff Suppan because of his know-what-you’re-getting demeanor, and once again, he left the game with a lead.  He gave his team a great chance to win, and against the Royals, that should be all we need to put a W in the books.  My con once again goes to Jim Edmonds, and probably will continue to do so until he figures it out at the plate.

First off - here’s to hoping that the oldest and smartest baseball journalist ever, Peter Gammons, recovers from his brain aneurysm.  On to the game.
I’m already getting sick of thinking of creative titles symbolizing the Cardinals losing streak, so hopefully tomorrow the streak will end.  I’m pissed off about so many things tonight, so I’ll start with what’s most fresh in my mind.

1.  Jim Edmonds - It seems like he sometimes has amnesia.  Let me explain - he knows that he has a lot of success going to the opposite field - and since pitchers like to work him outside, it seems like the logical place to hit the ball.  Tonight, he attempted to pull the ball every time, and every time he either grounded out to second base or first base.  He’s pulling off the ball, and his swing has been weakened as a result, producing those weak ground balls that my unborn son could field.

2.  This team - It seems like we are in the playoffs right now - pick whichever series you like: 2004 WS, 2005 LCS, any other series in the playoffs we looked flat in, etc.  It just looks like we have no desire to win at this stage of the season, and our offense and pitching are suffering as a result.

3.  Adam Wainwright - The guy in our bullpen that’s supposed to be by far the most reliable member can’t throw a strike tonight.  His location was terrible, and he provided the Indians with an insurance run that enabled Wickman to pitch to Pujols with the bases empty in the ninth, meaning he was not the tying run.

4.  Juan Encarnacion - In accordance with point #2 above, Juan’s defense tonight on one particular play was downright embarrasing.  Looking flat includes not hustling, and because Juan did not hustle after a base hit down the line, the Indians leadoff hitter was able to stretch a should be single into a hustle double relatively easily.  Turns out it had no impact on the game as a whole, but it’s the little things like that which can lose a ball game real quickly for a team.

I didn’t think Reyes looked too impressive tonight, but he got the job done, and his not too impressive was a helluva lot better than a few others’ best recently.   The Cardinals staff has turned into a bunch of nibblers regardless of the count, and it drives me crazy to watch them work deep into counts because of the nibble factor.  Reyes goes out there and does his best to challenge hitters each and every at bat, and for that I thank him, because tonight was a game I was actually excited to watch.  He gets my “pro” tonight, and Edmonds gets my “con”.  Happy birthday Jimmy.