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Around SBN: Jerry Sandusky's Wife Tries To Run A Reporter Over

mr clutch

stroke of good luck for st louis: they don’t have to face peavy tonight. instead they’ll face a journeyman left-handed pitcher, wil ledezma, with a 5.09 career era. the cardinals always tee off on guys like this . . . .

i’m well aware that clutch hitting comes and goes; it’s not really a "skill" except in rare cases. but from a purely descriptive standpoint, skip schumaker’s achievements in the clutch so far in 2008 deserve mention. his game-winner yesterday was his 3d walk-off hit of the year, to go along with his clinching blows on april 26 (single) and may 2 (homer). he also had a 9th-inning game-winner on the road (ie, not a walkoff) on april 21 against milwaukee (double). in his 10 highest-leverage at-bats so far this year, schumaker has 7 base hits --- 4 singles, 2 doubles, and a homer --- plus a sacrifice and a "productive out" (he grounded to 2d, moving the go-ahead run to 3d base with 1 out; he later scored). that’s 7 for 9, if you’re scoring at home. the full list, courtesy of fangraphs:

levdatefoeinnscooutrunnerspitcherresult
4.65 5/2 chi 11 3-3 1 3rd c fox gw homer
4.58 4/22 mil 9 7-7 0 1st e gagne rbi single
4.36 4/21 mil 9 3-3 1 3rd d turnbow rbi double
4.33 4/25 hou 9 2-3 0 2d j valverde gb (runner advanced)
4.29 4/26 hou 9 3-3 1 1st / 2d w wright gw single
4.29 5/18 tb 9 4-4 1 1st / 2d g glover gw single
4.28 5/18 tb 8 2-4 0 1st / 2d t miller sac
3.81 5/18 tb 6 0-3 1 loaded j howell rbi single
3.43 5/10 mil 9 3-3 0 1st e gagne single
3.28 4/13 sf 8 4-7 2 loaded t walker groundout

you’ll note that 3 of the at-bats on this list occurred in yesterday’s game, in the 6th, 8th, and 9th innings. to reiterate, i’m not arguing that schumaker’s clutch performance represents a repeatable skill; in his next 10 high-leverage at-bats, he might very well go 1 for 10. (for the record, skip was 3 for 9 with a walk in his 10 highest-leverage at-bats of 2007.) but his heroics in the early going deserve some recognition.

the anti-skip of 2008 thus far is rick ankiel: in his 10 highest-leverage at-bats, he is 0 for 10 with 6 strikeouts and 4 groundouts; hasn’t even gotten the ball out of the infield. last year he was 3 for 10 with a homer in his 10 highest-leverage at-bats . . . . . chris duncan is 1 for 10 so far in 2008. oh what the hell, here’s the whole list, ordered by win probability added:

resultsnotesWPA
schumaker 7 for 9 homer, 2 doubles 1.293
glaus 3 for 7 homer, 3 walks, 3 strikeouts .781
ludwick 4 for 10 homer, 2 doubles .609
miles 4 for 8 2 walks .248
kennedy 2 for 8 walk, sac fly .055
ryan 3 for 8 walk, sac .044
izturis 1 for 6 2 walks, hbp, sac -.122
pujols 1 for 8 2 walks -.170
molina 1 for 8 2 walks -.302
duncan 1 for 10 -.567
ankiel 0 for 10 6 strikeouts -.946

intentional walks are not included on this list; pujols has been passed 3 times in high-leverage situations, but i’m not counting those. for the final time, this list is not intended to identify who’s a clutch player and who’s a choker; it describes what has happened so far this year, but that bears little if any relation to what may happen going forward.

items:

  • welcome to the big leagues, chris perez --- and jason motte may not be far behind. he struck out the side in the 9th yesterday to preserve a 1-0 win and earn his first save as perez’s replacement in memphis. motte pitched to 7 batters over the weekend and struck out 6 of’m; the other guy singled.
  • in the same game, mitch boggs threw 7 innings of 2-hit, no-run ball with the following outfield playing behind him: gabe johnson, a catcher, in left field; joe mather, a first baseman, in center; and nick stavinoha, a first baseman who converted to outfield two years ago, in right field. boggs is making a powerful case for promotion --- he’s 4-1 with a 3.33 era; striking guys out, avoiding walks, keeping the ball in the park, and getting groundballs.
  • the 1986 sim-strat-o-cardinals are tied 1-1 with the yankees in the world series . the bronx bombers roughed up john tudor yesterday.
  • david eckstein sighting: were y’all aware that he’s been on the DL since may 6? i wasn’t . . . . he committed 6 errors in his first 30 games.

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eckstein

didn’t play any of the three games in philadelphia over the weekend, i believe… did he just come off the DL? link goes to wil ledezma’s B-R page…

go cards, o's, and phillies.

...boiler up.

by moboiler on May 19, 2008 9:28 AM EDT reply actions  

Again, what some of our players have done this year

is just unbelievable. I NEVER expected Schu to do what he’s done this year. Nor Lud.

by sdrone on May 19, 2008 9:32 AM EDT reply actions  

Outfield conundrum

Skip has exceeded expectations and is playing well enough to keep us from seeing what Barton can do every day.

Ludwick has been a monster.

Duncan is a valuable piece when healthy, as is Ankiel who has been a revelation in the field while streaky with the bat.

I guess Mo is probably working the phones, but none of these guys is going to fetch all that much. They are serviceable for our needs. But Mather needs to be up. The guy is raking and the Cardinals need some pop (re: LOB). I don’t understand why they don’t give Rick a couple of weeks to rest and see what Joe can do.

by apierce on May 19, 2008 9:42 AM EDT reply actions  

Dude...

You jinxed us with the “always tee off on guys like this…”
I can see it now – “Journeyman chucklehead pitches no-hitter against Cards; prognosticating blogger at fault”.

:)

I have discovered in twenty years of moving around a ball park, that the knowledge of the game is usually in inverse proportion to the price of the seats. ~Bill Veeck

by bukowski on May 19, 2008 9:47 AM EDT reply actions  

I believe it was a tongue-in-cheek comment.

Baseball's only fun if you're playing it, watching it, or thinking about it.

by Eckstreem on May 19, 2008 9:54 AM EDT up reply actions  

poor pitchers

As long as the Cards continue to punish the better pitchers, then I’m okay with that. But I laughed out loud at the comment. Definitely sarcasm.

"Give a man a fire, and he’ll be warm for a night. Set him on fire and he’ll be warm for the rest of his life."

by BigMOman on May 19, 2008 11:30 AM EDT up reply actions  

Regardless

of the sarcasm (which I didn’t pick up on due to my generally dour nature), he still jinxed us.

Be wary of the vengeful baseball gods – for they do not know sarcasm, witticism – only irony.

I have discovered in twenty years of moving around a ball park, that the knowledge of the game is usually in inverse proportion to the price of the seats. ~Bill Veeck

by bukowski on May 19, 2008 4:45 PM EDT up reply actions  

Barton

I agree with others who have said it would be nice of Mo could work a deal with the Indians to get Barton under contract and send him down. That would give him steady ab in Memphis and bring Mather up to provide some much needed pop in the lineup.

With Ank healthy I would like to see if this lineup could slug:

Kennedy 2b
Ankiel cf
Pujols 1b
Ludwick lf
Glaus 3b
Mather rf
Molina c
Ryan/Izturis ss
Pitcher

2-7 all would have extra bases potential.

by paposse on May 19, 2008 9:52 AM EDT reply actions  

egad

kennedy at leadoff? I would rather see ryan there, but its a mute point. Cleveland would readily take barton back, he wasn’t protected because he was hurt. I believe some said they already had trade talks and they went no where.

"Textbooks are Soviet propaganda" - Rev. Jerry Falwell

by elirock83 on May 19, 2008 9:58 AM EDT up reply actions  

Moot point.

Sorry. I don’t mean to be a grammar nazi. Because I make a lot of mistakes when I type up post. But this is one of those things that people get wrong all the time because no one ever told them it was moot and not mute.

Anyway. Yes we talked to Cleveland about a trade for Barton. They wanted nothing of it. Im sure they are hoping they can get him back after what he did in spring training and his limited ABs this season.

by Evilfrog on May 19, 2008 10:03 AM EDT up reply actions  

stalled talks in May

do not close out he possibility of a trade for Barton. Cleveland’s bargaining position goes down as the clock clicks (but I wish Tony could find Brian more ABs).

by jjray on May 19, 2008 11:11 AM EDT up reply actions  

be careful Evilfrog

people will use poor grammar irregardless of your comments. ;-)

"Give a man a fire, and he’ll be warm for a night. Set him on fire and he’ll be warm for the rest of his life."

by BigMOman on May 19, 2008 11:31 AM EDT up reply actions  

Moot points

a) It’s a lexical , not a grammatical error (another one of those things people get wrong all the time)
b) ‘mute’ for ‘moot’ is a folk-etymological error occasioned by the fact that ‘moot’ has evolved two contradictory meanings
c) in consequence ‘moot’ will probably disappear from the lexicon and be replaced by ‘mute’ within a generation or two. Eliroc83 is on the cutting edge of our evolving language.

by stoneyb on May 19, 2008 2:45 PM EDT up reply actions  

this begs the question

of why we keep returning to the same stomping ground of lexical errors when, for all intensive purposes, most of us could care less.

by mattybobo on May 19, 2008 3:36 PM EDT up reply actions  

LOL

Awesome.

There are 10 types of people in the world. Those who understand binary, and those who don't.

by Mr Clean on May 19, 2008 3:41 PM EDT up reply actions  

It's because

It’s a doggy-dog world

Cardinal fan in the heart of Braves country
Track 'em Tigers - An SB Nation Blog for Auburn Tigers fans

by Mr Redbird on May 19, 2008 5:11 PM EDT up reply actions  

Surely not!

Why or how would “mute” ever replace “moot”? It’s like saying “are” will replace “our” just because some people can’t get their usage right.

by MdRedbirdFreak on May 19, 2008 4:37 PM EDT up reply actions  

You too are two silly

"Give a man a fire, and he’ll be warm for a night. Set him on fire and he’ll be warm for the rest of his life."

by BigMOman on May 19, 2008 5:03 PM EDT up reply actions  

Its not that their silly its that there interest in grammar is a little outrageous lolz

I cant figure out who’s more ridiculous then who i.e. caring about moot/mute. Your all ridiculous. It’s a blog you could of just not worried about it.

With no evidence to the contrary, Colby Rasmus is clutch

by joker24 on May 19, 2008 6:53 PM EDT up reply actions  

That's impressive.

You managed to work in almost every possible form of butchering the English language in one satirical post. You even touched my personal pet peeve of “could of” instead of “could have.” Very nicely done.

by etp_stl on May 19, 2008 7:03 PM EDT up reply actions  

Sorry, it cut me off.

I was commending your ability to pack so many errors into one succinct post. You even touched on my personal favorite of using “could of” instead of “could have.”

by etp_stl on May 19, 2008 7:05 PM EDT up reply actions  

You missed on using

‘whose’ instead of ‘who’s’.

by Phizzle on May 19, 2008 8:13 PM EDT up reply actions  

didn't know they had talked

I know they would take Barton back, and I don’t want to lose the guy. It’s too bad they couldn’t work something out.

Probably right about Kennedy, but if he kept is obp in the high .300s he’s no worse than Eck. Wasn’t eck always around .380?

by paposse on May 19, 2008 10:48 AM EDT up reply actions  

Eckstein's OBP was usually around .350

Kennedy’s OBP is now around .320.

Re 2B: Miles’s OBP is better than Kennedy’s so far this season, but the difference is entirely due to batting average. Is Miles a .315 hitter? Both Miles and Kennedy are walking at the same (decent) rate.

So far Miles is a reasonable copy of the redbird (2005-2007) version of Eckstein. However, I’m not advocating for either Miles or Kennedy at leadoff.

by ncgostl on May 19, 2008 10:58 AM EDT up reply actions  

ah...

Yestruday made it all better. I love my some skippy. I don’t think he is the hands down better fielder than Duncan that people make him out to be. I do think the hotter bat should be get the playing time. And skippy is hotter than Duncan right now.

Watching Perez pitch that 9th made me all giddy inside. I think most of the bullpen’s problems come from not having a solid closer. Perez can be the solid closer. Me likey.

by Evilfrog on May 19, 2008 9:54 AM EDT reply actions  

I also think

that Miles has earned a few days off from the insults that are usually hurled at him on this site….I don’t say you have to praise him, just hold it down, OK.

by ridgesee on May 19, 2008 10:17 AM EDT reply actions  

Aaron

F’king Miles. True girt. OPS of .712 is not the greatest but whatever.

I honestly believe if miles got about 15 less starts a year people would love him. People like Miles as utility infielder. They don’t like him as an everyday player.

by Evilfrog on May 19, 2008 10:24 AM EDT up reply actions  

miles' overall WPA is only 0.13

ie, neutral — which, if maintained over a full season, would be a career high. aaron does pretty well in the clutch, but the outs he piles up on an at-bat by at-bat basis sure do add up . . .

by lboros on May 19, 2008 10:42 AM EDT up reply actions  

Grit = Clutch

According to the box score it was a line drive screamer he hit to left center, barely cut off or it would have skipped to the wall. At least that’s how I will remember it.

"Do what you want to the women and children but leave me alone"- George Carlin

by That's a Winner on May 19, 2008 11:15 AM EDT up reply actions  

Miles is a great backup/reserve

I don’t think anybody denies that. He’s a switch-hitter, works the count, can play middle infield and—he can pitch! His batting in the late-innings has been awesome this year. He’s batting .361 in the 7th-9th and .500 in his 10 9th inning ABs with a BB (compared to .277 earlier 1-6). These differences are not significant, and haven’t been last year or throughout his career, so I doubt this continues.

What is interesting is that this year he’s batted .125 as a PH and .231 as a sub, compared to .330 as a starter. Now obviously this split is somewhat a TLR effect, as he puts Miles in against pitchers he hits well against. But it also means Miles this year looks to be the classic case of recency bias. He starts the game poorly but finishes strong. We all leave the game thinking – man that Miles has grit – but you forget his poor performance early in the game. That’s why maybe the numbers people are more anti-Miles than others think is justified.

by enoscountry on May 19, 2008 12:21 PM EDT up reply actions  

Well

if that’s the case, it’s F’king La Russa, Not F’king Miles.

by ridgesee on May 19, 2008 10:34 AM EDT reply actions  

agreed

so far, miles has done everything asked of him. it’s not his fault how often he’s asked.

go cards, o's, and phillies.

...boiler up.

by moboiler on May 19, 2008 11:02 AM EDT up reply actions  

Miles could

hit .340, with an OPS of .999, and people would still find something to bitch about. He’s just not liked by a lot people, no matter what he does. It’s just the nature of the beast.

If everything seems to be going well, you have obviously overlooked something.

by cardsrul on May 19, 2008 11:56 AM EDT up reply actions  

Yeah,

there could only be two possible explanations for the Cards sudden May swoon…global warming or Aaron Miles

by ridgesee on May 19, 2008 12:02 PM EDT up reply actions  

not true

If Miles OPS’d .999 there would only be bitching at TLR not to start him everyday

by Glowsticks on May 19, 2008 2:32 PM EDT up reply actions  

Not, it's not personal...

by most accounts, Miles is an admirable guy. He’s really just not a very good hitter. Despite his recent hot streak, his OPS is .711. That’s just not very good. Though compared to the other middle infielders, it is. But that says more about how bad they are, then how good Miles is.

Start Ludwick

by DiscoJer on May 19, 2008 4:20 PM EDT up reply actions  

Ankiel

Yet he has 7 game winning RBIs? Strange

by trogdor on May 19, 2008 10:50 AM EDT reply actions  

one of those

was el hombre’s mad dash from 2nd on ank’s ground out in co.

by sdesserman on May 19, 2008 4:46 PM EDT up reply actions  

Credit where debit is due

Among the ten PA’s that were the highest leverage for Ankiel was the mad dash from Pujols. According to Fangraphs, Ankiel got all of the credit for Albert scoring on the play. Because WPA has not evolved to the point where it can distinguish subtler baserunning components from the batting record (advancing 1st to 3rd on a single, etc.), it just lumps it all in and praises the batter instead of the baserunner.

If you really wanted to break it down, Ankiel probably should have received credit for a groundout advancing a runner from 2nd to 3rd with 1 out in the top of the 9th of a tie game (some value I haven’t looked up) and the remainder credited to Pujols. So you can probably add another (- .250) to Rick’s horrid performances in high leverage situations.

That said, the Cubs do deserve my pity, but never my support.

by Solanus on May 19, 2008 5:16 PM EDT up reply actions  

We've got to fix this clutch

We’ve got the ingredients for a great offense - a bunch of slaphappy singlers and 3-4 dudes who can seriously crank it. If we could just get them to do their things AT THE SAME TIME we’d be scoring runs like crazy. Instead we’re stranding the Slappies and then jacking solo HRs all over the place.

OK, I’m not saying anything that everyone doesn’t already know. Question: how does the rest of MLB look vis-a-vis percentage-of-HRs-that-are-solo? Do the Cards own that stat, the way it feels like?

by Andyfantastic on May 19, 2008 11:28 AM EDT reply actions  

we are way off

Our OBP is much higher than the league average, yet our solo HR/RBI HR rate is twice as high as the league average.

           NL        STL
Solo HR   391        28
RBI HR    280        10
ratio:    1.4        2.8
OBP:     .334       .369

And I awoke in California, far far from Spancilhill...

by SleepyCA on May 19, 2008 1:45 PM EDT up reply actions  

On a related note...

It seems to me that our opponents, especially lately, have had an inordinately high percentage of hits being of the extra-base variety. Yesterday, for instance, the Rays had 11 hits for the game w/ 7 doubles. Now, I know being strong, working the other way, etc. can help produce more doubles than singles, but 7 of 11 seems like a pretty high percentage to me. I didn’t go back to look at Friday’s and Saturday’s boxes to check, but it seemed like they had more XBH’s than singles in every game.

Is this a statistical anomaly? just a really good hitting team that can direct their flies to the gaps? poor defensive positioning? poor Cardinal pitching?

P.S. Andyf. neat avatar, are you a chemist? nuke?

by ArkansasTravs on May 19, 2008 2:09 PM EDT up reply actions  

More than likely they were all hit to schumaker.

Actually. I didn’t watch the game until the 7th inning. So I don’t know.

by Evilfrog on May 19, 2008 2:41 PM EDT up reply actions  

like you, I didn't turn it on until the late innings

but there was at least one “schumaker special” hustle double hit late in the game.

And I awoke in California, far far from Spancilhill...

by SleepyCA on May 19, 2008 3:53 PM EDT up reply actions  

I was at the game....

they were all down the line. Many past a diving Pujols. Hence, Ludwick getting an assist on what could have been one of eight doubles for the game. I read it as a lot of well placed shots, but they were hit on a line, just very low.

by tinstl on May 19, 2008 8:21 PM EDT up reply actions  

actually

i thought in saturday’s game that almost all of their hits were singles. At least through the 6th.

"Sorry about him, he's dealing with being an inker. " - Chasing Amy

by FutureMan on May 19, 2008 3:20 PM EDT up reply actions  

Late night tonight

10:05 ET first pitch…it’s gonna be a late one, my friends on the east coast!

Cardinal fan in the heart of Braves country
Track 'em Tigers - An SB Nation Blog for Auburn Tigers fans

by Mr Redbird on May 19, 2008 11:30 AM EDT reply actions  

Im not even going to make it

I have to be up at 4:30ish Tuesday. This will be the second game i’ve missed this year :-(

by Evilfrog on May 19, 2008 11:32 AM EDT up reply actions  

yes, the west coast bias

it’s not fair! see BDD’s post on deadspin last thursday…

i doubt i’ll be watching any of the games in SD. hope i can wake up with another few in the win column this week.

go cards, o's, and phillies.

...boiler up.

by moboiler on May 19, 2008 12:01 PM EDT up reply actions  

I'm pretty diehard

But 10PM first pitch for me is a bit too late. I may watch the first couple innings but judging from this team’s last week of games, if I stay up late late, I’ll either get my heart broken or miss some awesome theatrics. I’ll go to bed hoping for the later

by riotmute on May 19, 2008 12:16 PM EDT up reply actions  

eh

i’m a little better being in the central. game still should end around midnight or so. not sure if i’m going to make it but i’ll be aroune nevertheless.

by stlcardinalsfang on May 19, 2008 12:54 PM EDT up reply actions  

i'll be here late

i dont get off work til midnight

C'mon you Redbirds, lets prove em' wrong, again!

by yer dog first on May 19, 2008 2:58 PM EDT up reply actions  

im lucky for once

dont have to sub tomorrow, normally i just suck it up for the late games and stagger the next

i take your signatures and use them as away messages

by ihavebadknees on May 19, 2008 3:50 PM EDT up reply actions  

Ah, that is nothing.

I was watching games at 3:00 am in the UK. Watched the World Series over their, i’m sure I woke up the whole town with cheering.

by davethebutcher on May 19, 2008 8:20 PM EDT up reply actions  

Wellemeyer at Petco

versus the hack happy Padres, should be a recipe for success.

boo cubs, hooray beer

by Raconteur on May 19, 2008 12:20 PM EDT reply actions  

This Ankiel situation is stupid

the doctor’s say he can’t swing 100% but don’t DL him? Why the hell not? As long as he is here, LaRussa will be tempted to use him as a PH. If the shoulder isn’t getting the rest it needs, that’ll just delay his DL clock that much longer. I’d rather have him back on June 1 at full strength, than piddling around for the next week with a short bench and Skippy/Duncan getting to start everyday.

by Hardcore Legend on May 19, 2008 12:47 PM EDT reply actions  

Agreed

This makes zero sense to me. Bring up Mather who has the power to hit bombs out of Petco and Dodger stadium. I don’t understand shorting the bench to save a few days of availablility and possibly risking further injury.

by indakind on May 19, 2008 12:54 PM EDT up reply actions  

It's not like we don't have any other really valid options in the OF.

Even without Ank, we have 4 legitimate outfield options in Studwick, Barton, Duncan, and Shoe-less.

Baseball's only fun if you're playing it, watching it, or thinking about it.

by Eckstreem on May 19, 2008 2:50 PM EDT up reply actions  

damn

I guess I should’ve read your comment before posting.

On with the (good) youth movement!

by aet15 on May 19, 2008 3:48 PM EDT up reply actions  

I agree.

It’s not like an outfield of Barton / Skip / Dunc / Ludwick is a bad temporary solution.

On with the (good) youth movement!

by aet15 on May 19, 2008 3:47 PM EDT up reply actions  

Not only that

but DL’ing him allows them to call up Mather to give them power off the bench.

When LaRussa starts Duncan/Ludwick/Skippy in the OF, we have no power threat coming off the bench.

by Hardcore Legend on May 19, 2008 4:24 PM EDT up reply actions  

Will be attending ....

The Friday and Sat night games at Dodger Stadium…..any west coast Cards fans going to be there too? We have a group of about 12 transplanted St.Louis fans going and sitting together on Sat night.. Field Boxes, 1st base side…about half way between 1st and the foul pole…..come and say hey if you are there!

by Timbo02 on May 19, 2008 2:56 PM EDT reply actions  

I will be at both games too

will be gorging on dodger dogs in the all you can eat seats for Fridays game. Sat night I will be just behind the cards dugout. I will be rocking my VEB shirt on Sat

by FunkeeC on May 19, 2008 4:44 PM EDT up reply actions  

Sounds Good!..

I’ll keep an eye out for your VEB shirt FunkeeC…..and hope we witness a Cards Win!!

by Timbo02 on May 19, 2008 5:01 PM EDT up reply actions  

Eckstein

Really funny you mention that, as yesterday I was looking through available shortstops in my fantasy league and came across Eckstein with a “dl” note next to his name. That’s when I realized that’s the first time I’d read anything about him all year.

On with the (good) youth movement!

by aet15 on May 19, 2008 3:46 PM EDT reply actions  

New Guy

Hey all. I’ve been reading the blog pretty much since it’s existence. I’ve obviously never posted, though. I love the blog and all the insight it offers, and blah blah blah same old stuff.
Just wanted to let everybody know I’ve decided to join, so that I can ask questions and possibly offer some of my insight in the future (probably be more questions, though!!).

Jim Edmonds in a Cub Uniform Makes Me Want to PUKE!!!

by FiedsinEvilleIN on May 19, 2008 4:59 PM EDT reply actions  

Welcome!

Is “EvilleIN” User ID shorthand for Evansville, Indiana?

There are 10 types of people in the world. Those who understand binary, and those who don't.

by Mr Clean on May 19, 2008 5:14 PM EDT up reply actions  

Yes

I live in Evansville, Indiana…...the place that everybody in sports thinks Scott Rolen is from.

Jim Edmonds in a Cub Uniform Makes Me Want to PUKE!!!

by FiedsinEvilleIN on May 19, 2008 5:26 PM EDT up reply actions  

Evansville

could never live up to Jasper’s rep… =)

"The only thing you know about pitching is that you can't hit it." Bob Gibson to Tim McCarver

by player2bnamedl8r on May 19, 2008 6:17 PM EDT up reply actions  

Don Mattingly

I believe he’s from Evansville.

by Carps on May 19, 2008 6:22 PM EDT up reply actions  

Donnie Baseball

is, in fact, from Evansville. Actually, he went to my high school. Or, more appropriately, I went to his…..

Jim Edmonds in a Cub Uniform Makes Me Want to PUKE!!!

by FiedsinEvilleIN on May 19, 2008 6:34 PM EDT up reply actions  

Scott Rolen is from Jasper...

"The only thing you know about pitching is that you can't hit it." Bob Gibson to Tim McCarver

by player2bnamedl8r on May 19, 2008 7:02 PM EDT up reply actions  

Thanks for clearing that up.

You may want to re-read the posts above. Think that was already covered.

Jim Edmonds in a Cub Uniform Makes Me Want to PUKE!!!

by FiedsinEvilleIN on May 19, 2008 7:04 PM EDT up reply actions  

Oh

...cleared up by YOU. sorry about that. I am aware Rolen’s from Jasper. It’s just that every time they’d mention it on TV, they would always say Evansville. We always found it humorous. I was happy about it for the first few years he was on the Cards, but the last few years I felt the need to clear the air!!!!

Jim Edmonds in a Cub Uniform Makes Me Want to PUKE!!!

by FiedsinEvilleIN on May 19, 2008 7:07 PM EDT up reply actions  

No worries...

Sorry for any confusion…

"The only thing you know about pitching is that you can't hit it." Bob Gibson to Tim McCarver

by player2bnamedl8r on May 19, 2008 7:17 PM EDT up reply actions  

Pujols with RISP

This made me laugh when I looked at Pujols’ stats today:

                                AVG  OBP  SLG  H   AB   BB   SO
RISP:                     .237  .492  .474   9    38   20     4
Runner on 2nd:   .000  .583  .000   0     5     7      2
Runner on 3rd:    .000  .667  .000   0     3     6      1
2nd and 3rd:        .500  .833  .500   1     2     4      0

So with the .237 AVG and .474 SLG overall with RISP, it certainly seems to reinforce the impression that he’s pressing and expanding his zone a little…but man, if 1st is open, he is not getting ANYTHING to hit.

Let’s hope we see Ludwick in the #4 spot for a while to provide some protection for him. Cuz that’s just ridiculous.

There are 10 types of people in the world. Those who understand binary, and those who don't.

by Mr Clean on May 19, 2008 5:07 PM EDT reply actions  

Yes, its true they arent giving him anything to hit

but he needs to lay off the crap they are throwing him if he cant do anything with it.

by FunkeeC on May 19, 2008 5:16 PM EDT up reply actions  

Agree 100%

And hopefully with Luddy producing and batting behind him, he won’t feel the need to do it all by himself.

There are 10 types of people in the world. Those who understand binary, and those who don't.

by Mr Clean on May 19, 2008 5:20 PM EDT up reply actions  

I'd agree...

...but did you see what Pujols did with his third hit of the game Sunday?

Took a freakin’ slider a good six inches off the plate… and hooked it into left field for a single! Any “normal” human (even a “normal” malor leaguer) either swings and misses or rolls over the ball, resulting in a easy grounder. Not OUR boy!

I find myself chanting the mantra, “Trust your hands, Albert, trust your hands…” every time he’s at bat.

And that “Jedi pick-off” thing he’s got going with Yadier is unreal...

"In this game, don't nobody know nuthin' about nuthin'." -- attributed to Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra

by The Ol Goaler on May 19, 2008 7:02 PM EDT up reply actions  

True but...

for every one of those incredible hits he gets, he gets about 5 weakly hit ground balls to the shortstop.

boo cubs, hooray beer

by Raconteur on May 19, 2008 7:13 PM EDT up reply actions  

Those stats seem screwy

If he has 38 ab w RISP, how is it that he only has 10 ab total with runners on 2nd/3rd/2nd&3rd?

Does that mean that he has 28 ab with the bases loaded, or 28 with bases loaded + 1st&3rd?

Something doesn’t smell right….

by salvomania on May 19, 2008 6:32 PM EDT up reply actions  

18 AB's with men on 1-2

6 with 1-3 and 4 with bases loaded.

BTW, albert with the bases loaded this year: 0-4 in 6 PA’s—.000/.167/.000 with a SF and a BB.

And I awoke in California, far far from Spancilhill...

by SleepyCA on May 19, 2008 6:38 PM EDT up reply actions  

VEB Shirt?

Where can some of us neophytes get our hands on those? I would certainly sport it at all Wrigley Games – even if the Cards are not in town (nothing like stickin it to the Cubs fans by getting decked out in Cards gear for any and every game)

by mattysha on May 19, 2008 5:36 PM EDT reply actions  

Here's

the VeB store.

My shirt shrunk up pretty good, so you may want to go a size larger than normal.

by liam on May 19, 2008 5:50 PM EDT up reply actions  

hmmm

VEB Shirts at “McCovey Chronicles StoreFront” interesting.

by davethebutcher on May 19, 2008 8:24 PM EDT up reply actions  

i have come to the conclusion

based on peavy’s injury, it is not wise to sign ANY pitcher to long term big money contract

by VolsnCards5 on May 19, 2008 5:55 PM EDT reply actions  

Apparently Mather!

Fine w/me… make Joe more versatile!

"In this game, don't nobody know nuthin' about nuthin'." -- attributed to Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra

by The Ol Goaler on May 19, 2008 7:07 PM EDT up reply actions  

did you goold's article about this?

he said they had a catcher playing left, mather in center, and stavinoha (a first baseman) in right

Pujols is the greatest Cardinal in my lifetime.

by bigcardsfan5 on May 19, 2008 7:42 PM EDT up reply actions  

It referred to Stavinoha

as a recently converted 1st baseman (within a couple years, apparently) They’re just tryin’ to make it seem weirder out there.

by Phizzle on May 19, 2008 8:15 PM EDT up reply actions  

he's definitely ready for us

just hit into a DP with 2 runners on and no outs. Just like the big leaguers.

by enoscountry on May 19, 2008 7:06 PM EDT up reply actions  

No

the big leaugers would strikeout and then popup.

They say that it's never too late, but you don't get any younger...

by Valatan on May 19, 2008 7:31 PM EDT up reply actions  

hmmm

mather started in cf last night over rasmus as well…is colby really hurt, or is he “izzy” hurt

by VolsnCards5 on May 19, 2008 7:54 PM EDT reply actions  

He didn't start today

so thats 2 days in a row that he got a day off. I think he might be hurt.

by Big Phil on May 19, 2008 8:23 PM EDT up reply actions  

or "hurt"

he’s really struggling…a few days to rest his head may do him a lot of good

by VolsnCards5 on May 19, 2008 8:25 PM EDT up reply actions  

Edmonds just came up limp running to second for the Cubs

He’s staying in, but the Cubs are getting a taste of old age Jimmy E

Cardinal fan in the heart of Braves country
Track 'em Tigers - An SB Nation Blog for Auburn Tigers fans

by Mr Redbird on May 19, 2008 8:19 PM EDT reply actions  

a vent.

Geovany Soto- the cubs frigging CATCHER- just hit a 3-run inside the park home run at theme park stadium. Seriously. Before today, he was having the 11th-best season ever for a catcher, by OPS+ (5th by OPS); today should push him to top 5 by either metric, unless he goes 1-5.

This is just unfair. C’mon, Steve Hill… Brian Anderson… Yadi’s personal trainer… whoever, we need ya, dude.

And I awoke in California, far far from Spancilhill...

by SleepyCA on May 19, 2008 8:25 PM EDT reply actions  

jaime perez

is getting roughed up…he was probably due for a day like this…he still had 5 k’s through 3 innings

by VolsnCards5 on May 19, 2008 8:32 PM EDT reply actions  

Edmonds

just made a fantastic play in center at Minute Maid. I felt like cheering, crying, and puking all at once.

by LukeMP1186 on May 19, 2008 8:36 PM EDT reply actions  

ugh

makes me sick.

I'd rather my sister be a prostitute than my brother a Cub fan.

by _pistol_ on May 19, 2008 8:37 PM EDT up reply actions  

And tWWL

promptly cues up the play he made with the Angels as his best. But I really believe the one to rob LaRue at Great American is the best I’ve ever seen.

by LukeMP1186 on May 19, 2008 8:40 PM EDT up reply actions  

was there

best game I ever saw with my dad.

by enoscountry on May 19, 2008 9:03 PM EDT up reply actions  

I like the one that robbed Ausmus in Game 7 of the NLCS

But probably because of the situation. If he doesn’t make that catch, I think it’s safe to say the Astros would have been back-to-back NL Champs

Cardinal fan in the heart of Braves country
Track 'em Tigers - An SB Nation Blog for Auburn Tigers fans

by Mr Redbird on May 19, 2008 9:07 PM EDT up reply actions  

I saw the play, but

then I saw his next AB. He looks old just STANDING there. And then as he was “busting it” up the line on his dribbler ground ball he looked very, very old. Sorry Jimmy Ballgame, it’s time to hang ‘em up.

by MdRedbirdFreak on May 19, 2008 9:58 PM EDT up reply actions  

not to make sour grapes

but pie makes that a routine play…edmonds plays so shallow that play seems harder then it should be…man its weird not defending edmonds for that

by VolsnCards5 on May 19, 2008 8:46 PM EDT up reply actions  

Not sure about that...

It’s 436 to center in Houston. He caught it at the base of the hill, meaning that ball was conservatively 400+ feet. It wasn’t exactly a towering fly ball, either…

by LukeMP1186 on May 19, 2008 8:50 PM EDT up reply actions  

yea but pie starts 10 feet deeper and is faster than edmonds

he would have had time to settle under it…still a great play though

by VolsnCards5 on May 19, 2008 8:53 PM EDT up reply actions  

Whoa now!

nobody makes that play routine. give credit where credit is due.

by ridgesee on May 19, 2008 9:06 PM EDT up reply actions  

Tonight's lineups per STLtoday.com

STL

Schumaker CF
Barton LF
Pujols 1B
Ludwick RF
Glaus 3B
Molina C
Kennedy 2B
Wellemeyer P
Izturis SS

SDP

Gerut CF
Iguchi 2B
Giles RF
Gonzalez 1B
Kouzmanoff 3B
Greene SS
Hairston LF
Bard C
Ledezma P

Cardinal fan in the heart of Braves country
Track 'em Tigers - An SB Nation Blog for Auburn Tigers fans

by Mr Redbird on May 19, 2008 8:45 PM EDT reply actions  

good luck schumaker

With ankiel out, I guess we can’t really complain about the fact that you are starting vs a lefty. Hope you can pad your splits a bit tonight…

And I awoke in California, far far from Spancilhill...

by SleepyCA on May 19, 2008 8:55 PM EDT up reply actions  

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