Redbird Randoms...8/21/08 Wainwright, Schumaker, LaRue

On-deck: The Cards start a three-game weekend series home stand at Busch Stadium tomorrow versus the Atlanta Braves. Tomorrow night's game starts at 7:15 p.m. CT.

Probables: ATL-Charlie Morton RHP (3-7, 5.95) vs. STL-Adam Wainwright RHP (6-3, 3.14)

Birds' Perch: The Cards are currently in third place in the NL Central Division, 8.0 games behind the first place Cubs and 2.5 games behind the second place Brewers.

Wild Card: The Cardinals are 2.5 games out of the NL Wild Card spot, behind the Brewers.

Whatcha done for me lately? These Cards got hits in last night's rout of the Pirates.

• Skip Schumaker -- 3 hits
• Ryan Ludwick -- 2 hits
• Albert Pujols -- 2 hits
• Jason LaRue -- 2 hits
• Rick Ankiel -- 1 hit
• Troy Glaus -- 1 hit
• Felipe Lopez -- 1 hit
• Todd Wellemeyer -- 1 hit

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C.A.R.D. 8/20/08

Dominican Summer League Cardinals (DSL): Won Game #1, 2-1 over the DSL Athletics (Team #2).

• Jorge Lopez was 2-for-4
• Eduard Estalis stuck out five Athletics #2 in 4.0 innings
• Charlian Jimenez struck out three Athletics #2 in 6.0 innings

Dominican Summer League Cardinals (DSL): Lost Game #2, 4-2, to the DSL Athletics (Team #2).

• Michael Avila went 2-for-4 with two doubles
• Pedro Peno stuck out five DSL Athletics #2 in 4.1 innings

Johnson City Cardinals (Rookie): Lost 7-6 to the Bluefield Orioles.

• Luis Mateo went 3-for-6 with a home run
• Edgar Lara was 2-for-4
• Matt Rigoli went 1-for-3 with a double
• Jon Bravo struck out four Orioles in 3.0 innings

Springfield Cardinals (AA): Lost 6-5 to the Northwest Arkansas Naturals.

• Daryl Jones went 1-for-4 with a home run
• Donovan Solano went 2-for-3 with a double
• Brett Wallace went 1-for-4 with a double
• Jose Martinez went 3-for-4 with three doubles
• James Rapoport went 1-for-4 with a double

Memphis Redbirds (AAA): Lost 7-6 to the Omaha Royals.

• Nick Stavinoha went 2-for-5 with a home run
• Josh Phelps went 1-for-3 with a home run
• Jarrett Hoffpauir went 2-for-4 with a double

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Frontier Communications drops the ball

Due to connectivity issues with our local ISP, 4thebirds has was unable to run the LIVEcast of yesterday's Cardinals/Pirates game.

As well, there are other problems this ISP has caused, and we will have to make up for their inability to keep us "on the air."

We will take this weekend to retool the damage Frontier has caused our business, and will continue to blog the Cardinals as much as we can, as often as we can, in the interim, and should be back to our regular schedule by next week.

We may have posts over this weekend as the Cardinals take on the Atlanta Braves in a weekend homestand, but cannot promise so at this time.

Thank you for your patience.

Frontier Communications has no explanation for the problem, and as yet, has offered only continued billing instead of a make-good.

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4thebirds...LIVEcast Pirates vs. Cardinals 8/20/08

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Redbird Randoms ... 8/20/08 Carpenter, Isringhausen, Waiwright, Wallace

On-deck: The Cards play the Pittsburgh Pirates tonight at Busch Stadium in St. Louis. Game time: 7:15 CT.

Probables: PIT-Jason Davis RHP (1-2, 1.80) vs. STL-Todd Wellemeyer RHP (10-4, 3.79)

Birds' Perch: The Cards remain in third placed in the NL Central, 8.5 behind the first place Cubs and 2.5 behind the second place Brewers.

Wild Card: The Cards are currently 2.5 games behind the Wild Card leader, Brewers.

Izzy done: Chances are, reliever Jason Isringhausen is finished for the 2008 season with tendenitis.

Carp continues to mend: Former ace Chris Carpenter will be handled with care by the Cardinals, who are rehabbing him on-site. "Carp" is now throwing, but not yet pitching off a mound.

Waino ready: Rehabbing pitcher Adam Wainwright has proclaimed himself ready to face big league hitters, but admits he doesn't know what role the Cardinals wish him to pitch in. Wainwright has stated he will accept a role as reliever or starter, whichever the club needs him to do more.

Wallace adds an A: Brett Wallace has been promoted from Class A Quad-Cities River Bandits to Class AA Springfield Cardinals.

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C.A.R.D. 8/19/08

Johnson City Cardinals (Rookie): Won 8-1 over the Bluefield Orioles.

• Luis Mateo went 3-for-5
• Jack Cawley went 2-for-5 with a double and a triple
• Osvaldo Morales went 1-for-5 with a home run
• Rickey Noland went 2-for-4 with a home run
• Scott McGregor struck out five Orioles in 5.0 innings

Quad-Cities River Bandits (A): Lost 5-1 to the Burlington Bees.

• Francisco Rivera went 2-for-4

Springfield Cardinals (AA): Lost 8-4 to the Northwest Arkansas Naturals.

• Mark Shorey went 4-for-5 with a double
• Jose Martinez went 2-for-3

Memphis Redbirds (AAA): Lost 4-3 to the Albuquerque Isotopes.

• Josh Phelps went 2-for-3 with a double
• David Freese went 2-for-4 with a double
• Jesse Todd struck out six Isotopes in 6.0 innings

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Izzy latest wrinkle in hardluck hurlers

Jason Isringhausen, according a news feature on the St. Louis Cardinals Official Web Site, is likely done pitching for the balance of the 2008 season. Medical staff report "right elbow tendinitis and a partial tendon tear in his flexor group."

It is highly likely that "Izzy" will be able to return to action next season.

As for former ace Chris Carpenter, he had a throwing session (not pitching) yesterday, and will throw again today at Busch Stadium. The Cardinals are taking plenty of time with Carpenter to be careful of his health.

Yet another former ace, Adam Wainwright, threw a bullpen session yesterday, and has announced that he is once more ready for major league action. The big question now is whether the Cardinals need him more in a reliever's role or back in the starting rotation.

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4thebirds...LIVEcast Pirates vs. Cardinals 8/19/08

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C.A.R.D. 8/18/08

Dominican Summer League Cardinals (DSL): Won, shutting out the DSL Phillies 1-0.

• Michael Avilia went 2-for-4

Johnson City Cardinals (Rookie): Won 4-2 over the Bluefield Orioles.

• Nico Vasquez went 3-for-4
• Jack Cawley went 2-for-3 with a double

Quad-Cities River Bandits (A): Lost 1-0 to the Burlington Bees.

• Thomas Pham went 2-for-4 with a double

Springfield Cardinals (AA): Won 5-2 over the Chorpus Christi Hooks.

• Brandon Dickson struck out five Hooks in 5.0 innings
• Mark Shorey went 2-for-3
• Daryl Jones went 2-for-4 with a home run
• Brandon Buckman went 1-for-4 with a home run

Memphis Redbirds (AAA): Won 6-5 over the Albuquerque Isotopes.

• Brendan Ryan went 2-for-4
• David Freese went 1-for-4 with a home run
• Blake Hawksworth struck out six Isotopes in six inning.

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Redbird Randoms...8/18/08 Looper

On-deck: The Cards are off today. They will start a seven-game homestand tomorrow that will feature day's off after each set. Tomorrow night the Pittsburgh Pirates come to town for a 7:15 p.m. CT game. It will be the first of a two-game set before a day off on Thursday.

Probables: PIT-Ian Snell RHP (4-10, 5.91) vs. STL-Braden Looper RHP (11-9, 4.07)

Birds' Perch: The Cards currently hold third place in the NL Central, 7.5 games behind the division-leading Cubs. The Brewers are in second place, 5.5 games behind the Cubs.

Wild Card: The Milwaukee Brewers are currently the NL's leader for the Wild Card, the St. Louis Cardinals two games behind them.

Competition on tap: The Cubs are idle today, but the Brewers play tonight in Houston.

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Reds ace too much for Redbirds' ace

The Cincinatti Reds' ace Edinson Volquez sailed through some innings and overcame obstacles in other innings that the Cardinals could only hope to, Dusty Baker's non-offensive club hammering the Cards for seven runs in a 7-3 troucing in the series and road trip closer.

Kyle Lohse wasn't sharp, but wasn't so bad, either, the Cards leaving the bases loaded in one inning when they had Volquez on the ropes, failing to support Lohse at the same time. But you can't ask an offense to put up the six or seven runs the Cards usually need to win in every game. Today simply wasn't that day.

The Cards' offense came in spurts, Tory Glaus singling home a run, then, in anoher inning, Schumaker doing the same, and then, in yet another inning, Ryan Ludwick doubling home a run. Volquez gave up only three hits in his 7.0 innings of work.

At one point, Volquez threw a pitch high and tight to Cards' hurler, Kyle Lohse. The next inning, Volquez led off, Lohse playing him some chin music, the home plate umpire then warning both teams. An inning later, Volquez drilled Felipe Lopez in the back, but Volquez was not ejected from the game, making the warnings a somewhat stupid way of doing things for major league baseball.

The loss, combined with a Cubs rout of the Marlins, pushed the Cards back to 7.5 games out of first place in the NL Central. Milwaukee was just getting started on the west coast at the time of this post. A Brewers win would send the Cards three games back of the Wild Card spot, while a loss by the Brewers would allow the Cards to keep pace at two games out of the Wild Card.

Today's game ends a 10-game road trip that found the Cardinals playing tough but losing the series that kicked it off in Chicago, then taking three out of four for the "middle" series with the Florida Marlins, then taking the series against the Cincinatti Reds, failing to sweep today.

Now it's back to St. Louis where they will enjoy tomorrow (Monday) off, then start a home stand with two games with the Pittsburgh Pirates, then a day off, then a three-game series over the next weekend at Busch Stadium versus the Atlanta Braves, then a day off, then another two-game set, this time against the Milwaukee Brewers (also at home), then a day off, then another road trip. So plenty of days off, a good thing with a pitching staff that will need every rest day it can get, especially with the currently DL-pitchers, Wainwright and Carpenter.

photo by Barbara Moore

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4thebirds...LIVEcast Cardinals vs. Reds 8/17/08

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Pineiro wins again as Cards touch-4 four times

Plenty of round-trippers in the Great American Ballpark helped Joel Pineiro pitch through another great outing as the St. Louis Cardinals ensure a series win against the Cincinatti Reds tonight, winning 9-3.

Pineiro gave up seven hits, but some of them were ground ball hits, which as much as summed up his seven complete innings of effectiveness with his sinker. He did give up two solo dingers and one other earned run, but walked no one and struck out six Reds. The right-hander threw 81 pitches, 57 for strikes.

The Cards pounded out 13 hits on the night, four of them round-trippers. Skip Schumaker hit a three-run shot in the second inning after the Cards had already scored two runs to take a 2-1 lead. Schumaker's blast capped off a five-run second inning, leaving Pineiro a commanding 5-1 lead with which to work the hill.

Albert Pujols hit a solo homer in the third to add on, something the Cards are not always capable of doing.

In the fourth inning, Ryan Ludwick hit a two-run shot to left, making it 8-1. Pujols made it a back to back affair, hammering a 400+ foot drive over the center field wall, giving the Cards a 9-1 lead.

The Reds had their turn at long ball, Andy Phillips with a solo shot in the fifth and Brandon Phillips copying the at bat in the sixth.

With a 9-3 lead, manager Tony La Russa brought in Jason Isringhausen for the seventh inning, Russ Springer for the eighth, and Ron Villone for the ninth, each of them giving up one hit, but no runs.

Pineiro improves his record to 6-5, and with Chris Perez putting in two good closing performances, the chances of Adam Wainwright returning to the starting rotation instead of the bullpen is probably getting more consideration.

The Cardinals have a chance to sweep the Reds tomorrow afternoon at 12:15 p.m. Kyle Lohse (13-5) is slated to throw against the Reds' Edinson Volquez (14-5).

photo by Iscan

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4thebirds...LIVEcast Cardinals vs. Reds 8/16/08

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Redbird Randoms...8/16/08 Pineiro, Barton, Glaus

On-deck: The Cards play the Cincinatti Reds tonight at the Great American Ballpark in Ohio. Game time is 6:10 p.m. CT.

Probables: STL-Joel Pineiro RHP (5-5, 4.82) vs. Aaron Harang RHP (3-12, 5.17)

Birds' Perch: The Cardinals are in third place in the NL Central Division, 7.5 games behind the first place Cubs and 2.0 behind the second place Brewers.

Wild Card: The Milwaukee Brewers currently lead the Wild Card race, the Cards two games behind. The Phillies are 4.5 games behind the Brewers, right on the Cards' heels.

Carp on DL: Chris Carpenter is one the 15-day DL with an expected return of August 26.

Waino in Memphis rehab: Injured pitcher Adam Wainwright will make another rehab start for Triple-A Memphis, tonight.

Whatcha done for me lately? These are the Cards with the most hits over the last 7 games:

• Troy Glaus -- 10 (in six games)
• Felipe Lopez -- 9
• Ryan Ludwick, Albert Pujols, Cesar Izturis -- 8

Barton activated: Brian Barton has been activated, the Cardinals finding room for him on the roster when Chris Carpenter was placed on the DL.

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C.A.R.D. 8/15/08

Gulf Coast League Cardinals (GCL): Lost 11-8 to the GCL Mets.

• Jose Rada struck out eight Mets in 5.0 innings.

Johnson City Cardinals (Rookie): Lost 11-1 to the Kingsport Mets.

• Edgar Lara went 2-for-3

Batavia Muckdogs (Low-A): Lost 5-1 to the Auburn Doubledays.

• Colt Sedbrook went 3-for-4

Quad-Cities River Bandits (A): Lost 11-4 to the Beloit Snappers.

• D'Marcus Ingram went 3-for-5
• Domnit Boliver went 4-for-6 with a double and a homer run
• Carlos Pupo went 2-for-4 with a home run

Palm Beach Cardinals (High-A): Lost 10-1 to the Brevard County Manatees.

• Antonio DeJesus was 2-for-4

Springfield Cardinals (AA): Won 3-2 over the San Antonio Missions.

• Brandon Yarbrough went 2-for-4
• Adam Ottavino struck out six Missions in 5.0 innings.

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Poll results: 25 by 15th

In a recent 4thebirds poll, you were asked which Cards would reach the 25-home run mark by August 15th. Last night, Rick Ankiel hit a home run at the Great American Ballpark, but that wasn't enough for him to reach 25.

In fact, only one Redbird elevated is round-tripper stats to the 25-homer level: Ryan Ludwick.

Ludwick now has 30 home runs on the season.

Next is Pujols with 24, one shy of our poll's ceiling. Ankiel has 23, and Troy Glaus has 21.

You were allowed multiple votes on the 4thebirds poll and 94% of you were correct in choosing Ludwick.

Eighty-eight percent picked Pujols, who didn't quite make the mark. Other who you were less sure sure about, and rightfully so, were:

• Rick Ankiel 47%
• Troy Glaus 17%
• Yadier Molina 1%

photo by Barbara Moore

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Thompson stands in as Cards beat Reds

Brad Thompson of the St. Louis Cardinals added significant innings in the stead of injured starter Chris Carpenter in a 5-3 win in the opening game of a three-game set with the Cincinnati Reds, 5-3.

Thompson threw 5.0 innings, not as deep as manager Tony La Russa would've like for a starter, but certainly a good contribution considering Thompson has been working middle relief for some time now. The Reds scored three runs on Thompson, who struck out four in his service tonight at the Great American Ballpark.

Jaime Garcia come on to work a couple innings before La Russa went to the shorter bullpen hurlers. Abscent in that group once more was Jason Isringhausen, but Kyle McClellan worked, then Ron Villone, who performed his specialty of facing one left-handed batter. Chris Perez closed once more.

While the Cardinals' pitching staff has been of major concern, the offense produced well again, scoring five on the night.

Rick Ankiel put the Cards out in front in the first inning with a two-run shot into the right field seats.

The Reds' Chris Dickerson answered one of those runs in the bottom of the frame with a leadoff solo blast of his own, cutting the Cards' lead to 2-1.

Back came the Cardinals in the second, Skip Schumaker singling home Felipe Lopez to inch ahead 3-1.

Another answer by the Reds, Corey Patterson sending home Javier Valentin with a sacrifice fly.

Now up 3-2, the Cards would take their turn at scoring, Pujols scampering home from third base with the bases loaded and Jason LaRue grounding into a fielder's choice. These runs were all against Red's starter Bronson Arroyo, who threw a hefty 106 pitches in his 6.1 innings of work.

Patterson scored on a fielder's choice in the fifth, cutting the Cards lead to one at 4-3.

LaRue would contribute with the bat again, hitting a sacrifice fly that brought home Lopez to put the Cards up 5-3, the final score in the game.

Thompson improves to 5-2 while Garcia, McClellan, and Villone all earn holds. Perez notched his fourth save.

Hot hitters of the Cards tonight:

• Lopez went 2-for-3, scoring two runs with a triple
• Albert Pujols went 3-for-5 with two doubles
• Ankiel was 1-for-4 with a home run
• Ludwick went 1-for-5 with a double

The Cardinals play the Reds tomorrow night at the Great American Ballpark in Cincinatti, Ohio, game time 6:10 p.m. CT.

Joel Pineiro is slated to pitch for the Cardinals, pitching against the Reds' Aaron Harang.

photo by Barbara Moore

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4thebirds...LIVEcast Cardinals vs. Reds 8/15/08

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Carpenter back to DL

Chris Carpenter has been placed on the 15-day DL, according to a Matthew Leach article posted on the St. Louis Cardinals' Official Web Site today.

A medical diagnosis of a "right posterior shoulder strain" will cause Carpenter to miss not only today's spot in the rotation, but at least one more as well. He is expected to be re-activated on August 26. At that time, the Cardinals will be in St. Louis taking on the Milwaukee Brewers.

Brian Barton has just returned from the DL and will now be activated, solving a dilemma of what to do about the Rule 5 player at this juncture.

Brad Thompson has been slated to pitch in Carpenter's spot today versus the Cincinatti Reds in Ohio, but there is no word on how the team will "fill" the Carpenter vacancy the next time it comes up in the rotation.

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4thebirds...LIVEcast Reminder

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C.A.R.D.

Gulf Coast League Cardinals (GCL): Game #1:Lost 9-2 to GCL Nationals; Game #2: Lost 8-1 to the GCL Nationals.

• Braulio Hirlado went 2-for-3 with a double
• Ted Obregan went 2-for-3

Johnson City Cardinals (Rookie): Lost 6-4 to the Kingsport Mets.

• Paul Cruz went 2-for-4 with a double

Batavia Muckdogs (Low-A): Lost 2-1 to the Tri-City Valley Cats.

• Colt Sedbrook went 2-for-4
• Pitcher George Brown struck out four Valley Cats in 5.0 innings

Quad-Cities River Bandits (A): Lost 6-1 to the Beloit Snappers.

• Domnit Bolivar went 3-for-4 with a double
• Pitcher Charles Fick struck out five Snappers in 4.0 innings.

Palm Beach Cardinals (High-A): Lost 6-4 to the Brevard County Manatees.

• Tyler Henley went 4-for-7 with two doubles

Springfield Cardinals (AA): Lost 6-5 to the San Antonio Missions.

• Donovan Solano went 3-for-5 with a double
• Jose Martinez went 3-for-4 with a double

Memphis Redbirds (AAA): Lost 3-0 to the Round Rock Express.

• Josh Phelps went 2-for-3 with two doubles
• Pitcher P.J. Walters struck out nine Express in 6.0 innings

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Redbird Randoms...Thompson, Ludwick

On-deck: The Cards take on the Red in the first game of a three-game series at Cincinnati tonight. Game time is 6:10 CT.

Probables: STL-Brad Thompson RHP (4-2, 4.34) vs. CIN-Bronson Arroyo RHP (10-9, 5.44)

Birds' Perch: The Cards remain in third place in the NL Central Division, 7.5 games behind the division leading Cubs, and 4.0 games behind the second place Brewers. The Brewers are currently the leaders in the Wild Card race.

Whatcha done for me lately? Ryan Ludwick has done it all lately for the Cards in the RBI department, batting in all three of the Cards runs in last night's 3-0 shutout over the Marlins.

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