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by the red baron on Sep 17, 2008 9:57 AM EDT
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I don't know if any of you out there are opera fans or not. Honestly, I doubt that many are. Not anything to do with any of you guys; opera simply isn't that popular anymore with too very many segments of society.
I only ask because this season, particularly the last little bit here, has begun to feel a bit like the last half hour or so of an opera to me. Deeply flawed characters, who have fought the good fight all along, now watch as their worlds collapse completely around them and are utterly helpless to stop it. And, of course, somewhere there is a metabolically challenged soprano preparing to deliver a solo.
You want an example? Fine. Consider the case of Kyle McClellan. McClellan is hugely talented, with a repertoire that is both deep and impressive. He has battled valiantly this year, compiling a huge number of appearances and having tremendous success. His monthly ERAs:
April- 1.72
May- 2.92
June- 3.38
July- 3.07
August- 5.58
September- 12.80
What this tells me is the story of a young man, a pitcher, with all the gifts in the world, and the mindset to use them. The only stumbling block for our young protagonist is his health. He drags his elbow along through his story, a lodestone to force him ever downward toward the earth. K-Mac has thrown 74 innings this year; last season he threw 77 between High A, Double A, and the Arizona Fall League. The difference is that he's thrown those inning this season in 67 appearances. Last year he made only 47. It has been widely discussed 'round these here parts that the number of appearances a reliever makes is probably a much better indicator of wear and tear than innings. To my eye, Kyle McClellan looks worn down. Remember, last year was his first full season since returning from Tommy John surgery. McClellan has made far more appearances this year than ever before in his career, and I do believe that it is catching up with him.
How about more tragedy? In last night's game, in the fateful sixth inning, the ball found Felipe Lopez. Bases loaded, two outs, and Edwin Encarnacion hits a screaming line drive down into the left field corner. Lopez, an infielder by trade (or, really, if you want to call a spade a spade, a hitter by trade), ranges over, corrals the ball, and uncorks a throw toward the infield in an attempt to keep Joey Votto from scoring. Votto doesn't move poorly, by any means, but he's still a first baseman. The point is, we're not talking about Rickey Henderson here. A good throw into third base likely prevents the run from scoring. The runner either is forced to stop, or is quite possibly thrown out at home. Either way, the Reds would have scored only two runs. In the next half inning, Aaron Miles' home run would have tied the game, rather than simply making it a one run affair. Instead, Lopez threw the ball midway between third and the general vicinity of short, and the run scored.
Of course, one could always argue that that single run doesn't matter, given the way the rest of the game went. But if the game is tied after the Miles bomb, how does that affect the handling of Looper's subsequent at bat, and the rest of the game? We'll never know, of course, but the fact remains that Felipe Lopez playing in left field likely gave the Reds an extra run. The dynamic of everything that followed was different. Lopez has hit very well since coming to the Cardinals, and has offered a significant upgrade, with the bat at least, at second base. The man simply is not an outfielder, though. We see him trotted out there night after night, and he just isn't getting the job done. in this case, it isn't really his fault; he's not the one who makes out the lineup card, after all. A character fighting against the fickle hand of fate, and the even more fickle pencil of the manager.
And what about that manager? Or the general manager, for that matter? The Cardinals currently have one of the best prospects in all of baseball, working out at home. For most of the season, there was no need for him. The outfield was the bulwark upon which most of this team's success was built this season. But as autumn began to close in, the flycatchers began dropping like, well, you get the idea. And still the kid went untapped. I understand the arguments against bringing up Rasmus. He didn't have a good season, he had the injury, he struggled in his rehab stint. Got it. But when you're trotting out the aforementioned Felipe Lopez in the outfield on a daily basis and planting Aaron Miles in center, something has gone horribly, horribly wrong. At this point, the Cardinals don't need Colby to come up and be Grady Sizemore. They just need someone who can actually man the position effectively. And still we hear that the kid hasn't earned it, and we hear of strife, and turmoil, and we hear talk of trades. Is this an isolated problem? Or is it systematic?
Still, this has been a supremely satisfying season, from an aesthetic standpoint at least. And if you just happen to be ever so slightly masochistic- as I most assuredly am- then you've probably enjoyed it even more. But no matter how stirring the overture, nor how shatteringly glorious the intermezzo may have been (by the way, my very favourite intermezzo of all is the intermezzo sinfonico from Mascagni's Cavalleria Rustico, just so's you know), none of that changes the fact that this 2008 season now appears to be, sadly, a tragedy. Sorry, folks. That's just how it goes sometimes. Blame it on the Italians, if you must.
Some utterly random bits and pieces on this magnificent Wednesday morning:
- You wonder what's going on with all the latest Chris Carpenter news? Well, you've a stronger stomach than I, fair reader.
- Erik over at FR has a nice piece up about the Cards' trio of lefties that will be pitching in the Arizona Fall League this year.
- Some columnist takes a look at the most memorable wild card teams over the years. I'm not a fan of this guy (I hear he's kind of a dick, honestly), but you guys may feel differently.
- Now this is a lot of fun. I particularly feel bad for the guy who promised to wash everyone's car if the Rays did, in fact, reach 89 wins. Looking back is awesome.
- In non-baseball related items, the Sheldon Art Galleries is in the waning days of their retrospective on Herb Snitzer. Snitzer was a photographer in the 50's and 60's for Metronome magazine, and took some truly wonderful photographs of some legendary jazz musicians. I got a chance to see this exhibition earlier this summer, and I can't recommend it highly enough. It ends on the 20th of September, so time is very nearly up.
- If you happen to live in the St. Louis area, I would like to encourage you to take part in Dining 4 Kids, a great charity event that benefits Children's Hospital. It takes place on the 23rd of September; you can find all the details at the website. I spent a lot of time as a youth at Children's Hospital (I was born with a rather sizable hole in my heart), and it's an outstanding institution that is certainly worthy of support.
- And finally, another community organisation that deserves all the support we can give it. KDHX, the community radio station here in the good old Lou, is having their fall membership drive beginning on the 2nd of October. They're currently looking for people to volunteer their time to answer phones and the like. I volunteer there every pledge drive, if I can, and you ought to give it a try. At the very least, there's always a really nice spread, provided by a ton of great local restaurants and bakeries.
I'll be back later with a game thread, everybody. Until then, get out and enjoy the first fondling of fall's fingers upon your cheek.
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re: carpenter article
Mozeliak suggesting that the cardinals are “doing their due diligence” with carpenter is laughable. the only way due diligence is remotely useful is if you listen to the information and use that information to ACTUALLY plan instead of holding on to pipe dreams of carp pitching anytime soon (read: this season, last season).
How depressing is it being you? Is it closer to being a lifelong cubs fan or being born without lips? - Janitor
Wow
talk about a disturbing picture…other than that great post, as usual!
i think it is within our rights as fans to know exactly why Colby was not called up. i know they have given us BS reason like his knee or he hasnt earned it (even though he did more than KMac, our ROY, to deserve a call up) but these obviously aren’t the cases because Raz says his knee is fine and whether earned it or not our outfield has fallen apart and he IS the best option. if they would come out and say they didnt want to start his clock yet i would feel better about it even if i disagree. or if they came out and said he did stuff TLR didnt approve of that landed him in the dog house i would feel better because i know TLR, despite all of his flaws, wouldnt let a top prospect languish in AAA just because he didnt like him until his value was so low we had to give him away to the Cleveland ball club, would he? oh wait….
"Baseball is like church. Many attend, but few understand." -Wes Westrum
Rasmus.....
I don’t know Why Larussa keeps being brought up in this whole “soap OPERA”…. Who cares what he said about earning it in the media, the more we learn about Larussa not clarifying his comments very well I don’t really care what he says unless I hear the whole conversation.
If anyone is to blame for the Rasmus issue (I am not worried about it at this time), Mo is to blame. Mo makes roster moves and if he wants Rasmus up, he can bring him up. Then the onace is on Larussa to play him or not play him and people can bitch about Larussa all they want. I find it kind of odd at this point that the GM is the one who makes roster moves and he chose to not make the move.
KMAC needs to be shut down! I said it two friggin weeks ago….. He is just not sharp at this point and time why does he need to be a “hero”? shut his ass down/let him throw bull pen sessions from here on out.
Felipe Lopez in the OF? I don’t get it? What the hell has happened to Brian Barton?
Nice to see Glaus back swining well.
Mo is to blame to a point
but Mo also isnt going to bring a kid up and start his arb clock if TLR says he is not going to play because he hasnt earned it…Tony has a lot of say into personnel decisions as im sure a lot veteran managers do. This is why i think the REAL reason he wasnt called up needs to be brought out into the open. someone needs to be held accountable for the piss-poor roster management over the last 2 mos.
"Baseball is like church. Many attend, but few understand." -Wes Westrum
Oh I agree that Tony probably shares some blame....
I am just saying if MO is running things he should have just added Rasmus. Hell he made them keep Reyes on the roster after ST…. You think Duncan was happy abou that? I thought Duncan was more to blame with Reyes then TLR probably….
Heck if MO came out and said it’s strictly a $$ decision I would be fine with it. However I don’t know why its such a secret at this point.
we're not so sure that he would have even played Rasmus though...
it's time to bring the rock!!!!!!!
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Sep 17, 2008 12:49 PM EDT up reply actions
that was my point...
If MO calls up Rasmus, then at least we know why he is not playing? Larussa will not put him in.
At this point no one has any clue as to why Rasmus is not up with the Team.
I think SleepyCA has made many good posts to state why Rasmus is not on the team once one decides to over look at the “rumors” and “bs”…..
Letting Colby travel with the team
but not play (due to "injury") as the Pirates are doing would have been the right move.
It’s a fantastic way to lay the foundation going forward.
hecanthithecanthithecanthithecanthit
I'd like to know that too
It’s a fantastic idea. I’m pissed I didn’t think of it earlier.
Maybe I’m not smarter than the Pirates.
hecanthithecanthithecanthithecanthit
Who exactly was he going to getting playing time over.....
2-3 weeks ago?
We fell out of the race about the same time our OF’s started dropping like flies. I don’t see the point in starting his clock either, when you are pretty much out of the race and only have 3 weeks or so left. Same with Freese.
by SoonerfanTU on Sep 17, 2008 11:16 AM EDT up reply actions
that is a fair argument....
However one could say they should have recognized Ankiels problems about a month ago, considering Chris Duncan had a hernia last year.
So the real issue was that Colby could have had a window open for him about a month ago when the Cards were still in it.
While I would put the primary burden on the medical staff
much has been said here about TLR’s ability to “see” things in certain players that transcend statistical histories. If I could see that Ankiel’s swing had changed then why couldn’t TLR. Why did it take six weeks of subpar offense and defense to figure it out?
Those Pilgrims ain't lookin' so proud now...
Who knows?
I honestly could not see much different about his swing… Yes he was getting beat inside but he had been getting beat inside, and up in the zone all year.
I would say the red flag to Larussa should have been, why put a guy on the field who can not go 100% all the time? TLR needs to realize Ankie is not Albert and is not close to Albert talent wise. So anyone but Albert does not get to play if they can not go 100%
True.....
But at this point, why start his clock when he isn’t 100% healthy (yes, I believe that), and we’re not going to the playoffs, with or without him?
FWIW...
I agree with you. I’m not sure that (if healthy) Rasmus couldn’t have made a difference over the last week (where we’ve lost five games in the standings to the Phillies), but I don’t think it’s worth potentially losing a year of pre-arb salaries…meaning we would have to pay him $1mil+ in 2011 vs. $400K and have him become a FA one season earlier.
it wouldn't affect his arbitration clock at all
if he’s not healthy, he’s not healthy but if he is, it makes no sense to run Miles or Lopez into the OF just to stick it to Rasmus.
I don't understand the arbitration argument
if he is as good as he is supposed to be, who cares about the money. This team isn’t the effin Royals.
* sarcasm might be involved in this comment
I wish Barton would be playing in the OF
it's time to bring the rock!!!!!!!
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Sep 17, 2008 12:50 PM EDT up reply actions
the way I look at the standings
we still aren’t out of the race, so we sure the hell weren’t two weeks ago.
* sarcasm might be involved in this comment
The Cards' september has certainly been Wagnerian
wonderful moments and atrocious half-hours
KMac needs to be shut down for the year
Rasmus? this is more soap operatic. Do they just not want to put him on the 40 man roster? Otherwise, what downside is there to have him on the active roster? You could use him as a defensive sub if nothing else.
Maybe Mo doesn’t want him around TLR. Having him give Rasmus the treatment he gave Ryan last season probably would be worse for his morale than being inexplicably banished and getting to watch the outfield being manned by a trio of weak hitting MIs.
multiple good points as always, Red
I’m a LaRussa fan, but I don’t understand half of his lineup or positioning choices night in and night out. That’s irritating. But there aren’t many managers I’d rather have.
As for the disappointments of this year’s team…
I’m sure the front office and ownership want to win, but they have obviously taken the long-term view this season. Even though everyone said during the winter and in Spring Training that this year wasn’t a rebuilding year, that’s sort of what it’s become. Trades could have been made and money could have been spent to help the team this year, but as has been said over and over again, the guys who make such decisions weren’t looking for a quick and short-lived fix. So, we see guys like Lopez and Miles in the outfield. We see guys like Ron Villone still pitching—for some unknown reason. It’s really frustrating, but hey, maybe next year, right?
I said that to a friend the other day, and he said, Hey! Don’t start sounding like a Cubs fan!
My first memory of Cardinals baseball is seeing Darrell Porter jump into Bruce Sutter's arms on October 20, 1982!
it's like they got to the point where they can say "Hey, we did better than everyone thought we would"
then they just gave up and called it a day
it's time to bring the rock!!!!!!!
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Sep 17, 2008 12:51 PM EDT up reply actions
The ball found Felipe Lopez
it sure seems like baseball has a fickle way of handing out it’s own brand of justice when the balance is disturbed?
I’m sure it is just magnified by the absurdity of it however it seems like on a nightly basis, playing defensive liabilities are rearing their ugly head. Lopez at 3B, Lopez in LF, Miles at 2B. Two of those 3 burned us last night with a non-turned DP and a 3-run double.
WHITHER BRIAN BARTON?!?
by Hardcore Legend on Sep 17, 2008 10:33 AM EDT reply actions
dont you now Barton is right handed?
therefore he can only hit against left-handers, duh!
"Baseball is like church. Many attend, but few understand." -Wes Westrum
The refusal to play Barton against
right handed pitchers is beyond stupid on multiple levels.
+1
it's time to bring the rock!!!!!!!
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Sep 17, 2008 12:52 PM EDT up reply actions
Especially since he had three times as many PAs
in his rehab against RHPs and went .291/.388/.455/.843 against them.
Those Pilgrims ain't lookin' so proud now...
Yeah-why is he sitting?
No way you can say he hasn’t earned it.
I’d rather take my chances with a real outfielder than an infielder pretending to be an outfielder. But that’s just me…….
She isn't crazy, she's just not impressed.
Veteran's Committee
Curt Flood is no longer on the ballot.
Richie Allen
Gil Hodges
Jim Kaat
Tony Oliva
Al Oliver
Vada Pinson
Ron Santo
Luis Tiant
Joe Torre
Maury Wills
If Santo gets in before Allen, I’ll throw a screaming fit.
by Hardcore Legend on Sep 17, 2008 10:38 AM EDT reply actions
Wasn't Santo on some saber guys top 100 players of all time?
I am not old enough to know about Santo, but it seems odd? Some people say he was really good and some say he was good but not HOF worthy…
I can’t argue about it, as I know nothing about him.
Allen deserve to be in more than anyone
even on the BBRA list with the exception of Raines and maybe Bly (you could probably argue Big Mac too but im not going there today)…man i always forget how good Allen was until i look it up again…
"Baseball is like church. Many attend, but few understand." -Wes Westrum
Carp is still ailing
and Ankiel is having surgery for a sports hernia (surprise!) from what they thought was a lower abdominal strain. A couple things could be going on here: 1) the physicians are continually misdiagnosing injuries 2) there’s a pervasive “pay through the pain” mentality in the clubhouse 3) players are getting mildly injured, not being rested enough thus exacerbating the injury to a more significant one.
FWIW, I think it’s number 3 where either the medical staff or the manager isn’t holding back the players. Part of the issue, imo, is that TLR is determined to keep players in a PH situation rather than simply DL them because he’s attached to players that he “knows”. We see that with Izzy, Carp, Ankiel, etc. and it’s a real issue.
That extension for Carp may turn out to be the worst decision in recent years.
the mulder contract currently holds that distinction in my mind
i guess if Carpenter doesn’t pitch next year, he will take the title
My first memory of Cardinals baseball is seeing Darrell Porter jump into Bruce Sutter's arms on October 20, 1982!
The extension was/is crap
but Carp will never wrestle away the title from Mulder. Case in point: Mulder had a good 05, then cost us games trying to pitch in 06, 07, and 08.
Carp won a Cy Young (and easily could have won a second), pitched an incredible game two in the 2006 series, and destroyed the notion that pitchers named C(h)ris Carpenter can’t perform in St Louis.
It’s like he won a lifetime achievement contract in a little under three full years.
hecanthithecanthithecanthithecanthit
Too bad all of those...
happened under the tenure of the original contract…as did last year. I think this is more proof that you don’t extend contracts a year (or years) before they expire…especially with injury prone pitchers than it is proof that you don’t give pitchers five year contracts.
by cardzfanbub on Sep 17, 2008 11:45 AM EDT up reply actions
Carp
I’m with Alxfritz. The Carp extension doesn’t bother me. Seems more of a reward for past service. But the Mulder extension was a GM desperately trying to justify a bad trade. It’s like doubling down with 14 when the dealer is showing a queen.
I hope you're right
but since Carp signed his $63.5 M contract extension, he’s thrown exactly 21.1 big league innings. It’s entirely possible that we’ll never have a healthy Carp on the mound again. If that’s the case, the wretchedness of that contract will surpass the Mulder deal by leaps and bounds. That contract will be hurting the team for the next 3 seasons. The Mulder deal was 2 years and $13 M. Carp will make more than that, whether he pitches or not, whether he pitches effectively or not, in EACH of the next 3 seasons. If Carp is never able to contribute meaningfully to the team, the Mulder contract will be a great one compared to the Carp extension.
+1
just too much invested in someone with his injury history, unless they insured themselves. why did they not go for a more incentive based deal? don’t mind paying the man if he works, but his baseball life has seen a large fraction of time on the dl. another case of sticking your head in the sand without taking off your rose colored glasses
"No matter where you go, there you are" Buckeroo Bonzai Across the 8th Dimension
Well everyone can't have it both ways.
How many people hate J.D. Drew because he wouldn’t play everyday? Players see how management dislikes that type of player. So what is the player to do? If Ankiel were to say in august I can’t go. would Tony begin the Drew treatment? Where is Eric Davis when you need him? Would the fans begin to turn on him? Plus it makes it “worse” for most players to have a guy like Albert, who is some kind of freak of nature. It would be hard for the players themselves to be truthful. If one player goes down with a hurt finger on the same day that Albert was shot with a cannon. Everyone knows Albert will be back on the field first…and everyone, us included, would be asking why is this player still out? Albert was shot with a f’n cannon and he’s back. This player must be a pussy. Next thing you know Buzz is writing a book telling everyone that you are a pussy. I guess what I am saying is you can’t have a Spartan culture and wonder why the players act like spartans.
It doesn't take six weeks
to figure out that a guy is trying to play hurt and is incapable. Or longer in Duncan’s case, both last year and this year. Plus, just because you go out there and try to play hurt doesn’t mean you can. It is up to the Minister of Culture to figure that out instead – how many weeks of .169 does it take to figure out something isn’t right? I guess that depends on which player it is and how the Minister of Culture views that player.
Those Pilgrims ain't lookin' so proud now...
don't forget Rolen
wasn’t his not being told the extent of his injury and the harm he might do to it if he played the root of his feud with TLR?
by vinniefromjersey on Sep 17, 2008 12:17 PM EDT up reply actions
I don't think it was?
I thought Rolen’s feud started with TLR because he was hitting so poorly in the play-offs vs. the Mets Larussa benched him for Spezio.
Rolen was upset he was injured and not playing to his potential, but he was more ticked off that Larussa would sit him for Spezio in such a big series. I don’t know how much warning Larussa gave him about being benched but Rolen was not happy. Rolen was hurting the team and it was a good move by Larussa. I am surprised he actually sat a vet who was hurting the team and did not let him play through it.
I think that is why Larussa and Rolen started to feud.
It goes to show, it’s hard to sit these guys. No matter how poorly they are playing they always think they are just a few AB’s from being healthy..
I'm glad someone posted on this
at the end of the year, we have to ask ourselves the question, why so many injuries? and why so many injuries that go from kinda bad to really bad, like Ankiel? this is one of the biggest issues with this team, they either need a new medical staff or to have someone step in and say, hey, you need to heal before you play. that simple. have we set some kind of record for injuries the last two seasons? I thought last season was a tragedy, didn’t want to have a repeat… but the way we have been playing lately is nothing less than tragic (especially when considering we could have made the playoffs with not too much trouble!)
it's time to bring the rock!!!!!!!
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Sep 17, 2008 12:57 PM EDT up reply actions
RFT
Rob Neyer linked your article in the RFT
Just giving that asshole at the RFT more press.
Bad move, Neyer.
(I kid because I care, RB.)
hecanthithecanthithecanthithecanthit
everything thats wrong with ESPN
mike golic: obviously albert pujols is a better player than ryan howard. he may be having a better season than ryan howard. but ryan howard leads the league in home runs so he should win the mvp
what an idiot.
How depressing is it being you? Is it closer to being a lifelong cubs fan or being born without lips? - Janitor
Did he say this as truth...
or in fun? I usually enjoy their show, use to listen to it every morning when I had to commute. I can’t imagine someone saying this and actually being serious.
by cardzfanbub on Sep 17, 2008 11:06 AM EDT up reply actions
yeah, that quote
sounds like the definition of sarcasm. it would be totally crazy to think he was serious about it; but then again, it is espn
it's time to bring the rock!!!!!!!
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Sep 17, 2008 1:03 PM EDT up reply actions
It is ESPN...
but I consider M&M to be above most of their (ESPN’s) antics/biases. They seem likely genuine good guys.
No kidding..
It’s like they know Albert should win, but they say stupid stuff just to get ratings.
See the argument is so stupid it’s not even funny… Delgado was the MVP 5 days ago and now he is no longre an MVP guy because he has been awful for a few games?
ESPN people saying something stupid
is the norm. The sad thing is, yes, they are serious…..and they are extremely biased.
by ccthemovieman on Sep 17, 2008 12:04 PM EDT up reply actions
No
I listen to Mike and Mike all the time. Probably the best show on ESPN, as they don’t take things serious a lot. Does that make the unbiased all the time? No, but they are actually nice to listen to a lot, unlike some of the other shows.
i like Mike and Mike as well
i thought Steve Phillips brought up a good point today (that sounds crazy just typing it) about Pujols and Howard re: the MVP.
he said how much better would the Phillies be with APu and how would the Cards do if they had Howard? If every one would think this way Albert would be a runaway winner, but that wont happen.
on another note how absolutely ludicrous is it that a lot of people say Pujols isnt even the most valuable on this team? do people honestly just look at HR and RBI to determine value? in this day and age with all the tools at your disposal with just a couple clicks if you claim an MVP winner based on HR and RBI alone i think that should be basis for a stoning. im just saying…
"Baseball is like church. Many attend, but few understand." -Wes Westrum
funny you should mention
i believe this was in the comments section of a dayn perry article from fox sports about why albert is obviously the mvp so far and delgado is a stupid choice. a poster actually argued that delgado, whose teammates are jose reyes, david wright, and carlos beltran, was the mvp, and that albert was not even the mvp of the cardinals, that honor somehow going to ryan ludwick. the ability of these people to suspend reason is just incredible. this is even funnier because as it stands right now, pujols and ludwick are tied with 33 homers and 101 rbis. so they homer/rbi blindness doesn’t even explain that one.
So.....
If we’re chalking K-Mac’s recent failures up to increased appearances, how do we “plan” against that next year, since most folks are wanting both Perez and Motte in the pen, in important roles?
I mean, lets say they are the closer and 7th inning man, respectively. They are going to get used alot.
Just another reason why I’d be for signing another reliever that can close some. Would love it if Fuentes would sign and split duties, but I doubt he will. Izzy, if healthy, is an option that would come cheap.
However,
This year, KMac went through stretches where he was the ONLY reliable reliever.
Next year, you’re looking at possibly having Springer (if resigned), KMac, Motte, and Franklin for the 7th/8th and Perez for the 9th. That is IF we don’t bring in a veteran LOOGY.
There could be 6 players I would not hesitate to use in the 7th/8th…whereas this year we were looking at Ugh, Uggh, and more Ugggh!
I think that's the issue.
For far too many games it was KMac or bad choice 1, bad choice 2 or bad choice 3.
so there for awhile it was KMac just about every game.
that was the issue...
1. KMAC impressed in ST so much they gave a rookie a shot…..
2. KMAC impressed so much in his first appearances that they gave him more of a shot…..
3. KMAC was so good they had to pitch him about every game
He was just worn out. In an ideal bull pen you have other guys who you can go to. TLR, Dunc, and Mason only really trusted KMAC for the longest time and it really showed as he was called in to get the big outs. It really showed in Boston when he was called to get Ortiz and Drew…
KMC threw just 59.2 pitches last year, at A+ and AA
and none the year before, and this year he had 54 appearances and 59.2 MLB relief innings in by the end of July (Yikes!) In those 59.2 innings he had a 2.87 ERA. Since then, he’s thrown 16 innings of 8.44 ERA ball.
Perez has 38.2 MLB IP and 25.1 AAA IP, 64 total. Motte has 66.2 AAA and 4.2 MLB, 71.1 total.
Assuming he isn’t injured again, KMC should be able to recover and give us 70ish good innings next year. The others should actually be in better shape than KMC was this year, though they’ll have to be careful with Perez because he is younger and hasn’t got a frankenarm yet. And Kinney will be there, all year long.
Luckily none of them will have to worry about throwing high-leverage innings in October this year…
"All I am saying is give Freese a chance!" -- nmstar
dumb question
but how do you throw .2 of a pitch?
it's time to bring the rock!!!!!!!
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Sep 17, 2008 1:05 PM EDT up reply actions
.2 of an inning
is 2 outs. 0.1 IP is 1 out. 1 IP is 3 outs. That’s just how it is referred to on baseball-reference.com.
It would probably be better to use total pitches thrown, or PA’s, I suppose.
"All I am saying is give Freese a chance!" -- nmstar
I think you missed it here Sleepy..
you made a typo in your post and Cards Fan was having a little fun with it.
yeah
I was truly confused at first though… then I read the rest of it and figured it was just that. but yeah, it would have been more accurate if it talked about number of pitches
it's time to bring the rock!!!!!!!
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Sep 17, 2008 6:45 PM EDT up reply actions
That isn't how BR does it though
BR uses .3 for 1 out and .7 for 2 when displaying it but I think they track total outs and just divide by 3 and round.
oh, you're right
(kinda)
i guess on the player’s main page, they use .3 and .7, but on the game logs and splits pages they use .1 and .2.
I never realized it was done differently in the two places on the same site.
"All I am saying is give Freese a chance!" -- nmstar
Weird
I was going off the Team site. I think Game Logs are based off box scores while the other pages are based off their database which needs to store information for an entire season not just an individual game so it is probably programmed differently. Also when I go to calculate things like runs saved over a pitcher with a 5.00 ERA I need to be able to just copy the IP number and be able to use it in base 10 math not baseball math.
It would certainly help if we could get a few more innings
out of the rotation as well. I would be thrilled to see the 5th/6th inning workload greatly diminish next year.
Those Pilgrims ain't lookin' so proud now...
They'll get tired, as KMac has,
and we will need another reliever. I’m not opposed to resigning Springer to a 1 year deal (though $3.5 M is excessive). We still have Franklin — he’s not great but he’s OK and can eat innings or pitch the 9th if necessary. We’ll certainly need a lefty + 1 but I wouldn’t spend on Fuentes. He’s 33 and a type A free agent — which would cost our 1st round draft pick. That would be a colossal mistake, IMO.
i think colossal
is an understatement there…
"Baseball is like church. Many attend, but few understand." -Wes Westrum
I still like Rhodes here...
he’s got a good/though not spectacular track record. He’d be great as a lefty specialist and has a lot of late inning experience that Perez and Motte might be able to feed off of. He’d probably come on a reasonable one year deal and is only a type B.
by cardzfanbub on Sep 17, 2008 12:59 PM EDT up reply actions
I also find it funny.....
That some of you that are blaming his collapse on TLR not trusting anybody else, and pitching our best relief pitcher often, are the same posters that throw a tantrum in the game threads everytime TLR puts anybody in to pitch a game save K-Mac, Perez, and now Motte.
You can’t have it both ways.
i also find it funny
that you are wasting your time making vague strawman arguments in some effort, not to prove some theory of your own (because you don’t have any ideas of your own, only an incredible devotion to “What TLR decides is right”) but merely to attack other posters, because they dared to question your Fearless Leader.
Of course, to appropriate your style myself: your demigod has been wrong very often, tactically (which is what has caused our discontent) and now appears to have been wrong strategically as well, and your argument is that because he’s been wrong both strategically and tactically, we were wrong to challenge his tactical decisions. because we “can’t have it both ways”.
Priceless.
"All I am saying is give Freese a chance!" -- nmstar
Why do you even come here
if you literally disagree with every main post and refuse to see anyone else’s POV?
by Hardcore Legend on Sep 17, 2008 2:33 PM EDT up reply actions
Stretching the truth a bit aren't we?
literally disagree with every main post
There are several other posters that chime in with the same opinions I have. I made a valid argument above, whether you want to admit it or not. CA responded with a personal attack, not refuting a single part of my actual post. Some of you like to talk out of both sides of your mouth. Why didn’t TLR put K-Mac in??? If TLR had trusted somebody else, K-Mac wouldn’t be tired.
You shaped the argument
and then blasted it.
LaRussa uses McClellan for more than 1 inning in 18 of his 67 appearances (a quarter of the time). If any argument can be made about burning out our best reliever, it would be on taking a guy coming off of TJ surgery and making him throw multiple innings at a time.
by Hardcore Legend on Sep 17, 2008 3:05 PM EDT up reply actions
you didn't make any argument
you made a broad, vague statement that could literally not be refuted as it was presented. That’s a cheap, lazy debate tactic and I answered it in kind. The fact that it annoyed you should cause you to rethink the approach you take to your discussion here, because it’s all in the same vein; as I said, I was just mimicking your style. If you want to argue about why a specific decision was good or bad, and you have something other than “I trust the HOF manager” or “I trust my eyes over your stinkin’ stats” to go off of, then fine, but I can’t remember an occasion of you ever doing so.
If you want to specifically talk about the usage of Kyle McClellan, he was used in 24 games in which the team was winning or losing by 3 runs or more, and 12 by 4 or more, when he entered the game. In many of those he pitched more than one inning. That is 24 outings that Brad Thompson or Mitchell Boggs could have easily replaced his performance with little or no degradation to the team. Instead, the best (or second best, depending on how you see springer) pitcher in the bullpen was wasted on low leverage innings and {someone else not as good} was used in the close games.
That’s bad bullpen management, but the management of Springer was even worse. IMO Springer is an even better pitcher, but his ancient arm makes his every outing even more critical, since he can appear less often, yet he was used in 25 games in which the team was ahead or behind by 4 or more runs (31 +/-3). Between the two, that is at least 50 high-leverage “bullpen ace” opportunities wasted and given to lesser pitchers.
In large part because 30%+ of Kyle McC’s physical ability to pitch in one season was wasted by pitching low leverage innings, he is now useless to us for all innings.
"All I am saying is give Freese a chance!" -- nmstar
errata
KMC was used in 23, not 24, games where he entered with the score (+/- 3)
"All I am saying is give Freese a chance!" -- nmstar
Generally, Sleepy,
I think you make excellent points here. The only caveat I’d throw out there is that early in the season no one knew how good McClellan was so it was reasonable to pitch him in lower leverage situations. As the season went on and we realized that he was one of our best options out there, using him in those +/- 3 run situations is an incredibly bad decision.
So I wonder, how many of those +/- 3 situations came after, say, the beginning of June or mid-May? Those were the games when McClellan was misused +/- 3 run situations in April.
yeah
unfortunately the “Inning/Score Appearance Matrix” on the B-R gamelogs page doesn’t go into that kind of split and I can’t figure out an easy way to break it down any further without going through every single appearance by hand. I’d also add “late aug/sep” to the list, since by then he had shown he was having fatigue issues so it made sense to put him into blowout games to get work.
Anyway, that doesn’t apply to springer, whom we paid a premium “bullpen ace” price to bring back in the off-season. I still can’t figure out why Springer was never given the opportunity to close when Izzy went down, but that’s another issue.
"All I am saying is give Freese a chance!" -- nmstar
meh, just went through the last bit (aug 15+)
and to answer my “addition”, none of the (+/- 3 or 4) were after aug 15th, when it actually made sense to do it. In fact, every situation that he’s been put into since he started showing fatigue issues has been a high-leverage situation.
"All I am saying is give Freese a chance!" -- nmstar
I'm not sure I agree with that
IIRC, McClellan was essentially thrown onto the fire at the very beginning of the season, much to the surprise of the VEB community.
Hell, his opening day appearance was in the 6th inning of a 1-0 game against the 4-5-6 (Holliday, Atkins, Hawpe) of the defending NL champs.
Then, the very next day, he faced the exact same three guys with the Cards up by 3 in the 6th…he also pitched the 7th.
His next outing, he entered with the bases loaded, nobody out, and the Cards up by three.
His next outing, he pitched the 9th inning of a game tied 3-3.
Then a 0.1 IP outing down by 3….
Then down by two runs in the 6th (also pitched the 7th).
Then the bottom of the 8th with a 3 run lead.
Then the 6th inning down by 2…
It’s not like he instantly became the closer or anything, but he was in close games from the very beginning. I didn’t look any further than that, but that’s just his first 8 outings and they were ALL +/- 3 situations.
I didn't look at the numbers
and didn’t say that he was used in those situations, only that it would have been reasonable to use him in low leverage situations early in the season. If he wasn’t (or was only rarely) that only serves to make Sleepy’s point about KMac being misused by having him pitch in low leverage situations only stronger.
Yeah
I was just saying that the theoretical “we don’t know what we have” didn’t happen. It wasn’t a situation where we realized later on that he was a high-leverage guy and shouldn’t be wasted in blowouts…he was pitching the high-leverage innings from the beginning, and I do agree with Sleepy that he shouldn’t have been used in a lot of those outings.
Low leverage situations
according to b-r, KMac’s leverage index indicates that he pitched in low leverage situations in 13 of his games, including last night’s. Only 2 occurred in the season’s 1st month.
After that, they occurred:
May — 5 times
June — 3 times
July — 2 times
August — 0 times
September — 1 time
13 times doesn’t seem like an inordinately high number to me and McClellan was clearly used in more appropriate situations as the season went along. If Tony wore him out, however, he clearly did it in May and June when he was used 8 times in low leverage situations. 6 of those situations came between May 21 and June 5. In that 2 week period, McClellan pitched in games whose final scores were 11-3, 8-2, 14-4, and 6-1. During that period, the team had 3 days off (counting a rainout on June 4) and then a doubleheader on the 5th (to make up for the rainout on the 4th).
was scratching my head
until I realized that “low leverage” is defined as “leverage index (L_I) < 0.7”, not “L_I < 1.0”, with “L_I = 1.0” defined as “average” and “L_I >1.5” defined as “high”.
He was used in 21 below-average leverage situations and 36 “not high-leverage” situations.
That’s probably a better way of looking at it than the (+/- x runs) since those didn’t include entering up 3 with the bases loaded etc.
"All I am saying is give Freese a chance!" -- nmstar
You know.....
Sometimes you just have to use a guy b/c he’s fresh, even if it isn’t the ideal situation. I know it sucks, but the team isn’t going to play a close game, followed by a blowout, followed by whatever, in that order every week. Sometimes you need your best relievers pitching in 2-3 straight games. then you might go 5 straight and not have a close game one.
I agree with that part
but using him in more than one inning in those type of situations is what makes me scratch my head.
* sarcasm might be involved in this comment
ESPN had an interesting note on Ryan Howard
I read the article at Baseball Prospectus yesterday that someone linked discussing how bad Yost was at game management. Specifically detailing how, IIRC ,he didn’t have a lefty pitch to Howard.
i had Sportscenter running in the background last night. They had a stat showing that Howard had just RIPPED lefties since August 27th. avg/obp/slugging all VERY high.
I’m not saying they should have kept Yost, but it’s an interesting thing to note.
if a sample size of 30 PA's
was enough to cause Yost to make the decision he made, it becomes even more indefensible.
"All I am saying is give Freese a chance!" -- nmstar
That is managing by gut........
Maybe the Brewers had a lefty who threw similar to the LHP that Howard had been killing…..
It's baseball some moves work and some don't, but you better have a good reason for doing things.
I would like to hear Yost’s thery (behind closed doors) on his decision.
Since August 27th
Howard’s had a grand total of 81 PAs, including the 5 he had last night — after Yost was fired. Guess what — he’s ripped everyone in those 81 PAs — lefties, righties, it doesn’t matter. Based on his %s for the season, he would have had about 31 PAs (out of the 81) against lefties during that stretch. Yost chose not to pitch to Howard b/c he was hot, and left the lefty (Shouse) in to face 2 righties — and righties blast Shouse — always have, always will. If ESPN is trying to defend Yost’s decision based on 31 PAs while completely disregarding his CAREER SPLITS vs. righties, then those defenders at ESPN have no idea what they’re talking about.
If he was fired based on that mistake, he shouldn’t have been. If that mistake was emblematic of the way he manages, he should’ve been fired long ago.
ESPN wasn't defending him
They just brought up the stat while talking about the Philly game.
Going back a few days posts
on what FA pitcher we should pursue… I’ve decided that Lowe is the one. Why? you may ask. Well, last night he improved his record against the Pirates to 6-0. THAT is what we need, someone who can beat the@#*! Pirates!
I agree
I don’t understand not bringing up Rasmus with our sudden shortage of “real” outfielders. Wasn’t there an article somewhere that talked about trying Ryan in the outfield? Try it a game, it can’t be any worse than what we’re throwing out there right now. And isn’t Phelps a better outfielder than Lopez or Miles? It also doesn’t seem like Stavinoha is getting much time out there. I know he’s not great but at least he is an outfielder.
FWIW
Tied for the 16th draft pick. We’re getting ever so close to having that 1st round pick protected.
Nothin'. A handful of nothin'. You stupid mullet head. He beat you with nothin'. Just like today when he kept comin' back at me......with nothin'.
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
worth noting...
but if I am looking at this right in order to get to that magic number (15th pick) we have to play worse than Florida (quite possible) and 4 games worse than either Arizona or Texas (not likely but possible). Looks like we’re screwed for this and screwed for the Wildcard…
over the last 10 games
Texas is 6-4 while the Cardinals are 3-7, have lost 6 in a row and look worse every single night and are close to staring a 3 game series against the cubs followed by 4 against Arizona. I think it extremely possible.
Nothin'. A handful of nothin'. You stupid mullet head. He beat you with nothin'. Just like today when he kept comin' back at me......with nothin'.
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
Yeah if I were an Arizona fan
I wouldn’t give up yet on playoff dreams. The way we are playing they can easily sweep us in that 4 game series. Of course they need the Dodgers to lose as well.
We’ve got a long way to go and a short time to get there.
Hey...
I’m all for it. I just figure it’s supposed to be as hard to make up four games as it is to lose four games. The way we’re playing we may end up under .500…that may actually be a good thing. More likely we end up in no-man’s land – no playoffs and no draft protection. Anyone for having every team that doesn’t make the playoffs 1st pick protected? that would add 7 protected picks…I think no, but I’m not sure.
my laptop got fried in a power outage on friday night
so I was spared the humiliating sweep over the weekend. and last night’s game. what has happened? are we really this bad all of the sudden? I suppose Barton would help some in the outfield. this is the most frustrating season I can remember. the brewers and the mets are practically begging someone to take the wild card from their clutches, and neither the cards nor the astros can muster anything to take it. the collapse of our outfield reminds us of one of the big strengths of the team this year; but if you have great options from the bench, why not use them? has TLR gone nuts? is the team just giving up?
it's time to bring the rock!!!!!!!
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Sep 17, 2008 1:10 PM EDT reply actions
oh yeah
does anyone know how to tell if the power supply on the laptop is messed up, or something in the a/c adaptor? I hope all my photography and music and stuff is recoverable…….
it's time to bring the rock!!!!!!!
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Sep 17, 2008 1:11 PM EDT up reply actions
do you have some?
it's time to bring the rock!!!!!!!
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Sep 17, 2008 6:45 PM EDT up reply actions
Photography?
or the other thing?
Nothin'. A handful of nothin'. You stupid mullet head. He beat you with nothin'. Just like today when he kept comin' back at me......with nothin'.
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
2009 schedule is out
And we play the Tigers AGAIN but this time at Busch. We also play the Twins and Royals at home and we play at Cleveland. We start the season with a 7 game homestand against the Pirates and Astros. Our last 8 games of the season are on the road against Houston, Colorado, and Cincy. July looks to be a tough month but of course it will include the All-Star game that will be played at Busch.
We’ve got a long way to go and a short time to get there.
I forgot to add we play the Cubs for 10 games in April/May combined.
We’ve got a long way to go and a short time to get there.
ugh.
i bet they made sure to book the yankees and sawk for 10 in september alone.
by stlcardinalsfang on Sep 17, 2008 2:07 PM EDT up reply actions
Other than finishing the season on the road
I like next year’s schedule much better than this year’s. One thing that stands out is the 6 off days in July which includes the All-Star Break. Plus our interleague schedule seems much easier next year…that is if we don’t let the Royals sweep us again.
We’ve got a long way to go and a short time to get there.
Stop the presses I was wrong we actually finish the season at home
with three games against the Brewers on Oct. 2,3, 4. That is really weird that the season ends so late. I guess there will be October baseball for us next year no matter what LOL.
We’ve got a long way to go and a short time to get there.
We also start later then normal
April 6th is late for starting the season and I think it all deals with the WBC.
There's an automatic 4 losses.
Nothin'. A handful of nothin'. You stupid mullet head. He beat you with nothin'. Just like today when he kept comin' back at me......with nothin'.
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
Wasn't Reyes DL'd here for a sore elbow/arm?
And wasn’t that said to be another “made up” injury?
I’m sure this has already been discussed, but I just saw that he was shut down about 10 days ago for the season, for having a sore elbow.
I seem to remember that.... He did have a few elbow problems this year.
Didn’t Reyes get shut down last year with about a moth left due to sore shoulder?
I seem to remember that.
Don't feel bad I didn't see the fan post either before I posted all of this.
We’ve got a long way to go and a short time to get there.
I think you beat me on the post here
I think I put the fan post up just after you posted in the main page. I just figured the schedule would have enough discussion going on for weeks that a Fan Post made more sense.
I'm glad you posted a fan post
I am curious to see what other people think of the schedule. Maybe it’s just me but it looks to be a more favorable schedule for us. But it looks like we had better play good early with so many games agains the Cubs in April/May.
We’ve got a long way to go and a short time to get there.
As long as we're not going to Detroit again, I'm okay with it
I would have loved to drop one of the series with Kansas CIty and play the White Sox, tho.
Screw Rasmus where is Freese?
Lopez is the black hole of 3B. Don’t we need to shop this guy in the off season or at least see if he can play? This still makes no sense to me
You know what bothers me the most
Is the 3B Free Agent market in 09 is really weak. A lot of teams probably don’t/can’t overpay for replacement level. We could of showcased Freese than unloaded him in the off season. Really poor planning on Mo’s part.
by FlimtotheFlam on Sep 17, 2008 4:26 PM EDT up reply actions
Agreed
What more does this guy have to do to show he is ready at least for a cameo? Or Barden for that matter? They have very little left to prove at AAA so you might as well give them some ABs. It can’t be that we are concerned with starting their arbitration clocks.
This seems like such poor resource management. You have a hole and talent that is pretty much ready to fill it but you don’t even give them a shot.
what could we get for glaus?
"No matter where you go, there you are" Buckeroo Bonzai Across the 8th Dimension
Scott Rolen
Nothin'. A handful of nothin'. You stupid mullet head. He beat you with nothin'. Just like today when he kept comin' back at me......with nothin'.
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
I wouldn't mind
seeing Freese come up. At this point you could bring up anybody, and I’d say why not….AS long as they play their position…..I’m tired of this infielders playing the outfield crap.
the true tragedy
Will be if the season record impacts the MVP vote for Pujols. Not that I have a lot of respect for the MVP vote, but that would just cap the whole tamale of fail.
So… vote early, vote often! MLB Awards Tracker, Who gets your vote for NL MVP?
Last night’s check—
11:30pm CT— 9% Berkman, 13% Delgado, 20% Manny, 29% Albert, 29% CC.
Yeah, CC got it by tenths.
Tuesday thru mid-Wednesday results (sidebar)—
56,548 voting: Delgado 11, Howard 20, Manny 20, CC 24, Albert 25%
(Check the map. What in the world, New Mexico. And Tackle Box pointed out the Alaskan Brewer contingent)
Current Wednesday results—
721 voting: Delgado 6, CC 11, Manny 19, Howard 29, ALBERT 35%
- Y.2.2
"But listen, and understand: more Molinas are out there. They can't be bargained with. They can't be reasoned with. They don't feel pity, or remorse, or fear. And they absolutely will not stop, ever, until there is one on every Major League roster." - HBT
MLB Rumors has Blake
as the number 1 3B this off season. Man it would be nice to know if Freese is a ML 3B…or at least better than Blake. Just think if we could trade either Freese or Glaus this off season.
Alas that is not to be…but we do know that Lopez isn’t very good at it…and that is the most important thing.
why would we trade freese or glaus?
they our starting 3B and should be back up
it's time to bring the rock!!!!!!!
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Sep 17, 2008 6:47 PM EDT up reply actions
That what to do with Craig?
Who has earned a promotion to Memphis. I assume Wallace is going to start in Springfield this year. Someone has to go
by FlimtotheFlam on Sep 17, 2008 6:53 PM EDT up reply actions
Wallace gets an invite to spring training, if I remember correctly
it isn’t out of the question that a great ST will put him in Memphis to start the season.
So you possibly have Wallace, Craig, and Freese all in AAA.
It would have made so much sense to bring Freese up to see if he might be ready to be the backup next year, or possibly showcase him for a trade.
The more I think about, the more him getting snubbed confuses me.
* sarcasm might be involved in this comment
yeah
he really should have been up in the majors. they really blew it.
it's time to bring the rock!!!!!!!
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Sep 17, 2008 7:03 PM EDT up reply actions
The way you prove yourself for Tony is
A: Leave Tony with no other options, only applies to pitchers and IF. Aparently anyone can play OF so the options never end.
B: Get traded to another team, play out your peak year on the cheap for someone else. Then we will pay top dollar to bring you back in your decline years once you are a seasoned vet.
What is Cardinals fans opinion of LaRussa?
I am curious… I’ve never been a fan of his and I wrote about that.
But is he a beloved figure in St Louis like Whitey Herzog or is he kind of like a Great Santini figure… not lovable but necessary?
Just curious
Definitely not Herzog
He isn’t loved by everyone, and most people chide him more often then not. But I think the majority of the fan base respects him. He is a great manager that follows his own set of rules and as much as you want to argue or disagree he is right a good majority of the time. I don’t see him as neccesary anymore and I would like to see the franchise move on. TLR was the manager for a long time but this franchise needs to change it’s face. Let DeWitt IV, Moz and a new manager be the face of the next era the way Lamping, Jocketty and TLR were for this era. Hopefully we will look back on this next era the way we look back on the TLR and Whitey eras but who knows.
Just read your post over on Sully Baseball
and I think you somehow hit the nail on the head. Lots of Cardinal fans hate him, some like him and others are indifferent. Lots never accepted him and some think he’s either changed while others feel he has failed to change.
That’s the thing with LaRussa, most people don’t know exactly why they like him or dislike him. Sure some might have an idea, but I don’t think most do.
Nothin'. A handful of nothin'. You stupid mullet head. He beat you with nothin'. Just like today when he kept comin' back at me......with nothin'.
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
I like him
but these last two seasons I think he’s not quite as effective as he used to be.
it's time to bring the rock!!!!!!!
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Sep 17, 2008 6:48 PM EDT up reply actions
My feelings exactly
it just seems like his style of managing has changed since the WS title.
When Sanders went down in 04 or 05 with that broken leg, he didn’t try to put a second baseman out there, did he?
* sarcasm might be involved in this comment
nevermind
Luna go PT in the OF in 2004, Marlon Anderson got some in 2005 (playing time that is!)
* sarcasm might be involved in this comment
I'm pretty sure he got some too
I don’t know for sure, but I’ll just call it a hunch.
Nothin'. A handful of nothin'. You stupid mullet head. He beat you with nothin'. Just like today when he kept comin' back at me......with nothin'.
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
I would say so
unless he is baseball’s version of A.C. Green
* sarcasm might be involved in this comment
I very much don't like him
For one simple reason, he is a hypocrite. He claims to play by the numbers. But yet when the numbers say things like:
- Don’t bring in Flores, he cannot get LHB out.
- Jiminez isn’t an effective MLB pitcher
- Ponson, why did we need him.
- Any generic Vet is in steep decline.
He ignores the data and does what he wants.
He also revises his own history. Remember when he recently said there was no one in the minors like albert that could help. Well, he tried to keep albert in the minors when he came up because “he wasn’t proven”.
Or maybe its the “hero” mentality.
- Sending pitchers back out with excessive pitch counts
- Playing players that are hurt because he trusts them
Or maybe its his constant belief he is above questions from the media. Or perhaps the way he attacks other players for pitching inside because someone can get hurt while he is out driving drunk.
There are a lot of reasons not to like TLR.
here's what I just posted on your blog
well, summing up Tony Larussa’s managing style is basically impossible. On the surface (at least in the past) he came off as a pure numbers guy, but I think that has eroded over the years into a kind of bullish pride. He kind of sticks to his guns a lot and does what he wants, even though it doesn’t really add up numbers wise all the time. Sure, his gut feelings are as accurate as anyone else’s, or moreso (he is very successful), but as a Cardinals fan I’m getting a little tired of his unwavering trust of veterans and more experienced players (even if they are no where near as talented as their younger counterparts), his constant tinkering with the lineup (I’m sure some players don’t really know exactly what position they play anymore), his unpredictable use of matchups (sometimes he sticks to them blindly, at others he ignores some players). Finally, he’ll run out guys that have been failing, seemingly at random. He’ll throw a relief pitcher he hasn’t been doing too hot into a pressure situation. Sure he’s had a challenge this year in managing, but I’d like to see more consistency, and not his usual eccentricities. I do like the guy, he’s quite the character. But he’s no Whitey Herzog.
it's time to bring the rock!!!!!!!
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Sep 17, 2008 7:04 PM EDT up reply actions
Tony
Goofin off on the pre-game show with Jim Hayes . . . is he drunk again??
Seriously though, nothing is funny about drinking and driving.
"Baseball is like Church, many attend, few understand" - Wes Westrum
clarify?
Nothin'. A handful of nothin'. You stupid mullet head. He beat you with nothin'. Just like today when he kept comin' back at me......with nothin'.
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
He was holding his glasses
over the mic so FSN didn’t get any “free advertising”
Then he told the Kat that he had the fungoe there in case he asked “the wrong questions”
Just his attempt at humor . . . which was actually a little entertaining.
"Baseball is like Church, many attend, few understand" - Wes Westrum
The lineup
if I remember correctly:
Skip
Lopez SS
Pujols
Ludwick
Glaus
LaRue
Miles 2B
Wellemeyer
Ryan RF
Apparently, Brian Barton is dead.
by Hardcore Legend on Sep 17, 2008 6:38 PM EDT reply actions
And if Barton were in the lineup.....
You’d complain that Ryan weren’t. And if Ryan started at 2B, you’d complain about Lopez at SS.
Just admit that there isnt’ a reasonable lineup that you wouldn’t complain about?
How irrational of me
to wish we play an OF’er in the OF.
You Tony is right, we are all wrong. We get it.
by Hardcore Legend on Sep 17, 2008 6:48 PM EDT up reply actions
OPS vs RHP
Barton .697
Ryan .578
This makes perfect sense.
by Hardcore Legend on Sep 17, 2008 6:55 PM EDT up reply actions
it seems like you complain just as much about people's posts
face it, the ship is sinking man! something is not right!
it's time to bring the rock!!!!!!!
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Sep 17, 2008 6:51 PM EDT up reply actions
if Barton was playing SS tonight
then yeah, we’d probably complain that ryan wasn’t in the game.
Though that would be an interesting experiment with a high upside if it worked that might cause me to think about it a long time before complaining, rather than dismissing it out of hand.
"All I am saying is give Freese a chance!" -- nmstar
Tony said on the pregame interview on FSN
that Ryan is getting the start in the OF tonight over Barton because they know what Barton can do, they want to see what Ryan can do.
* sarcasm might be involved in this comment
Well, then why not see how our Shortstop plays Shortstop
Who cares how he plays the OF. He cannot hit like an OF.
Because they were playing him in the outfield in Memphis
He’s not a shortstop anymore. He’s a utility fielder.
Nothin'. A handful of nothin'. You stupid mullet head. He beat you with nothin'. Just like today when he kept comin' back at me......with nothin'.
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
because we can never have enough OFs
we will def run out of them next year too
* sarcasm might be involved in this comment
just make Barton the manager
then at least he’d be able to prove himself. as both a player and a manager
it's time to bring the rock!!!!!!!
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Sep 17, 2008 6:50 PM EDT up reply actions
Wait, Ryan in RF
And thats not Ryan Ludwick. I guess we don’t have any other OF anywhere in the org that could be useful here. Ryan is fine at SS/2B, but not corner OF.
at least he's not in center field!
it's time to bring the rock!!!!!!!
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Sep 17, 2008 6:51 PM EDT up reply actions
I got it.
Sorry everyone, I was stuck in traffic.
Why don't you just make like a tree, and get out of here?
by the red baron on Sep 17, 2008 7:09 PM EDT up reply actions
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