The St. Louis Cardinals pounded first-place Cincinnati on Sunday, 8-2. St. Louis’ 17 hits were the most allowed by Cincinnati in any game this season.
Two of the team’s biggest bats each had a big day. Matt Holliday had four hits and four RBI, while Allen Craig homered and drove in three runs.
From an individual perspective, each of the players’ performances stack up well in recent Cardinals history, according to the following lists provided by researcher Tom Orf.
With 35 games remaining, Holliday can break a tie with several others for the most four-hit, four-RBI games in a season. He currently has two such contests.
Collectively, the 2012 Cardinals team has five four-hit, four-RBI games, just one off the best season in that stat since at least 1935.
Four-hit, four-hit performances in a game, St. Louis Cardinals, season since 1935
| Team | Year | Player | # | ||||||
| 6 | 2003 | Edmonds | 2 | Pujols | 2 | Rolen | 1 | Renteria | 1 |
| 5 | 2012 | Holliday | 2 | Beltran | 2 | M. Carpenter | 1 | ||
| 4 | 2008 | Ludwick | 1 | Pujols | 1 | Molina | 1 | Kennedy | 1 |
| 4 | 2004 | Pujols | 2 | Edmonds | 1 | Mabry | 1 | ||
| 4 | 1953 | Schoendienst | 2 | Repulski | 1 | Bilko | 1 |
In addition, Holliday is very close to a major personal milestone. He is just three hits away from his 1,500th as a major leaguer.
In every year since at least 2000 except one, at least one Cardinals hitter had double-digit totals of three-RBI games. Craig is the first to put his name on that list with his Sunday success.
The 28-year-old first baseman-outfielder not only has 10 three-RBI games, he has driven in a total of 71 in just 85 games. 20 times, he plated himself.
Double-digit three-RBI games, St. Louis Cardinals, by season since 2000
| Year | Player | # | ||||||
| 2012 | Craig | 10 | ||||||
| 2011 | Berkman | 11 | ||||||
| 2010 | Pujols | 16 | Holliday | 12 | ||||
| 2009 | Pujols | 13 | ||||||
| 2008 | Ludwick | 12 | Pujols | 12 | ||||
| 2007 | Duncan | 12 | Pujols | 10 | ||||
| 2006 | Pujols | 18 | ||||||
| 2005 | none | Edmonds | 8 | |||||
| 2004 | Rolen | 16 | Pujols | 12 | Edmonds | 10 | ||
| 2003 | Pujols | 15 | Rolen | 13 | Edmonds | 11 | Renteria | 10 |
| 2002 | Pujols | 15 | ||||||
| 2001 | Pujols | 17 | Edmonds | 14 | ||||
| 2000 | Edmonds | 14 |
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The offense is definitely doing well!
I need to vent about the roster again. The Pirates have more lefty swingers than the Reds. We should have sent down Dickson and brought up Lyons, today.
Lyons? That seems highly unlikely.
I heard on Twitter that Rosenthal was held out of his start in Memphis tonight. Isn’t he eligible to be recalled in a couple of days?
He was sent out the 19th, so after tomorrow.
Freeman is on the DL. Browning is not eligible to be called back. While Lyons is a 2010 draftee who Mo would prefer not to bring up, because this eats a roster spot in November, we are in a pennant race. And we could use a second lefty. Mo should not mess around, but bring up Lyons.
Some guys just can’t rise to the occasion when opportunity knocks. Dickson is one of those. Might as well see if somebody else can.
Lou Brock is on the rain delay show with Ozzie and Bruce Sutter. Its one of those taped cconversations/reminiscences. Need more Brock.
Lynn hasn’t had a first inning like that lately. 1-2-3.
Colb-rows ??
http://blogimages.thescore.com/djf/files/2012/08/colbrows.jpg
They’re gone already.
not soon enough
Yikes.
A lot is being made of Holiday’s nice catch in a clutch situation last night. Is it just me or does it seem like belly-ball boy has upped his fielding a notch this year?
Jay also made another nice one near the wall, after a long run on a soggy field. His great and aggressive defense is becoming just another game for him. He is a player on an upward trajectory, both O and D.
I’ve been especially impressed with the nice job he’s done at the top of the order, which has been a problem area for some time. (Furcal also did a nice job holding it down earlier). Maybe his new-found OBP accumen will help him to make those cold streaks of his less severe and less prolonged.
And that was a nice job legging out that triple last night, and on a ball to left field IIRC.
Next year is his last pre-arb, so if he keeps it up he’ll probably get a contract around mid-season.
Just as an aside, I seem to remember that TLR sat him the last game or two his rookie season so he’d be sure to finish with a .300 average. Anybody else remember that?
You make a very good point about Jay’s growing importance as a table-setter on a team that lacks them. I was just discussing that with a customer on the TCN subscriber message board in the context of Taveras’ arrival. Jay seems to be cementing his role on this team for the foreseeable future.
Regarding hitting .300, he finished at .297 last year. In 2010, he did not get an at-bat the last three games, likely for the reason you mentioned. Here is the link to his 2010 game log.
What, no one wants to talk about the plate collision? Clean hit or no?
Looked OK to me. Rather a wimpy payback by Jake.
What did you want him to do, bean him in the head?
of course not. Ribs or in on the hands. Give him something to think about.
Just watched Harrison explain on MLB Network that he wanted to do it differently from a collision last year in which he tried to slide into the Houston catcher and got a bloody face. They showed the old clip along with tonight’s collision.
To me, the play looked tough, but within the rules. Hopefully, Molina won’t miss much time as that could take serious wind out of the Cardinals sails. .
If an Astro had put an elbow in his face at 2B, or come in flashing cleats, he probably wouldn’t have hit Yadi. Some guys need to be reined in. Maybe Bud will send him a strongly worded letter, that ought to do it. He’s certainly not going to worry about getting hit in the butt with a Westbrook fastball. If anything, that sort of ‘payback’ will only embolden him.
In his post-game comments, Hurdle noted that kind of play can ignite a team. With his club’s post-season hopes slipping in recent days, the importance of Wednesday’s game has increased even more. How will the two teams respond in terms of the series and rest of the season?
I hope it ignites the Cardinals more than it ignites the Pirates.
I am an old school baseball fan. I don’t get worked up about those kind of plays unless they are clearly dirty. Heck, I didn’t even think the Posey hit last year was bad. But what burns me is the attitude shown (mostly by fans), that it is a good clean baseball play when your team does it, but a dirty rotten let’s call for their heads on a platter when it’s done to you. If it’s a clean play, it’s a clean play. I don’t mind Hurdle getting involved because he was protecting his pitcher’s ability to pitch inside, but Barajas and any one else who was chirping about the HBP should just keep their trap shut. And I don’t even know what Chris Carpenter was doing other than just being Chris Carpenter (Hey, I love the guy, but he has a mouth even a sailor wouldn’t like).
Just play baseball.
And hey bling, maybe Matt Holliday can make a run at Harrison on a double play ball and mess him up a little. He’s pretty good at that.
I would never mention the belly-ball again.