The search for the new television voice of St. Louis Cardinals is reportedly down to two. Our weekly history feature recalls the club’s five best second basemen ever.
Search for Cardinals play-by-play TV announcer down to two
The search for a replacement for departed Bally Sports Midwest’s St. Louis Cardinals television play-by play announcer Dan McLaughlin has neared its completion. The candidate list has been narrowed down to two contenders, as reported by the Belleville News-Democrat on Sunday.
According to Jeff Jones of the paper, one of the two candidates is Aaron Goldsmith, a St. Louis native and current broadcaster for the Seattle Mariners. The second of the two finalists is unnamed.
Goldsmith, 39, was born in Wichita, Kansas, but his family moved to St. Louis when he was a child. He began his career in broadcasting as an intern for the Gateway Grizzlies in Sauget, IL. He did some play-by-play announcing for several minor league baseball teams before joining the Seattle Mariners broadcasting team in 2013, where he does play-by-play on both radio and TV.
According to Dan Caesar of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the final decision is expected to be made by the end of the month. The call will be made by Bally with input from the Cardinals.
News and Notes from the Offseason
- Single-game tickets for Cardinals 2023 Spring Training have gone on sale. The first game of the Spring Training schedule is on February 25, 2023, at Roger Dean Stadium against the Washington Nationals. There are 15 games on the home schedule, with the spring finale on March 25 against the Marlins.
Fans can buy tickets online at https://www.mlb.com/cardinals/tickets/spring-training
- Spring Training reporting dates have been announced. Pitchers and catchers will report to Jupiter by February 15. The report date for all other players is February 20. The first Grapefruit League came is on February 25.
Trade and Acquisition Rumors
Early in the week, Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic reported that the Cardinals were in “preliminary discussions” with the Miami Marlins on a trade for right-handed pitcher Pablo Lopez. However, on Friday the Marlins traded Lopez to the Minnesota Twins for infielder Luis Arraez.
Transactions
- 1/17 The Cardinals invited non-roster RHPs Gordon Graceffo, Tink Hence, Kyle Leahy, Ryan Loutos, Michal McGreevy, Tommy Parsons, Dalton Roach, and Kodi Whitley to Spring Training.
- 1/17 The Cardinals invited non-roster catchers Jose Alvarez, Aaron Antonini, Jimmy Crooks II, Pedro Pages, Nick Raposo, and Wade Stauss to Spring Training.
- 1/17 The Cardinals invited non-roster infielders Luken Baker, Taylor Motter, Juniel Querecuto, Jeremy Rivas, Kramer Robertson, and Masyn Winn to Spring Training.
- 1/17 The Cardinals invited non-roster outfielders Oscar Mercado and Jordan Walker to Spring Training.
- 1/21 Free agent catcher Tres Barrera signed a minor league contract that included an invitation to St. Louis’ spring training.
Injury Report
There are no new injuries to report.
Looking Ahead
The 2022-2023 offseason continues. While many other teams have been active during this period, the Cardinals have been inactive since the early December signing of Willson Contreras.
The deadline for players and teams to submit salary arbitration figures has passed. The Cardinals had nine arbitration eligible players. On the deadline day, the Cardinals came to an agreement with seven of the nine – Jordan Montgomery, Jack Flaherty, Dakota Hudson, Tommy Edman, Tyler O’Neill, Jordan Hicks, and Andrew Knizner. Agreements were not reached with Genesis Cabrera and Ryan Helsley.
Cabrera and Helsley are now headed to an arbitration hearing which will be scheduled for some time in February. Both sides have submitted salary figures and the arbitrator will hold a hearing and then decided between the two figures submitted. An agreement can still be reached between the parties before the hearing takes place.
Helsley filed at $3 million; the Cardinals filed at $2.15 million. Cabrera filed at $1.15 million; the Cardinals filed at $950,000.
The next dates of importance are as follows:
- January 24 – The 2023 inductees into the Baseball Hall of Fame are announced. Scott Rolen is a leading candidate.
- February 15 – Pitchers and catchers report to spring training.
- February 20 – All remaining position players report to spring training.
- February 25 – First game of Grapefruit League play.
- March 8-21 – World Baseball Classic.
- March 30 – MLB season begins.
Blast from the Past
This week’s Blast from the Past is the third installment in a series looking back on the best Cardinals players in history by position. There isn’t enough time and space to go in depth on such a long list of great Cardinals, so this series focuses on five of the best players by position in the history of the franchise. The term “best” is subjective and can encompass an endless number of factors that one would choose to determine who is indeed the best.
This week we look at the five best second baseman in franchise history based on statistical factors. For this installment, WAR is the primary factor in this determination. The following list is not a ranking but a chronological list.
Miller Huggins – The Cardinals acquired Huggins in a February 1910 trade from the Cincinnati Reds. In seven seasons in St. Louis, Huggins had a slash line of .270/.402/.319. His strength was in his ability to draw walks, as he led all of baseball in 1910 with 116 walks. He led the NL in walks in 1914 with 105. His OBP of .432 in 1913 was the highest in the NL.
Huggins career WAR as a Cardinal was 20.9, fourth highest among second basemen in Cardinals franchise history. He also managed the club from 1913-17 and was posthumously elected by the Veterans Committee to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1964.
Rogers Hornsby – Hornsby was signed by the Cardinals in 1915 and played the first 12 seasons of his major league career in St. Louis. He accumulated multiple milestones in his career including the first of two National League MVP awards in 1925. Hornsby’s second MVP award came in 1929 when he was playing for the Cubs. He came in second in the MVP vote in 1924 and third in 1927 while a Cardinal.
Hornsby led the team in runs, hits, doubles, triples, home runs and RBI multiple years while in St. Louis. His career Cardinals slash line was .359/.425/.568 with 193 home runs and 1072 RBI.
As manager, he led the Cardinals to their first World Series title in 1926, but two months later, he was fired. The Cardinals then traded Hornsby to the New York Giants . He played for the Giants, Boston Braves, and the Cubs before returning to the Cardinals in 1932 for one season.
Hornsby’s career WAR as a Cardinal was 93.5, highest for a second baseman in franchise history. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1942 and was part of the inaugural class in the Cardinals Hall of Fame in 2014.
Frankie Frisch – The Cardinals acquired Frisch in the trade with the New York Giants on December 20, 1926, that sent Hornsby to New York. Frisch remained in St. Louis until he retired as a player in 1937.
Frisch was named the NL MVP in 1931. He came in second in the MVP vote in 1927. He led the NL in stolen bases with 28 in 1931. His career Cardinals’ slash line was .312/.366/.423 with 51 home runs and 720 RBI.
Frisch’s career WAR as a Cardinal was 35.7, second highest among second basemen in franchise history. He also managed the club from 1933-38. Frisch was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1947, so was part of the 2014 inaugural class of the Cardinals Hall of Fame.
Red Schoendienst – Schoendienst was signed by the Cardinals in 1945. Red spent a total of 15 seasons with the Cardinals in two separate stints, 1945-56 and 1961-63. He was a nine-time All-Star while with the Cardinals and was voted as high as fourth in the MVP voting in 1953. He led the NL in doubles in 1950.
Schoendienst’s career Cardinals slash line was .289/.338/.388. His career WAR with the Cardinals was 29.2, third highest in franchise history at the position.
Schoendienst was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1989 and was part of the Cardinals Hall of Fame inaugural class in 2014. He also managed the team from 1965-1976 and briefly in 1980 and 1990. His Cardinals clubs won two pennants and one World Series.
Tom Herr – The Cardinals signed Herr as a free agent in 1974. He played in St. Louis for 10 seasons, from 1979-1988.
Herr’s career slash line with the Cardinals was .274/.349/.354. His best season was 1985, when he slashed .302/.379/.416 with eight home runs and 110 RBI. Herr finished fifth in the MVP voting that year.
Herr was traded to the Twins in 1988. His career WAR with the Cardinals was 18.2, fifth highest in franchise history among second basemen. He was inducted into the Cardinals Hall of Fame in 2021.
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