tkihshbt wrote:

One of the worst non-strike calls ever. That was terrible

Was it a strike? It looked like it caught the corner.

Did Hernandez foul that off after it bounced???

Tossed Salad

Moz goes out and gets a guy so Matheny won't have to use Salas in the seventh inning, and Matheny uses Salas anyway. Incredible. There's no reason for Fernando Salas to be pitching in a tie game.

artie_fufkin wrote:

Unless the Cardinals come up with three runs in the ninth, they're going to go 3-3 against the Cubs and the Rockies. Even on the road, that's unacceptable.

It's why the Reds are 23 games over .500 and the Cardinals will be seven.

forsberg_us wrote:

On the bright side, I picked up Josh Rutledge about a week and a half ago when my regular shortstop went on the DL. I appreciate the Cardinals pitchers making him look like Troy Tulowitzki.

I hope you picked up Colvin before this series.

This game had a couple crucial misfires:

Bases loaded, 1-out and Berkman bounces harmlessly into a double play with Allen Craig sitting on the bench; and,

Lynn didn't get an obvious strike call in the sixth inning on CarGo and he roped a single.

And I was pretty surprised he didn't have a lefty going to go against Colvin. What is the point in carrying three lefties if you're going to sit them in spots like that? I just don't get it.

Finally, I thought Matheny was conceding the game when he left Browning out there to take a pounding. But hey, the Cardinals took 2 of 3. Their work was done and a sweep is getting greedy. Why work Alex White over when you can get the game over with, go back to the hotel room and rest up before the trip home? They went 3-3 against two teams that will each lose 100 games. Plus they lost more ground in the wild card. They tried really hard and that's all you can ask for.

"Bases loaded, 1-out and Berkman bounces harmlessly into a double play with Allen Craig sitting on the bench"

I thought about making that move too, and the obvious response is "You can't pinch-hit for Lance Berkman ..." But Tracy did the right thing by turning Berkman around. It's a sad state of affairs when you're out-managed by Jim Tracy.

artie_fufkin wrote:

APIAD wrote:

artie_fufkin wrote:

Moz goes out and gets a guy so Matheny won't have to use Salas in the seventh inning, and Matheny uses Salas anyway. Incredible. There's no reason for Fernando Salas to be pitching in a tie game.

Garcia comes back and Kelly is the 7th inning guy.  It has to work, right?  I man he has never pitched an inning of relief in the majors but he will be great.

I get the sarcasm, but I'm not sure I'd move Kelly out of the rotation. He's 1-4, but his ERA is under 3.00. You could make an argument he's been the second-best starting pitcher in the rotation since the AS break.

Who do they move out of the rotation then?  It is much like your statement about Berkman.  It is more about feelings and ego then about making the correct call.  Lynn is an all star this year.  I doubt they move him into the least glamorous role in baseball and to be honest I dont think Westbrook would be a good bullpen pitcher.  Soon it wont matter.  The Cardinals are 8 games back of the division and four games back of the wild card with no sign of them pulling their heads out of their asses.  Lets face it, is almost over.

Outside of a couple starts Lynn has looked ordinary for awhile so he should probably be the first guy dumped from the rotation if Garcia checks out. How he didn't get hammered worse last night is beyond me.

The speed of the game is still too much for Matheny. Let's take last night for example. Runner on second, one out with Colvin coming up. Colvin has traditionally not hit left-handed pitching. This would be a time for one of the three lefties the Cardinals are carrying, right? But TK, you say, they've got Rutledge coming up. Are you going to burn one lefty for Colvin, bring in Mujica or Boggs just to face Rutledge then go back to a lefty for Fowler?

No. You play the odds that one of these guys can get Colvin. If you don't trust them to get Rutledge, intentionally pass him to face Fowler. Do something that doesn't involve Salas twisting in the wind and throwing pus. And if you can't trust any of them to get Colvin, Rutledge or Fowler then just go home for the rest of the year because it's a lost cause.

Too many times this season we've saw Matheny get caught flat-footed. It happens. This is his first managing job. I can't put it on him because the speed at which this stuff is happening from the dugout is incredible. But this is why you don't hire a guy who hasn't done it before. And as much as it used to aggravate me, I think I took for granted how La Russa was always one step ahead. Sometimes it didn't work out, but how often did you think a game got away from him? Hardly ever.

"You play the odds that one of these guys can get Colvin. If you don't trust them to get Rutledge, intentionally pass him to face Fowler. Do something that doesn't involve Salas twisting in the wind and throwing pus. And if you can't trust any of them to get Colvin, Rutledge or Fowler then just go home for the rest of the year because it's a lost cause."

What he said ...

Berkman 15 day
Robinson up
Molina and Furcal in the lineup tonight .....