If you include managers you can go back to Bresnahan more than 100 years ago.
Since you asked, I missed the chance to see Foo Fighters live. And that is a big miss for me.
Genesis Cabrera has had erratic results at Class AAA, and that's beyond his line. The velocity and the command and the shape of his pitches have also been wavering, like they did in the majors. Romero and Thompson are the options the Cardinals are counting on at the moment, so that's a big bet, especially on Romero. He's done well so far. He'll get a good test with Brewers in town.
Not likely a center fielder, no. Have not heard that ever brought up as a possible position for him. I think there is a possibility that Gomez is added to protect that power from the Rule 5. He's had a strong season. They've taken notice, of course.
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I think that is something to keep in mind, yes. They showed where they were willing to go for the talent they felt was right.
Thank you for the compliment. I've had a chance over the past two, three weeks to revisit some of the coverage from the early 2000s, that time when Pujols emerged in 2001 (Hummel and Eisenbath on the beat) to Strauss joining the beat for the start of the 2002 and the coverage he, Dan O'Neill, and Hummel had of those seasons. Knowing what those seasons built toward added such context to the coverage and what the writers were seeing coming. And then looking back to some of the coverage in 2004 and on when I got the chance to be out there and cover playoffs along side Miklasz, Burwell, Strauss, and Hummel. All I had to do was show up and watch and it was like graduate school for baseball writer.
Not before a conversation about a contract that gives him security and the Cardinals some financial flexibility. Could be a one-and-one deal that is loaded with incentives so if he's healthy he earns what's possible, and the Cardinals are protected against him missing time with more injuries.
What if they peaked in August?
There is. Defensive Runs Saved. There are other metrics, too. Goldschmidt, oddly, is a zero DRS according to Baseball Info Solutions current stats. The leader at first base is Christian Walker, out in Arizona, at plus-16. Goldschmidt rates far better with another defensive statistic. He's got a 4.3 Ultimate Zone Rating. He's turning plays into outs. Walker leads at 4.5.
The will have some, yes. The extent of them will somewhat depend on where the team is in the standings, in preparation for the postseason. But there are events planned all weekend to honor the retiring duo.
He made a commitment to rest them, and he has said many many many times that he needs to keep their trust by sticking to that. If he scheduled them a chance to get 48 consecutive hours off, he was going to side with that.
That is how he would put it, yes.
It sure seems like a pennant would go a long way to the Cardinals being as good as they say they need to be and the Cardinals expect themselves to be. Reestablish themselves as a leader in the National League, along with Atlanta and Dodgers. Assert their place as the NL standard.
I wish I knew. I'm just not much fun when it comes to predictions like this. They're wrong as soon as I say them. I had to break the news to my dad that I'm just too boring to play the prediction game. So, at least I'm consistent. I disappoint chatters and relatives alike.
Maybe. Depends on the opponent. It won't be Cincinnati.
Sorry, had to step aside for a quick call. Let's dive back in.
The Cardinals would prefer Zack Thompson be something of an Andrew Miller type in the postseason. Different stuff. But same aggressive use from the left side.
To see him against MLB pitching, because he's left-handed, the Cardinals have struggled at times against right-handed pitchers, and they want to see what they have so they're not making a decision without info about his postseason role.
