Max Lanier, Jose Oquendo, Terry Lanier (front row) (St. Louis Cardinals photo)
Behind inconsistent starting pitching and hitting, the last place Cardinals went 3-4 at home vs. the A’s and Mets. Jose Oquendo and Max Lanier entered the Cardinals Hall of Fame. Our history feature on underperforming Cards teams looks back at the 72-82 squad from 1932.
Oquendo, Lanier Enter Cards Hall of Fame
On Sunday morning, August 20, two men were inducted into the St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame. Infielder and long-time coach Jose Oquendo and pitcher Max Lanier entered the Hall, welcomed by other members of the Red Jacket Club. Former Cardinals coach Hal Lanier and Terry Lanier represented their late father, with Hal accepting the honors.
Game Recaps
Monday, August 14, 2023 – Cardinals 7, Athletics 5
The St. Louis Cardinals defeated the Athletics in a two-run home victory on Monday. Starter Miles Mikolas pitched 6 1/3 innings, gave up four runs on five hits, struck out four and walked three.
Giovanny Gallegos surrendered one run in 2/3 of an inning of relief. Drew VerHagen threw 2/3 of a scoreless inning. JoJo Romero tossed the final 1 1/3 scoreless innings to earn his third win.
The Cardinals scored their first run in the second inning. Jordan Walker singled and later came home on a single by Tommy Edman.
Oakland took a 2-1 lead with two runs in the top of the fifth. The Cardinals in the home half of the fifth on a two-run long ball from Paul Goldschmidt to regain the lead 3-2.
The Athletics took the lead a second time with three runs in the top of the seventh. St. Louis responded again with four runs in the bottom of the seventh to lead 7-5. Paul Goldschmidt, Andrew Knizner, and Tyler O’Neill walked. Lars Nootbaar walked to score Goldschmidt. Jordan Walker tripled to plate Knizner, O’Neill and Nootbaar.
Walker was 2-for-3 with three RBI. Goldschmidt was 2-for-2 with two RBI and two runs scored. Tommy Edman was 2-for-5 with an RBI.
On the base paths, Goldschmidt stole his 10th base of the season. Walker swiped his third bag. O’Neill stole his third.
In the field, Willson Contreras was charged with catcher interference. Romero made a throwing error.
Tuesday, August 15, 2023 – Cardinals 6, Athletics 2
The Cardinals took the second game and won the Oakland series on Tuesday. Starter Dakota Hudson pitched 6 2/3 innings, gave up two runs on five hits, struck out three and walked one to earn his fourth win of the season.
Drew VerHagen and John King threw 2/3 of a scoreless inning each. JoJo Romero tossed a scoreless ninth.
The Cardinals went up 4-0 in the first inning. Lars Nootbaar singled and scored on a double by Paul Goldschmidt. Nolan Arenado followed with a two-run home run. Jordan Walker thumped a solo home run.
St Louis increased the lead to 5-0 in the fourth. Walker drew a walk and came home on a double by Andrew Knizner.
The Athletics finally got on the board with two runs in the seventh. The Cardinals added their final run in the eighth on a solo home run by Tommy Edman.
Arenado was 4-for-5 with two RBI. Goldschmidt and Knizner each had two hits with an RBI. Nootbaar was 2-for-4.
Wednesday, August 16, 2023 – Cardinals 0, Athletics 8
The Cardinals ended the series with a shutout loss to the Athletics. Starter Matthew Liberatore pitched 4 1/3 innings, gave up six runs, five earned, on 10 hits, struck out five and walked three. Liberatore took the loss, his fifth.
Casey Lawrence relieved Liberatore and surrendered two runs in the final 4 2/3 innings.
Oakland scored four runs in the first inning and added to their total with one run in each of the fourth, fifth, and sixth innings to lead 7-0. The final run came in the ninth for a commanding win over St. Louis.
The Cardinals scattered nine hits but could not get a run home. Doubles by Alec Burleson and Andrew Knizner were the only extra base hits.
Burleson and Taylor Motter were each 2-for-4.
In the field, Walker made a fielding error and Burleson had an outfield assist at home plate.
Thursday, August 17, 2023 – Cardinals 2, Mets 4
Remaining at home, the Cardinals fell to the Mets by a 4-2 score on Thursday. Perhaps pitching for his rotation future, Adam Wainwright pitched six innings, gave up three runs on four hits, struck out two and walked three. Wainwright suffered his eighth loss of the season.
Andre Pallante threw 1 1/3 scoreless innings of relief. Drew VerHagen followed with 2/3 of a scoreless inning. John King surrendered a Mets insurance run in the ninth.
The Mets took a 2-0 lead in the fourth, then added a run in the fifth. The Cardinals scored two runs in the seventh to cut the lead to 3-2. Tyler O’Neill hit a solo home run. Jordan Walker walked and later came home on a sac fly by Alec Burleson.
The Mets added their final run in the ninth.
Andrew Knizner was 2-for-4 as the only Cardinal with multiple hits. The offense was 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position and left nine men on base.
In the field, Walker had an outfield assist at second base.
Friday, August 18, 2023 – Cardinals 1, Mets 7
The Cardinals were thrashed by the Mets by six runs on Friday. Starter Zack Thompson pitched five innings, gave up two runs on six hits, struck out five and walked one. Thompson took the loss.
Andrew Suárez relieved Thompson and surrendered one run in the sixth. James Naile relinquished four runs in the final three innings.
The Mets went up 1-0 in the first inning and added a second run in the third. In the seventh, the Mets scored five to lead 7-0.
The Cardinals were held scoreless until the ninth inning, when they managed to scratch one run across the plate to avoid the shutout. Alec Burleson walked and later crossed the plate on a double by Richie Palacios.
The Cardinals scored one run on six hits. Tyler O’Neill was 2-for-3 as the only Cardinal with multiple hits. The offense was 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position and left 10 men on base.
Saturday, August 19, 2023 – Cardinals 2, Mets 13
The Cardinals took an even bigger thrashing on Saturday compared to Friday with a 13-2 loss. Starter Miles Mikolas pitched 4 2/3 innings, gave up seven runs on seven hits, struck out four and walked two. Mikolas took his ninth loss of the season.
Andrew Suárez surrendered five runs, three earned, in 3 1/3 innings of relief. Guillermo Zuñiga relinquished one run in the ninth.
The Mets took a 1-0 lead in the first inning, then added a run in both the third and fourth to lead 3-0. The Cardinals got on the board in the home half of the fourth on a solo home run by Nolan Arenado.
In the top of the fifth, the Mets posted four to blow past St. Louis 7-1. Two runs in the seventh and three runs in the top of the eighth made it 12-1.
The Cardinals added their final run in the bottom of the eighth. Andrew Knizner was hit by a pitch and later was driven in on a single by Tommy Edman.
The Mets scored their last run in the ninth for the 13-2 drubbing.
St. Louis’ slumping offense scored two runs on five hits. No Cardinal had multiple hits. They were 1-for-5 with runners in scoring position and left five men on base.
In the field, Edman and Taylor Motter each made a throwing error.
Sunday, August 20, 2023 – Cardinals 7, Mets 3
The Cardinals salvaged one win from the four-game home series with the Mets on Sunday. Starter Dakota Hudson pitched 5 1/3 innings, gave up two runs on five hits, struck out seven and walked two to earn his fifth win of the season.
John King relieved Hudson and threw 1 1/3 scoreless innings of relief. Andre Pallante surrendered one run in one inning pitched. Giovanny Gallegos hurled 1/3 of a scoreless inning. JoJo Romero tossed a scoreless ninth.
The Mets took a 1-0 lead the top of the third. The Cardinals quickly tied the game in the home half. Tommy Edman singled and later came home on a single by Paul Goldschmidt.
The Mets responded with one run in the fourth to regain the lead, 2-1. In the fifth, a two-run home run by Goldschmidt put St. Louis on top, 3-2.
In the seventh, the Cardinals took command of the game with four runs. Goldschmidt singled. Nolan Arenado walked. Willson Contreras singled to bring in Goldschmidt. Jordan Walker plated Arenado on a double. Richie Palacios’ single drive in Contreras and Walker.
The Mets scored one run in the eighth to cut the lead to 7-3.
Goldschmidt was 3-for-5 with three RBI and two runs scored. Walker was 2-for-4 with an RBI. Tommy Edman and Masyn Winn were both 2-for-4. Alec Burleson was 2-for-3.
On the base paths, Edman stole two bases. In the field, Tyler O’Neill made a fielding error and had an outfield assist at home plate.
The Big Picture
The Cardinals finished a full week of games with a record of 3-4. They took 2 of 3 from the Athletics but won only 1 of 4 with the Mets. The Cardinals remain mired in last place, 13 games back of the Brewers.
Both the pitching and the offense had issues during the week. Miles Mikolas made two starts and had the most trouble. He gave up 11 runs over two starts. Adam Wainwright had his first quality start in months, but still lost. Matthew Liberatore was just a mess in his start, giving up six runs and 10 hits. Zack Thompson had a decent start. Dakota Hudson performed the best of all the starters.
The bullpen produced decent performance from five pitchers, JoJo Romero, Drew VerHagen, John King, Casey Lawrence and Andre Pallante. Not performing well were Andrew Suárez, Giovanny Gallegos, and James Naile. Guillermo Zuñiga was called up and made one appearance that wasn’t great.
As for the offense, it was good for the first two games, then disappeared for the next four. It showed signs of life again in the final game on Sunday.
The best offensive performers by OPS over the last 7 days were Andrew Knizner (1.150), Paul Goldschmidt (1.068), Jordan Walker (1.017), Tyler O’Neill (.923), and Lars Nootbaar (.817). Nootbaar only appeared in the Oakland series and got hurt (from a batted foul ball in a bad place) in the final game and went on the IL.
At the bottom were José Fermin (.347) and Luken Baker (.266).
The defense had some issues during the week, especially during the Mets series (the caveat being that two primary outfielders are on the IL). Base running was fine.
Hit hard by injuries, the team appears to be focusing now on seeing what some younger players can do. The team’s top prospect Masyn Winn was called up for the Mets series. The starting lineups of late have featured call ups from Memphis in the form of Winn, Luken Baker, and Richie Palacios. While not mathematically eliminated as of now, the team has virtually no chance at the playoffs and can only realistically hope to get out of last place.
The Cardinals open a Pennsylvania road trip, playing three games in Pittsburgh and three games in Philadelphia. They are fighting with the Pirates to stay out of the Division cellar. The Pirates are currently ahead of the Cardinals by a half-game.
NL Central Standings
| Team | W | L | PCT | GB | WCGB |
| Milwaukee | 68 | 57 | 0.544 | ||
| Chicago | 64 | 59 | 0.520 | 3 | |
| Cincinnati | 64 | 61 | 0.512 | 4 | 1 |
| Pittsburgh | 55 | 69 | 0.444 | 12.5 | 9.5 |
| St. Louis | 55 | 70 | 0.440 | 13 | 10 |
Trade and Acquisition Rumors
There are no trade or acquisition rumors to report.
Transactions
- 8/14 The Cardinals placed LHP Steven Matz on the 15-day injured list retroactive to August 13. Left lat strain.
- 8/15 The Cardinals selected the contract of RHP Casey Lawrence from the Memphis Redbirds.
- 8/17 The Cardinals recalled INF/OF Richie Palacios from the Memphis Redbirds.
- 8/17 The Cardinals sent RHP Jake Woodford on a rehab assignment to the Memphis Redbirds.
- 8/17 The Cardinals placed 2B Nolan Gorman on the 10-day injured list retroactive to August 14. Lower back strain.
- 8/18 The Cardinals selected the contract of SS Masyn Winn from the Memphis Redbirds.
- 8/18 The Cardinals placed OF Lars Nootbaar on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to August 17. Right groin injury.
- 8/18 The Cardinals sent RHP Ryan Helsley on a rehab assignment to the Memphis Redbirds.
- 8/19 The Cardinals recalled RHP Guillermo Zuñiga from the Memphis Redbirds.
- 8/19 The Cardinals optioned RHP James Naile to the Memphis Redbirds.
Injury Report
- RHP Wilking Rodriguez (right shoulder strain) is on the 60-day injured list after May arthroscopic surgery. There may be a slight possibility of a late-season return.
- LHP Packy Naughton (left forearm strain) was transferred from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day injured list on May 17. Naughton underwent season ending surgery on June 26.
- RHP Ryan Helsley (right forearm strain) was transferred from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day injured list on July 24. Helsley is currently on a rehab assignment with the Memphis Redbirds and is expected to return to the roster this month.
- RHP Jake Woodford was placed on the 15-day injured list on June 30. Right shoulder strain. Woodford is currently on a rehab assignment with the Memphis Redbirds and is expected to return to the roster this month.
- INF/OF Brendan Donovan (right elbow) had season ending surgery on August 2 to repair a damaged ligament. Donovan had pain in his throwing arm and had been participating in games as a DH only for weeks. With the Cardinals selling at the deadline, the decision to have the internal brace surgery was made. Donovan is out for the remainder of the season but is expected to be fully ready for Spring Training in 2024. He is on the 10-day injured list for now but could be moved to the 60-day if a 40-man spot is needed.
- CF Dylan Carlson (left oblique strain and left ankle sprain) was placed on the 10-day injured list on August 12, retroactive to August 10. Carlson is dealing with two injuries at the moment, as his earlier ankle injury which occurred in May has never healed completely. At this time, season ending surgery on the ankle is being considered. The oblique injury is likely to keep Carlson out for at least six weeks which would take him to the end of the season in any event.
- 2B Nolan Gorman was placed on the 10-day injured list on August 17, retroactive to August 14. Lower back strain. Gorman received a pain injection, and the team is hopeful Gorman will be able to return by the end of the road trip to Pennsylvania.
- OF Lars Nootbaar was placed on the 10-day injured list on August 18, retroactive to August 17. Nootbaar suffered a right groin injury from a foul ball off his bat during the August 16 game with Oakland. After a trip to the ER where no significant damage was found, the OF went on the IL to recover. As in the case of Nolan Gorman, the team is hopeful Nootbaar will return by the end of the Pennsylvania road trip.
- LHP Matthew Liberatore has been scratched from his scheduled Monday start due to some lower back tightness. His start has been rescheduled for Wednesday. The Cardinals announced that Drew Rom, who was acquired from the Orioles in the Jack Flaherty trade, will make the Monday start.
Looking Ahead
Following the homestand, the Cardinals go on another road trip to start on Monday, August 21 with three games in Pittsburgh and three games in Philadelphia.
The month of August ends with three games with the Padres in Busch Stadium. September begins with three against the Pittsburgh Pirates to end the six game homestand.
After a travel day on Monday, September 4, the team plays the Braves in Atlanta in a three-game set. Next will be three games in Cincinnati against the Reds. The road trip ends with three games in Baltimore.
After a travel day on Thursday, September 14, the Cardinals return to St. Louis for a seven-game homestand, three with the Phillies and four against the Brewers.
Blast from the Past
The Cardinals are having one of their worst seasons in 50 years. St. Louis been one of the most consistent franchises in terms of winning seasons over the history of major league baseball. Nevertheless, St. Louis had had periods of underperforming.
This week’s Blast from the Past is the 10th installment in the series showcasing the worst seasons in the franchise’s long history.
The current Cardinals are 55-70 with a win percentage of .440. The teams that ended in worse shape than the current Cardinals with at least 154 games played have almost been exhausted (the exceptions are a few teams within a year or two of teams already covered) This week we jump to a team that ended with a better record than the current Cardinals but still significantly below .500.
The 1932 Cardinals finished the season with a record of 72-82-2 and a win percentage of .468. The team was owned by Sam Breadon and the general manager was Branch Rickey.
The manager of the 1932 team was Gabby Street. It was the first season in which numbers appeared on the back of uniforms.
The 1932 squad finished in sixth place in the National League, tied with the New York Giants. Both teams were 18 games back of the Chicago Cubs. The Cincinnati Reds finished in last place, 30 games out of first.
The primary starting position players in 1932 were C Gus Mancuso, 1B Ripper Collins, 2B Frankie Frisch, SS Charlie Gelbert, 3B Jake Flowers, OF Pepper Martin, OF George Watkins, and OF Ernie Orsatti.
The best overall offensive player was Watkins, with a slash line of .312/.384/.461. Collins had the most power, with 21 home runs and 91 RBI. Orsatti had the highest average (.336).
The starting rotation consisted of Dizzy Dean, Paul Derringer, Bill Hallahan, and Syl Johnson. Tex Carleton is listed as a relief pitcher but made 22 starts.
Hallahan had the best ERA (3.11). Dean had the best FIP (3.22).
The 1932 Cardinals spent three days in first place, last on April 14. The biggest lead was 0.5 games on April 13. The most games over .500 were two, which occurred on July 2.
The longest winning streak for the team was six games and the longest losing streak was eight games. They had 29 comeback wins, 38 blown leads, seven walk off wins, and 11 walk off losses.
They shut out their opponent six times and were shut out by opponents 13 times.
The 1932 Cardinals had winning records against two teams, the Reds and the Phillies.
The 1932 squad underperformed their Pythagorean Expectation which was 74-80, a win percentage of .480.
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