St. Louis Cardinals weekly chat on KXnO FOX Sports Radio 1460 in Des Moines.
Late Tuesday afternoon, I joined Ken Miller and Jim Brinson on KXnO FOX Sports Radio 1460 in Des Moines in our regular series to discuss the St. Louis Cardinals, “Cardinal Talk.” This time, we discussed the National League Championship Series shifting to St. Louis for Games 3-5. Of course, Matt Holliday’s Game 2 hard slide into Marco Scutaro came up, too.
Cardinals followers in central Iowa can again catch St. Louis Cardinals radio broadcasts on KXnO as well as my regular segment each week throughout the season, either over the air or via streaming. My appearances are sponsored by WCI Pools and Spas.
Click here for audio: Brian Walton with Ken Miller and Jim Brinson (10:24)
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The article on the main site about Oscar Taversas being named Springfield player of the year makes me wonder if he will be next year’s Adron Chambers. Or a Chambers/Robinson combo. At least by later on in the season after wooping some PCL butt. We could use a livlier bat and more dynamic player coming off the bench. Not to mention giving Mike a better option to get Carlos some down time and whenever Jay goes out on a double switch.
That in turn gets me wondering about Skip’s role next year. He’s sort of superfluous now and will be under some pressure to justify a roster spot I would think. He’s down for $1.5 next year, so I’m sure he’d be easy to move if it comes to that.
So if you take away Chambers, Robinson and Skip, and insert Taveras that leaves room for two more extras. Assuming Furcal is back, one would be a middle infielder, perhaps Kozma. That still leaves room for a bat off the bench guy. Adams?
My guess is that they are not going to want Taveras to be a fourth/fifth outfielder, but instead would play him every day in Memphis until an injury opens up a starting job in St. Louis. If Adams makes the team – and he may be more ready than Oscar – that can free up Craig to be the fourth corner outfielder when Holliday and Beltran need a breather.
I’m not so sure they would throw him into a full time starter role right off the bat. I’m thinking ease him in at around the AS break, see how it goes. Get him ready to take on the starter role in 2014.
I’m trying to emulate my hero Schmalbert. So I’m sitting on the sofa with a bag of pretzels watching the Cards play post-season baseball.
Jumbo got his wish, Beltran out and MCarp in.
Other than the fact that he was brought in to replace Beltran, why is Carpenter manning RF? Why would Allen Craig not move there instead? Just because Craig has been playing 1B every day doesn’t negate the fact that he has a lot more experience in the outfield than Carpenter does.
I am ok with the move. My guess is that they prefer Craig’s defense at first, a more important position. Carpenter hasn’t played much anywhere except 3B.
I could argue against first being a more important position than right, but I’ll buy that Carpenter is seen as a better RF than a 1B at this point. Typically one sees a third baseman playing first as his alternate position, but Carpenter didn’t ever seem very comfortable moving to the other corner infield spot.
Earlier in the year, Carpenter would have played 1B while Craig moved to RF in these situations. I just find the change interesting.
And now Craig is out of the game and Carpenter is in at first. Not happy about losing Craig’s bat.
Wouldn’t want Craig running around a wet outfield later on.
Hindsight says Matheny should have kept Rosenthal in for more than one batter. Now, the cleanup hitter, Craig, is double-switched out with Robinson in RF. Sure hope these moves don’t backfire.
Boggs got them out of the seventh, but who pitches the eighth?
I’m guessing Kelly or Salas. I prefer Kelly.
Double switching Craig wasn’t a smart move, even though he is 0 for suck lately at the plate.
First good move Matheny made. Craig has become a monument to hitting. A McGwire devote.
Beltran out isn’t going to hurt either in this game. Carpenter got a big mistake. He has completely given up on any appearance of flexibility. Cardinal hitting preparation is terrible. Pitching to the Giants is a hard chore. They have roll players. Walking Descalso? Huge mistake. He is now a power threat? They wanted Sugar Shane. If its Skip, they rotate Cain out. Thank you Lord. +1 for MM
Need Mighty Koz to get it started in the 5th
I’m OK with Matheny’s moves so far. Not timid. Need some O.
Shane Robinson with the bases loaded, grounds into a run-scoring force out. That will do.
Looked like a good chance at the plate if Scuttero hadn’t double clutched. Glad he played it safe.
Wet ball. Pagan doesn’t throw anybody out at the plate with a bar of soap in his hand. Freese has the “handle carefully” sign on his back. They send anyone else except Molina.
The Umps should call this one on account of rain. We won fair and square.
Would be nice, but against the rules.
Woooooooooooooooooohoooooooooooooooooo!
The Giants offensive futility seemed disturbingly familiar.
For the Cards, the well rested guys did the heavy lifting.
Game 3′s win over Matt Cain owed to a gutty performance out of our best starting pitcher, Lohse. And to one swing from Matt Carpenter. The other run was facilitated by, no surprise of course, Pete Kozma.
The Giants badly needed to win Game 3 behind their ace, Cain, but did not get it done. The Cards need to bear down the next two games, so we do not return to SF to face Vogelsong and Cain again in Games 6 and 7. Those two are bad news.
Lincecom and Zito are vets, but we can score on them. Cain was the big hurdle and we escaped with a win. Looking good.