Some quick takes for you:

1. Blake Hawksworth can be a Cardinals VIP:  When manager Tony La Russa said Hawksworth is more valuable to the team in relief than he would be as a fifth starter, my initial reaction was a rolling of the eyes. But actually, TLR is onto something here. Hawksworth was strong again in Monday night’s 4-1 win over the Reds, pitching two scoreless innings to take the game from starter Kyle Lohse to closer Ryan Franklin. By now, when Hawksworth has a successsful relief stint, we shouldn’t be surprised. In his last 12 appearances, Hawksworth has an ERA of 0.92. He’s allowed runs in 1 of the 12 outings.  He has a low walk rate. His baserunners-allowed rate over that time is second-best in the bullpen to LHP Trevor Miller. 

* In today’s Bird Land, Derrick Goold examines the reason behind Hawksworth’s improvement.

 Skeptics would point out two things: Hawksworth doesn’t miss many bats; his strikeout rate is low. And his Fielding Independent ERA (FIP) over the stretch is 3.14, which means the Cardinals are playing exceptional defense behind him. Some would cite this and consider Hawksworth “lucky.” All I know is this: the Cardinals needed another RH reliever to get outs in the late innings, and Hawksworth has been doing it. This is important, considering the trade that took Chris Perez out of the bullpen, and the erratic performances of rookie Jason Motte. In 27 games since June 2, Motte has allowed 37 runners in 18.2 IP, he’s given up 8 HRs, hitters are batting .329 against him, and his ERA is 8.68. Motte will miss bats. He’ll pile up the strikeouts. But who do you trust more these days, Hawksworth or Motte? 

Given The Hawk’s emergence and the potential liability of the RH setup relief, one can easily conclude that he’s more valuable right now in the bullpen as opposed to making a handful of starts the rest of the way.

2. Good move by Scott Rolen: Nice gesture by the former Cardinals 3B (now Red) to pop into La Russa’s office to say hello before Monday’s game. It was a way to ease the lingering tension between them. (Not that they’ll be buddies.) It was a way to prevent an outbreak of more anger from either side. It was a way to prevent the rather silly episode we saw between TLR and Jim Edmonds last season when Edmonds returned to Busch Stadium in a Cubs uniform. It was also a smart play by Rolen; by making the first move, he was assured diplomatic immunity. That way if La Russa popped off or said anything unkind, La Russa would come across as the bad guy. I don’t take sides in this one. Rolen has always had an anti-authority streak; La Russa is a controlling personality. Two strong-willed, stubborn individuals don’t get along. It happens.  Let’s move on.

3. Important start for Mitchell Boggs: With Todd Wellemeyer’s elbow “flaring up” Boggs gets the start against the Reds tonight. Boggs needs to keep the team’s momentum going. He also needs to strengthen his position with La Russa and pitching coach Dave Duncan, who are slow to buy into Boggs as the team’s 5th starter. We have written frequently about Boggs’ poor efficiency and his inability (so far) to pitch deep into games at the big-league level. But here’s a question: if you don’t have an ideal 5th starter, then what should you look for? I’d be looking for a guy who gives his team a legit chance to win every time he pitches. And Boggs has absolutely done that in his five starts this season. He’s allowed two or fewer runs in four of his five starts. In his worst start, against Washington, Boggs gave up 4 runs in 6 innings, but the Cardinals trailed only 4-3, and won it 9-4. Boggs held it together and kept the game close until his teammates could rally. Yes, he’s benefited from good run support: with a 5.33 RSA in his five starts. But let’s not get carried away. In all five of Boggs’ starts, the games were close when he got taken out, and the Cardinals had no more than 4 runs on the board at the time of his departure. It’s not as if he was staked to a 7-0 lead in his five starts. He wasn’t. Boggs battles. He’s made tough pitches when he’s had to. He’s given his team a chance to prevail in each start. In his five starts Boggs has an ERA of 3.20 and the Cardinals have a record of 5-0. For a 5th starter, that’s not bad. It’s actually pretty good.

* Boggs will be opposed tonight by RHP Justin Lehr. I mentioned this recently, but will expand on the point: Lehr has the profile of a pitcher who can give the Cardinals a hard time. He’s only been in two games this season, so there isn’t much video of him. He isn’t a hard thrower; last week when Lehr beat the Cubs he reached no higher than 87 mph on the gun. Here’s the scouting report: Against RH hitters, Lehr throws a lot of cut fastballs and sliders and changes speeds. Against LH hitters, he goes with more split-fingered fastballs, and will use the curve. He rarely uses the curve against RH and doesn’t throw many sliders to LH.

* Impressive performance by Kyle Lohse on Monday night; now he must establish consistency. If the Cardinals get their top four starters locked in, watch out. The Cubs have two starters on the DL (Carlos Zambrano and Ted Lilly) and fifth starter Tom Gorzelanny had to leave Monday’s game after being drilled on the foot by a batted ball at Colorado. There’s also some potentially troubling news on the North Side regarding 3B Aramis Ramirez, who continues to struggle with a sore shoulder.

4. Rams Notes: Uh-oh; CB Tye Hill’s knee is an issue. He had it taped up during Tuesday morning’s practice, limped off, and had it iced down. There’s fluid buildup. Extent of the injury is otherwise unknown… Rookie OT Jason Smith, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2009 draft, is going through that stretch of camp where he’s confused and getting used up by the team’s veteran pass rushers. It’s part of the normal development of a rookie OT … on the defensive side, it’s obvious that the Rams don’t have enough at defensive tackle. Underachieving former No. 1 draft pick Adam Carriker is hurt (ankle), Clifton Ryan hasn’t had a strong camp, and Hollis Thomas is working his way into shape. Rookie draft pick Darell Scott has made a positive impression … Second-year DE Chris Long looks so more advanced from a year ago… more on the loss of Donnie Avery to a fractured foot: GM Billy Devaney thinks there’s a reasonable chance of Avery being back by the regular-season opener. That would be a pleasant surprise for the Rams. But with or without Avery, the Rams need other receivers to emerge. Last season in the final nine games when Avery the rookie encountered a lot of press coverage, and double coverage, he averaged only 10 yards a catch and caught only one pass that went for 25 yards+. He wasn’t a game-changer. And that’s what concerns me: with or without Avery, the Rams don’t have a WR who can shake up a defense…. tight end Billy Bajema was a good signing; he’s a nasty, physical blocker … looking forward to seeing what Kenneth Darby can do in the preseason games as the Rams give him a clear opportunity to win the No. 2 RB gig. Darby can catch passes and that’s a plus in the West Coast offense… the overall vibe at rookie head coach Steve Spagnuolo’s camp is positive. I’ve been in a lot of NFL camps and you can usually tell, right away, if a team is bonding, and if they’re going at it the right way. Roster / talent issues aside, the attitude is good.

5. Weird Note of the Day: baseball scribe Gerry Fraley informs us that former Cardinal Scott Spiezio has signed to play baseball with the Orange County Flyers of the Independent Golden Baseball League. The team is managed by Phil Nevin and the roster includes former big-leaguers Robert Fick, Damian Jackson and Ben Johnson.

-B