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Looks like the schedule on the road trip squeezed out our podcast this week, but I will be on KMOX at about 8:45 p.m. tonight talking Cardinals prospects with Alex Ferrario.
MM3, from the Washington Post:
Twitter is eroding your intelligence. Now there’s data to prove it.
Just ahead, the Cubs have two of MLB's top five hitters over the last 30 days – Anthony Rizzo (1.198 OPS) and Kris Bryant (1.189), per Baseball-Reference.
— Brian Walton (@B_Walton) May 30, 2019
A new look in the top three spots. Carpenter, Molina and Fowler out.
Join us at noon for some baseball!
⚾️ https://t.co/VcFJmr9uuy pic.twitter.com/8MSvPitPrf
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) May 30, 2019
Springfield won two of five this week, falling to nine games under .500. Manager Joe Kruzel discusses the need to return to doing the little things that lead to wins. OF Dylan Carlson remains a consistent force, ranking among Texas League leaders. ($) https://t.co/9ZctzsMOJj pic.twitter.com/D1W4CvxIKn
— Brian Walton (@B_Walton) May 30, 2019
Agreed. Bob is a fine addition to the team. He covers Monday and Wednesday games.
MM3 asked:
I am still trying to figure out why Cabrera was removed at 3 2/3 innings with two outs and one on base.
It appears it was pre-scripted for Cabrera to go through the lineup twice and then Wacha would come in. Further, the leadoff man McCutchen had reached base both times against Cabrera, so that is when they made the change. In the post-game, Shildt said he wanted to get Martinez’ bat in the game since they were behind. (Of course, he could have done that independent of a pitching change, but he used the double switch.)
I am not defending, but explaining my guesses as to why.
Personally, I would have let Cabrera go further. And as I noted during the game, if Cabrera had to be removed, I would have used a short man to get through that inning who was used to taking over with runners on base and have Wacha start fresh in the fifth. Still, as bad as Wacha was, they seemed destined to lose no matter when he came in.
IMO, Cabrera definitely showed enough to get another start, despite some impatient fans already calling for his demotion. His fastball was very good as was his change up, with the latter the most important improvement. That spot’s next turn should be Tuesday at home vs. the Reds (if they don’t skip over the spot due to open days).
In the 1-2 Wednesday across the #stlcards system, Player of the Day Jhon Torres plated three runs to lead Peoria over Kane County. Memphis lost a low-scoring nail-biter, Springfield was washed away at home and Palm Beach was shut out. https://t.co/60KLodTxMa pic.twitter.com/byCTZhHkXs
— Brian Walton (@B_Walton) May 30, 2019
When they tweet happy stuff, you criticize it. When they don’t tweet, you still criticize it. Let’s talk about the game! Still two more innings to slog through.
I screwed up and made a bunch of posts on the wrong day’s minor league thread. So I deleted them and am reloading them here. Sorry about that…
1 (Springfield rained out)
UPDATE: Thursday's #SGFCards doubleheader is now scheduled to start at 5:10 p.m.
Thursday's giveaway begins at 6:10 p.m. For information on the giveaway process and everything else, please read the attached release. https://t.co/uQmjhBCjGp pic.twitter.com/7qBoQ5E0Rf
— Springfield Cardinals (@Sgf_Cardinals) May 29, 2019
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During the rain delay, I watched Memphis. Woodford has allowed three runs through the first three innings on just over 50 pitches. That makes 13 runs in his last 13 innings. Maybe he would have pitched differently in Philly, but then again, San Antonio doesn’t have Harper and Hoskins.
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To his credit, Woodford really buckled down and did not allow any runs in the fourth through seventh innings. His breaking pitches were working especially well.
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Speaking of which. Check this out.
.@WoodfordJake freezes him!
7.0 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 BB, 7 K.
He retired 13 of the last 15 he faced and struck out the side in the 7th!
B7: San Antonio 3, Memphis 2. pic.twitter.com/3cHtWLy0ox
— Memphis Redbirds (@memphisredbirds) May 30, 2019
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Sound familiar? The Redbirds couldn’t get enough offense together and lost, 3-2. It is their eighth consecutive defeat.
June 9, 2017 – Third base coach Chris Maloney is fired. The team still misses the playoffs.
July 14, 2018 – Manager Mike Matheny and hitting coach John Mabry are fired. The team still misses the playoffs.What in the world do you expect from FS Midwest? They are 30 percent owned by the team, for Pete’s sake! Their job is to generate interest in the team, to increase ratings and sell tickets. Why is that a surprise and what does that have to do with tonight’s game, anyway? Wainwright isn’t even pitching – at least not yet – though I wonder if Carpenter even at his age wouldn’t be an improvement over Wacha.
Never mind. Wacha started the fifth with a clean slate and gave up three more runs on two homers. Ugly.
I get that this is second guessing, but with a runner on and two outs, if you feel you have to pull the starter, why not bring in a short reliever to get the final out of the inning and let Wacha begin with a clean slate? His first relief appearance in three years and he begins with a runner in scoring position? While they have an eight-man pen?
Bader gets double switched out on the pitching change. A single to center turns into a two-run double with Fowler apparently slow to get the ball in. Then Martinez commits an error on a catchable foul ball. Now 6-1 through four innings.
After a Wieters solo home run, Cabrera gets the hook with two out in the fourth with a runner on second. He left after two trips through the Phillies lineup and Wacha has taken over.
Two-run homer for Harper as the Phils lead 4-0 and Wacha throwing in the pen.
Behind why Genesis Cabrera either is or is not the 2,000th #stlcards player, it gets down to the Cards (and several other franchises) not recognizing team results during the American Association decade of 1882-1891. I wrote about this in 2009. https://t.co/7H62S8Tww1
— Brian Walton (@B_Walton) May 30, 2019
Fowler must have lost the ball in the lights, but he’s got to catch that behind a rookie pitcher in his first inning in the majors. After getting what should have been the third out, Cabrera gave up a single and the Phils are up 2-0. The runs are unearned, but they still count.
Game underway at 8:44 ET.
The guy who does pitching analysis for The Athletic illustrates a positive change in Cabrera’s mechanics.
Mechanically, Genesis Cabrera (who makes his MLB debut tonight) has never looked better. The grey uniformed Cabrera, which fades in second, represents his most recent mechanics: front shoulder stays closed for much longer versus his flying open in navy jersey. h/t @cardinalsgifs pic.twitter.com/JxGgSs5Woa
— stlCupofJoe (@stlCupofJoe) May 29, 2019
I understand, gscottar. I was not suggesting you are venting. Just check any of these game threads after a loss and the same people basically make the same posts every time. Nothing positive to offer in conversation. They are not here talking baseball with us now. It’s like the old nate cloned himself! 😉
If Cabrera has a rough outing, conclusions will be drawn about his entire career and the stupidity of the front office – from one game. If he does well, there will be crickets.
Regarding Cabrera over Ponce and Woodford, I laid out the numbers. If you like the guys who were better earlier, you take one of the latter two. If you like the guy who has pitched best the last two weeks, you take Cabrera.
To suggest it is a Pham reaction is, well I don’t want to be insulting, so I will leave it at I don’t think much of it.
gscottar wrote:
“I just get the feeling that the front office is going out of its way to try to prove that Cabrera justifies the Pham trade. It feels like trying to force a square peg in a round hole.”
Let’s step back and think about this.
If Cabrera isn’t ready and is torched on the big stage, exactly how would that help the front office look better? If their motive is to make Cabrera look as good as possible, wouldn’t they debut him against a bad team at home instead of a first-place team on the road? (I don’t expect a rational answer because I don’t believe there is one.)
Nothing against you personally, gscottar, as you are not the only person to wonder about this. Still, it amazes me the theories people come up with when they are angry. Every move the front office makes will be viewed as wrong by some segment of the fan base.
Many of the ideas I am reading here on this board on what to do instead have a common theme to try the younger players. Yet when the Cards do that, ulterior motive theories surface, however illogical they may be.
Nothing they do is going to satisfy folks until they win again. Until then, lotsa venting and some shaky suggestions, IMO.
"The Paths of Griffin Roberts and Alex Reyes Meet Again"
One #stlcards prospect is off suspension and may replace another talented hurler who was in the same position three years ago. (free)
Join The Cardinal Nation for our commentary 365 days a year! https://t.co/lkv490hl8Q pic.twitter.com/nZepYGX4dF
— Brian Walton (@B_Walton) May 29, 2019
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