St. Louis Cardinals

This kind of injury could force the Cardinals hand to be a little more active on the trade front. There are several guys like Lyle Overbay available that would allow the Cardinals to have some depth, and protect them from further injury problems. I’m not convinced they’ll make a run at someone, but frankly- I think it makes the most sense to do so.

If Matt Adams were healthy, he would have served some nice pop off the bench, while spelling at first base. It’s a shame that this kid is going to lose his season, but I think he’s got a pretty bright future ahead of him so it’s important to get this injury fixed now- opposed to later.

Can the Cardinals overcome this injury? Heck yeah they can. This team fights more than any team in baseball, and their never say die attitude always keeps them in ball games.

And look, let’s not forget that Matt Adams is a role player, not a starter. He provided some depth, that’s great, but nothing earth shattering. He would have helped the Cardinals down the stretch, but it’s not going to hurt them as long as everyone else stays healthy. Thus why I believe they should go out and add a little depth anyway.

Elvis Andrus would give the Cardinals a dynamic lead off hitter, setting the table for Matt Holliday, David Freese, and the rest of the middle of the lineup. He would bring a speed game to the table, and a solid glove, so I think the Cardinals should absolutely make this guy a priority.

What would it take to get him? That’s going to be the tricky part. You wouldn’t think a guy like Andrus would have the value of your best minor leaguers, but I believe his age changes that. I think it would cost the St. Louis Shelby Miller or Carlos Martinez to get any sort of deal done, and I think either would be worth it in regards to Elvis Andrus.

As a Cardinals fan, I realize it could be very tough to part with either of those guys, but think about what Andrus will do for the offense and defense 162 games a year opposed to 32 starts at the big league level for Miller or Martinez. Also, Andrus is a proven young shortstop while Miller or Martinez might not pan out. Sometimes you need to sacrifice young talent to get a player like Andrus, and would immediately pay dividends.

I would go after Andrus with everything I have if I were the St. Louis Cardinals, but I guess we’ll find out this winter what the plan is.

The Cardinals won’t give up the farm to get him- and I don’t think they’ll have too. They aren’t going to trade for Matt Garza, Ryan Dempster, or Zack Greinke- so again- Brandon McCarthy could be the best one available in terms of what the Cardinals would have to give up.

The Cardinals should be able to win the division regardless of what happens, but getting help and getting stronger is never a bad idea. The question I have is: Who will the Cardinals have to give up for someone like Brandon McCarthy?

These are both young kids with good stuff and decent potential. This is a good move for both teams as the Cardinals upgrade the rotation without getting into their top prospects, and a good trade for the A’s as it gives them 2 more arms with high upside for their future. I don’t view McCarthy as a world series changer, but I do view him as a guy to stabilize and make a rotation better with the potential of it being a game changing move.

Carpenter, a former Cy Young winner, and Wainwright, a should be Cy Young winner, have an incredible amount of respect for this 25 year old left hander. He’s a five pitch hurler with an eye towards the groundball out.

This 22^nd round pick of the 2005 amateur draft stormed onto the scene with a 2.70 ERA in 2010 and rocked a 3.56 ERA during the Cardinals 2011 World Series Championship season. He has slipped to a 4.48 ERA this year, but one fact remains; Jamie Garcia has the capability of being a truly dominant pitcher.

Of course, the development of this 25 year old pitcher cannot go as planned; at least, not in a 2012 season that has seen more injuries than Albert Pujols has homeruns. Jamie Garcia, my friends, is heading for the 15 day disabled list with a left shoulder strain.

Garcia had let up a combined ten earned runs in his previous two starts, including his previous two inning outing on June 5^th against the Astros in which he allowed six runs in just two innings. The Cardinal’s Manager Mike Matheny had moved his starters up a day to provide Garcia with an extra would-be-start’s day of rest once the hurler began complaining of shoulder pain. The Mexico said after his last start that he did not feel right, a statement that was incredibly obvious.

Garcia joins pitchers Chris Carpenter (right shoulder, no appearances), Scott Linebrink (inflammation in right shoulder, no appearances), and Kyle McClellan (strained flexor pronator, slight tear of right UCL, 0-1, 5.30 ERA, 18.2 IP) on the disabled list.

It appears time for the Cardinal’s to dive back into their precious minor league system and risk halting the development of yet another talented young pitcher. A roll of the dice shows that either Joe Kelly or Brandon Dickson will be the next to hop on a plane to the Gateway City.

While he may only post up a 2-5 record in 12 games, Kelly has been nothing short of dominant for the Memphis Redbirds this season. He leads the Triple-A starters in ERA (2.86), innings pitched (72.1), homeruns allowed (2), hits per nine innings (9.3), and is WHIP (1.327 behind Dickson’s 1.280).

The issue that arises with Kelly is simply one of experience. This is where Dickson comes into play.

While Kelly may have the more dominating numbers this season, Dickson’s 3.27 ERA in 52.1 innings and team leading 2.46 strikeout-to-walk ratio among starters is rather impressive itself. He is, numbers wise, the second best pitcher on residing in Memphis.

The one thing that really tilts the table towards the 27 year old Alabama, Native is the fact that he has Major League experience. Dickson has made a total of six appearances for the Cardinals over a two year stretch, throwing a total of 10.2 innings with a 2.53 ERA.

In 2011, Dickson appeared in four games and made one major league start totaling a combined 8.1 innings. He allowed a total of three earned runs while striking out seven of the 34 batters he faced. His lone start came on September 1^st in an 8-4 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers. Dickson went just 3.1 innings allowing two homeruns and earning three earned runs all together to the sixteen batters he faced; he received a no decision.

In 2012, Dickson has made just two appearances thus far totaling 2.1 innings, but he has yet to allow an earned run; an unearned run did cross the plate under his watch during his last outing on May 24^th against the Philadelphia Phillies.

However abbreviated it may be, an incredibly youthful, inexperienced Cardinal’s roster, thanks to that pesky injury bug, will probably be the cause of Dickson receiving the nod over Kelly.

Those anxious to see Shelby Miller make his Major League debut within the next week should not get their hopes up.

Miller is .500 with a 5.18 ERA in 57.1 innings and has allowed a team-high 12 homeruns this season. It is likely that Cardinal’s General Manager will leave the 21 year old prospect in Memphis for more seasoning. With that being said, a September call-up for Miller is not too farfetched of a tale.

The St. Louis Cardinals have stood on a soap box and preached organizational depth for the past few years. Now is the time for Mozeliak and his staff to shine. Now is the time to see what the foundation of Cardinal Nation is truly built upon.

If the Birds on the Bat can win an eleventh World Series title after being down by 10.5 games at the end of August then surely a few, or more injuries than your two hands can count, will not hold refrain them from entering the postseason.

Game day Info- The St. Louis Cardinals (29-28) remain in Houston for the rubber match of a three game series against the Astros (24-32). Last night saw a pitcher’s duel between Adam Wainwright (5-6) and Bud Norris (5-3) go in favor of the Cardinals via a 4-3 decision. Tonight’s match-up features Lance Lynn (8-2, 6.3 ERA) on the mound for the Red Birds and J.A. Happ (4-5, 4.31 ERA) taking the hill for the Astros. It’s a 7:05pm CST start and can be found locally in St. Louis on 1120 KMOX and Fox Sports Midwest.

Starting Lineup – Furcal (6), Beltran (9), Holliday (7), Craig (3), Freese (6), Molina (2), Greene (4), Robinson (4), Lynn (1).

Craig Ain’t Liein’ – Allen Craig hit his second homerun in three games during last night’s victory over the Astros. The Cardinals are 5-2 when Craig has hit one of his seven homers in just eighteen games this season. Craig, who is has as many long bombs as walks, is hitting .366 with a .420 on-base percentage with 24 RBI’s; that means he is averaging 1.3 RBI’s a game.

Robinson Settling In – Filling the shoes of a versatile and incredibly productive player like Jon Jay can be an incredibly challenging task, yet Shane Robinson is filling Jay’s shoes and then some. Robinson is hitting .375 over the last seven days; two starts, four appearances, eight at-bats, with three hits and a double. Over the past fourteen days, Robinson is hitting .353; four starts, nine appearances, seventeen at-bats plus one sacrifice fly, with two RBI’s, and two doubles.

Cardinal Nation Respect – The Cardinals have a long history of doing things the “right way;” doing things the “Cardinal Way.” This was taken to the next level when John Mozeliak and the Cardinal’s drafted Tate Matheny, son of Mike Matheny, in the 23^rd round and Eduardo Oquendo, son of Jose Oquendo, in the 32^nd round of this year’s draft. Tate, who has been scouted as an incredibly athletic outfielder, is expected to go the college route and attend Missouri State as a freshman during this upcoming fall semester.

There is one little issue with Matt Adams receiving an alternative title just 40 at-bats into his Major League career; he will be making a trip back to the minor leagues before seasons end.

Now, this is not to say that Mr. Adams will not be participating in a late season run and/or Fall Classic activities, it’s more of a statement towards the benefits of giving the Pennsylvania native more seasoning.

Adams has been dominant at every level of professional ball, hitting .300 or above in everything from rookie ball to Triple-A. He has 73 home-runs in 336 minor league games, which is a home-run in 21.7 percent of his minor league appearances. Adams also has 268 RBI’s in the same amount of games, or 79.8 percent.

Combine this with his early dominance in the ten games he’s participated in at the Major League level and Adams certainly appears ready for the big leagues, and, in most organizations, he would be.

The sole problem revolves around the Cardinal’s primary problematic issue this season; injuries.

Out of the seven Red Birds on the disabled list, five of them are position players. Lance Berkman, Matt Carpenter, Allen Craig, and Jon Jay are all on the dreaded DL. When the Puma comes back he will fill the role at first base. David Freese, although facing wrist issues at this current time, has third base locked down. Allen Craig and Jon Jay are, obviously, outfielders with Craig having the capability of playing multiple infield positions.

This creates an interesting conundrum for Cardinals managers Mike Matheny and general managers John Mozeliak; what to do with Matt Adams?

If left to play at the Major League level once the aforementioned players are healthy, Adams will find himself riding the pine with little to no room to grow. His swing would be limited to the occasional start and pinch hit experience, nothing more.

While Adams would make for a fantastic bat of the bench, and Matheny does a rather remarkable job at spreading playing time among his active players, this would not be the situation for the seasoning that a young player requires.

Instead of giving Adams about six at-bats a series, one start and a couple of pinch hit experiences, this young lefty bat could work on his swing on a more consistent basis as an everyday player for the Memphis Redbirds. He would be able to receive over double the at-bats in a given series in this scenario.

After only playing 37 games in Triple-A Memphis, Adams was hitting an impeccable .340 with 27 RBI’s, nine homeruns, ten doubles, 20 runs scored. The numbers tell the story, he is going to be an incredible asset for the Cardinals over his career; he has yet to, after all, hit a rough patch in his minor league career.

How will Adams react when his swing goes astray for the first time? Will he calmly and diligently work to correct it or will he become a frustrated with himself to the point of no return, a la Khalil Greene? What type of person is he when the proverbial feces hits the fan?

These questions are best answered in an environment where one has the opportunity for success which is, Triple-A Memphis.

Give him time and patience, followers of the great Cardinal Nation. Adams will hit a brick wall and he will grow from it. When the time comes for him to venture back to Memphis realize that player development is, to use a cliché, not a race, it is a marathon.

Matt Adams will dominate at the Major League level. He will become a househould name. You will wear his jersey.

Gameday Lineup – Furcal (6), Schumaker (9), Holliday (7), Molina (2), Adams (3), Greene (4), Descalso (5), Robinson (8), Lohse (1). Freese and Beltran will be available off the bench; Freese is listed as day-to-day with soreness in his right wrist.

Molina Batting Clean-up – Yadier Molina has only made 12 starts when batting fourth in his career. He is hitting .178 with a .255 on base percentage in his career when hitting clean-up. He’s recorded seven RBI’s, two doubles, has snatched three stolen bases without being caught, and has drawn five walks while only striking out twice while place in the traditionally heavy-hitting swingers spot. However, Yadi has been nothing short of incredible as of late. He is hitting .619 in his last five games with 12 RBI’s and three homeruns.

Garcia to Miss Next Start – Jamie Garcia, according to Fox Sports Midwest, was sent back to St. Louis yesterday with elbow discomfort. Matheny says Garcia will miss his next start; he was penciled in for Friday’s outing against the New York Mets. Garcia has a 3-3 record with a 3.78 ERA in 10 games this season. His last start came at home on Saturday, May 26^th against the Philadelphia Phillies. Garcia went six innings while allowing four earned runs in the loss.

Jay’s Shoulder Still a Question – The Cardinals skipper also told our friends at Fox Sports Midwest that Jon Jay is expected to get a second opinion on his shoulder in Florida today. Jay, who went on the 15-day DL on May 15^th with a sprained right shoulder, was hitting .343 with eight RBI’s, two homeruns, and four stolen bases prior to going down.

Greene a Threat at Plate – With the rather intriguing line-up released by Cardinal’s manager Mike Matheny today, I decided to dive into everybody’s favorite whipping boy these days, Tyler Greene. While he has shown an increased level of comfort over the past few weeks, Greene is only hitting .143 in his last six games, five starts. Greene is hitting sixth today for just the second time this year; he went hitless in five plate appearances last time. For some reason, Greene appears to be at his best in the eight-hole. He is hitting .279 with a .367 on-base percentage, three homeruns, four doubles, two triples, seven RBI’s, and three stolen bases in 13 games when hitting in front of the pitchers nine spot. This provides a great turnaround with the top of the lineup soon to arrive.

Game Time Info – The Cardinals look for a series win tonight against the San Diego Padres. They have outscored their west coast foes 12-7 in the previous two games. Kyle Lohse (5-1, 2.90 ERA) will be on the hill for the Red Birds while Tim Hudson (3-2, 4.12) starts for the hometown Padres. Hudson let up seven earned runs in 6.2 innings during his last appearance against the Washington National in a 7-4 loss. All of these runs came in either the first or seventh inning. Tonight’s game has a 6:10pm start time and can be found locally on 1120 KMOX and Fox Sports Midwest.

Enter Clay Zavada; the facial hair successor to the one and only, Mr. Rollie Fingers.

The 2009 Goulet Award Winner for best representing the American mustached community was signed by the Cardinals on May 18^th.

This left handed specialist has taken a rather interesting path in regards to his route to the Major Leagues.

A native of Streator, Illinois, which is just under two hours southwest of Chicago, Zavada attended Southern Illinois University – Edwardsville where he played ball for the Cougars. The Arizona Diamondbacks drafted the now 27 year old pitcher in the 30^th round of the 2006 amateur draft.

Zavada spent the 2006 season playing rookie ball for the Missoula Osprey, Arizona’s rookie-level Pioneer League affiliate. He posted up a 3.1 ERA in 49.1 innings with two wins and two saves while striking out 51 batters. Tragically, Zavada’s father passed away in 2006; Clay decided to bow out of the professional game so he could spend more time with his remaining family.

In 2008, Zavada decided to play one last season of ball. He signed with the Frontier League’s Southern Illinois Miners for an entire 12 games and a total of just 15.2 innings. Arizona took note of his 2-1 record, 1.72 ERA, four saves, and 22 strikeouts; they quickly signed Clay to a single-A deal.

After going through the struggles of his father passing away, taking a year off from the game, and working his way through the Minor League system of Diamondbacks, Zavada made his Major League debut on May 21^st, 2009. He faced three batters, striking out two of them, threw 13 pitches, and recorded his first MLB win.

Overall, Zavada made 49 appearances while pitching 51 innings. He recorded a strikeout per nine innings ration of 9.2 having struck out 52 batters in those 51 innings. Of the 221 batters he faced, he allowed just 19 Earned Runs with an ERA of 3.35.

Of these batters, 91 of them were left handed with whom he appeared to struggle against in comparison to his dominance against righties. Southpaws batted .284 against Zavada and his strikeout to walk ratio dropped from an even 3.00 against right handed hitters to 1.46 against lefties.

While he may not be the most dominating pitcher in the Cardinal’s organization, he is a much needed left handed pitcher that already has big league experience under his belt.

It simply comes down to an issue of man power. Bringing Zavada up to the big league would relieve pressure off of a young, developing Rzepczynski as the team’s only left-handed option out of the bullpen. “Scrabble,” who is most certainly a higher-caliber pitcher than the man with the incredible mustache, would be pitching in fewer consecutive games with a fellow leftie in the bullpen. This would allow him to be used for the truly important situations when the game is on the line.

The Cardinals have tried the veteran journeyman approach to fill their left handed need with little success over the past few seasons. Trevor Miller and J.C. Romero both proved to be more of a liability than a legitimate option out of the bullpen and upon proving their worth, or lack thereof, were subsequently traded or released.

Zavada appears to be the Cardinal’s only legitimate option as a second left-handed reliever. It appears that the time is quickly approaching for him to receive his second shot at the Major Leagues. He has most certainly proved that he is mentally tough enough to make it in the Majors.

Brooms and Dustpans – After being swept by the Los Angeles Dodgers, splitting a two-game series with both the San Francisco Giants and Chicago Cubs, and being swept by the Atlanta Braves for a record of 2-8 in ten games, the St. Louis Cardinals finally got back to their winning ways with a sweep of the San Diego Padres. The Cardinals outscored the Padres 14-6 in these games.

Holliday Heating Up – Holliday, who is traditionally slow in the early months of the season, is hitting .318 with a double, homerun, and three RBI’s in the past six games. His on-base percentage has bumped up to .375 over these games compared to .346 over the last 14 days.

Berkman Under Knife Tomorrow – Lance Berkman was scheduled to go under the knife today for work on his right knee after facing a meniscus tear but, due to a schedule conflict with his doctor’s flight, will have to hold off until tomorrow afternoon.

Cardinals vs Phillies – The St. Louis Cardinals start a four game home series against the Philadelphia Phillies tonight. The series will feature Jake Westbrook (4-3, 2.41 ERA), Kyle Lohse (5-1, 2.91), Jamie Garcia (3-2, 3.55), and Adam Wainwright (3-5, 4.78) for the Cardinals and Joe Blanton (4-4, 3.74), Cliff Lee (0-2, 2.66), Kyle Kendrick (0-4, 5.23), and Roy Halladay (4-4, 3.58) for the Phillies respectively. Tonight’s game starts at 7:15pm Central. It can be found locally on Fox Sports Midwest and 1120 KMOX.

Carpenter was hitting .288 with 20 RBI’s, three homeruns, nine doubles, three triples, and sixteen runs scored in 39 games. The 26 year old Galveston, Texas native had an RBI in 19.2 percent of his at-bats and was second on the team in slugging percentage (.519) behind only Carlos Beltran (.607). Carpenter hit into the least amount of double plays of players with over 35 games this season.

Carpenter is the fifth Cardinal player to be placed on the disabled list in the past seven days and the seventh player to be placed on that dreaded sheet of paper overall.

Lance Berkman was the victim of a torn meniscus in his right knee on May 20^th. Allen Craig suffered from a strained left hamstring on May 17^th. Jon Jay began facing a right shoulder sprain on May 15^th. Kyle McClellan strained his right elbow on May 18^th.

Chris Carpenter (nerve irritation, right shoulder) and Scott Linebrink (right shoulder capsulitis) have yet to make an appearance this season.

While he may not be on the DL, Carlos Beltran has been suffering from a sore right knee and is considered day-to-day.

The St. Louis Cardinals have purchased the contract of 27 year old Houston, Texas Native, Steven Hill. Hill, who will be riding the pine today, made his major league debut on August 15^th, 2010 in a 9-7 loss to the Chicago Cubs at Busch Stadium.

Hill went 1-3 with a home-run in his second professional at-bat after reliving Yadier Molina of catch duties in the sixth inning. Hill’s first at-bat was a strike out swinging off the arm of the Cub’s starting pitcher, Ryan Dempster. Hill was a victim of a 6-3 groundout in his final at-bat that ended the game and secured the Cubs victory; this came after Hill started off the ninth inning with the homerun that lead to a five-run attempted rally by the Red Birds.

The 5’11”, 200 lbs right handed catcher was hitting .257 with four homeruns and eleven RBI’s in 19 games at Memphis. Hill has proven himself to be a versatile defender in the minor leagues.

Besides his 155 career minor-league appearances at catcher (.991 fielding percentage), Hill has played first base in 119 games (.988), left field in 67 games (.926), right field in 17 games (.828), and has played a single game at third base (1.000).

The Cardinals are now carrying three catchers on their active roster; Yadier Molina, Tony Cruz, and now Steven Hill. Tony Cruz and Steven Hill are likely to split time as back-up utility players splitting time between the corner infield and outfield positions when needed. Super utility man, Daniel Descalso will, undoubtedly, see an increase in playing time in middle infield spots while Adron Chambers and Shane Robinson will help ease the strain on the outfielders.

The St. Louis Cardinals have been preaching depth for a number of years; now is their chance to show off their minor league system.

Despite being the victim of a 7-5 defeat to the San Francisco Giants early on Thursday afternoon, the Georgia native has looked exceptional in his last two starts despite having acquired five losses and just two wins on the season.

Wainwright has been challenging the opposition since his first true Major League season in 2006; he made 2 appearances in 2005. Now, a year removed from that once horrid surgery named after Mr. Tommy John, Wainwright has been struggling to find his control.

Cardinal’s fans were elated with joy after the grand performance put on by the esteemed Cardinal’s pitcher during spring training. Mr. Wainwright went 2-0 in five appearances with a 1.45 ERA in 18.2 innings. He struck out nine batters while walking just six and earning an impeccably low three earned runs.

Fast forward to Thursday’s match-up against the San Francisco Giants and the frustration among the Cardinal faithful is becoming increasingly evident. The 2-5 record in eight games by Waino is becoming the primary concern among an increasing majority of worry stone rubbers.

After having never allowed more than 17 home runs to exit the park under his command and averaging just 14.25 homeruns in his career as a starter, Wainwright has already allowed seven homeruns this season. With the exception of the 2008 season, in which the right hander faced a finger injury that removed two and a half months of his season, Wainwright averaged 33 games a year as a starter from 2007 to 2010. With this taken into account, Adam Wainwright, who is allowing a homerun every .875 games, is on pace to allow 19.25 more homeruns this season; this would put his season total at 26.25 long bombs.

As these absurd numbers prove testament to, Wainwright has been struggling at the start of the 2012 season. However, once one dwells a little deeper into the game log of the 30 year old former first round pick by the Atlanta Braves his rejuvenation begins to become clear.

Wainwright has not allowed a homerun in three straight games and the same statement holds truth when expanded to four of the last five. Fans that dawn the Cardinal red should also consider the fact that Wainwright, whom had allowed a total of 15 earned runs in his first three games of the season, has earned three runs or less in three out of his last five games as well. In fact, out of his eight games of the young season, Wainwright has earned five or more runs just twice; eight earned runs in a 5-9 loss to Chicago on April 13^th and five earned runs in a 2-7 loss to Atlanta on May 12^th.

Dive yet a tad deeper into the control issues of Adam Wainwright and the idea that these issues are increasingly becoming nonexistent is reinforced. He has the second highest strike out per nine inning ratio among starters on the team at 8.2. He is getting consistently closer to the strike zone and hitters are beginning to take the bait.

Take into account Wainwright’s outing against the Atlanta Braves on May 12^th. While, on the surface, it appears to be an atrocious outing in which he let up five runs, all earned, in just 4.1 innings while throwing 108 pitches, many of these barely missed the strike zone. Wainwright was painting the lower corners of the plate to near perfection. The issue on the aforementioned date was that it wasn’t to traditional Waino perfection; a bristle was off on the paint brush.

Adam Wainwright is returning to his true form and, when he does, the opposition better be prepared to face a true knight of the round table.

Craig and McClellan on DL – The Cardinal’s disabled list appears to be the new hangout spot for Cardinals sluggers and pitchers alike. Allen Craig (left hamstring strain) and Kyle McClellan (right elbow strain) have both been added to the 15-day DL and will be replaced by Brandon Dickson and Adron Chambers. Dickson has a 3.24 ERA and is 2-3 in 8 starts in AAA-Memphis this year. Chambers, who only had eight at-bats in the big leagues last year but hit .375 with four RBI’s and a triple, is hitting .308 with 12 RBI’s, six doubles, a triple, and a homerun in 37 games this season in Memphis.

Carlos Beltran Slow to Return – Beltran’s aging knees have kept him from appearing in the starting line-up for the Cardinals over the previous four games. A positive sign for the 35 year old outfielder is that he has been available to make a pinch hit appearance in three out of these four games; he is 0 for 2 in these situations with a walk. With five men already on the disabled-list, two of them (pitchers Chris Carpenter and Scott Linebrink) having yet to make an appearance this season, it is a wonder how much longer the Cardinals will be able to play a man short; if Beltran was able to pinch hit he would most certainly have been placed on the 15-day DL.

Bat’s Returning in Not-So-Dramatic Fashion – After being outscored by a combined eleven runs in the previous two series against the Atlanta Braves and Chicago Cubs, the Cardinals managed to make a semi-return to their offensive-heavy performance in a two game series against the San Francisco Giants. St. Louis outscored their western foe by two runs (10-8) in the two game series. They have outscored opponents by a total of 65 runs in 38 games this season, or 1.71 runs per game on average.

“The Cardinal Way” – Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch wrote a fantastic article (available here) today offering details and insight of the new instruction manual, history book, and all around go-to-guide given to Cardinals managers, coaches, and players this season. It is simply a must-read article.

Cardinals take on the Dodgers – The St. Louis Cardinals continue their west-bound trip with a three day adventure in Los Angeles as they take on the Dodgers. Lance Lynn (6-1, 1.81 ERA), Jake Westbrook (4-2, 2.35), and Kyle Lohse (5-1, 2.70) of St. Louis will take on Ted Lilly (5-0, 2.11), Clayton Kershaw (3-1, 2.22), and Chad Billingsley (2-3, 3.83 ERA) of L.A. respectively. Tonight’s first pitch is set to occur at 9:10pm CST. It can be found locally on Fox Sports Midwest and 1120 KMOX.

Molina’s defensive ability has long been acknowledged as is evident by his four consecutive gold gloves. With that being said, his bat is just now in the starting phases of being the recipient of the respect of which it rightfully deserves. Yadi led the team in batting average (.305) last season during the Cardinals historic run to the teams 11^th World Series title and he’s still hitting over the .300 mark half-way into May in 2012.

Over his career nine year career, including this season, Yadi has been an impeccable hitter in clutch situations. With two outs and runners in scoring position, Molina has hit .290 with 149 RBI’s, 7 homeruns, and 16 doubles in 400 at-bats while also drawing an additional 58 walks and being hit by two pitches. He has an on-base percentage of .472 with runners on second and third with two outs in his career. When the bases are loaded with no outs to spare Yadi manages to hit .295 and has driven in 30 runs in 44 at-bats.

With two outs and David Freese on second in a tie, 6-6 ball game against the Chicago Cubs on a bright Tuesday afternoon, Mr. Molina did it again. A groundball single to the right of a diving second baseman, Darwin Barney, brought Freese home and prevented the Cardinals from going winless in their last five games.

Molina is batting .310 over his career when the Cardinals emerge victorious. However, Yadi’s ability at the plate goes far beyond the swing of his bat. He has drawn 166 walks while striking out 174 times (a .954 walk to strikeout ratio) in wins. He consistently goes deep into counts to, harassing pitchers into either making a mistake that he can hit or drawing the walk.

While it may still be a mystery as to why girls turn all school-girl giddy over the very thought of Yadier Molina, there is no wonder why Cardinals fans as a whole love and respect him.

He is, simply put, too clutch for words; something he showed again Tuesday afternoon.

Jon Jay on DL – Jon Jay re-entered the 15-day disabled list yesterday with soreness in his right shoulder. Jay was the victim of a separated shoulder when he ran into the outfield wall chasing a homerun ball back on April 19^th. Shane Robinson has been called back up to the major leagues after spending a single game at Triple-A Memphis.

Beltran’s Knee an Issue – Cardinals fans have two great players and either “Hall of Fame” or “Hall of Very Good” caliber players in Lance Berkman and Carlos Beltran. The issue is that the two aforementioned players have reached the closing twilight years of their career. Berkman is in need of constant days and/or innings of rest and Beltran appears to be in the same boat. Last week’s NL Player of the Week is facing pain in his surgically repaired right knee. While the DL is not a likely landing spot for Beltran, the surplus of versatile Cardinals defenders will certainly come in handy to offer him a few days of rest.

Craig the Great – Allen Craig is hitting .404 this season with 18 RBI’s, 5 homeruns, and 5 doubles. That average is bumped up to .500 with seven of those RBI’s and two of the homeruns coming over the past five games and 20 at-bats for the 27 year old California native.

San Fran Tram – The Cardinals start the first of a two game series against the San Francisco Giants tonight. Jamie Garcia (2-2) and Adam Wainwright (2-4) will take on Madison Bumgarner (5-2) and Matt Cain (2-2) respectively. The Cardinals are 1-4 in their last two series and have been outscored by the Diamondbacks and Cubs by a combined total of a total of 11 runs. The Cardinals had not been outscored in any of their 11 series including the one-game series against the Miami Marlins to start the season; St. Louis and the Houston Astros both scored 14 runs when they met up for a three-game series from May 5^th to May 6^th. Tonight’s game starts at 9:15 Central on Fox Sports Midwest and 1120 KMOX.

St. Louis, Mo – The St. Louis Cardinals have released 2008 World Series champion, J.C. Romero and called up the young right handed pitcher, Eduardo Sanchez, from Triple-A Memphis to join them for tonight’s match-up against the Chicago Cubs.

J.C. Romero’s release comes after three consecutive catastrophic appearances; this span includes the Cardinals May 5^th 2-8 loss to the Astros, May 7^th 9-6 victory over the Diamondbacks, and May 12^th 2-7 defeat to the Braves. Romero allowed a homerun in each of these three games including two-run shots on both May 5^th to Jed Lowrie and May 7^th to Cody Ransom.

That May 5^th long bomb by Lowrie put the Astros up by six runs (8-2) in the bottom of the eighth inning and sealed the Red Birds fate for the loss.

His May 7^th outing was even worse. Romero let up five runs on four hits while throwing just 18 pitches.

On May 12^th, Romero helped two more runs cross the plate, both earned, on four hits and an astonishing 35 pitches.

In his previous eight games, the former Philly had yet to allow a run, but he also allowed four runners to reach base in just 4.2 innings of work. Romero only recorded three strikeouts against the 19 batters he faced within this time span.

Regardless of his recent work, this seems like an awful quick trigger finger for a traditionally successful reliever.

Eduardo Sanchez would have been part of the Cardinal’s opening day roster if it were not for control issues during spring training.

In seven games, eight innings, Sanchez did not allow a run to cross the plate prior to the start of the regular season. Only four batters reached via a hit for a .154 opponent batting average and he struck out an amazing fourteen members of the opposition. The main drawback for Sanchez was that he walked five batters and lost control of his pitches at time. So, despite an ERA of nil, the young righty was sent to Memphis for further seasoning.

Sanchez, who posted up a 1.80 ERA, recorded five saves, and struck out 35 batters in 30 innings in 2011, has continued his struggle for control in Triple-A.

The 23 year old Venezuelan has managed to record six saves in eleven games and 13.1 innings. While he has struck out 13 batters, he has also walked 10 people. His 1.30 strike out to walk ratio qualifies as the second worst of his minor league career thus far; he had a SO/BB ratio of 2.19 last season in the big leagues.

Sanchez will help solidify a Cardinals bullpen that has struggled in the month of May and has been severely taxed over the past three games. The 5’11, 170 lbs. pitcher will prove to be a solid set-up man for closer Jason Motte once he is able to consistently dial in on the strike zone.

Puma’s Return – Lance Berkman returned to the Cardinals line-up on Sunday after being enrolled on the disabled list on April 19^th with a strained left calf muscle. Fat Elvis went 1 for 5 with three strikeouts in the Cardinals 4-7 loss to the Atlanta Braves. Shane Robinson was sent back down to Triple-A Memphis after hitting .311 with a homerun, two doubles, five RBI’s, and a stolen base in 45 major league at bats.

Beltran Rewarded for Crazy Week – Not to be outdone by the AL’s Player of the Week in Josh Hamilton of the Texas Rangers, Carlos Beltran received the National League’s weekly title. Beltran, who leads the NL with 13 homeruns and is tied for the league lead in RBI’s (32), recorded long balls in six games with 13 RBI’s, and was a single shy of the cycle during May 11^th’s 12-inning loss to the Braves. Beltran recorded two multi-homerun games last week including a grand slam and two run shot during May 8^th’s 6-1 victory over the Diamondbacks.

Rebound Time; Cards host Cubs – After playing possum to the Atlanta Braves the past three days and facing their first sweep of the season, the St. Louis Cardinals are ready to take on the Chicago Cubs in a short, two game series tonight and Tuesday night at Busch Stadium. Jake Westbrook (4-2, 1.76 ERA) and Kyle Lohse (5-1, 2.08) will take on Ryan Dempster (0-1, 1.02) and Paul Maholm (4-2, 4.05) respectively. Tonight is a 6:05 start on ESPN, Fox Sports Midwest, and 1120 KMOX will tomorrow’s game will appear on its usual stations with a 12:45pm start.