What's the issue with McClellan? I heard Horton refer to a hip injury, but I missed any elaboration.

It's going to get interesting when Holliday is 100 percent. Craig and Jay are clearly more effective if they play every day. Craig seems like a go at second base. So do you go with Pujols at third, Berkman at first, and an outfield of Holliday-Raz-Jay as your everyday lineup? That makes for a formidable batting order.

Last edited by artie_fufkin (6/01/2011 9:27 am)

TK mentioned something about McClellan's hip after his last start.  If true, maybe they will need Boggs to start some games.

In any event, it looks as though Franklin is working his way back into some playing time.  There is a quote from La Russa about how Franklin needs to "stop tipping".  I had been wondering if that might have been what was going on.  You take a guy with a mid-70's curve ball and a mid-80's fastball and tell the batter what he's going to through and it could get ugly.  So it will be interesting to see how this develops" was that the problem, has he fixed it, and will it do any good?

I also liked the quote in the Strauss thread: "Holliday saga explains why many fans remain skeptical re: team claims that AP has no physical issue. May be true but Cards create climate."  So true.  Injured guys play for weeks or months and we are told they are in a slump.  Healthy guys go to the DL to make room on the 25 man roster for someone else.  Hard to know what to believe.

Speaking of which, take a look at Pujols's double again, and see if that doesn't look like the sort of pitch and swing that he would normally crush. 

http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=15408159

I was just coming to post that. That means Jaime gets pushed back to Saturday.

tkihshbt wrote:

I was just coming to post that. That means Jaime gets pushed back to Saturday.

I wonder how much of that has to do with the furball he coughed up in Denver. Arm fatigue?

tkihshbt wrote:

"Franklin is tipping his pitches" is just the boilerplate excuse they use when a guy has become ineffective.

fair enough.  so why did he suddenly become effective again?

reading the story about McClellan and Holliday, it sounds like in the case of McClellan, at least, this could be about giving him some rest.  Granted it's hard to know what to believe when the Cards talk about injury, but it would be comforting to think that they feel this is a fine time to rest McClellan and Holliday, and give some extra work to Jay, Craig, and now Lance Lynn.  Maybe Lynn is the guy in whom they hope to build some trade value? 

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news;_ylt=Apz76hYfg.Q6M5SBfZ_LtiIRvLYF?slug=ap-cardinals-injuries

"Franklin is repeating the "tipping" story."

Yeah ... I was tipping my pitches ... that's the ticket! ... and I'm dating Morgan Fairchild!

"The dating contention was ludicrous but true, wasn't it?"

Really? I can't imagine Lovitz overachieving that much.
My favorite Lovtiz character was the Devil. There's a sketch when he gets taken to the People's Court by a white trash hair dresser (played by Rosanna Arquette) who wants to break the deal she made for her soul. The Devil loses, and of course there's the standard post-game interview with Doug Llewellen (sp?), who is played by Kevin Nealon, I think. There's a moment when Lovitz says "I'm not mad at YOU, Doug ..." and then Nealon gives sort of an uncomfortable glance toward the camera. It was so subtle the studio audience missed it, but I damn near fell off the sofa.
I'll see if I can find the clip.

So many great things about that clip.  Phil Hartman.  Jan Hooks when she was hot (did you catch the way she checked out Mephistopheles after he came in?).  Rosanna, making Hooks look plain by comparison.

Somehow, someone convinced me at the time that Lovitz and Fairchild were married in real life.  Obviously I was misled.  Man, was I gullible before I got the Internet.