- This topic has 46 replies, 16 voices, and was last updated 7 years, 3 months ago by
.
-
Posts
-
Well, that was a horrendous performance against a batting practice pitcher. Cards lose 4-0 to Maddux, err, Hendricks. Easily the worst offensive output of the year. Guess they’ll have to go get em tomorrow.
Could not agree more. You win as a team and lose as a team. However, I thought Bader had a rough day in particular.
Hendricks shouldn’t be great. But he just is. Not just against the Cards. But he’s faaar more frustrating to watch pitch, than Maddux was. Because Hendricks has no fastball, at all.
But let’s look at how the unimposing twerp with no fastball has done. Over the past five years, in the entire majors there are only eight pitchers with a lower ERA and more innings than Hendricks. They are: Scherzer, Kershaw, DeGrom (yes, I’m going to capitalize your last name whether YOU do or not, Jacob), Verlander, Arrieta, Kluber, Grienke, and Chris Sale. So, Chris Sale plus a pile of Cy Young Award winners. How many Cy Awards are accounted for there? About fifteen or so?
Hendricks is not an ace. But he is a number one starter. If you are one of the top 10 or 12 starting pitchers in baseball over a 4-5 year period, you are a number one. By definition.
Those eight aforementioned stars and superstars of the bump are the only pitchers we can say definitively have been better than Kyle Hendricks over the past half decade. And you have no idea how much it baffles and pains me to type those words.
This cubs run was MADE by the Arrieta and Hendricks trades. Not just that, of course. But I would argue that they had to have them, or they’re just another good-to-very-good team for the past several seasons. Theo Epstein has developed ONE starting pitcher from scratch in his nearly 20-year career, and that was Clay Buchholz a long, long, long time ago. (And they have drafted an awful lot of pitchers in rounds 3-10 over the years.)
Arrieta and Hendricks saved Epstein from his rather astonishing incompetence at pitcher draft & development. And he deserves full marks for trading for them.
Couldn’t watch today, good thing. But there’s always tomorrow. Dervish is not having a particularly good year, so we should be able to score. Wacha just needs to keep the ball down and let the infield get the outs. If the Cubs get under the ball, we lose.
The cubs are tougher than the redbirds. Their manager has them ready to play and they attack when they see the cardinals. Our boys wilt and fold their tents in at the sight of this cubs team the last 3-4 years. It’s like our guys are intimidated before a football game or hockey game and the tougher team attacks and has their way. The softness of this franchise lately makes me sick.
Stpcard, Friday was truly a bad game, but last season, the Cards turned the corner and actually had a 10-9 advantage over the Cubs. Nothing to be sickened about, IMO.
I found out Tuesday night while watching the Cardinals/Nats game that watching the Cardinals can be hazardous to your health. Along about the 7th inning of that game I got a phone weather warning of a tornado in our area and advisement to take cover. Over the next two minutes the following occurred: Lost all power, heard hail on roof, heard the infamous ‘freight train’, the front window of the house blew inward spreading glass all over the inside, and then it was all quiet.
To say we were lucky would be underestimating it. We have a steel tornado shelter in our garage but never had a chance to use it. We lost a huge tree in our front yard but it did not hit the house – I think it actually protected the house. We lost numerous shingles and had many ceiling leaks as it was raining hard at the time. We and most neighbors lost all of our wooden fencing BUT we are the only people who still occupy our home – with the company of 12 industrial size fans and 2 dehumifiers to dry out the wet spots. Two homes across the street and two homes next to us and behind us were totally destroyed. Many many others received everything from moderate to severe damage. Found out that the weather service classifies this one as an EF-2 – Winds over 110 mph. There were 9 tornadoes in SW Missouri Tuesday night and it has rained every day since and is forecast to keep raining for the next few days also. But I will say the response of volunteers has been fantastic. Convoy of Hope was on the scene within 30 minutes after it struck and checking on us and saying they would be here in the morning to cut up our tree – which they did. Our insurance company of 58 years proved to us why we keep them – one call about an hour after the tornado and restoration contractor on the scene by 9 am the next morning. That company will take care of everything subcontracting things they cannot handle.
Okay, okay it is a baseball thread so let me say that I shut off the fans to watch the Cardinals games on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday but was fast asleep during most of Fridays game – those fans sound like a constant tornado. It will be interesting to see who goes down when Gregerson is brought up today. I am thinking maybe ONeil to get some batting practice but it could be Munoz too. Maybe a pitcher but the sked is pretty demanding for the next few weeks so the BP has to be kept stocked. Anyway, glad to still be here to support the Cards but will pay closer attention to the weather in the future – Cards games can be hazardous to ones health……lol BTW – I live in Ozark, Mo.
Re the comments about Hendricks. In this age of high speed pitchers the low speed guys tend to do well. Sort of speeds between batting practice and changeups. Hendricks has his bad days but the Cards are more attuned to fast ball pitchers as are many other teams. Take the next two and I will be happy.
McCarver: “There is a lot of blue in the stands today just like you see a lot of red in the stands at Busch” That was not an exact quote but close – I think he was a bit mixed up. He was trying to imply that visiting teams in this rivalry have fans that travel well.
With Tim, you have to take some of his comments as an approximation. He called him “Kendricks” multiple times. Not to mention he didn’t know the Cards have an affiliate in Peoria and was sure the Cubs’ Triple-A team is in Iowa City. I am fine with him in the booth, but a little more preparation would help.
I am convinced that he does no preparation. His favorite saying is “I didn’t know that.” He is quick to criticize any Cardinal player that he thinks has screwed up and many of his criticisms are borderline ridiculous. To me he is just an old loud mouth that is being given air time he doesn’t deserve but I know that others think he walks on water. That is the way it is on baseball boards on a lot of subjects.
I tip my cap to Hendricks yesterday and am ready for today’s game. That is baseball. Flaherty has to cut down on the walks, especially to a player like Descalso. But he has a bright future.
Flaherty has to cut down on the walks, especially to a player like Descalso.
Flaherty’s walk rate is 2.45 per 9, which is just outside the top 30 of starting pitchers this year. Prior to yesterday, he was hovering around the top 10. So it’s not his walks that is the issue. Also, the Descalso “walk” included one pitch in the strike zone and another that was called a strike most of the day (the 3-2 slider). Descalso may have even swung at the fastball that was in the zone.
That said, Flaherty’s real issue is home runs. He has the 5th worst home run rate in the league, and is dead last among starters in HR/fly ball%. He was near the bottom of the boards last year as well. Unfortunately, that may always be an issue as a guy without great stuff who pitches in the zone is likely to get whacked. That limits his ceiling, IMO. The best version of Jack looks like a guy who can eat innings with a low-mid 3s ERA and decent K rates who always gives up too many HRs. In his better years he may dip lower but it’ll probably be on the strength of a “lucky” low BABIP or HR/FB rate rather than anything else. There isn’t anything wrong with having a strong #3/weak #2 guy like him.
Hendricks put on a clinic yesterday. The modern game has evolved to where everyone thinks a pitcher cannot win unless they throw close to 100 MPH. The problem with that is it is rare to maintain high velocity and good location at the same time. Not too mention the fastball wears on the body. So you add the wear and tear with higher pitch counts, and it is a recipe for fewer innings, and more injuries.
Would love to see us get these final two obviously, but you gotta get at least one of them. A sweep and the Cubs take the early-season momentum away from the Cards. A split of the next two and we stay on track.
Not a “big” series by any means though. Even getting swept in early May is not that important.
MM3… that was a scary story that you put up today. Good to hear that you are still with us and that your damage problems are going away as we speak. Ya got your power back which is the best news. I hear about people losing power after winter snow and or winds for weeks… weeks. I wouldn’t be able to put up with that at all. I truly feel bad for those faced with that problem.
Anywho, it was the Cards who were flattened yesterday.
Indeed, glad you weathered the storm well, Minuteman3! I’m not about to attribute it to global warming, but there is little doubt that the frequency and certainly the ferocity of storms are increasing. Especially for non-desert areas down south. One day in the not too distant future, our northern States are going to be the place to be….if they are not already.
Yes MM3, glad you are well and got through a very scary time. Sounds like some of your neighbors were not so fortunate.
Things like that put life in perspective. We all get passionate about our Cardinals, and carry on some when things do not go well. But in the big picture, none of that matters much. In fact, when we can get all carried away about the ball club, even when they are not meeting our expectations, you have to figure things are going fairly well.
Pugs, we lived in North and South Dakota for 35 years and actually enjoyed the blizzards. If we were a tad younger I would go back. Tornadoes are for the birds (not the Cards). Here is a little YouTube view of the neighborhood:
Ouch. Hey MM if you got away with some roof leaks, a damaged fence and a downed tree that missed your house you can consider yourself blessed. You must be living right to have escaped what I just saw.
Well stated as always, BicycleMike. Wow, it’s amazing how these tornados seem to hold a grudge vs some dwellings, but then almost seem to go out of their way in bypassing others. You wonder if the government is investigating future methods of one day combating mother nature? I know she’s quite an adversary, but you just cannot roll over without trying.
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.