#Cardinals reshuffle means little if Matheny won't play ’em

Welcome to the major leagues, finally, Oscar Taveras. Oh, oops my bad, I meant Randal Grichuk.

Grichuk, the "add-in" of sorts in the trade of David Freese to the Angels for Peter Bourjos, is officially no add-in any longer.

He got brought up for Shane Robinson, who's headed to Memphis.

Also headed down is rookie 2B Kolten Wong. I didn't think he's been struggling that bad, even though Mike Matheny parked his butt on the pine the last couple of games. Anyway, Greg Garcia has been hot at Memphis, and before the Cards signed Jhonny Peralta, some had talked about Garcia as the team's next SS, though others had questioned his range, among other things.

Robinson was a no-brainer.  And, if Garcia is this hot, and has experience at SS, does this push him ahead of Daniel Descalso in the depth chart? I say it should, given that he also has been leaving steaming piles in the batter's box; we'll see what Matheny says. 

It is a bit unfair that Wong seems to be getting a fair amount of the blame for the Cards' offensive woes. They're far more than him; to some degree, they hit 2/3 of the team. But, Wong's a rookie with a low-dollar contract. You certainly can't send Peralta down, literally, by service time rules, even though his BA and OPS are still in the crapper, and his SLG and OPS were until his 2-HR outburst last week. Realistically, you can't send down Bourjos. Unfortunately, you are stuck with Allen Craig, too, who's been the biggest stinker in all of this. And, while Jon Jay's been better than the other OFs not named Matt Holliday, nobody really thinks he's the long-term answer in the OF.

Wong, Craig, Bourjos, Descalso and Robinson are all below the Kozma Line, the Pete Kozma sabermetric answer to the Mendoza Line made infamous by Mario Mendoza. It was time for a move.

Meanwhile, the "why" of Grichuk instead of Taveras should make for plenty of talk. The two were almost dead even at the plate, although Grichuk currently has an edge in the field, and a decent-sized one.

Also, Jay's been good enough, at least, that, if Craig is still struggling, he should get ready for some pine time himself. The team can't afford to wait him out much longer.

If it's any consolation, Freese is having a year worse than Bourjos and as bad as Craig, so the trade is still worthwhile.

Speaking of Matheny, too, Bernie Miklasz notes he had a quick trigger for Wong in his cup of coffee last year. It's worth a read for other things. Bernie notes that Robinson, a rightly, bats better against right-handed pitching and that:

Robinson was miscast as a platoon option; for some reason Matheny never quite figured out that Robinson (who bats right) was better against RH pitching than LH pitching.

Again, our sub-genius manager in St. Louis. It's called sabermetrics, Mike; give it a shot, OK? Hell, this isn't even that sabermetric; it's called "splits."

On Grichuk vs. Taveras, Bernie refers to the defensive issue, noting that Taveras probably isn't ready for Busch's large center field.

That said, Bernie brings the talk back to our Sub-Genius Skipper:

I just hope Grichuk gets a chance to play. Obviously, the CF position remains unsettled in St. Louis. Bourjos has done nothing so far, which leaves Matheny leaning on Jon Jay, the guy Mozeliak tried to replace by making the Bourjos trade. Given the situation in CF, and Allen Craig's slow start and startling loss of of power, there should be plenty of chances for Grichuk to get into the lineup. 

Unless, of course, Matheny is caught up on on his “I'm going to stick by my guys” thing, which is occasionally a problem. I don't think Mozeliak wants Grichuk up here just to have a good seat in the dugout.

Ditto for SGS and Garcia, Bernie says:

The only way to find out about Garcia is to play him, and frankly I'd really be surprised to see Matheny put aside his “I'm sticking with my guy” sentiment to play Garcia over Descalso.

Wunderbar. Maybe Mozeliak needs to start "leaning" on Matheny more. Unfortunately, I'm not sure that Mo isn't still a bit in man-love with Matheny. It also makes me wonder if this is part of why Carlos Martinez isn't starting.

Disclosure: In addition to my general lack of enthusiasm for him since he was hired, I wanted Terry Francona in the first place when Tony LaRussa retired. Beyond the issue of Shelby Miller in last year's postseason (still not sure if Matheny or Mo gets more blame for that), I've voiced my displeasure with Matheny as recently as yesterday. Let's remember that Matheny had no prior managing or coaching experience in professional baseball besides that as a minor league instructor before Mozeliak hired him, too. By the end of this year, he'll have three full years and I can apply my WAR for managers idea to judge his actual performance.

And, it's probably time to ask more about what "my guy" entails. Based on issues of the past 12 months, I already have some tentative ideas.

Update, May 3: Grichuk has gotten decent playing time so far and Garcia hasn't been totally stinted, at least. Stay tuned.

Update, May 21: The "Matheny's guys" issue also applies to the pitching staff, don't forget.

New MLB-players roiding agreement even better than I expected

When Major League Baseball, in conjunction with the MLB Players Union, first announced the idea of toughening sanctions to 100 games for a first offense and full season for the second, instead of the current 50 and 100 games, I was in semi-agreement; I liked that, but only without the loophole of just 25 games for an inadvertent test.

I worried about Barry Bonds, who alternated between saying he didn't know what was in the "clear" and the "cream" and that flaxseed oil did it? And Manny Ramirez claiming he had no idea how a woman's fertility drug got in his body? Or Ryan Braun and "chain-of-custody" claims on his first positive test. If a player sees a loophole, he's going to try to drive a Mack Truck through it.

The ESPN link provides two more such examples:

Philadelphia infielder Freddy Galvis was suspended for 50 games in June 2012 for a Clostebol Metabolite, which he later claimed was contained in a foot cream he used. Reliever Guillermo Mota, then with San Francisco, was suspended for 100 games in May 2012 after taking a cough syrup with Clenbuterol.

And, I'm sure we could get more with easy digging.

But ...

The new agreement is in, and it looks like we won't have to worry about "inadvertent" testing.

• Random urine samplings will more than double;
• HGH testing will increase;
• First suspension will be 80 games, second one a full year.

As for the "inadvertent"?

Players will get a chance to appeal on grounds that they weren't seeking a competitive edge. I guess this would be something like Andy Pettitte's use of HGH for healing? Because, with him, what he said rang at least halfway true. That said, per discussion at the NBC link, we don't know that HGH does that much for healing, anyway. And, it looks like, instead of a 25-game ban, it's half of the original.

And there's this:

Additionally, the league and the union are creating a safe harbor of sorts: they have established a program in which players will have year-round access to supplements that will not cause a positive test result. This should reduce confusion on banned over-the-counter substances and reduce the use of the “I got this from GNC and thought it was OK” defense many have raised in the past.

Agreed. Let's hope the commissioner's office pushes this hard, especially in Spanish and outside the US, for Caribbean players to be clean, and to not have excuses.

At the same time, per the full agreement, there's this twist. Even if you don't have a full-year suspension, you're banned from the playoffs for that year. And, lose postseason money; you can get a partial share, but you can't get a full player's share of money. And, can't vote in distribution of postseason shares. (In other words, a suspended Roger Clemens couldn't vote Brian McNamee, or some late-year call-up player, etc., a full World Series share.)

Craig Calcaterra doesn't like it at all. I think it's great, and will make teams be more serious about what individual players are doing. In other words, managers and GMs ... that's you in the Oakland dugout, Tony LaRussa, and you in New York, Joe Torre, and you in Atlanta, Bobby Cox, have one less excuse now, too. Managers can't ignore Jose Canseco and the infamous Canseco milkshakes.

Maybe you can't patrol everywhere, but, if you think you need to tighten up dugout access, that's what you do.

David Schoenfield likes the idea, too.

Finally, new items may be added to the prohibited substances list next week. Stay tuned.

Bernie Miklasz boo-hoos for nonexistent #CardinalWay

Can't you just feel the Cardinal Way?
Does it smell like St. Louis teen spirit?/AP photo

I am officially calling bullshite on St. Louis Post-Dispatch columnist Bernie Miklasz, and for something besides running flak for Mark McGwire on andro, vs. an AP reporter, in 1998, the Year of Magic Year of Tainted Dreams.

His nonsensery? A column that, in addition to being 2x too long, invokes the mystical Cardinal way in pleading, begging, imploring with tear-stained peepers, for Ozzie Smith and his managerial arch-nemesis, Tony La Russa, to kiss and make up.

Yes, because a feud like that goes against "the Cardinal way." No, really. Read:

The last thing any Cardinals' greats should do is feud; that dishonors what they're representing. That isn't the so-called Cardinal Way. Why should other Cardinals Hall of Famers be made uncomfortable when the old gang gets together just because two guys can't settle some dusty dispute that's 18 years old and inconsequential to their current stations in life? These iconic men should be smiling and happy and proud to stand together as one.

Oh, and then, there's this bit of saccharine on top:

Mr. La Russa ... Mr. Smith ... can we end this?

Can we please have peace in our lifetimes?

Or as Stan "The Man" Musial might put it: Whaddaya say, whaddaya say?

Wow. Invoking St. Stan Musial. I'm just about to cry a freaking storm. If I were diabetic, I'd be in a coma by now.

Yeah, a manager who deliberately stacked the deck from spring training on, against Ozzie and in favor of Royce Clayton, and showed zero clue or sensitivity beyond that about how to handle the retirement year of a Hall of Famer who was, despite an injured 1995, in at least as good of walkoff-year health as Derek Jeter this year, should have Ozzie just give him a big hug and a smooch.

Even worse, Bernie has now doubled down on the stupidity, in a new column:

Tony La Russa boxed himself in back in 1996, when he announced that Ozzie Smith and Royce Clayton would compete for the starting job at shortstop during spring camp. The Cardinals obviously acquired Clayton from the Giants with the plan to use him extensively, but didn't want to be insensitive to Ozzie before the players reported to Florida. The proud Ozzie had other ideas and outplayed Clayton during the spring games. That put La Russa in a real bind. 

So the starting job went to Ozzie, right? Uh, no. Clayton had 531 plate appearances in 1996; Ozzie had 261. I thought it worked out fine, because La Russa and the Cardinals received good play from both shortstops. Clayton ranked among the NL's best shortstops in zone rating. And in his final season Ozzie stayed fresh and vibrant as an occasional starter.

But TLR's allocation of playing time at SS became a prominent side issue that never went away in '96. It was a sore point for Smith and many fans.

Er, this is a selective reading. In reality, when weighted per at bats, Ozzie was better on defensive runs, and about even on offensive runs per the shortstop position. B-R ranks him higher on both WAR and WAA; in fact, Clayton gets a negative. And Fangraphs agrees. There, on net run production, Ozzie's 5 runs ahead of Royce for that year, with half as many at bats.

So, "whaddaya say"? I say that TLR was definitely more in the wrong, and has never fessed up.

Beyond that, as his fellow P-D columnist, Bill McClellan, recently pointed out, and blogged about  by me here, TLR isn't exactly the "Cardinal way" guy anyway. His Cooperstown plaque will have no team logo. He never lived in St. Louis in offseasons or spent significant time there.

Per that link, in an email exchange, Bill referenced Andy Van Slyke, too, speaking of players feuding with TLR. I forgot about the history between him and TLR, over LaRussa's knowledge of Big Mac's roiding. (Oh, a good sabermetric based piece here about how Mac showed TLR should have known.) That wasn't the only tangle they had, though. But, that tangle alone, plus Bernie acting like a 1950s sportswriter in carrying Big Mac's bags, probably is more illustration

The Busch Stadium mound, baptized and exorcised by Waino

And, speaking of McClellan, and Stan Musial, and "whaddaya say," Bernie, why don't you ask if Adam Wainwright and other Cardinal pitchers are going to draw Christian fish symbols on the mound again this year? Since it's been a year-plus since Musial's death, they and Mike Matheny can't claim it's a "6" any more.

Beyond that, it's bullshite like this that make fans of many other teams barf when they hear "the Cardinal way," anyway. So, please, fellow Cardinal-loving bloggers, stop? Bernie Miklasz's column explains to a T why you should stop this. It's arguably more true than the Dallas Cowboys calling themselves "America's Team, but that's about it.

I mean, I lived in St. Louis for two different stretches of my life, my last two years of high school plus first couple of college summers, and a half-decade later, three years of grad school plus a year afterward. Loved the city. Still would like to live there, even at the price of figuring out ways to dodge relatives on religious holidays, speaking of the baptized Cardinals' mound.

(More here on the images, along with additional images. More here on the strongly Christian and clubhouse character background I'm not sure the team ever owned up to who was doing this. They did eventually remove them, which prompted national wingnut talking heads to spout off.)

Related to this, I'm also calling bullshite on any Cardinal blogger who again talks about how TLR had a preference for veterans. Ozzie's final year was just as good as Clayton's 1996, no matter how much TLR tried to stack the deck. Both B-R and Fangraphs say so.

Speaking of Fangraphs, a page linked there shows that the Wiz could do it in the field on grass as well as Astroturf. 

This, between the sheer stupidity and wrongness, and 400 wasted, overblown words, may be the single worst column Miklasz has written since coming to St. Louis 20-some years ago. 

Finally, I'll freely admit to bias on this issue. Said bias includes a sports P1 pic of the Wiz, from a pre-Miklasz P-D, diving into the hole for a patented stop, with Ozzie's autograph perfectly placed on top. I've never met the gentleman (which I perceive him as being), and I'm not saying he's guiltless. But, unless one wants to go past Bernie into Buddhist/hippie/New Ager/Obama Kumbaya land, one person needs to stick his hand out first.

And it ain't Ozzie Smith.

Note for Yankee manager Joe Girardi: If you want a good example of how to handle Jeter's final year, look at Tony La Russa, 1996 model, and do exactly the opposite.

(Update, Feb. 25: Bernie, if you're really worried about the "Cardinal Way," you need to keep an eye on Carlos Martinez, obviously [NSFW].) 

Or, read your office mate Bill McClellan, who politely says STFU about the "Cardinal Way." Re Martinez, he notes:

There is no “i” in team, but there is definitely an “i” in Twitter.

 Got it.

And, NOT gonna "get it" — the Cardinal Way is in book form? 

Seriously, Miklasz at times is starting to sound like one of those 1950s sportswriters who always traveled with the team, often drank with the team and sometimes wenched with the team. Bernie, I'll venture that Mozeliak has a PR position available, or can create one.

Otherwise, Bernie, you can write better than this. You have many a time, before.

If I want to up the facetiousness level, was Garry Templeton flipping off the fans the Cardinal Way? Keith Hernandez snorting coke in the Cardinal dugout? Rumors of players cheating on other players' wives in the 1980s? David Freese and his DWI problems? Not to mention other Cardinal DWI problems, like Tony himself, passed out at the wheel.

Is there some foul substance in the St. Louis #Cardinals drinking water?

First, as I blogged last week, Bernie Miklasz mailed in his worst column ever at the Post-Dispatch, pleading at the point of tears for Ozzie Smith and Tony La Russa to make up, because that's "the Cardinal Way"! St. Stan Musial was even evoked. That was before Bernie doubled down on this idiocy in a new column, primarily about other issues, but in reality a pathetic attempt to justify the idea that Royce Clayton was actually the better player that year.

Next, La Russa shows why it was time for him to have retired. He claims that sabermetrics is why Jeff Bagwell is not in Cooperstown, a claim quickly demolished here.

Worse yet, TLR thinks Jack Morris is a Hall of Famer.

Good.Effing.Doorknob.

At one time, I thought he was decent as a strategy manager, but great as an evaluator and developer of talent, and might make a very good GM. Now, I hope no team is dumb enough to make that move, or a grade higher, as president/vice president of baseball operations, unless you want your team overpaying for Jack Morris types.

Finally, Joe Strauss, perhaps worried that Bernie might hog his teh stupidz limelight, boo-hoos for Lance Lynn, claiming that sabermetrics hurt his cause too. Uhh, Joe? No, good old fashioned split stats show that he runs out of gas after Aug. 1. Sabermetrics just reinforce that.

Sabermetrics in the common thread. Miklasz is either misreading or cherry-picking, while Strauss and La Russa are clueless.

So, Ozzie? Not only don't kiss and make up, but don't drink from the same water cooler!

And, is it any wonder that Lee Enterprises, the parent company of the Post-Dispatch, was almost delisted from the NYSE a couple of years back because it was in penny stock territory? Strauss is horrible, Miklasz is becoming more miss than hit, and Rick Hummel needs to retire as a beat writer.

This week in MLB: Bad contracts, broken Rangers, good contracts, #Cardinals cockamamie

Bad contracts? Here's my take on the badness of Philly overpaying for A.J. Burnett, especially since we now know it's a two-year deal, not one year. Phillies fans, is it time to place props bets, or over-unders, on GM Ruben Amaro lasting out the season or not?

Broken Rangers? The rotation in Arlington looks pretty shaky to me if Matt Harrison's latest back woes are a harbinger. Will Jon Daniels chase Ervin Santana or Jeff Samardzija? Should he?

Good contracts? It still seems odd, hence my year-early comment, but, all contracts are a gamble and the Braves seem to be doing right by Andrelton Simmons. That said, doesn't this mean that Arte Moreno and Jerry DiPoto realistically have one month left to do something team-friendly and player-friendly both with Mike Trout? And, from the team's point of view, the Orioles' cheap deal for former Ranger RF Nelson Cruz is fairly good, though I think it's not perfect. It also will likely do one of two things: It will either quickly clear up much of the remaining free agent logjam, or it's going to lead a couple of players  (read: agents) to dig in their heels.

Falling between good and bad? I'm not sold on the megadeal for Homer Bailey. That includes arguing that middle-market teams shouldn't put that many contract-egg dollars into middle-level players.

Cardinals cockamamie? Bernie Miklasz cues up the mythical "Cardinal way," with some extra sugar of St. Stan Musial, to implore Ozzie Smith and Tony La Russa to kiss and make up. Read more of my thoughts on why this is quite possibly the worst column Bernie's ever written.

And, speaking of Ozzie, no, Derek Jeter, Yankeedom and all, is not a better lifetime shortstop than him.

Finally, I talk about why I prefer Baseball-Reference to Fangraphs in making those and other observations.

Is Tony LaRussa a real #Cardinal? His #Cooperstown move says no

Two St. Louis Post-Dispatch columnists, Bernie Miklasz and Bill McClellan, both weigh in on Tony LaRussa's decision for his plaque in the Baseball Hall of Fame to have no team logo.

Bernie notes that a majority, not just a plurality, of TLR's wins as a manager came in St. Louis, and that other stats say he should go in with a Cardinal logo. Hey, Joe Torre managed in St. Louis and Atlanta, and the Dodgers and the Mets but he's going in with a Yankees marker.

Bill aims for the personal. He says, anecdotally, that TLR wanting to give a hat tip, p un intended to Southside Chicago and the East Bay for his White Sox and A's days? Hardly remembered.

And, there's the issue of just how much of a St. Louisan he was:

A lot of people here see La Russa’s decision as a snub. That thinking has roots. La Russa managed here for 16 years, but never lived here. He never made much of an effort to connect with the community. He acted like the midnight man stuck in the 9 o’clock town.

That attitude stung because St. Louisans have an inferiority complex. There is nothing snazzy about St. Louis. We’re a comfortable shoe of a place. We are always ready to be snubbed.

Bernie Miklasz wrote last week that he does not believe La Russa is snubbing anybody. He knows La Russa, so I’ll defer to him.

Actually, that makes the story a sad one, and La Russa becomes a tragic figure. He thinks the fans in Chicago and Oakland would have been hurt if he went into the Hall as a Cardinal. Truth is, the only fans who care are right here.

Agreed. But, that's not all.

And, as I emailed Bill and Tweeted Bernie, let's not forget about that friendship he developed with Ozzie Smith!

Beyond his refusal to address the Mark McGwire issue in 1998 (helped by a bit of friendly flak from Bernie, too), how he handled Ozzie's last years, including trying to shove him aside for Royce Clayton in an unfair "competition" for shortstop, is his blackest mark on the field as a Cardinal manager.

I think LaRussa's aim was a control freak issue. He felt he had to show Ozzie, the last holdover from the Whitey Herzog days (Tom Pagnozzi was a partial holdover, but not a Whiteyball icon, and Willie McGee had just come back after a six-year peregrination with other teams), whose team it was and that was that. It was a crude gesture as a manager as a control issue, and as a player quality issue, it was simply wrong. Ozzie was the better player.  Check out the 1996 roster; Oz had equal WAR and much better WAA in less than half as many at bats.

In an email exchange, Bill references Andy Van Slyke, too. I forgot about the history between him and TLR, over LaRussa's knowledge of Big Mac's roiding. (Oh, a good sabermetric based piece here about how Mac showed TLR should have known.) That wasn't the only tangle they had, though.

His blackest off-the-field mark is a mix of his own DWI and apparent problems in handing drinking issues of David Freese and several other players, of course, such as Josh Hancock, with his DWI fatality accident.

LaRussa's overall record arguably makes him a Hall of Famer. But, I still can't believe that, between two of his three managerial franchises, he knew so little of what McGwire was doing, which is exactly why he got defensive. It's why I've said he and Torre shouldn't have been voted in the Hall. Not yet.

Steroid-connected managerial pair now in #Cooperstown

The expansion-era Veterans Committee has officially elected top managers Joe Torre, Tony La Russa and Bobby Cox to the Baseball Hall of Fame. All three arguably were rightly named unanimously — with one small problem for the first two.

Should they be in Cooperstown, given that the Baseball Writers Association of America has punished recently retired players who have used performance-enhancing drugs, incluing players managed by Torre and La Russa?

You know, like Roger Clemens, and Mark McGwire?

This is especially a matter for debate and discussion since former Major Leaguer Eric Byrnes has now joined longtime sportswriter Thomas Boswell in claiming that the Baseball Hall of Fame already contains, in Byrnes' words, not just a member, but a "prominent" member who was a serious user of performance-enhancing drugs.

Here's the money quote:

Disturbingly, not long ago I was having dinner with a former long time Major League player that spoke about the steroid use of a prominent Hall of Famer that played the majority of his career in the 70′s and 80′s… Ha! Not like I was shocked but damn… So many members of the Hall of Fame, including this character, have recently spoken out and condemned guys who have had ties to performance enhancing drugs, saying there is no place for “cheaters” in the HOF.

OK, "prominent." From Byrnes' angle, I take that not necessarily as a first-ballot HOFer, though it certainly could be, as someone who is well-known, keeps in the public eye, etc.

When Boswell's statement came out in 2010, some sites, like Wezen-Ball, speculated on who it might be. That said, per a poll I put up at the time, in a follow-up piece, Wezen-Ball has a 1988 quote from Boswell that indicates TLR  had some idea what was up and therefore, from where I stand, should be kept out of the Hall just as much as Barry Bonds and the aforementioned duo. (Per a poll I had about Byrnes' piece, an outright majority fingered Reggie Jackson as the person he meant.)

But, in the case of both La Russa and Torre, but especially the former, the questions don't stop there.


And, in Oakland, TLR managed the two most notorious known, admitted users in Jose Canseco and Mark McGwire. Re Big Mac, TLR has claimed he didn't notice anything, didn't know anything. He's been more circumspect about Canseco. That's why I'd love a, say, Ken Rosenthal to put both of them, La Russa and Canseco, in the same interview room at the same time. Because, to be honest, I don't believe La Russa. And, given that he's got a law degree, he knows just how to parse and shade his language.

And, although La Russa seems "dirty," given his connection to Canseco and his "milkshake," let's not let Torre off the hook too lightly either.

What about Torre and his Yankee years? I said before that I thought Bonds' courtroom appearance twin, Roger Clemens, was juicing before that. Then there's Andy Pettitte who, yes, has apologized, and I said that Torre was probably not aware of Andy. But, I don't know. Whether he should have been aware of "Muchie Peachie" and others (Jason Giambi, pre- or post-apology) is a different question. 

And, FINALLY! Somebody in the mainstream media, Rick Reilly, has actually written about this, and largely agrees with me! Indeed, he goes after Cox as well as Torre and La Russa.

That said, here's my thoughts on likely roiders among players. It applies to La Russa and Torre, too. (To riff on Ricky Ricardo, you got some 'splaining to do, and some apologizing, along with the players union, management, and now, I would say, at least one field manager.)

We can make some sort of guesstimate as to how your managerial career might have panned out without the "help." And, making it to three straight World Series in Oakland, then having a juiced Mac welcome a trade to St. Louis, to break Roger Maris' record, might not have happened, either.

That said, Torre might not deserve a 100 percent pass, either. How much did Yankee roiding help his team win four World Series in five years, and make it to five in six years?

And now, we see how well the Veterans Committee has studied this issue and how much it concerns them. 

Apparently, it concerned the committee bupkis. And, it also apparently concerns top-level writers bupkis, too. The ESPN story I link to doesn't even mention the word "steroids." Hell, ESPN and other folks in the mainstream sports media world (MSSM?) didn't discuss this before the vote, either.

So, to every ESPN writer who calls the BBWAA hypocrites? "Eat me." Like Jerry Crasnick.

And, managing roiding players aside, how do we judge "borderline" managers? See here for my cry for a WAR for managers.

Otherwise, there's also two other overdue people. It's simply disgusting that labor leader Marvin Miller again didn't get voted in. Also, catching great Ted Simmons, who had the misfortune of playing in Johnny Bench's shadow, in the same league, for much of his career, should be in the Hall.

And, what good is a post like this without a poll?

Free polls from Pollhost.com

Should Veterans voters treat La Russa, Torre like BBWAA voters on alleged roiders?

Yes   No   Uncertain

My answer? It's always been yes.

First, it's hypocritical and a double standard to do otherwise.

Second, to treat the managers in the same way would force the steroid issue even more into the open.

Third, given how pervasive roiding was, I really think La Russa, at least, knew something. And, I'm a Cards fan. But, I don't give free passes.

#Stlcards fans - should La Russa be kept out of Hall of Fame?

Now that the dust has settled from no living baseball players being elected to Cooperstown this year, as the black cloud of roiding really started to hit home with the candidacies of Roger Clemens, Barry Bonds, et al.

Well, the 2014 ballot will have many great, "clean" players. Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, Frank Thomas, are all legit first-year entries for the Hall, and I think we'd recognize them all as PED-free.

But there's a twist. In 2014, the Veterans Committee returns to the "modern" era. And Joe Torre and Tony La Russa will be on the ballot as managers.

And, in Oakland, TLR managed the two most notorious known, admitted users in Jose Canseco and Mark McGwire. Re Big Mac, TLR has claimed he didn't notice anything, didn't know anything. He's been more circumspect about Canseco. And, per sportswriter Thomas Boswell, via Wezen-Ball, TLR probably DID know "something" was up, already in 1988.)

The fact that La Russa wanted to ink Bonds to a Cardinal contract when he was a free agent after 2007 also points to his total lack of innocence on this issue.

That's why I'd love a, say, Ken Rosenthal to put both of them, La Russa and Canseco, in the same interview room at the same time.

After all, although La Russa wasn't his manager, Canseco then went to Texas. We know about Rafael Palmeiro and PED use, and there's been a lot of suspicion about Ivan Rodriguez.

 Here's my thoughts on likely roiders among players. It applies to La Russa, too. (To riff on Ricky Ricardo, you got some 'splaining to do, and some apologizing, along with the players union, management, and now, I would say, at least one field manager.)

We can make some sort of guesstimate as to how your managerial career might have panned out without the "help." And, making it to three straight World Series in Oakland, then having a juiced Mac welcome a trade to St. Louis, to break Roger Maris' record, might not have happened, either.

(On the players side, with my best guesstimates, Bonds was already a first-round HOFer, Clemens a possible to likely first-rounder, but not guaranteed first rounder, Pudge was a possible HOFer Raffy was not, McGwire was not.)

A friend of mine asked me, What about Torre and his Yankee years? I said Clemens was juicing before that, Andy Pettitte has apologized, and that Torre was probably not aware of Andy. Whether he should have been aware of "Muchie Peachie" and others (Jason Giambi, pre- or post-apology) is a different question. 

That said, Torre might not deserve a 100 percent pass, either.

So, not quite a year from now, we're going to find out how well the Veterans Committee has studied this issue and how much it concerns them. 

And, no, this is not a snarky attack on the BBWAA or anything similar. It's a legitimate issue, I think.

And, managing roiding players aside, how do we judge "borderline" managers? See here for my cry for a WAR for managers.

And, what good is a post like this without a poll?

Free polls from Pollhost.com

Should Veterans voters treat La Russa, Torre like BBWAA voters on alleged roiders?

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#StlCards manager TLR retires

I wondered about this a week ago, as it looked like the St. Louis Cardinals had a shot to win the World Series. I thought that, even though he had a chance to pass John McGraw into No. 2 on the all-time managerial wins list by staying one more season, Tony La Russa had a chance to go out a winner.

And now he has.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch has a full roundup of stories, starting here.

Several issues.

GM John Mozeliak mentioned the team's desire to resign Albert Pujols. Given that Pujols was perceived as a TLR player, even a Tony La Russa-babied prima donna (over the post-Game 2 media no-show) will this further decrease the odds The Machine returns? I'd say yes, by 5 percent or so, depending on how soon a new manager is named and who that person is.

La Russa didn't mention his long-time "caddy," pitching coach Dave Duncan. But, given Dunc's wife's health, surely he's moving on, too. In fact, he may already have privately hinted that.

And, theoretically, the Cards have a good lineup in 2012 without Prince Albert. David Freese at 3B for hopefully a full, healthy year. Lance Berkman is your 1B. Matt Holliday, Allan Craig and John Jay are your OF. With Adam Wainwright back, the pitching staff is solid indeed in starters, and Jason Motte, starting the year as closer, is going to get better.

So, Mo could spend the "Pujols money" on stabilizing the middle infield with an A-list SS or 2B. I've previously suggested Jimmy Rollins IF the price is right. But, his initial demand show that the price is currently far from right.

Next, and, it's got to be said ... steroids. More below the fold.

My #WorldSeries pick? #StlCards in 6

First, as David Freese showed in winning the NLCS MVP award, the Cards' batting order is deep. Overall, arguably, deeper than the Rangers' is. With four full-blown "boppers" in the order, including Albert Pujols, Matt Holliday and Lance Berkman, even if one or even two go cold, there's depth there.

Speaking of, why were the TBS booth guys speculating Holliday would be the DH in the games in Arlington? This has been the first time since 2005 Berknan has played more than 100 games in the OF. And, for both this season and his career, he has a negative dWAR along with below average fielding percentage and range factor in the OF.

To me, TBS guys, it's a no-brainer to DH Berkman, with the added advantage of him being a switch-hitter. Allan Craig takes right and John Jay stays in center, for the outfield. (The Cardinal Nation blog suggests DHing one of them; why? Both are "positive" fielders. You put Berkman at DH, or Pujols, if he's banged up and then move Berkman to 1B. That's your best defensive moves.)

And, I've ragged on Tony La Russa a lot, but, overall, he did do a good job, even a great one, overall, in the LCS. That gives the Cards an advantage over the Rangers, where Ron Washington has been none too impressive as a strategist.

Speaking of, neither team looks great, overall, in pitching staffs, but, the Cards' underappreciated bullpen showed its worth to some degree against the Phillies and even more against the Brewers. Add Tony the Pony's long-term right-hand man Dave Duncan into the strategy mix, and it's another Cardinals advantage.

So, Cards in six. Home celebration at Busch Stadium.

UPDATE, Oct. 27: So I was off by a game, so sue me. WE WON! And ... Freese is MVP again.

#StlCards lose game 1? Blame #TLR

UPDATE, Oct. 9: TLR is mismanaging the bullpen in Game 1 of the LCS, with "perfect bad timing," even as this post was originally about Game 1 of the LDS. But, yes, it's arguably that Tony the Pony is at fault this time, too.

As Yahoo Sports' Les Carpenter notes, Tony La Russa had nobody warming up in the bullpen, not just before Ryan Howard's three-run smash, but afterward, too. Yes, the pen's been iffy.  But, as Carpenter notes, junkball artist Kyle Lohse in a bandbox ballpark was playing with fire all along. (Unfortunately, the team is stuck with  $12M of playing with his fire next year,)

Anyway, WHY Marc Rzepczynski wasn't warming up for the one-batter scenario against Howard, if nothing else, I have NO idea. How much is Tony the Pony's fault? How much is Dave Duncan being distracted by his wife's brain tumor situation?

But, this shouldn't have happened.

But, this isn't an isolated incident in the series.

He lost Game 3 through telling Jaime Garcia to intentionally walk Carlos Ruiz to face Ben Francisco. He almost lost Game 2, IMO, by pulling Chris Carpenter when he did rather than calling for a safety squeeze.

#StlCards Pujols fans probably pleading to wrong guy

Hey, Cards fans at Busch Stadium Sunday? If you really want Albert Pujols to stay, you shouldn't (just) have been addressing pleas down to the stadium below, but up to the ownership box. Will Bill DeWitt and John Mozeliak make a better, a significantly better offer, than the 10 years, $191 million that was the last thing they floated in public before spring training?

UPDATE: That said, you can plead away at least one more game, to Pujols, owner Bill DeWitt and general manager John Mozeliak, as WE GO TO THE PLAYOFFS!

You probably also should have called some of your friends on the phone, per the story, to be at the stadium. Second inning? Last home game of the year? Playing the Cubs? Fighting for a playoff spot? And there are still noticeable empty seats/seat areas? What, has Busch become Dodger Stadium?

And, per the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, which reminds us of an overtone, or undercurrent: Was this the last game with the Birds on Bats for The Machine? Meanwhile, he's 1 RBI short of 100, and got a hit, so holding onto .300 chances.

Anyway,  will Bill and Mo come through? Maybe not. Per this Joe Strauss column it doesn't sound highly likely. And, it sounds like Mo, and maybe Bill, have already halfway conceded that. 

Cardinals chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. and general manager John Mozeliak offer reserved testimonials while acknowledging they have no idea where the next two-to-three months will take the relationship with a player who next year almost certainly would surpass Stan Musial as the franchise home run leader.

"It's the era we're in,'' Dewitt said. "Many times they sign back with the same club. With a legendary player like Albert, you hope he stays his whole career with the Cardinals, like Stan did. But that process is going to take place and we're not sure how it's going to play out. I'm sure he's not sure either at this point.''

"When you reflect on his career, it's been a historic run for he and the St. Louis Cardinals,'' Mozeliak said. "As far as our mindset, we still believe there is a chance that Albert will be wearing a Cardinal uniform in 2012."

Strauss goes on to note the team reportedly isn't ready to budge above a rumored eight-nine years, $22-23 million per year contract and may even be wanting to shorten that. (Also note: the last public offer by the team was 10 years, $191 million.)

That only intensifies my guess that it's 50-50 he goes elsewhere. Cubs still rank No. 1 as a landing spot, at least if Pujols has revenge on his mind. Dodgers are No. 2 if Bud Selig can ram through his forced sale soon enough. Braves, with room to spend, are No. 3 and Angels are No. 4. I think the White Sox are No. 5.

I don't know why neither the Braves nor White Sox are on most radar screens. The Braves are one good, experienced bat away from overtaking the  aging Phillies in the NL East. The ChiSox are a competitive team who have money to spend. I know the Braves of the past haven't been major free agent players, but things can change.

That's five teams with legitimate money to spend. Nos. 3-5 are some sort of contenders right now and would be on the A-list of teams to beat if they added Pujols. So, if Mo is thinking there will be a soft market, he's betting wrong.

Others? Mets' financial pic is messier than the Dodgers. The Nats do like to spend, and might come up on the outside. I still really don't see the Yankees involved unless A-Rod, Tex or Albert plays DH, and they'd still have to eat a LOT of money for that. (And don't forget C.C. Sabathia's opt-out.) Red Sox are at their max on payroll.

And, if he moves on? Jimmy Rollins would be an OK free agent pickup, if the price is right. Looking ahead another year? I expect Mo to look at both 1B and 3B free agents for 2013, with the idea that if he doesn't re-extend Lance Berkman, David Freese could be moved across the diamond. No, that wouldn't be ideal, but I'm sure Mo's already thinking about that possibility. Mo will probably wait as long as possible this year to make an improved Pujols offer, anyway. If he sees Prince Fielder move on, and the Reds make no big moves, he knows he can compete in the NL Central for the next two years anyway.

As for Cards fans invoking the sainted name of Stan Musial as a reason for Albert to stay? Get real. If Stan were playing today, he'd likely hold out for the best, or near-best, deal. Besides, both loyalty and lack thereof is a two-way street. After all, the team more than once entertained serious trade offers for Stan the Man.

Finally, while the team's resigning of Pujols may affect Tony La Russa's decision on whether or not to return, despite occasional public protestations of loyalty by Albert, I don't think the other is necessarily true. That said, managerial issues might steer him away from the Cubs. And Latino affinity might give the White Sox and Braves a bump.

#TLR now into make-up trading for Cards

That series of trades last year that was, essentially and really, a get Ryan Theriot and dump Brendan Ryan deal? Looks like even Tony La Russa is now admitting it's teh suck, or at least John Mozeliak is, as the Birds try to land Dodger shortstop Rafael Furcal.

Furcal has been an above-average hitter at SS, with a glove at least average. Until this year.

He's below the Mendoza Line this year. Though he is still a better fielder than Theriot.

Meanwhile, Ryan this year is batting as well as Theriot and gloving better than Furcal of three years ago.

This isn't "win now," it's "remake the team on Tony the Pony's terms."

Cards pull trigger on Rasmus trade ... again, why?

Because he's in a two-month slump and still isn't one of tony La Russa's "boys," though he IS his daddy's boy,the St. Louis Cardinals have decided to trade Colby Rasmus

Trading for iffy free-agent-to-be starter Edwin Jackson AND a bag of spare parts in a three way deal?

Well, this was a modestly better deal than the original straight-up one with the White Sox. That said, it's pretty clear this is a "win this year" deal.

Here's who the Cards get back besides Jackson: Relievers Octavio Dotel and Marc Rzepczynski, along with outfielder Corey Patterson.

In other words, a fading former semi-fulltime closer and a LOOGY of decent but not great value, but with Dotel being a free agent (Note: I earlier incorrectly said Rzepczynski will be a free agent; rather, he'll be arbitration eligible), and a utility outfielder, ALSO a free agent after this year.

In exchange, the Cards trade an outfielder with more potential than all three of the players they get back, and one who is not free-agent eligible until 2015.

Here's Yahoo's Big League Stew blog's take on the trade:

Whatever his issues, Rasmus is by far the most talented player in the trade, which does address one of St. Louis' needs — more pitching. But it comes at a huge cost, for now and for the future.

Edwin Jackson is a free agent at season's end, Dotel is 37 years old and Patterson's career has mirrored what Rasmus' might look like if he doesn't develop consistency. Rzepczynski is really hard to spell, but is left-handed.

I'd agree. The only way this is a long-term, or even medium-term, win for the Cards is if Rasmus is at least as big a head case north of the border as south.

ESPN also thinks this is a dumb trade. And, with the Padres still interested in moving Heath Bell or his setup man Mike Adams (who is NOT in a free agent year, to boot), Tony the Pony could have done better.

And, if Tony the Pony wanted to help his pitching ... err, it would be nice to have a better SS than Theriot, among other things.

This also shows who really runs the front office for the Cards: Tony La Russa, not John Mozeliak. What will that mean for Albert Pujols? Or other deals of or for people who aren't "Tony's boys"?

Cards want to trade Colby Rasmus? Why?

Because he's in a two-month slump and still isn't one of tony La Russa's "boys," the St. Louis Cardinals want to trade five-tool outfielder Colby Rasmus?

Trading for iffy free-agent-to-be starter Edwin Jackson AND lefty reliever Matt Thornton would be bad enough. Trading for just one or the other plus loose change from Kenny Williams' pocket would be stupid.

Yes, GM John Mozeliak says he's opposed, but Tony the Pony is surely still pushing this clunker of an idea.

Update: Well, the Cards pulled the trigger, getting a modestly better deal than the original one, let alone Jackson alone. That said, it's pretty clear this is a "win this year" deal.

Here's Yahoo's Big League Stew blog's take on the trade:

Whatever his issues, Rasmus is by far the most talented player in the trade, which does address one of St. Louis' needs — more pitching. But it comes at a huge cost, for now and for the future.

Edwin Jackson is a free agent at season's end, Dotel is 37 years old and Patterson's career has mirrored what Rasmus' might look like if he doesn't develop consistency. Rzepczynski is really hard to spell, but is left-handed.

I'd agree. The only way this is a long-term, or even medium-term, win for the Cards is if Rasmus is at least as big a head case north of the border as south.

This also shows who really runs the front office for the Cards: Tony La Russa, not John Mozeliak. What will that mean for Albert Pujols?

Ozzie Smith-Tony La Russa tops aging player feuds?

At least it does for ESPN's Jerry Crasnick.

In the most recent edition of his Starting 9 column, he ranks the dustup between The Wizard of Oz and Tony the Pony as No. 1 in animus level of an aging superstar getting the cold shoulder in some way from somebody in management, sometimes along with players.

As far as nuclear level, he rates this and Sammy Sosa vs. Cubs both a 10 on the player's part.

That said, Slamming Sammy was tossed away, post-roiding fallout. But, he had never endeared himself to his teammates the way Ozzie did, let alone to the general public.

Ozzie? He had good reason to be PO-ed. Royce Clayton getting moved ahead of him? Throw out that shoulder surgery year in 1995 and look at both 1994 and his swan song of 1996. Sure, it was with abbreviated time both years, but in 1994 he was slightly above his career batting numbers and definitely ahead of them in 1996.

Fielding, his HOF meal ticket? Perhaps not above his average, but still above league averages on range factor and fielding percentage both, both years. A 1.2 dWAR in 1994 and 0.4 in 1996. Total zone runs also solidly positive both years.

Add in that Oz won two MLB service awards near the end of his career, the Branch Rickey in 1994 and the Roberto Clemente in 1995, and to say La Russa handled this poorly is the understatement of the baseball decade.

Of Crasnick's list, I think Frank Thomas vs. Kenny Williams is the only one that can really compare.

Time for MLB to get serious about DWI

Ken Rosenthal nails this one.

Sadly, we shouldn't have Shin-Soo Choo already the sixth MLB player to be arrested this year for allegedly driving under the influence of alcohol.

The arrest and problems of Miguel Cabrera should have been a 120-decibel wake-up call to BOTH Commissioner Bud Selig AND the players' union to get more serious on this issue.

Bud's lack of seriousness, Rosenthal notes, goes back to doing nothing after St. Louis Cardinal manager Tony La Russa's arrest.

Jeff Passan's on the same page as Rosenthal, arguing baseball needs to start suspending players for this.

Hey, La Russa, about Ryan for Theriot ....

Tony La Russa's chemistry or whatever change at shortstop has backfired, at least on Opening Day.

Ryan Theriot, replacing Brendan Ryan, has made a throwing error costing the Cards two runs in extra innings.

Can Cards still compete? Is Lohse "quality"?

Ken Rosenthal thinks the St. Louis Cardinals can still compete for the NL Central crown even after losing Adam Wainwright.

Only if he's buying the Cards' party line on pitching is Rosenthal right.

And, here's that party line:

The Cardinals’ party line is that they still have four quality starters .... (including) Kyle Lohse. La Russa spoke of “six or seven” internal candidates for the fifth spot.

Kyle Lohse a "quality starter"? Yeah, Tony the Pony is scraping the barrel indeed.

Pujols — D-Day plus 2

According to Yahoo's Jeff Passan, Albert Pujols did just what he needed to do in Jupiter, Fla. Thursday: Go on the PR offensive.

Passan seems to give him a good grade:

It’s not a side Pujols reveals often. He is notoriously focused and routine-oriented. Media means nothing to him. As free agency beckons, though, Pujols needs a conduit to deliver his message, especially since he will balance reaching for high dollars with staying in the good graces of St. Louis fans who naturally side with the team.

Meanwhile, Prince Albert seemed at his best at deflecting guesses on specific numbers tossed around before the deadline:

“That’s so funny,” Pujols said. “Me and my agent talk every other day about you guys throwing numbers out, assuming the Cardinals offered me this, Albert asking for 10 years. We just laugh about it, and I’m pretty sure the Cardinals are, too. You guys don’t have any clue. You’re way off about the numbers you’re throwing out there.”

That said, ESPN has a source confirm that the average salary, more than total years, was allegedly a big deal.

Pujols also spoke, indirectly, to Tony La Russa's claims he was a "tool" of the players union:

Pujols said neither he nor Lozano had been pressured by anyone, and said only five people knew the details of the talks: Him, his wife, Lozano, Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak, and Cardinals chairman William DeWitt Jr.

More light on why the tight lips? Pujols specifically cited how recent talks between the New York Yankees and Derek Jeter spilled into public, with acrimony at times.

Yahoo offers its latest take on where he might go, if he leaves, too. As it mentions, I haven't counted the Dodgers in the mix before, because of ownership issues. But with Commissioner Bud "Bud" Selig pushing the McCourts to settle up on their divorce, maybe even jointly selling the team, who knows, nine months from now?