St. Louis Cardinals 2022
Truly a class act
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'They deserve to have it': Pujols tells fans to keep 697th HR ball
Sometimes when you go to the ballpark, you come back with a priceless piece of baseball history. Matt and Samantha Brown received the memento of a lifetime on Sunday at PNC Park, as the couple ended up with Cardinals icon Albert Pujols’ historic 697th home run ball, which brought him
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It seems to me that he can't tell the difference between a fastball and a slider before it's passed him by and the whole league knows it. I agree, with the way Edman plays, De Jong is gone.
Ransom Stoddard
Ordained Dudeist Priest
- Bloomington, IL
I love that Albert and the Cards organization were able to get him back for this season. We're going down for the game next Sunday--2 weeks ago I thought Pujols chances of getting to 700 were next to nothing, now there's a chance I may get to witness it.....Truly a class act
'They deserve to have it': Pujols tells fans to keep 697th HR ball
Sometimes when you go to the ballpark, you come back with a priceless piece of baseball history. Matt and Samantha Brown received the memento of a lifetime on Sunday at PNC Park, as the couple ended up with Cardinals icon Albert Pujols’ historic 697th home run ball, which brought him
pruman91
- Paducah, Ky
With homer No. 697, Pujols wins another game for Cardinals, expands his legacy
After Pujols rallies Cardinals past Pirates, MVP candidate Goldschmidt says, 'Best hitter I've ever seen.'
Rick Hummel
PITTSBURGH — The words are getting harder and harder to summon to describe what we’re seeing from Albert Pujols. But people are trying.
“I don’t think there’s a wrong one,” Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak said. “Magic is magic.”
“Absolutely legendary,” manager Oliver Marmol said. “I’m not quite sure what we’re witnessing right now.”
But perhaps the best two words were, “Thank you.”
Those two came from the lips of Samantha Brown, whose husband, Matt, came up with Pujols’ 697th home run ball that had ricocheted off a couple of seats in right-center field. It was a game-winner to cap a four-run ninth inning that gave the Cardinals a 4-3 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Sunday at PNC Park before a crowd of 10,398 that got to see a little bit of history.
After briefly sharing fourth place on the career home run list with Alex Rodriguez when he homered the night before, Pujols moved to three homers away from the 700 club, which has three members. Barry Bonds has 762 homers, Henry Aaron 755 and Babe Ruth 714.
The Browns came to PNC on the first anniversary of the death last summer of Samantha’s father.
“I just feel that it was a sign that we got (the ball),” she said.
But when the Browns tried to give it to Pujols outside the Cardinals’ clubhouse, Albert would have none of it, especially when he heard about the death of Samantha’s father.
“Albert, you’re really going to walk away from that?” asked Matt Brown.
“It’s all good,” Pujols said. “I have plenty of baseballs. She deserves it more than me.”
pruman91
- Paducah, Ky
Cardinals notebook: Marmol gambles — and wins — by resting Goldschmidt, Arenado
Pirates hold Cardinals to three singles for first eight innings. Wainwright celebrates 17th anniversary of debut
Rick Hummel
PITTSBURGH — Cardinals offensive and defensive stars Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado were out of the starting lineup together for the first time all season other than on July 26-27, when they didn’t go to Toronto because they were not allowed into Canada because they were unvaccinated against COVID-19.
Some managers wouldn’t have had the nerve to do that Sunday, with the result of a club’s season still hanging in the balance. But manager Oliver Marmol said, “I think we’re going to score a lot of runs today.
“Obviously, you tend to score more when ‘Goldy’ and Nolan are in there, but you’re also valuing the rest and both of those guys have gone extremely hard with no off days (other than designated hitting). If they both can recharge for 48 hours (Monday is a scheduled off day) and go on another run, I think that benefits us more than having one of them in there today.
“We looked at it quite a bit and we felt, regardless of how (Saturday) played out (7-5 victory), both of them would have today off.”
The Cardinals, without those two linchpins, were held held to three singles for eight innings before Albert Pujols and Tyler O’Neill homered to key a ninth-inning rally.
“It was a gamble,” Marmol said afterward. “I felt good about this lineup. But I’m glad Albert played today.”
Goldschmidt and Arenado had cleats and jerseys on, just in case.
“But we didn’t get to the part where I would have used them,” Marmol said.
Arenado said he should be ready to go for the remaining 21 games.
pruman91
- Paducah, Ky
Quick hits: Pujols hits 697th homer to lift Cardinals past Pirates in 9th inning
Cardinals rally for four runs to win 4-3 at PNC, with O'Neill also homering. Rookie Alec Burleson gets first big-league hit.
Rick Hummel
PITTSBURGH — The Cardinals played without stars Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado on Sunday as both were given a rest by manager Oliver Marmol. But they didn't dare play without Albert Pujols.
Shut out on three hits until the ninth, the Cardinals surged for four runs off Pittsburgh reliever Chase De Jong, the go-ahead runs accounted for by Pujols, who drilled the 697th homer of his career, fourth most all-time. The Cardinals held on for a 4-3 victory.
Tommy Edman and Corey Dickerson doubled to open the ninth inning and break up the shutout. Pujols, who had been 0 for 3 but had hit homer No. 696 the night before, jumped on 2-0 De Jong fastball and walloped it to deep right center to put the Cardinals ahead for the first time all day.
They hadn't led until the ninth inning the night before either in a comeback win. Tyler O'Neill tacked on a home run, his 14th, to withstand a homer by Greg Allen off Ryan Helsley in the home half of the ninth.
Pujols' 18th homer of the season and 14th in the past two months, moved him one home run ahead of Alex Rodriguez, whom Pujols had tied on Saturday night.
Until the ninth, the Cardinals had been limited to three singles, one of them by rookie designated hitter Alec Burleson, who singled in the eighth off Duane Underwood Jr. for his first major league hit in his ninth at-bat.
pruman91
- Paducah, Ky
Plenty to look forward to as Cardinals open key series with Brewers
The Cardinals’ magic number for clinching the National League Central Division title is 14. Each win over the Brewers would take two off that number.
Rick Hummel
Desperately chasing a postseason slot, more likely a wild-card berth with the division-leading Cardinals eight games ahead of them, the Milwaukee Brewers start a crucial eight-game stretch Tuesday night when they play the Cardinals at Busch Stadium.
Counting the two-game series here, the Brewers will have eight successive games against division pace-setters — the Cardinals, New York Yankees and New York Mets.
On Tuesday, with their starting staff beset with injuries, they will use a bullpen pitching approach in a matchup against the Cardinals’ Jordan Montgomery. The left-hander has been one of the top pitchers in baseball since he came to St. Louis from the Yankees on Aug. 2, and he blanked the Brewers for six innings on Aug. 12 in his second start.
Montgomery has made seven starts for the Cardinals and the team has won all seven. Montgomery has allowed seven runs.
The Cardinals’ magic number for clinching the National League Central Division title is 14. Each win over the Brewers would take two off that number.
But this isn’t the only show in town this week. There is the nightly Albert Pujols watch, as the former — and current — Cardinals slugger approaches the 700-homer milestone that appeared nearly unattainable two months ago.
And barring injury or bad weather, there almost surely will be history made on Wednesday night when Cardinals right-hander Adam Wainwright and catcher Yadier Molina go to the post for the 325th time as a major-league battery, which will break the record set in 1975 when Detroit’s Mickey Lolich and Bill Freehan got to 324.
pruman91
- Paducah, Ky
Hochman: Cardinals closer Ryan Helsley has had hiccups of late, but should be OK
In five of his past six games, Helsley has allowed a base runner. And his opponents’ OPS is .863.
Benjamin Hochman
If you didn’t know the rest of the résumé and only knew a closer had a 4.05 ERA in his past six appearances, you’d be a little alarmed, right?
But because the rest of the résumé is impeccable, most people aren’t worried about Ryan Helsley. And I’m not worried either — not yet anyway — but I wanted to point out that the Cardinals' closer hasn’t been lights-out lately.
Has he done the job? Yes. He’s still getting saves.
But in five of his past six games, Helsley has allowed a base runner. And his opponents’ OPS is .863.
Sunday in Pittsburgh, he allowed a homer in the ninth (but got the save).
Saturday in Pittsburgh, he allowed a double, single and run in the ninth (but got the save).
And on Aug. 28 against Atlanta, he entered the seventh with two runners on ... and promptly allowed a three-run homer to Dansby Swanson.
Actually, if you go back to the start of August, Helsley allowed at least one base runner in 11 of his 13 appearances. Before that, he allowed a base runner in just 14 of 34 appearances.
The good news? There isn’t anything too glaring on his analytics. Per Baseball Savant, his spin rates, horizontal break and vertical break remain in their regular parameters. Now, his slider’s vertical movement is down by about an inch since Aug. 7, and it's being placed in the middle of the zone a little more often. So he’ll need to work on that, along with the Cardinals’ pitching department.
pruman91
- Paducah, Ky
Read the full transcript of baseball writer Derrick Goold's Monday Cardinals chat
Bring your Cards questions and comments to Monday’s 11 a.m. live chat.
- Derrick Goold
- 12 hrs ago
Bring your Cards questions and comments to Monday’s 11 a.m. live chat.
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I thoroughly encourage all Cardinals fans to read the 5 + pages of questions from Cardinals fans to Mr. Goold........very entertaining , to say the least...
pruman91
- Paducah, Ky
Agreed about the brewers uni's , butt ugly........I was on the phone with my bestest bud listening to another episode of his medical travails and was watching the game with the sound off...........Nootbaar's error starting the game was unusual for him , but as you posted it's now 4-4 in the top of the fifth......
Now I can finally enjoy me some CARDINALS BASEBALL........It's an addiction for me..........
pruman91
- Paducah, Ky
Ok , I'm really getting concerned with Goldie's at bats lately.........He has been off for about 2 weeks now .............swinging at balls more than ever this season and seems his power is down as far as barreling the ball and sharply hit balls......
Hope he is just in a mini slump but we need him big time.....
Hope he is just in a mini slump but we need him big time.....
I don't know what the stat is but StL seems to lose (or at least struggle) when the other team has a bullpen game. They should have eaten them alive.
pruman91
- Paducah, Ky
BenFred: ESPN's Max Kellerman swings and misses on Albert Pujols takedown attempt
ESPN talking head Max Kellerman apologized for implying Albert Pujols' chase of 700 home runs could be fueled by foul play
Ben Frederickson
Who said what?
That was my reaction Tuesday afternoon upon learning the Cardinals were irked by some garbage leaking out of ESPN.
The who was talking head Max Kellerman, who is pretty good on boxing and not so good on everything else.
The what was Kellerman insinuating on Monday’s episode of “This Just In” that Albert Pujols’ chase for 700 career home runs could be fueled by foul play.
Kellerman went down the all-time home run list, ripping Barry Bonds (762) for using performance-enhancing drugs while praising Henry Aaron (755) and Babe Ruth (714) for playing clean.
Then he got to Pujols (697).
“It is amazing, how Pujols, who was in steady decline for years, suddenly, it’s like he discovered the fountain of youth!” said Kellerman sarcastically.
"I don’t know how he’s doing it," he continued. "Oh my God, the bat speed, everything, he’s killing the ball! Matter of fact, bartender, I’ll have whatever he’s having! I mean, this is unbelievable. He sure has turned back the clock. I just wonder if there was anything that could be pointed to. How does a player turn back the clock like this? I guess it’s willpower and practice. All these years between then and now, he hasn’t been practicing, apparently.”
Welcome to 2022, when the network once viewed as the go-to place for sports shells out staggering salaries for takes that border on Barstool plagiarism.
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Another example of why espn is losing viewership and has declined to a shell of what it once was.....
pruman91
- Paducah, Ky
Cardinals notebook: To track history, MLB will use marked baseballs for Pujols' 700th homer
Baseballs with individual and invisible markings will be introduced for every pitch Cardinals designated hitter sees after he hits No. 699, official says.
Derrick Goold
By rule, officials at ballparks throughout the majors are unable to authenticate baseballs that leave their sight, which would be problematic for a baseball that makes history so rarely seen.
As Albert Pujols closes in on becoming the fourth big-league player to hit 700 career home runs, Major League Baseball will introduce baseballs individually and sequentially marked to be used only in his at-bats, a league official told the Post-Dispatch on Tuesday. The special baseballs assure that if the homer vanishes into the crowd at Busch Stadium or elsewhere it can be forever identified as the one, true history maker.
“About as major a milestone as this sport has ever seen,” said Michael Posner, the senior director of authentication and memorabilia for Major League Baseball. “It’s not about putting the value on something. This is a part of history that we will never forget. Authentication is about capturing that moment and recording it and 100% certainty that we know this is the ball.”
Immediately after Pujols hits No. 699, the individually marked baseballs will be put in play for each and every pitch he sees until No. 700.
The baseballs will have an “overt marking” on them that identifies the sequence in which they will be used. Umpires, handed the baseballs at the start of each at-bat, will use that number to put the balls in play, in order. Each baseball will also have a marking invisible to the eye that can only be revealed by proprietary technology, and only two people will know precisely where that marking is on each baseball, Posner said.
the national
- the Front Range
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Ransom Stoddard
Ordained Dudeist Priest
- Bloomington, IL
I was hoping I'd have a shot at seeing #700 in person on Sunday, but it looks like a lot of right-handed pitching between now and then.
pruman91
- Paducah, Ky
Looks like tonight is gonna be another long night like last night.....
Congrats to Waino and Yadi for the record tonight , but Waino is already at 35 pitches with 2 runners on in the top of the second and nobody out........
Burnes is a stud ..............................
Congrats to Waino and Yadi for the record tonight , but Waino is already at 35 pitches with 2 runners on in the top of the second and nobody out........
Burnes is a stud ..............................