” To make room on the roster for La Russa, the Cardinals will likely option Mitchell Boggs to Triple-A.”

I think you mean Carp…

No, he really doesn’t.

This right here is like aquiring an elite starter. I think if the Cards were not struggling then Carp probably would have gotten another rehab start. It seemes as ,though, he had some issues with his command at points on Friday night. This could not have come at a better time. The Birds are struggling , and maybe Carp can provide a spark for this club.

With Carp coming back, and with Wainwright (hopefully) on his way back soon, is there any talk of moving Wellemeyer into the closer’s spot? Aside from a few starts in May, he’s struggled to go more than 5 innings, and (at least relative to everyone else on the team) seems to have some decent power stuff which is what you look for in the 9th. Plus, it could slot Franklin, Springer, McClellan etc. back to their comfortable slots.

It’s time to fish or cut bait with Izzy. Let him close the next to games, and if he can hang on, let reinstall him as closer in hopes of righting the bullpen. If he blows up, release him, and at lease Mo can have a day or two left before Thursday night’s trade deadline.

If we had just traded for a former Cy Young winner coming back from TJ surgery with a piece of hamstring in his elbow, how optimistic would we be? I view this like a running back returning from ACL repair. If he’s physically recovered and back on the field, anything he can do in that first season back is a bonus, because you can’t expect the usual explosiveness. For a pitcher, especially a starter, you can’t expect a guy to return from that kind of a layoff and rehab and immediately pitch at the level that Carpenter did for 2005-06. If he can start every 5-6 days, go 3-3 with a 4.50 ERA and go into the off season healthy, I’ll be thrilled and cautiously optimistic about having Carp as a #1 or #2 starter in 2009. Sure, he could anchor a pennant run; stranger things have happened in baseball. But I’d like to know what flavor KoolAid to mix.

Welcome to the roster equivalent of the “hail Mary.” We have no idea what Carp will have and how long he can go. He is going to have pitch counts early. We may well be adding a Cy Young winner that won’t go deeper in a game than Pinero of any of the rookies for several starts. How does this help the pen? It doesn’t.

Face it kids, there won’t be any help coming this year. This was a throw away year from the start. The only thing they didn’t count on was so many of these middle of the road players having good years.

When do pitchers and catchers report next February?

I sure hope they are not rushing Carp which it appears they are doing. They have alot of money invested in him for the long haul and I would hate to see us bring him back and then he gets hurt again in his 1st or 2nd start in the majors. Why not give him 2 more rehab starts? Plug someone in (my vote is Garcia again) for 1 or 2 more starts. Then you bring back Wainwright and Carp back at virtually the same time…what a boast that could be! Carp has a history of injuries so I would rather be a touch more conservative in his rehab but that is just my opinion. I am praying for the best and believe me…I will be VERY happy to see him back on the mound. GO CARDS!

What wonderful news! And in the nick of time too. Go Cards!

i’m as happy as the next guy… but i’m worried about another repeat with what happened to mulder. i dont think i can stomach cy young himself melting / breaking down on the mound in front of me. i sure hope he’s ready to pitch, and not that the club (or he himself) is desperate to.

“Tommy John” surgery is more predictable than what Mulder had with his shoulder, or what a NFL running back would have to fix an ACL. If Carp feels normal then the only issue is getting his control & stamina back. Looked like the control was better in his last start. I don’t mind him hitting guys, maybe if Franklin or Izzy would brush a few guys back they wouldn’t be teeing off on their fastballs right down the middle.

The non-support by the Cardinal ownership to help the team by at least acquiring one good LH pitcher for the bullpen has lead me to think as Nathan Meador boldly wrote;

“This was a throw away year from the start. The only thing they didn’t count on was so many of these middle of the road players having good years”.

If this is true, then the Cardinal ballplayers and the fans have been taken as suckers and the Cardinal ownership is laughing every time the accountant shows them thier profits in thier weekly budget meetings.

You know who I pity in all this? TLR, DD, AP and the rest of the Cardinal team who have worked thier tales off and played thier hearts out for themselves, each other, the ownership and us fans. They have been courageous, shown by thier resilience in tough times, and honorable as can be seen by thier loyalty to each other and thier hustle on the ball diamond. That is all ownership and us fans can ask for. The question remains…will ownership honor this o8 clubs honor? There is still time until July 31st.

If Carp and Waino come back and perform to thier past performance…great. But realistally, we cannot expect that and neither should MO, TLR, DD and the ownership.

Russ H…

You nailed it with the reference to Franklin and Izzy, and the rest of our pitchers for that matter, needing to brush a few guys back. We just don’t throw enough in to keep the hitters honest up at the plate. Thus, they just stand there and dig in, ready to tee off. Put a guy or two in the dirt and our late inning pitching struggles will change.

David Cobler…

Obviously the frustration/disappointment in not getting some sort of help is understandable, but a move can’t just be thought of in light of what good for us now. We also need to realize the bright outlook we currently have for 09 and 2010. We can’t make a move that jeopordizes that.

We’ve hit a bump here and it seems as though a move needs to be made, we just need to realize that it HAS to be a calculated move, not a desperation move. This team has gotten us this far, and with all of the troubles in the way as well. Carp and Waino’s returns will be big, though Carp’s won’t aid the bullpen immediately. His presence on the mound alone will be a HUGE lift for the ballclub.

Offense is fine, starters are so-so & getting much better soon, mid-pen is liveable, we just need our late inning guys to put some hitters on their butts and then our late-pen will be good.

With Carp and Waino back…Looper should become the closer…Wellemeyer should then be sent to the bullpen and let Izzy and Villone go bye,bye…sorry but their arms are out of good pitches

the Cards gave us a sliver of hope right up to the all-star break last year. I think we’re about one week away from kissing this year good-bye as well.

Could be worse. We could be the guy who singlehandedly destroyed an entire neighborhood in Sunset Hills. What’s his name? Oh yeah, Jonathan Browne, president of Novus Development.