Results tagged ‘ Chicago Cubs ’
Cards’ Wings Clipped in Rubber Game
Thursday night’s game in St. Louis very well could be the point of no return for the St. Louis Cardinals as they fell to the Chicago Cubs in game three of three game series. With both Houston and Philadelphia winning while Milwaukee lost, a shaking up of the Wild Card standings was inevitable. St. Louis remained 4.5 games back of the Brewers, while the Astros passed them up in the standings, moving to 3 games back with the Phillies. Tony LaRussa’s ball club would have it hard enough to be chasing two teams, now adding a third team to the mix makes it that much more difficult for the Cardinals to find a way into the playoffs.
A tight ballgame was being had in St. Louis, with pitching that was very solid for the first 4 innings of the matchup. Todd Wellemeyer and Rich Harden both performing well with the rain falling in St. Louis. Unofrtunately, Wellemeyer would be on the bad end of an error from sure-handed firstbasemen, Albert Pujols. Uncharacteristically of Pujols, everyone in the ballpark was in disbelief as the error allowed two Cub runners to cross home plate later in the inning. Two runs were only given up by Wellemeyer, both unearned. St. Louis got themselves on the board in the bottom of the 6th-inning when Albert (Pujols) dobuled to left that scored Aaron Miles. Pujols’ RBI double gave him 100 RBI’s on the season and puts him in company with Al Simmons and Ted Williams as the only players in history to begin his career with eight straight 100-RBI season. Felipe Lopez followed Ryan Ludwicks groundout with a sharp single to center, scoring Pujols easily. The 6th-inning would be the only inning the Cardinals would manage to score in, as they were shut down the rest of the way, but not without threatening, though.
In the bottom of the 8th-inning, Aaron Miles lead off the inning with a single, bring up the always dangerous Alert Pujols, yet again. Carlos Marmol, who was pitching for the Cubs made an attempted pickoff move to first, but didn’t step off the rubber before faking a throw. Thus is a balk in baseball, which would allow each runner to move up one base. Homeplate umpire, Mike Reilly did not call the balk, which very well could have cost the Cardinals the game. Sadly, I was able to catch the balk instantaneously, while these Major League umpires couldn’t pick it up. Any of the three other umpires could have stepped forward, but no call was made by any of them. As an umpire I know the stress that is put on you, as I umpire youth league baseball from ages 12-18. I hate to blame an umpire for a loss because I’m simply not the person that tries to find excuses for a bad outcome, but this call could have been a huge swing for the Cardinals at that point in the game.
With the Cardinals 4.5 games back in the Wild Card now, the door seems to be closing more rapidly as the Astros continue to make yet another late-season run for a playoff bid. Philadelphia doesn’t look to be going anywhere either with MVP candidate Ryan Howard leading the way for the Phils. Although, the Brewers seem to be fading for the second straight season, that will not be enough, as the Cardinals look to chase Houston and Philadelphia as well. LaRussa has done a great job with keeping this team afloat all season long, let’s just hope the recent injuries won’t be the demise of the St. Louis Cardinals for the 2008 season.
Lilly, Errors too Much for Cardinals
Left-handed veteran starter, Ted Lilly was outstanding in tonight’s start against the St. Louis Cardinals. Lilly improved to 14-9 on the season, but made every bit of this outing count, both on the mound and on the base paths. The first inning was the only hiccup Lilly had on the night, when he allowed a run on an Albert Pujols RBI ground out, bringing his season total to 99. With the first inning behind him, Lilly put the Cardinals on lock for the next seven innings, shutting them out while only allowing four hits in his last seven innings of work without walking a single batter. After a two inning outing against the Reds, Ted Lilly made sure to right the ship for the struggling Cubs, only needing to throw 90 pitches (63 for strikes) to get through eight innings of work.
The mound wasn’t the only place Lilly managed to do damage against St. Louis. After a bunt that lead to an error on Felipe Lopez at third, when he tried to make a force play into a tag play, Lilly reached first on a fielder’s choice. The very next play, Lopez made another error after making a spectacular diving play to his left, got up to make a throw to second, making a low throw in the dirt. Lilly, running to second on the play, didn’t slide and ran over Cardinal second basemen, Adam Kennedy. With Derek Lee at the plate, Lilly tried to score on a soft chopper to Ceaser Iztruis, who threw Lilly out at home. With the close play at home, Lilly went in hard at home, trying to jar the ball loose from Yadier Molina, where Lilly’s knee went into the thigh of Molina. Molina suffered a bruised thigh which would later be the reason for him leaving the game after his at-bat in the bottom of the 4th-inning.
Lou Pineilla would take the ball from Ted Lilly after the 8th-inning and hand it to tenured Cub, Kerry Wood. After a strikeout of Felipe Lopez, Albert Pujols came to the dish, looking to spark some sort of rally for his Cardinals. Pujols doubled to deep right, giving exactly what the Cardinals were looking for; baserunners. Ryan Ludwick took a pitch out to deep right-center for a two run bomb, bringing the Cardinals within a run, while notching his 101st RBI and 33rd homer on the season. Kerry Wood would go on to retire the next two Cardinal batters, one by means of the strikeout, and another on a flyout to center. Wood obtained his 29th save on the year, but has made a number of those saves very interesting, keeping manager Lou Piniella on his toes.
The late-inning surge by the Cardinals was not enough to mount a complete comeback, but shows the type of heart St. Louis has shown all year. Tony LaRussa has his club using the “never-give-up” attitude which has kept them within contention for a playoff berth. Hopefully, the Cardinals can keep that attitude up, and overcome the newest dose of injuries to Troy Glaus and Yadier Molina. It’s up in the air now, but it’s only a matter of time before the playoffs will be set, and the postseason to begin. Intriguing is the most fitting word to use to describe the playoff races down the stretch.
Carpenter to Miss Start Friday
Last Sunday night against the Chicago Cubs proved to be a little bit of a hiccup for Chris Carpenter and his surgically repaired arm. His third start back from being the DL, Carpenter was pitching a solid game against the Central Division rivals. Carpenter threw a pitch with one out in the fifth-inning and immediately called battery mate Yadier Molina to the mound. Molina motioned for the trainer and manager Tony LaRussa to come to the mound. Carpenter would leave the game Sunday after allowing six hits and giving up two earned runs. The Cardinals would go on to lose the game, handing the loss to Carpenter. His first decision of the season.
Caution is one word that can be used when describing the way the Cardinals will handle the injury to Carpenter. After an MRI was done the conclusion was made that it wasn’t anything too serious. A muscle strain in the right “posterior shoulder” was the diagnosis by George Paletta, Cardinal trainer. Carp escaped another serious injury, but will not make his next scheduled start in Cincinnati on Friday. Dave Duncan, Cardinal pitching coach, mentioned that Jaime Garcia or Brad Thompson are the prime candidates to receive the spot start for the injury to Carpenter. As for Tony LaRussa, he calimed, “If I have any doubts about his health, I’ll err on the side of caution.”
Birds Claim Game One Against Fish
Monday brought a bounce-back victory for the Cardinals, after losing the rubber game of the 3 game series to the Chicago Cubs. A sweep from the Marlins is what the Cardinals need to keep pace in the NL Wild Card with the Milwaukee Brewers. The 4-2 victory Monday night wasn’t much of an offensive explosion for either team. Joel Pineiro took the mound against Anibal Sanchez, who pitched a no-hitter in 2004. Pinerio pitched seven strong innings, gave up two runs, only one being earned, and fanned four.
Scoring got started early as the Cardinals plated one in the first inning. Rick Ankiel, who had been battling an abdominal strain, singled in the first to bring newly signed Cardinal Felipe Lopez to pay dirt. Pineiro gave up the two runs in the first and second inning, and that was it for the Florida Marlins. In the fourth-inning, the Cards were put on top for good by a Yadier Molina two-run homer to deep left. That homer being the first for Molina since June 20th. Although, Yadi hasn’t had a lot of pop in the bat this year, he’s been a consistent offensive performer. He’s the hardest player in the NL to strikeout, while batting the highest he has in his career, .304. The Cardinals were leading 3-2 heading into the ninth-inning. Joe Mather, who has shown the Cardinals that he possesses power, hit a solo homer to left-center field, putting the Cardinals up by two. With a two run lead, Chris Perez came on for the save, and has put and end to the woes in the back end of the bullpen for the Cardinals. At least for the time being. The flame-throwing right-hander stifled Marlins hitters, after walking Dan Uggla. Uggla was thrown out trying to steal second base by Yadier Molina, with Wes Helms and Cody Ross both striking out to end the game.
Rick Ankiel has come back and looks like he’s at 100% after an abdominal strain held him out of the starting line-up for nearly two weeks. Ankiel will be a good asset to have back on the field both offensively and defensively. Chris Perez looks to be stepping into the closers role nicely and has somewhat sured up the tail end of the bullpen. Down the stretch the Cardinals are going to need all the help they can get while they try to chase down Milwaukee, and Chicago.
Glaus Breaks 0-30 In Big Way Against Cubs
St. Louis third-basemen, Troy Glaus, had been in a deep slump against the Chicago Cubs this year. His .000 batting average made Tony LaRussa ask if Glaus wanted a day off on Saturday, with Glaus replying “No way, I want to play.” Glaus rewarded the Cardinals and his manager by going 3-5 with 2 homers, 5 RBI’s, and 2 runs scored on the way to a Cardinal route of 12-3. Troy had been 0-30 against the Chicago Cubs this year, and his chances didn’t look very good against Cubs ace of the staff, Carlos Zambrano. After the victory, Glaus was asked if he knew what kind of serious slump he’d been in, and claimed he had no idea. It wasn’t just Glaus who saw the ball well out of Big Z’s hand, it was the whole Cardinals team. Albert Pujols and Skip Schumaker both joined the power club on Saturday, nailing a solo homer each. New Cardinal Felipe Lopez had a good day at the plate, going 2-4, driving in a run, and scoring twice.
The Cardinals exploded offensively for twelve runs on Saturday, after only scoring 3 runs in their previous two games. St. Louis will get another tough match-up Sunday night against right-hander Ryan Dempster. Dempster hasn’t faced the Redbirds this season, and has been very effective against the rest of the league. Chris Carpenter will be on the mound for the Cardinals, looking to get his first victory, after taking no-decisions in his previous two starts. Carpenter has looked good in both starts so far, so the Cardinals have something to be very excited about. Sunday will be the rubber game of the series, with both Chicago and St. Louis winning one game a piece.
Ludwick, Mather Homer in Cardinal Victory of Philly
Rookie outfielder, Joe Mather extended his hitting streak to five games, while adding yet another homer to his name. The three run homer in the top of the 3rd for Mather was his 3rd in 5 games. Fellow corner outfielder, Ryan Ludwick also had a power surge against the Phillies, taking not one, but two balls out of the yard. The Phillies put their ace Cole Hamels on the bump to take on Kyle Lohse, Lohse improving to 13-3.
Lohse looked sharp to start the game, not giving up a hit until after the 4th inning. Trouble seemed to loom around Lohse in the 6th, as he worked himself into a jam. A ground-rule double by Chase Utley plated Victorino, and a two run homer by Pat (the bat) Burrell ended Lohse’s game after 5 1/3. LaRussa went to Russ Springer after Lohse and the bullpen was strong to finish off the game. In the bottom of the 8th, Ludwick added his second homer of the game to make the score 6-3. Jason Isringhausen was brought on to close out the game, earning his 12th save of the season and notching another win under the Cardinals’ belt. The victory allowed both the Cardinals and the Brewers to move one game closer to the Chicago Cubs as they lost earlier in the day to the Pittsburgh Pirates. Now, only 4 games back the Cardinals look to keep up the hot play and inch closer to the division lead.
Cardinals Stand Pat at Deadline
General Manager John Mozeilak did not make any moves as the July 31st non-waiver trading deadline passed at 4 p.m. EST. Mozeilak had actually been rumored to put season standout Kyle Lohse on the trading block to try to acquire some help with the back end of the Cardinal bullpen. The Cardinals had expressed interest in veteran left-handed reliever Brian Fuentes, but the Rockies were asking a lot for the seasoned closer. Colorado had been thinking about whether or not to let go of Fuentes and slugger Matt Holliday at this year’s deadline. Dan O’Dowd (General Manager) and Clint Hurdle (Manager) of the Rockies felt they have a legitimate chance at making a run in the anemic NL West, therefore, pulling Fuentes and Holliday off the table. Although, it had been noted Holliday would not be going anywhere.
With the Birds playing in Atlanta this week, they’ve been able to sneak some very good looks towards the left-handed reliever the Braves own, Will Ohman. Ohman, who is in his sixth year of service in the major league’s has served with only one other team than the Braves, the NL Central rival Chicago Cubs. The south paw is easily having his best year of his career, posting a formidable 2.80 ERA while fanning 41 batters in 45 innings of work. In those 45 innings, he’s given up only two homeruns, walked 18 batters, owns a 1.11 WHIP (Walks+Hits/Innings Pitched), and has held opposing batters to a feeble .198 average. Rumors swirled that the Cardinals had expressed interest in the 30 year old pitcher, and could be silently working on a deal with Braves management while in Georgia’s capital city.
Although, the non-waiver deadline has come and gone, don’t put it passed the Cardinals front office to make a late deal in prospect of bolstering the roster to catch the division leading Chicago Cubs. The Cardinals, who are tied for second place in the division with the Milwaukee Brewers, now are only chasing one team rather than two to claim a division title and punch a ticket to play in October. Keeping that in mind, be on the lookout for the Cardinals to try to land a player in the next week or so.
All-Star Voting Becomes Joke
As a fan I love to get online and go through the players I feel should be voted to start the All-Star game for their respective leagues, but for most of the fans it’s not about who’s having the best season. Instead, it’s heavily relied upon by the name. Many players who deserved spots on the All-Star teams got snubbed because the fans that know no difference didn’t give them what they deserved. Pat Burrell is the number one snub of all, I feel. There is no way Kosuke Fukudome and Alfonso Soriano should have been voted in as starters to the Midsummer Classic. Pat the Bat hands down deserved a spot on the NL roster. I’m not only saying that because those two players I just named play for the Chicago Cubs, it’s the truth. Fukudome and Soriano in no way deserve All-Star selections this year at all, let alone a starting spot. How could Nate McLouth of the Pirates not be starting in this game? That’s the biggest bone I have to pick. All-Star voting should be completely left up to the players and managers around the league, then we’d see a more justified All-Star team, I believe.
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