#Cardinals with "bad" attitudes were needed to ignore #CardinalWay

I blogged late last week on this issue, of how John Mozeliak's trade of seeming "nice guys" Allen Craig and Joe Kelly for "surly," John Lackey, the previous waiver pick-up of the sometimes jackwagon A.J. Pierzynski, and the first pitcher trade, for Justin Masterson, all seemed to be about shaping up team attitudes as well as improving the playing roster. I was influenced in part by this Bernie Miklasz speculation about Mo's motives.

And now?

Bernie has a follow-up that shows both exactly why the trade was needed and that "nice guy" friends of Craig and Kelly don't get it.

A big issue, seemingly? Oscar Taveras, now the starting right fielder, apparently doesn't follow the Cardinal Way. Shocking that Bernie, who was seemingly such a touter of it just months ago, states this.

It's almost as if Taveras were ... Yasiel Puig!

Bernie deserves a good read:

(T)he deal apparently upset members of the good ol’ boys club in the Cardinals clubhouse. It was funny to hear Joe Buck on the Fox national telecast on Saturday, talking about how Cardinals players aren’t happy about Taveras being planted in right field — apparently over their objections. And according to Buck there's dissatisfaction among the boys over the way Taveras goes about his business. 

This is precious, no?

Let me see if I understand this correctly: A group of hitters who have spent most of the season in a trance, stroking ground ball after ground ball — with the Cardinals scoring fewer runs than all but one MLB team — don’t like the way a rookie goes about his craft? ...

You see, this is exactly why Cardinals GM John Mozeliak shook up a complacent, palsy-walsy team.

The whispering campaign against Taveras is disgraceful.

Exactly. I've Tweeted Bernie, asking him to name whisperers if he gets more information.

He goes on:

(T)he game is fun to him. A boisterous Taveras clapped his hands while running to first base after his go-ahead single Sunday.

Uh-oh, time for some of the veterans to start whispering about Taveras again.

I mean, who does this kid think he is, displaying unrestrained emotion and getting excited after coming through for his team that needed to win a big series?

Pierzynski did a similar thing Sunday, pointing and yelling at his own dugout after singling in the tying run. Later on, Taveras told reporters that he was fired up by Pierzynski's animated outburst.
  
I need a ruling here. Is the salty Pierzynski’s exuberance also a violation of “The Cardinal Way?”

It’s about damned time that this buttoned-down team popped a few buttons.

I've rarely seen Bernie this animated. I like it. And, maybe if Mo knows experienced Cardinal-watchers have his back, he'll push manager Mike Matheny not to let "nice guys" squash enthusiasm.