May 29, 2002

TEAM NEWS: 30-22 (2nd place NL Central, 1/2 game back)

Rotation:

Despite notching his 7th win and only allowing 1 run in 5 innings, Matt Morris arguably had his worst start of the year on Tuesday night in Houston. He was repeatedly getting into jams, and allowed 7 hits, walking 5 in 5 innings. In his last 3 starts, Morris has allowed 12 runs in 15 innings. The logical thought is that fatigue is kicking in, and the rest days in the next week may be key to him regaining his form. Still, keep an eye on him.

Darryl Kile also repeatedly got into and out of jams against the Astros on Monday night, largely due to the help of 4 double plays. He allowed only 1 run through 6 innings, giving up 8 hits, including several singles with 0-2 and 1-2 counts, but walked only 1, which may indicate that he's starting to turn the corner a bit. His recent control problems (9 walks in 13 innings in his previous 2 starts) may have had him trying to be too perfect and not confident enough to waste pitches when he's ahead in the count. If he can put that behind him, he should start lowering that WHIP a lot, and most likely will improve his strikeout production in the process.

Unheralded 28 year old rookie Jason Simontacchi continues to show the club that he deserves to be where he is. In his most recent start, he improved to 3-0, and also gave the club his 3rd quality start in 4 chances. His only blemishes were Home Runs to Pirates sluggers Brian Giles and Aramis Ramirez as he went 7.1 innings, allowing 3 runs on 8 hits and a walk. Look for him to get at least a couple of more starts in the majors.

In his last start, wiley veteran Woody Williams allowed more runs than he had allowed in a single game since coming to St. Louis last August. However, he still pitched 6 innings, allowing 3 runs on only 3 hits and 2 walks. He also fanned a season-high 6 Pirates.

Crafty righty Garrett Stephenson resumed his mediocrity on Friday, following up his best start of the year with a rather ho-hum performance against the Pirates. He took his third loss of the season, going 5.1 innings and allowing 4 runs on 7 hits with a walk. He's still being babied back from Tommy John Surgery (along with back spasms) right now, and has given the team 6 innings or more only once so far in 6 starts this season.

Lefty Bud Smith has looked solid down in Memphis, but the way that Simontacchi has pitched, he won't likely be called back up until late June at the earliest.

Infield:

1b Tino Martinez continues to show that his early season slump was a fluke, though he's currently leveling out around .230. Still, if he continues to hit the ball as well as he has been, those numbers are more likely to rise 30 points than drop 10 points, and his power numbers should continue to pick up as well.

2b Fernando Vina hit his second career grand slam last week in Pittsburgh. The little sparkplug is hitting .297 and is currently on pace to break his career highs in doubles, stolen bases, and RBI.

SS Edgar Renteria appears to be recovered from a pulled muscle in his ribcage, and has hit safely in 4 out of 5 games since returning to the lineup with 2 stolen bases.

3b Placido Polanco continues to struggle for the most part, but looked good in a 4-3 win over Houston on Monday night, going 3/5 with a double and 2 runs scored.... He also showed off his usual defensive flair, gunning the ball to first just ahead of a sliding Craig Biggio for the final out with the tying and winning runs in scoring position.

Outfield:

CF Jim Edmonds continues to lead both in the clubhouse and by example. He leads the team in RBI (36), Home Runs (12), and batting average (.335) and has had multiple hits in 4 of the last 10 games.

LF Albert Pujols has started to surge a bit, with 5 homers and 8 RBI in his last 11 games, 10 of which he has hit safely in. Perhaps it was just a matter of time, but the top of the order is still not giving him enough baserunners to drive in.

It appears that RF J.D. Drew
will never stay healthy long enough to produce what he's capable of. He hasn't started either of the first 2 games at hitter-friendly Astros Field, and this time the culprit is a stiff neck. Expect Larussa and the team to put up with Drew taking days off for the rest of the year, particularly against lefties, just to try and keep his bat in the lineup before he thinks of some other nagging injury to complain about. At least nobody's throwing batteries at him.

Bullpen:

The bullpen has continued to pitch solid ball. Mike Matthews finally joined Gene Stechschulte and Dave Veres as the only guys in the pen who have given up a run in the last 2 weeks.

Mike Timlin, often dogged in this column, hasn't allowed a run in 10 2/3 innings dating back to May 14. Luther Hackman hasn't allowed a run since April 21, a span of 15 innings. Even rookie Mike Crudale hasn't allowed a run in almost a month.

Still, the most impressive member of the bullpen staff is closer Jason Isringhausen who has converted 11 of 11 chances since May 1 and has struck out 11 in 14 2/3 scoreless innings in those appearances.

Local Perspective:

The fans in St. Louis have begun to love the story of Jason Simontacchi. A 28 year old veteran of the Independent League, Venezuelan Winter Ball, and the Italian Professional League, Simontacchi has become an overnight success.

Not far removed from driving a tow truck in his native California, Simontacchi seems so down to earth compared to many of the players and their inflated salaries, particularly with the threat of another strike on the horizon. The tricky right-hander is being compared to another likeable former Cardinal, Bob Tewksbury. His long struggle to reach the majors is also reminiscent of another player in a different sport who has flourished in the spotlight of St. Louis sports, Kurt Warner. The Cards just may have found a keeper in Jason Simontacchi.

The book on Simontacchi:

Simontacchi is a guy who could look very good his first time through the league. His stuff is extremely hard to figure out. He's got a strong low to mid 90's four-seam fastball, an amazing changeup that he throws with the same arm speed as the fastball, and a solid hard sinker. The question is how he will adjust his second time through the leagues, as once hitters know what he's got, his stuff is far from overpowering. He should give everyone a glimpse of just how good he can be as he faces the Pirates for the second time in a week this weekend.

Injuries:

Renteria seems to be back at pretty much full strength after his pulled muscle in his ribcage.

J.D. Drew has sat out the last couple of games with a stiff neck. Tony Larussa hopes this may help him out of his recent slump, but it seems more like Drew's either just made of glass or doesn't want to play and earn his gaudy salary.

Reliever Steve Kline has made two relief appearances rehabbing in A ball for Peoria. He appears ready to come back up, but the Cards are going to give him one more appearance under his belt. Kline is recovering from a strained left triceps and Gout in his left foot.

Rick Ankiel appears to be almost ready to begin rehabbing, but won't likely be joining the team until at least the All-Star Break.

Upcoming Schedule and Probable Starters: (new feature)

As this is the first time we've done the schedule for the week, I'll elaborate on how it will be done. As the column will be written on Wednesday, it would make sense to go from Wednesday to Wednesday... However, most leagues that are on a weekly basis either start their week on Sunday or Monday. Therefore, the week will begin on Monday from here on out. For this week, though, you'll get a week and a half of scheduling. As always, your feedback on any new columns/ideas is welcome.

Wednesday, May 29: St. Louis, Garrett Stephenson (1-3, 5.27) at Houston, Wade Miller (0-2, 9.00) -

Offensively - Make sure you start Jim Edmonds and Fernando Vina against Miller, as they're both around .300 lifetime against him.

Pitching - If you've got Stephenson, benching him in Astros Field would likely be a good idea, particularly considering his ERA is over 5 lifetime against the Astros.

Thursday, May 30: Off day

Friday, May 31: Pittsburgh, Josh Fogg (5-3, 3.60) at St. Louis, Woody Williams (2-0, 1.80) -

Offensively - The Cards have only faced Fogg once. Don't expect another grand slam from Vina this time, but keep all of your Cardinals in the lineup, as almost everyone on the team got a hit last week against him.

Pitching - Until Woody's cooled down, make sure you get as many starts as you can from him, and he's got solid career numbers against the Pirates too (3.78 ERA, 0.99 WHIP). Fogg was lit up when these teams met in Pittsburgh, and the way the Cards have been swinging the bat, don't be surprised to see it again.

Saturday, June 1: Pittsburgh, Dave Williams (2-5, 4.98) at St. Louis, Darryl Kile (2-3, 3.73) -

Offensively - Nobody's really had more than 1 or 2 looks at Williams, and the only players with more than 1 hit career against him are Fernando Vina (3/5) and Miguel Cairo (2/4). Expect Cairo to get the start somewhere on the field, with J.D. Drew and possibly Tino Martinez riding the bench against the lefty.

Pitching - Kile hasn't had a great career against the Pirates (7-7, 4.73 ERA) and Williams has been stellar against the Cards in 2 career starts, going 1-1 with an ERA under 2.

Sunday, June 2: Pittsburgh, Kris Benson (0-2, 9.64) at St. Louis, Jason Simontacchi (3-0, 2.73) -

Offensively - Play anyone and everyone you can right now against Benson. He's trying to prove just how difficult it really is to return from Tommy John Surgery and has looked awful.

Pitching - This could be the true test for Simontacchi, assuming he isn't skipped in the rotation (the expectation is that he'll start, as Matt Morris is needed more for the Reds series) because of the off-day on Thursday. Simontacchi pitched very well against the Pirates last week, allowing 3 runs in 7 1/3 innings in collecting his third win. However, this is the first time that he'll be squaring off against a team that has seen him.

I don't know what to say about Benson's poor showing this year, as nobody expected him to be the pitcher that he was before the surgery quickly anyway. However, combined with how awful he has been and how dominant current Pirate ace Kip Wells was last week against the Cardinals, it wouldn't be a shock for the Bucs to try and give Wells the start on short rest.

Monday, June 3 - Off day

Tuesday, June 4 - St. Louis, Matt Morris (7-3, 3.42) at Cincinnati, Joey Hamilton (2-2, 4.36) -

Offensively - Most players on the Cards current roster haven't faced Hamilton, who is 4-2 lifetime with a 2.42 ERA against the Cards. Jim Edmonds has done well against him, hitting 3 out of 7, and one of Tino Martinez' 2 hits against him was a homer.

Pitching - Morris has looked awful lately, including 3 starts ago against the Reds, when he allowed 7 runs in 5.2 innings. Regardless, how do you sit an ace?

Wednesday, June 5 - St. Louis, Garrett Stephenson (1-3, 2.57) at Cincinnati, Jimmy Haynes (2-2, 4.36) -

Offensively - Tino Martinez, Albert Pujols, and (get this) Mike Matheny have all tagged Haynes at or above a .500 clip so far in their careers, all in 10 AB's minimum. If you're desperate for a day to day catcher, grab Matheny for this one. Obviously, you'd be playing Pujols, and most likely, Tino (9-17 lifetime with a homer and 7 RBI) doesn't have to fight for playing time either, but make sure he gets it for this one. Jim Edmonds and Fernando Vina have also both hit over .300 in their careers against Haynes, and this game should be pretty high scoring.

Pitching - Stephenson came through with his only win of the year thus far and, by far, his best outing this year against the Reds on May 19. If the cards fall right and he's facing Haynes, now would be a good time to try and pick up one of those cheap wins and hope he doesn't kill your ERA/WHIP.

Thursday, June 6 - St. Louis, Woody Williams (2-0, 1.80) at Cincinnati, Chris Reitsma (3-1, 2.52) -

Offensively - Edgar Renteria (4/10) and Albert Pujols (4/14) have both hit Reitsma well.

Pitching -Williams was stellar against the Reds on May 20, limiting them to 5 hits and a walk and not allowing a run in 6 innings. On top of that, he's 4-1 lifetime with a 2.72 ERA against the Reds, and nobody with the exception of a still banged-up Ken Griffey Jr. has great numbers against him.

Friday, June 7 - St. Louis, Darryl Kile (2-3, 3.73) at Kansas City (TBD) - Honestly, the Royals rotation is too much of a mess right now to predict who will be starting for them.... Obviously, Paul Byrd and Jeff Suppan will remain mainstays in their rotation, and the Cards will likely see one of them in the series. Expect Matheny to start all 3 games behind the plate in this series, as the Royals love to run.

Saturday, June 8 - St. Louis (TBD) at Kansas City (TBD) - A lot depends on Simontacchi's next start, presumably against Pittsburgh this weekend. If he starts and pitches incredibly well again, it's impossible to see the Cards sending him down. Obviously, while there is the I-70 rivalry with the Royals, they're often looked down upon as the ugly stepsister, and it would make sense to rest the top-flight starters against them, so Simontacchi would likely start if he stays up.

QUICK VIEW:

Add/Trade For:

Fernando Vina (new): Hey.... He's having a career year, and he'll always hit around .300 with a lot of runs, so even if his production slows, you're still getting a heck of a player.

Woody Williams: I don't know how I can stress it more. The guy had his worst game in his last 12 starts on Saturday and still allowed less than a base-runner an inning. The sad thing is, people may just think he's hot returning from his injury.... Go get him.

Steve Kline (new): This is for leagues with holds only. Kline is a top-notch setup man who will come back and still lead this team in appearances and holds if he's fully healthy.

Matt Morris (new): You never know who's going to panic over an ace who has looked like a #4 starter his last 3 times out. Take advantage of them before Morris gives them a reason to change their mind.

Deal/Dump:

J.D. Drew (new): Obviously, the advice is to trade him, and not to just drop him. Drew continues to show more and more that he could be an elite player, but never will be because he just doesn't want to fight through those injuries. He's a soft player who will never live up to his potential. It might be time to see what you can get for him before he goes on the DL and you can't get anything.

Jim Edmonds (new): Ok.... This is to be taken with a very big grain of salt. Edmonds can't keep up this pace. Try and deal him as a great outfielder for 2 really good players if you need to. To speak of Edmonds in terms of career splits, his average, home runs, and RBI all slip month by month the rest of the way. If you can pick up someone who won't hurt the slack much in your outfield and help yourself somewhere else, it should be worth the gamble.

Garrett Stephenson: This guy never had any place on any fantasy team, no matter how deep the league is.

Correspondent's Note I:

Did this report help you? Did you find any of our new segments really helpful, or did you think they were useless and unecessary? Do you have any ideas on something else that could have been used in the report that would improve it? Please post your comment down below in the "Comments" link.

Correspondent's Note II:

Do you have a specific question about the Cardinals that you'd like to ask our Correspondent and Local Reporters? Register for your free membership with our site and hop on in to the Cardinals Message Forum or look for me (CardsRoyalsCorr) in chat around 10:30 PM CDT most nights.

Correspondent's Note III:

Do you live in St. Louis? Like to write? Love your baseball? Think you've got what it takes to be a local or minor league reporter? If you do, please register for your free membership with our site and post a Sample Correspondent Report here and either the GM or I will be in touch with you.

And for those of you in Memphis, New Haven, Potomac, Peoria, New Jersey, or Johnson City, we could always use a good minor league reporter keeping us updated on the farm. So you're more than welcome to post your report on your local minor league team either at Sample Correspondent Report or in the Cardinals Forum and we'll be in touch.

Sincerely,

James Meyerriecks

Cardinals & Royals Lead Correspondent