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Tuesday, August 31, 2010

MLB.com: Happ shuts out Cards on two hits

After suffering through the worst start of his career in his previous meeting against the Cardinals, Astros left-hander J.A. Happ had one of his best Monday night.

Happ, who couldn’t survive the second inning in St. Louis on Aug. 4, dominated the Cardinals with a two-hitter to lead the Astros to their seventh win in nine games, 3-0, in the series opener at Minute Maid Park.

Astros rookie first baseman Brett Wallace, a former Cardinals first-round Draft pick, who was in a 5-for-45 slump, had his first career three-hit game and drove in a run.

St. Louis’ relative inability to defeat sub-.500 teams is getting pretty comical. They play in the NL Central, so they’ve had plenty of practice against such teams.

NTNgod Posted: August 31, 2010 at 01:52 AM | 28 comment(s) | Login to Bookmark
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   1. Guts Posted: August 31, 2010 at 02:29 AM (#3630486)
Season: Over.
   2. Forsch 10 From Navarone (Dayn) Posted: August 31, 2010 at 03:24 AM (#3630502)
Season: Over.

Yep. This is an awful, awful team right now. Completely listless. The only upside is that this should be it for La Russa in St. Louis. It's time for him to go elsewhere or retire, and this should cinch it. The Reds are flat-out better.
   3. DCW3 Posted: August 31, 2010 at 03:43 AM (#3630510)
The Reds are flat-out better.

The frustrating thing is that they're not, really. The Cardinals still have the superior Pythagorean record, and if you looked at their respective rosters, you'd be hard-pressed to say that the Reds are the better team. The Cardinals just have a maddening inability to get the job done.
   4. bigglou115 Posted: August 31, 2010 at 03:48 AM (#3630513)
Its just the inevitable conclusion of the stars and scrubs mentality that LaRussa has always espoused. You rely more and more on fewer and fewer stars and eventually your left with two offensive weapons. If one of them has a bad day you lose. So in a game were your great if your successful at a .350 clip its not suprising that the offense can't support itself on one great and one above averge player.
   5. Srul Itza At Home Posted: August 31, 2010 at 03:53 AM (#3630516)
The frustrating thing is that they're not, really. The Cardinals still have the superior Pythagorean record, and if you looked at their respective rosters, you'd be hard-pressed to say that the Reds are the better team. The Cardinals just have a maddening inability to get the job done.


You are right about the Cards being the better team, but wrong about why they are not winning.

It is the judgment of the Lord upon them, all praise His Name.
   6. Gonfalon Bubble Posted: August 31, 2010 at 06:54 AM (#3630533)
Tony LaRussa being humbled = restoring America
   7. Avoid running at all times.-S. Paige Posted: August 31, 2010 at 07:07 AM (#3630536)
Tony LaRussa being humbled = restoring America


Amen
   8. jdbkaput Posted: August 31, 2010 at 09:16 AM (#3630541)
The GOBs giveth (2006) and the GOBs taketh away (2010).

The Cardinals are far and away leading baseball in underperforming their pythag, but I wouldn't be surprised if they get a nice dead cat bounce in September; there's still a slim chance of stealing the WC from Philly. If not, they're still one of the two or three best teams in the NL going into 2011.
   9. salvomania Posted: August 31, 2010 at 11:10 AM (#3630558)
I think Wandy Rodriguez will have a better game against the Cardinals tonight than Happ did last night.

They do just seem completely dead... listless... so many quick ABs ending in a first-pitch infield grounder...

Pujols' lack of discipline---which has always had a habit of coming and going---has been present for a while (he's going to K significantly more times this year than any other year since his rookie year)...

FWIW, the Birds are 4-10 since August 14---Rasmus' last full game until he started again last night...
   10. rLr Is King Of The Romans And Above Grammar Posted: August 31, 2010 at 11:15 AM (#3630561)
Pujols' lack of discipline---which has always had a habit of coming and going---has been present for a while (he's going to K significantly more times this year than any other year since his rookie year)...

One's skills tend to slip a bit as one reaches 50 years old.
   11. Kyle S Posted: August 31, 2010 at 11:37 AM (#3630573)
Pujols' lack of discipline---which has always had a habit of coming and going---has been present for a while (he's going to K significantly more times this year than any other year since his rookie year)...

Clearly, if you're going to blame someone, it should be the guy who is 4 hits shy of leading all three triple crown categories. The guy has 61 strikeouts for chrissakes. That's (slightly) over one-third as many as Mark Reynolds! Does he think he's being paid to imitate a helicopter or something?
   12. Steve Parris, Je t'aime (M. Valentin) Posted: August 31, 2010 at 12:00 PM (#3630581)
If they sweep the Reds again this weekend, no telling what might happen.
   13. Slivers of Maranville (SdeB) Posted: August 31, 2010 at 12:00 PM (#3630582)
And here I thought the Astros were hapless.
   14. rLr Is King Of The Romans And Above Grammar Posted: August 31, 2010 at 12:03 PM (#3630583)
And here I thought the Astros were hapless.

Turns out they still have some hap left.
   15. Gern Blanston Posted: August 31, 2010 at 12:10 PM (#3630586)
One's skills tend to slip a bit as one reaches 50 years old.

This is true in general, but it doesn't explain why Pujols himself peaked at 56.
   16. salvomania Posted: August 31, 2010 at 01:17 PM (#3630653)
Clearly, if you're going to blame someone

I'm not blaming anyone, just pointing out that right now, the team is in a funk, with several players struggling. Albert's struggles may seem inconsequential compared to other players, but he has seemed to be pressing a little more lately---an uncharacteristic 7 strikeouts in the last 8 games (during which the team is 2-6) against 4 walks, all intentional---maybe in response to be being pitched around so much, who knows...
   17. DCW3 Posted: August 31, 2010 at 03:34 PM (#3630868)
FWIW, the Birds are 4-10 since August 14---Rasmus' last full game until he started again last night...

I'm really starting to fear that the fans are going to end up running Rasmus out of town. The comparisons to J.D. Drew are already beginning. And my dad, who's a pretty good proxy for the average, talk-radio-listening Cards fan, wants to get rid of Rasmus because "he doesn't look like he cares enough." (He feels the same way about Holliday.)
   18. Kyle S at work Posted: August 31, 2010 at 03:52 PM (#3630885)
He is hitting .340/.431/.740 over the last 14 days. Don't you think your expectations are set a wee bit high?
   19. phredbird Posted: August 31, 2010 at 04:18 PM (#3630912)
*throws chair*

we suck.
   20. salvomania Posted: August 31, 2010 at 05:29 PM (#3630979)
He is hitting .340/.431/.740 over the last 14 days. Don't you think your expectations are set a wee bit high?


Sure, he's been good when he hasn't been giving away at-bats....
   21. Sleepy supports unauthorized rambling Posted: August 31, 2010 at 09:04 PM (#3631143)
Clearly, if you're going to blame someone, it should be the guy who is 4 hits shy of leading all three triple crown categories.


Well, it's clearly not because the cardinals are often starting Felipe Lopez at SS, or have not playing Rasmus because of an umpire-player matchup. Or used pitchers to bat with RISP in extra inning games- repeatedly- after removing the cleanup hitter for a double switch, ensuring Pujols is IBBd every time. or used Aaron Miles ever, or let Kyle Lohse start major league games after getting bombed at AA. Or allowed the team's best player and manager to go to a political rally on the day day of a baseball game.

Not sure whose fault those things would be.
   22. jdbkaput Posted: August 31, 2010 at 09:16 PM (#3631147)
I'm really starting to fear that the fans are going to end up running Rasmus out of town. The comparisons to J.D. Drew are already beginning. And my dad, who's a pretty good proxy for the average, talk-radio-listening Cards fan, wants to get rid of Rasmus because "he doesn't look like he cares enough." (He feels the same way about Holliday.)


To be fair, the fans didn't run Drew out of town. Jocketty wasn't willing to pony up $10M a year to keep him and instead dealt him for a package of useful spare parts and a pretty good pitching prospect.

TLR may not care for him, but Rasmus will almost certainly be in St. Louis longer than his SS-drawing manager.
   23. Athletic Supporter leads the nation in drifters Posted: August 31, 2010 at 09:52 PM (#3631166)
If Rasmus is really getting run out of town, I'd love to see him in an A's uniform. That guy is awesome.
   24. NTNgod Posted: September 01, 2010 at 01:40 AM (#3631399)
Cardinals got THREE hits tonight, so there's a definite upward trend!

(Astros actually have been pretty decent the last few months, though)
   25. Forsch 10 From Navarone (Dayn) Posted: September 01, 2010 at 02:17 AM (#3631426)
Rasmus is far more important to the future of the organization than La Russa is. Get rid of the manager.
   26. NTNgod Posted: September 01, 2010 at 02:28 AM (#3631431)
How would Pujols take that?

(Entering his walk year, obviously management isn't going to do anything to irritate him)
   27. Swoboda is freedom Posted: September 01, 2010 at 03:01 AM (#3631446)
LaRussa and Pujols announced today that they are going to New York for a rally in support of the NY Mosque.
   28. DCW3 Posted: September 01, 2010 at 03:43 AM (#3631452)
or used Aaron Miles ever

Well, Miles has actually been shockingly useful this year. But those other things, yeah.

TLR may not care for him, but Rasmus will almost certainly be in St. Louis longer than his SS-drawing manager.

One can only hope. From Miklasz's online column today:

Tony La Russa and Colby Rasmus: I have no idea what's going on between them. But to repeat something Joe Strauss said in his STLtoday.com chat the other day: you just get the feeling that one of these guys won't be back in 2011.

Somewhere on this site, some years ago, well before he was within sight of the majors, I called that La Russa was going to hate Rasmus once he finally came up. (I am actually half-convinced that La Russa's hatred of players whose surnames start with "R" is not a coincidence, but an legitimate pathology.)

I have been a great defender of La Russa's over the years. He has done wonderful things for this franchise, and in a few years, #10 will be deservedly emblazoned on the left-field wall at Busch. But it's time. It's time.
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