During Friday night’s St. Louis Cardinals game, another lop-sided victory over the Dodgers in Los Angeles, researcher Tom Orf was pounding out the factoids, or should I say the tweets.
There was a lot to say. After all, the Cardinals offense blasted a season-high 19 hits in the 11-2 win. It marked the fifth straight game in which the Cardinals collected at least 14 hits and the fourth consecutive game in which they had 16 or more. It was the fifth straight game in which the Cardinals had scored at least eight runs.
The win was powered by Albert Pujols and Lance Berkman with two home runs each. It was the 40th multi-home run game of Albert’s career. Yadier Molina was on base five times, four via singles. Ryan Theriot extended his hitting streak to seven games and drove in one.
From the team perspective, St. Louis reached .500 for the first time this season at 7-7 and closed Cincinnati’s lead in the National League Central to 1 1/2 games.
Here is a sample of Orf’s points, preserved in their maximum 140-character splendor.
- Cardinals most RBI from leadoff spot in 1st 14 games La Russa era: 7-Vina 2002, 6-Theriot 2011/Vina 2001/McGee 1996
- Cardinals the 1st team since the 2000 Tigers with 15+ hits in 4 consecutive games and only 6th team since 1938 to do it
- Cardinals most 4-hit games by a catcher 19-Simmons, 8-McCarver/W.Cooper/Molina
- Now Cardinals one of only 3 teams since 1938 with 4 straight games of 16+ hits (10th since 1919)
- Pujols 29th player in MLB history to have 40 multi-home run games
- Pujols 25th time with HR in consecutive plate appearance & 1st time 2 Cardinals with HR in consecutive plate appearances in same game
- Another one-last time the Cardinals scored 50 runs over 5 games, 1962, games 1-5(53) 2-6(51) 3-7(51) prior to that 1948
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Berkman, Holliday, and Pujols share the trait of being line-drive hitters. They can combine power and batting average. Its a tough lineup, with that trio in the middle of it.
Does anyone know whether MLB.TV blacks out Cardinal games in Kansas City? I won’t be able to get it on TV tonight.
I am pretty sure KC is Royals only so you should be able to watch the Cardinals game from there.
Nope, the game is blacked out.
Sorry to hear…
The ML squad has 17 HRs. They better not suffer a lot of injuries, because Memphis has zero, although in fewer games.
Theriot is another key to 2011. If he can maintain a high on base percentage in the leadoff spot, this will contribute a nice lift to the offense.
Hamilton and Stavinoha will eventually hit their share of home runs. Andrew Brown offers power too.
I added the Brown comment just for you, CC. 15-20 homers is my prediction.
Tonight’s game will be a good test. Kershaw is a terrific pitcher who will not give up a lot. But the Cards could go with Greene at 2B and Craig in RF and offer a tough lineup.
Seems logical but it would be tough to sit Berkman right now. I guess as a veteran I’d leave it up to him.
My prediction is that TLR will stay with the hot hand even if he shouldn’t.
My prediction is Craig starts in RF. Lance is 35 and can use a few offdays, especially against tough southpaws. And TLR wants to get Craig some at bats, get him going too.
So for a lineup I will guess
Theriot, Rasmus, PUJOLS, HOLLIDAY, Freese, Craig, Molina, Greene, pitcher
I haven’t read much gushing about what a fab hitting coach Mac must be.
Only one person so far hasn’t voted for Pujols and that person has no opinion. I am a little surprised as yesterday on my radio show, Mark Hanrahan told me he thinks Holliday will out homer Albert this season. (Mark’s brother Joel is the closer for the Pirates.) Apparently Mark is out there on his own….
Holliday and Berkman are circa 25 HR guys, while Pujols is a circa 35 HR guy.
Craig, Laird and Greene join the regulars.
Lineup: Theriot-6, Rasmus-8, Pujols-3, Holliday-7, Freese-5, Craig-9, Laird-2, Greene-4, McClellan-1.
Maybe Molina does not hit Kershaw.
Molina vs. Kershaw:
3-12 .250
1bb 2k
McDougle, Hawksworth, and starting 2B Aaron Miles look really really good in LA uniforms.
I fully agree!
The Dodgers are a famous franchise and seemed big time under the big spending McCourts. How the seemingly mighty have now fallen and been laid low!
What a comedown to start Miles at 2B! How can the Beverly Hills crowd stand something so weird?
MacDougal has gotten off to a good beginning in 2011, but this seems unlikely to last. He was utterly terrible last summer. It will not be long before he is awful again.
The Cards were able to take advantage of the financial woes of the Dodgers to take Theriot off their hands for someone we did not need in Hawksworth. Mo made a mistake by betting on Khalil Greene’s brain, but Mo looks like a winner on Theriot, who can be an everyday leadoff hitter.
Joe Torre bailed out. Manny and Andruw Jones were recent year messes of Tinsel-town. It could get very ugly this summer for Dodgers fans.
Theriot needs more than 15 games to re-prove himself, but I agree with you that the Dodgers are a mess.
I hope Shane Robinson is ok. It was good Rasmus and Jay did not collide recently, even if a ball fell.
Very scary collision. It was in shallow LC.
Just got home and got the game on, how many hits tonight so far? bases loaded now
Only four so far but Kershaw’s pitch count is already in the 90s in the 4th inning.
That added a few. Congrats Allen Craig!
The Cards wore Kershaw down, fouling off a lot of pitches and running up his pitch count to 111 in under 5 innings. Meanwhile McClellan went 7 innings with only 94 pitches. So even with Kershaw on the hill, its another Cards Romp, Cards Romp!
Tyler Greene makes MacDougal pay for hitting him by stealing 2nd and 3rd, then scoring.
Sanchez collects another 3 outs and all are by strikeout.
Three more hits by Theriot. I thought ugh when we traded for him, now I see how right Mo was, AGAIN.
Gee we are smearing the Dodgers in their own park, 3 down, 1 more game to go. The Cards are looking mighty.
Its going to be a tough season for posters at this web site, since many seem to naturally tend toward doubt and despair. If we pancake out opponents, game in, game out, they will have nothing to say.
……………………………… Julius Caesar…….. Jimmy Hoffa……..Herkimer Oink…..Jumb….nay…………. lets wait and see…………….
Theriot won’t be the full time SS by June…………… He has had this thing handed to him. He is over swinging in a fashion that suggests an insecure opportunist……….trying to fill what was a week ago, a power void………… he seems reluctant to play the needed roll………..save for weak end of the BP pitchers…he has stunk…………… Punto is in Florida and will arrive hungry……and knows the role….Tony is over saturating Theriot right now so when crunch time comes…….there won’t be allot of flack from the Front Office…………… Theriot will be in a mid infield rotation in June……….Green will be the odd man out…………. The kid is a good athlete but suffers from a weak hitting concept………. tough break. He would benefit with a change in organizations. He is trade bait……as is Mott I’d guess…….if he had any value……….doubt it…………… Opposing trainers have been adding a bottle of hand lotion in the dugout for their professional hitters…….who are developing callouses from wringing and rubbing their hands together in anticipation of facing Mott for money. Dave’s adjustments gave the kid a chance…….. but it didn’t materialize. The 100mph with the wildness was always his best trait…….. there gone.
Sanchez has 8 Ks in 3 IP, a rate of 24 per 9 innings.
Its nice how the offense is not being carried by Pujols. Holliday too has missed time due to appendicitis. Yet thanks to Theriot, Rasmus, Berkman/Craig, Freese and others, the Cards are scoring lots of runs. When Albert and Holliday heat up, they should continue to pummel the opposition.
The Cards have an extra OF stashed at AAA, namely Rapoport. He can be activated if injuries to Robinson and Brown warrant.
Another stashee is Amaury Cazana, who hit well for Memphis just last summer. Cazana has an unusual playing history in that the Cards have stored him in the Mexican League for parts of the past 5 seasons. http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?pos=LF&sid=milb&t=p_pbp&pid=502973
It looked like Luhnow was aiming to cultivate a talent pipeline via Mexico, after signing Jaime Garcia (from a S. Texas HS) and Fernando Salas out of the Mexican League. But the Cards seems to have since quieted down on efforts to find talent in our neighbor to the south. We seem to be unearthing enough talent in the Dominican and Venezuela.
Carp looks smoother. Can’t see him giving up fewer that 3 though……he will go 7if we score first and maintain a lead.
Get rid of Franklin now.
Vin Scully say…………………”and they pitch to the only guy that hurt them” …….. I like that.
Carp was solid…………… Colby put on the sunglass……..and never gave it another thought. That is insulated from reason……………. This is actually a positive loss even though it would have tied us for first….
The Franklin problem needs to be resolved…….worst case scenario is that he does well enough to get to big games……..and then chokes…………… it has to be by committee until the kids grow a bit more. Franklin would respond better that way anyhow.
I think Scully said “They pitched to the only guy who could beat them, and he does!”
It is hard to explain when the next couple guys aren’t hitting their weight. Tony may have done as much to lose the game as Franky.
If they walk him…………Dodgers just sacrifice the winning run into position………..tough call.
Sharing my video from the game. My friend Crystal (a Royals fan) and I bitching in the background.
Well, I embedded the code but it didn’t post.
http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=1786507259832&comments
Nice
Hopefully Tony and DD don’t put Franky thru what Chris Duncan endured. Being trotted out only to fail until the fans just couldn’t stand it any more. They might though, its their style. Mo will have to pull the plug. If he does it before its too late, Franky can help the team and preserve his dignity and the appreciation of the fans. If he waits it gets ugly.
You might be mis characterizing this BB……….. Tony/Dave are doing the best with what they’ve been given……. They went through the winter figuring all the dry powder was going to AP.
Boggs is the best guess, but they don’t feel he could stand the pressure day in day out…… they aren’t going move Sanchez in there…….thats BD’s post AP ammunition………..
Franklin made a good pitch there………..to a guy looking for Franklin to make a good pitch there……That was a Dave type of approach………..it doesn’t work for closers……… Mott has the right mentality………..but he doesn’t have the wildness and the 100mph that made him interesting…………..
The solution……. close by committee……see what pony wants to run and saddle him up more often.
If Tony had sent in Mott, who drilled Kemp between the shoulderblades, then took his chances with the .200 hitters, I’d think we might go all the way. We’re leaving town anyway.
We need a carnivore and Franky can’t smell blood anymore, niether can Tony.
Mo better not dawdle, here’s the headline from stltoday:
“Franklin ruins Carpenter’s ace performance ”
Ouch
Ouch is right.
That last from the front page. From the sports page:
“Road trip ends with thud on Franklin’s blown save
Joe Strauss
LOS ANGELES – The Cardinals ended a road trip as they began it, with closer Ryan Franklin unable to hold a ninth-inning lead.”
Getting ugly real fast.
Yeah, the closer situation is becoming a problem. On the plus side, did you all see Molina leg it over to second base on his dropped pop fly to RF?
Shocking. He’s blazed on the basepaths a few times this year. Is he up for a contact?
Molina can run Nut…………….he just doesn’t………..and thats positive?
Only if you put the DVD on fast forward.
Right. He was still really slow, but he was trying.
Molina is no speed demon and he never will be. Can he run faster than he has? Probably, and it appears he is doing just that, for whatever reason. But he will never be fast because he does not have the speed. That is obvious.
Everybody isn’t fast but everbody can hustle. I appreciate the recent effort.
Its time for Franklin to take a little vacation from closing. 3 HRs in 5 innings is not nifty. Next up: Mitch Boggs.