Cardinals Closing Woes and Other Notes



Is Franklin getting ready to ride off into the sun set?  Or will he still be an important part of the Cardinals team?


Well I was wrong about the team sticking with Franklin.  Mitchell Boggs was named the closer and saved his first 3 tries, but last night in fitting fashion he blew his first game and earned the L.  The team has to stick with Boggs for a little while, but I think 2 or 3 more games like last night from him and you might see Eduardo Sanchez or Fernando Salas closing.  I don't like the idea of Motte in the position.  I think his clever game plan of trying to trick batters with yet another fastball isn't going to work.  Lets hope someone at the position sticks and can be the teams closer for years to come.  I still think Boggs can get the job done though and he has good stuff.  Of course I said the same thing about Franklin.  The team will continue their series with the Astros tonight.

Last weekend Recap

Before the weekend the Cardinals took 2 of 3 from the Nationals before the Reds came to town.  That is the only plug the Nationals get.  Sorry guys, get Strausburg back healthy and you will get more print space.

On the lighter side the Cardinals did take 2 of 3 against the Reds over the weekend, extending their dominance over them from last year.  They won 12 of 18 against the Reds in 2010, but couldn't beat the teams they "should" have beat and thus fell short of a bid to make the playoffs. 

Friday's game started out slow with a loooong rain delay.  A tornado even touched down in the area and did a lot of damage.  People are still recovering from the storm.  But the team did manage to play some baseball and the Cardinals won the opener.  TLR must have a meteorology degree as he played the forecast correctly.  He had Miguel Batista warm up to start the game before the rain delay.  He walked the first batter and was a pitch into the next one before the storm hit.  Batista joked that the storm ruined his bid at a no hitter. McClellan then came into the game after the rain delay and earned the W.  Theriot had 3 hits and Pujols a couple of RBIs.  Boggs earned the save in a 4-2 victory.

On Saturday the team was ahead thanks in part to a strong outing from Carp.  The only runs off him came in the 6th after he walked Phillips with a 3-0 pitch that Votto hammered into center for a HR.  The STL pitchers combined for a 4 hitter but the team couldn't hold on thanks in large part to walks and errors.  The Cardinals held the lead, but after a rain delay the Cardinals relievers combined to give up 3 in the 8th.  The rally got started after a Freese throwing error.  But that is how the game is, one bad inning can turn the momentum around and cause you to lose despite 8 other solid innings of play. 

On another note while listening to part of the game on Fox I was reminded why I am not a fan of Joe Buck.  There are certainly a lot of pompous announcers out there, but I think he is at the top of the list.  I for one am glad he did not follow Jack Buck's footsteps and stay an announcer for the Cardinals.  It wouldn't be so bad if what he said actually resembled anything close to being intelligent.  But mainly he jumps on the latest band wagon and bestows nothing but praise while vilifying the other side.  Tim McCarver is not that great either, but I can at least stand listening to him.  Whether its football or baseball I will eventually turn the sound off rather than listen to Buck.  For the most part though I listen in to the games on the radio to hear Mike Shannon and John Rooney. 

In the rubber match up Sunday the Cardinals Jake Westbrook on just 3 days rest came through big time.  He combined with Salas, Sanchez and Boggs to blank the Reds on just 4 hits.  Boggs earned his 3rd save of the year too.  Yadi hit a 3 run shot in the 6th and that was all the team needed to take their 11th straight home series from the Reds dating back to 2006.  The Cardinals starters have been nothing but consistent this year.

On another note Brandon Phillips was booed as much as any player I have ever heard of being booed at Busch Stadium.  But he apparently loves the boos and the attention that comes with it.  The series did not have any major incidents, and the Cardinals came out with 2 of 3.  You can't ask for a whole lot more than that against a team you will be competing against all year (along with the Brewers) for the division.