Cardinals Descalso First HR Means Victory

source:Wikipedia

St. Louis Cardinals utility infielder Daniel Descalso had never hit a Major League home run coming into Tuesday nights game against the Florida Marlins.  Granted he had only 90 at bats on the grand stage.  But in 1,808 minor league at bats, Descalso totaled 27 dingers and a slugging percentage of .406.

What all those stats sum up is that we should have seen it coming.

Seen what coming, you ask?  Let's set the situation.  The Redbirds are trailing the Marlins 5-4 in the bottom of the seventh inning.  The Cardinals had squandered multiple opportunities with the bases loaded and less than two-outs, only tallying one run from such riches.  Now they have two on and two outs.  Lance Berkman has just been thrown out at the plate running on contact on Yadier Molina's ground ball back to the pitcher.

Perhaps the Marlins felt a shift in the wind, as they changed pitchers so that right-handed reliever Clay Hensley can face the left-handed hitting Descalso (don't ask me why, I just report the facts).

Hensley offers Descalso an 84-mph sinker, which is fouled off.  I'm not sure why it's classified as a sinker, but any 84-mph pitch from a major league hurler would appear to those watching as having a "sinking action". 

Let us examine this more closely.  Descalso has some pop in his bat, totaling 5 doubles and a triple this season amongst his 12 hits.  But he's batting .214 with a .333 slugging percentage for the season entering the game.  Hensley replaced Ryan Webb, who served up 95-mph heat to Yadi in the previous at bat.  Not sure why Florida manager Edwin Rodriguez decided that Hensley's stuff was a better match against Descalso than Webb's.  Sometimes the thought of facing Cards manager Tony La Russa makes lesser men out-smart themselves.

Back to the action.  On his second pitch, Hensley balloons an 80-mph off-speed delivery that Descalso deposits with dispatch into the right-field seats for a three-run homer.  Shades of Tom Lawless.  Go crazy, folks.  Go crazy.

Matt Holliday hit a home run in the first inning to spot starting pitcher Kyle McClellan a two-run lead.  But McClellan wasn't sharp.  And neither was the St. Louis defense.

The top of the third was a carnival, as the Marlins plated two runs without the benefit of a hit, an error, nor a ball hit to the outfield.  How does such a thing occur?  Horrific official scorekeeping, two walks, a passed ball, and the random, odd occurrences that make baseball so special.

La Russa added to the circus atmosphere by crazily inserting reserve infielder Tyler Greene as a defensive replacement in LF for veteran former (and current) outfielder Lance Berkman!?!?!  In the top of the sixth, TLR replaced power bat Allen Craig at third base for better defense with light hitting Nick Punto.  Craig was due up second in the bottom half of the frame.

Craig got the start at third, contributing a run scored, a double on a hustle play, two walks, and an RBI when he was walked with the bases loaded in the second inning.  Craig did air-mail a throw to first base that allowed Gaby Sanchez  to reach base leading off the fourth inning - an inning that the Marlins scored twice.
He did nothing to lose the third base job in the absence of David Freese, nor did he stake any claim to the job.

Eduardo (don't call him "Dirty") Sanchez got the save, following two innings of relief from Eduardo Sanchez and one perfect eighth inning from Jason Motte.

It was an ugly, eventful, long, but fun game Tuesday.  Wednesday night Chris Carpenter will have the ball for the NL Central Division leading St. Louis Cardinals.

Craig Gets Crack at Hot Corner for Cards

Allen Craig will get the start at third base for the St. Louis Cardinals in tonight's game against the Florida Marlins.  Craig will replace the injured David Freese who broke his hand Sunday when he was hit by a pitch.

Craig began his minor league career with the Redbirds as a third baseman, but was switched to the outfield.  Though always a successful hitter, Craig did not show the same capabilities in the field at the hot corner.  St. Louis manager Tony La Russa had intentions to give Craig some time at third base during spring training, but many of his innings were devoted to getting a longer look at prospect Matt Carpenter.

Freese has been a valuable part of the potency of the Cardinals lineup thus far in 2011.  He goes on the DL with a season batting average of .356 and 14 RBI.  He has exhibited a knack for delivering in the clutch,  hitting .500/.563/.500 with 2 outs and runners in scoring position, knocking in 6 runs in 14 such at bats this season.

Craig's Bat is Best Replacement
Though anticipated to be a hack in the field, Craig's powerful hitting stroke is really the best option the ball club has to replace Freese in the lineup.  Daniel Descalso has shown he can pick it at third base in his brief big league career, and Nick Punto is a proven veteran gloveman at third.  But neither has the power to back up Lance Berkman in the 6-hole in the lineup. 

The loss of Freese gives frightening reminders of the problems at third base last season.
Felipe Lopez and Pedro Feliz proved frustratingly inept at the plate, and that black hole coupled with the lack of offense from shortstop meant Cardinal rallies ended when the bottom of the lineup came up to bat.  Skip Schumaker has the ability to shore up the end of the lineup, but he's at least three weeks away from returning from injury.

Craig has an impact bat.  In 33 AB this season, he is hitting .303 with 1 HR and 7 RBI, though he's been limited to only 12 games played due to his own stint on the DL.  And while his MLB career has been spotty, he has hit when given regular at bats.  He was an absolute rake at Triple-A Memphis.

The Bat Must Make Up for the Glove
The hope in this corner is that Craig can play third just well enough to earn 3-4 AB's in 4-5 games per week until Freese can finally come back.  Craig must improve on his horrible fielding stats at third with the big league team - one chance, one error.  It would be good for Craig to get a second chance in the first inning tonight - a simple play made flawlessly.  It would be good for his confidence.

The Cardinals need that, because they need his bat.

Cardinals Showcase Mark Hamilton

Mark Hamilton

With the poorly timed Designated Listings of valuable contributors Skip Schumaker and Allen Craig, the St. Louis Cardinals made a surprising call-up from Triple-A Memphis, first baseman Mark Hamilton.  Additionally, the forgotten Nick Punto was actived from the DL.

Hamilton's recall was surprising.  He is a power bat who plays a position that he will not be filling - first base.  He is most likely to be used as a pinch hitter and a couple of on-the-job training starts in the outfield.

We expected Adron Chambers to get his cup of coffee for the next fortnight, but the organization is suddenly short on available outfielders after a frightful collision that robs us of reading Shane Robinson's last name arching over his smallish shoulders.  It's also in the best interest of team and player for the still developing Chambers to get regular playing time in the minors than rot away on big league pine.  Hamilton, on the other hand, really doesn't have much left to prove in the minors.

What Mark Hamilton needs to prove is value to another team as a Major League player.  It is unlikely that if Albert Pujols finds a different franchise to pony up the paychecks for his demands in free agency, a career minor league player will replace the future Hall of Famer on a perennial contender.  Hamilton's true worth to the Cardinals organization is as a trade chip.  Without playing time with the parent club, he isn't much of one.

This is what I believe the reasoning was behind his being the butt in the seat on the plane to St. Louis.  Hamilton needs to show that his long, looping swing can fulfill his minor league home run totals against top calibre pitching.  A couple of dingers in a couple of weeks would make a non-contending team take some notice of him - especially in the DH League.  It's a little something something St. Louis GM John Mozeliak could find handy to have in his back pocket around the end of July.

Cardinals McClellan Does Good, Pujols Clutch in Win

St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Kyle McClellan took the ball at Busch Stadium on Tuesday night.  This night was a little different for the career reliever - this time the his name was called with no outs in the first inning.  The hometown boy from suburban Florissant MO made his first big league start after spending three years as a bullpen stalwart.

Perhaps showing a bit of understandable excitement and nervousness, McClellan gave up a lead off double to Jose Tabata, but recovered to strike out the next two Bucs batters before making his one singular bad pitch of the game to Lyle Overbay - a 421-foot home run to stake the Pirates to a 2-0 lead.  McClellan shrugged that shot off to strike out Pedro Alvarez to end the inning.

McClellan Settled In
After that, McClellan was sharp.  He kept the Pirate batters off balance with his variety of pitches, changing speed, and location that lead to 7 strikeouts in his 6 innings.  McClellan avoided trouble until the sixth inning when Andrew McCutcheon and Lyle Overbay stroked back to back one-out singles.  Facing what would ultimately be his last batter, McClellan induced Pedro Alvarez to ground into the double play.

McClellan's work was over after that, leaving with the score tied 2-2.  He scattered six hits while issuing only one walk and striking out seven.  Perhaps the strikeouts took a toll on his efficiency as he needed 95 pitches to complete his six innings of work.  But clearly McClellan showed what pitching coach Dave Duncan has said for a while - McClellan will be a solid starting pitcher.

Bats Don't Help McClellan
Meanwhile, McClellan needed to be sharp as the Cardinals batsman failed to do enough to get him the 'W' he deserved.  In the bottom of the first, Colby Rasmus and Albert Pujols drew one-out walks but the rally fizzled as Lance Berkman was called out on strikes and Allen Craig flied out.  In Berkman's defense, he had an extended at bat, peppering the red-clad crowd at Busch Stadium with well struck foul balls.  But he never got a chance to straighten one out as he was rung up by umpire Kerwin Danley on a call that had Berkman visible upset.

Berkman got his revenge on Pirates starter James McDonald in the fourth, leading off with a double.  Allen Craig followed that with a single to score Berkman.  David Freese then walked to extend the rally, but the bugaboo of the Cardinals so far in 2011 - the double play - raised its ugly head again.  Skip Schumaker was the offender this time.  Gerald Laird couldn't get the clutch two-out hit, striking out to end the inning.

Setting the Table
A theme of the game for the St. Louis offense was the table-setting at the top of the order.  The fifth inning is a prime example.  Ryan Theriot stroked a one-out single and moved to third on Rasmus' single. Cardinal Nation held it's breath as Albert Pujols came to the plate, hoping that he wouldn't ground into another rally-killing double play.  Though he didn't drive the ball as we've been accustomed to (spoiled by) in the past, he did get the ball in the air and his sacrifice fly scored Theriot.  A Berkman pop fly to shortstop ended the inning with the score 2-2.

Theriot showed some leadoff man moxie in this game, getting on base three times with a single and two walks.  Rasmus also set the table with two singles and his fifth walk of the young season.  Rasmus' OBP is now .550, good for fifth in the NL.   These two Redbirds were also instrumental in the winning run for the home team.

In the seventh, Theriot walked and Rasmus singled in front of Albert Pujols.  Pujols stroked a ground ball single to score Theriot from second and give the Cardinals the 3-2 lead.

Miguel Batista pitched 1.2 scoreless innings of effective, but sleep inducing, relief.  Honestly, can't he pick up the pace a bit?  If St. Louis' defense is suspect, slowing the game down to drowsy isn't going to improve their alertness.  Trevor Miller allowed a walk in the eighth to put two runners on, but struck out Pedro Alverez to end the threat.  Closer Ryan Franklin did allow a two-out single in the ninth, but did get the save without overdone dramatics.

Cardinal Nation Relaxes
McClellan was the story in this one.  His won-loss record is still stuck on 0-0, but to say he didn't factor in the decision is a misnomer.  His six innings were key, and in his first career start mimicked Jaime Garcia last season in effectiveness - showing how close the battle in 2010 spring training for the fifth starter spot actually was.  And the table setting of Theriot and Rasmus relaxed the vexation of Cardinal Nation, if only for one night.

Now if the team can string two games of stringing together baserunners, we will feel much better before the upcoming west coast road trip.

The Second Half Begins In Positive Way for Cardinals, Carpenter

As Chris Carpenter breezed through the Los Angeles Dodgers line-up on Thursday night, all of Cardinal Nation gave a deep sigh of relief as well as celebrating the 7-1 victory.

The St. Louis right-hander had not been sharp since getting hit on his pitching arm by a line-drive in late June, but the veteran was efficient and in command for eight innings, only surrendering four hits and an Andre Ethier solo home run.  Carpenter struck out six, and has apparently corrected the mechanical flaws that had plagued his starts earlier in July as he did not walk a Dodger.

Carpenter was able to locate his curve, something that he has been unable to do his last two starts.  He had allowed 11 earned runs and 18 hits with 4 walks in only 9 innings during the July funk leading to fears among Cardinal fans that the former Cy Young winner was injured.  But the team insisted he was fine, and pitching coach Dave Duncan said just before the All-Star break that Carpenter's issues were in his delivery, specifically the way he was landing on his left leg.

So one great fear of the second half is eliminated right away.  Carpenter was masterful - crisp and efficient, getting out of innings with very few pitches.  And that was important on a typical St. Louis July night rampant with heat and humidity.  Carpenter only threw 101 pitches in his eight innings, but wasn't asked to do more in the muggy conditions, giving way to Mitchell Boggs who finished the game with no drama.

Another positive development was the Cardinal offense.  Dodger lefty Clayton Kershaw has bedeviled the Redbirds in the past, but he wasn't sharp tonight and St. Louis took advantage.  Albert Pujols had three hits, Yadier Molina and Aaron Miles added two each to the team total of 12.  The offense was able to string hits together and put runs on the scoreboard in four different innings.

The Cardinals recalled Allen Craig from Memphis to replace OF Nick Stavinoha, who went on the DL with a shoulder sprain.  Craig had 2 RBI and hit the ball hard, but did not record a hit.  Craig has only one hit hit in his 21 Major League career at-bats.  He was replaced in the sixth inning by another rookie, Jon Jay, who extended his 12-game hit streak with a RBI double in the seventh.  Jay continues to be a spark to the line-up, and he is now hitting .386 on the season.

With Cincinnati having the day off, St. Louis is only one-half game out of first.  With Carpenter back to being himself and the offense looking like it should, Cardinal fans are feeling a bit better about the team and the second half of the season.


Photo by Dilip Vishwanat, Getty Images Sport