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An amazing performance by Dazzy Vance vs. Cardinals

Posted in Games, Opponents, Pitchers on May 20, 2015| Leave a Comment »

(Updated Feb. 4, 2023)

Combining an effective hitting stroke with a strikeout pitch that dazzled a lineup stacked with fellow future Hall of Famers Rogers Hornsby, Jim Bottomley and Chick Hafey, Dazzy Vance gave one of the best individual performances all-time against the Cardinals.

On July 20, 1925, Vance, 34, struck out 17 and produced three RBI, including the walkoff hit in the 10th, carrying Brooklyn to a 4-3 victory over the Cardinals at Ebbets Field.

The New York Daily News called it an “epoch-making performance” from a “smokeball artist.”

Ninety years later, on May 13, 2015, Corey Kluber, 29, struck out 18 in eight innings, lifting the Indians to a 2-0 victory over the Cardinals at Cleveland. Boxscore

Kluber’s strikeouts are the most by one pitcher against the Cardinals, topping the mark held by Vance.

Whiff wiz

A right-hander, Vance didn’t get his first big-league win until he was 31 in 1922.

He was named winner of the National League Most Valuable Player Award in 1924 when he was 28-6 for Brooklyn and led the league in wins, ERA (2.16), strikeouts (262) and complete games (30).

Mixing a fastball with a curve, Vance led the NL in strikeouts with Brooklyn for seven consecutive years (1922-28). His 17 against St. Louis represented his single-game high in 16 big-league seasons.

Vance struck out every player in the Cardinals lineup that day except shortstop Specs Toporcer, who got his nickname because he wore eyeglasses.

Hornsby and Bottomley each struck out three times, tying career highs. Hafey struck out once.

“The Cardinals “punched yawning gaps in the atmosphere trying to connect with the Dazzler’s fast ones,” the New York Daily News reported.

Unlike Kluber, who held the 2015 Cardinals to one hit, Vance wasn’t untouchable against the 1925 Cardinals. He yielded nine hits and walked six. Vance used his bat as well as his strikeout pitches to put himself in position to win.

Power hitter

After Les Bell reached Vance for a two-run single in the fourth, breaking a scoreless tie, Vance responded with a two-run home run the next inning.

Vance hit .143 in 1925 and .150 for his big-league career. Most of his hits came against off-speed pitches. Known for his wit, Vance explained his approach to hitting in the 1976 book “The Gashouse Gang” by Robert Hood:

“I was a slow-ball hitter,” Vance said. “I found that out years ago when I was a boy on a farm. We were plagued with rats, so we got a ferret and shoved him down a hole. I stood at another hole with a baseball bat. When a rat ran out, I swung and missed. Another came and I swung and missed. I must have missed half a dozen.

“Then out came this fellow nice and slow and I clouted him good. Unfortunately, it was the ferret. From then on, I knew I was a slow-ball hitter.”

Walkoff winner

In the eighth, with Hornsby on first, one out and the score still tied at 2-2, Vance struck out Bottomley and Hafey. Then Vance singled leading off the bottom half of the inning and Brooklyn got the go-ahead run on Milt Stock’s RBI-double.

The Cardinals tied the score at 3-3 in the ninth when Toporcer tripled and Bell singled for his third RBI of the game.

After nine innings, Vance had struck out 15, tying his career high. Rube Waddell of the 1908 Browns had established the big-league record for strikeouts in nine innings with 16 against the Athletics.

In the 10th, Vance struck out Hornsby and Bottomley, giving him his total of 17.

“The great Rogers Hornsby was practically helpless before Dazzy’s speed,” according to the New York Daily News.

In addition to the fastball, Vance “had a sharp-breaking curve that was amazing,” the Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported. “The funny thing was that Vance was reported to have an arm which was still blue from the rupturing of a blood vessel in his four disastrous innings against Pittsburgh last Thursday. On Sunday his arm was still red and angry-looking from the use of secrets from Doc Hart’s medicine chest.”

After catcher Hank DeBerry led off the bottom of the 10th with a double and was lifted for pinch-runner Johnny Mitchell, Vance followed with a single, scoring Mitchell with the winning run. Boxscore

Vance finished the 1925 season with a 22-9 record and 221 strikeouts in 265.1 innings.

He pitched for the Cardinals in 1933 and 1934, giving St. Louis a tandem of Dazzy and Dizzy (Dean). Vance appeared in his lone World Series in 1934 for St. Louis against the Tigers. His career record is 197-140 (190 wins for Brooklyn and seven for St. Louis) with 2,045 strikeouts.

He was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1955.

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How Troy Percival revived his career with Cardinals

Posted in Games, Pitchers on May 14, 2015| Leave a Comment »

Earning wins in his first two appearances for the Cardinals, Troy Percival went from being perceived as a risk to being viewed as a valuable reliever.

A closer with the Angels and Tigers, Percival sat out the 2006 season because of persistent arm ailments.

In 2007, Percival, 37, found he was able to throw effectively again. He was in contact with several former Angels teammates who had become Cardinals and they put in a good word for him. Percival threw for the Cardinals during a workout and impressed. The Cardinals signed him on June 8, 2007, and sent him to their minor-league Memphis club to get into game condition.

Percival posted a 1.35 ERA in six appearances for Memphis and was called up by St. Louis before a weekend series against the Reds at Cincinnati.

In his Cardinals debut, on June 29, 2007, Percival earned a win with a flawless inning of relief in the Cardinals’ 4-2 victory over the Reds.

“It’s a dream come true,” Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said to the Associated Press. “He gets three outs and gets the winning decision. That’s movie material.”

Said Percival: “I didn’t come back for myself. A lot of friends on this team called me and said they needed pitching help. My arm felt good enough to do it.” Boxscore

Two days later, on July 1, Percival made his second Cardinals appearance. With the Cardinals ahead, 8-5, in the fourth, Percival relieved starter Mike Maroth with two runners on base and no outs. Percival got out of the mess by retiring all three batters he faced without allowing either base runner to advance. The Cardinals won, 11-7, and Percival was credited with the win in a scorer’s decision for his successful rescue effort in the fourth. Boxscore

Percival contributed a 3-0 record and 1.80 ERA in 34 appearances for the 2007 Cardinals. Granted free agency after the season, he signed with the Rays and finished his career with them in 2009.

Previously: The story of how the Cardinals acquired Lee Smith

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T.J. Mathews and his last hurrah with Cardinals

Posted in Games, Pitchers on May 11, 2015| Leave a Comment »

Rescued from the minors and given the chance for a final fling with the franchise he rooted for as a boy in Illinois, T.J. Mathews delivered his longest and most impressive big-league performance for the Cardinals.

On Sept. 9, 2001, Mathews pitched 4.1 flawless innings of relief for the Cardinals and got the win in an 8-1 St. Louis victory over the Dodgers at Busch Memorial Stadium. Mathews retired all 13 batters he faced, striking out five.

Baseball pedigree

Mathews, a Belleville, Ill., native, grew up as a Cardinals fan. His father, Nelson Mathews, had been an outfielder with the Cubs and Athletics in the 1960s. In 1992, T.J. Mathews was selected in the 36th round of the amateur draft by the Cardinals.

A right-hander, Mathews debuted with the Cardinals in 1995 and pitched effectively for them in relief. On July 31, 1997, Mathews was one of three players traded by the Cardinals to the Athletics for first baseman Mark McGwire.

Four years later, on June 22, 2001, Mathews, 31, was released by the Athletics. The Cardinals signed him two weeks later. After three appearances for St. Louis, Mathews was sent to Class AAA Memphis. In September, when the minor league seasons ended and big-league rosters expanded, the Cardinals brought him back.

Postseason quest

On Sept. 9, 2001, the Cardinals entered the day tied for second place with the Cubs in the National League Central Division at 77-64, 5.5 games behind the Astros. With 21 games remaining, the Cardinals needed a strong finish to have a chance at earning a postseason berth as either division champion or the wild-card entry.

Matt Morris, seeking his 20th win, was the Cardinals’ starter that Sunday afternoon against the Dodgers. After an inning, the game was halted by rain. The delay lasted two hours and four minutes.

Morris wanted to continue. Cardinals manager Tony La Russa, concerned the long delay could hamper Morris’ ability to properly loosen his arm, sent Luther Hackman to pitch the second.

“That was a real tough decision,” La Russa said to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Said Morris: “When they make a decision that benefits your future, you can’t really complain.”

Hackman pitched a scoreless second. In the third, with the Cardinals ahead, 2-0, Hackman lost command. With one on and two outs, he walked three consecutive batters, forcing in a run and enabling the Dodgers to get within a run, 2-1.

La Russa lifted Hackman and brought in Mathews to face Adrian Beltre with the bases loaded. Mathews got Beltre to fly out, ending the threat.

Untouchable

Mathews retired the Dodgers in order in the fourth through seventh innings. He was lifted for a pinch hitter with the Cardinals ahead, 7-1. Mike James and Mike Timlin mopped up, pitching an inning apiece. Boxscore

Mathews got the win, the last of his 32 in an eight-year major-league career. The win also was his first since 2000 with the Athletics and his first as a Cardinal since 1997.

“He’s hard (for batters) to pick up,” said Cardinals catcher Mike Matheny. “Even catching him is tough. The ball comes right out of his jersey. His release point is kind of funny.”

Said Mathews: “Somebody had to go out and give us some innings. I thought maybe I’d go three at the most. After that third one, I thought, ‘Aw, what the heck.’

“I haven’t thrown that much since I was in the starting rotation in (Class AAA) Louisville in ’95. I wasn’t tired. When you get outs early, you can stay out there a little bit longer.”

Said La Russa to the Associated Press: “It’s kind of hard to believe he could throw that many pitches and keep his effectiveness.”

The win by Mathews sparked a stretch in which the Cardinals won 16 of their last 21 games, tying the Astros for first place in the NL Central at 93-69 and qualifying for the postseason as the wild-card entry.

Mathews became a free agent after the season and signed with the Astros. His 2002 season with Houston would be his last in the big leagues.

Previously: Deal for Woody Williams sparked 2001 Cardinals

Previously: Matt Morris close to perfect at home in 2001

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Cardinals rookie Fred Frankhouse sizzled in September

Posted in Games, Pitchers, Records on May 3, 2015| Leave a Comment »

Joining a starting rotation that featured future Hall of Famers Jesse Haines and Grover Cleveland Alexander, rookie Fred Frankhouse strung together a September winning streak that nearly lifted the Cardinals to a second consecutive National League pennant.

Frankhouse, 23, won each of his first five starts after being promoted from the minor leagues to the Cardinals in September 1927.

Stretch run

Frankhouse, 5 feet 11 and 175 pounds, was the ace of the Cardinals’ minor-league Houston affiliate in the Texas League in 1927. The right-hander with the sidearm delivery was 21-9 with a 3.24 ERA in 261 innings for Houston.

The defending World Series champion Cardinals, in a four-way race with the Pirates, Giants and Cubs for the 1927 pennant, called up Frankhouse and gave him a start in his big-league debut in the opener of a doubleheader against Chicago on Sept. 7 at St. Louis. The Cardinals started the day in third place, 2.5 games behind the Pirates, 1.5 behind the Giants and a half-game ahead of the Cubs.

Using a sweeping curve, Frankhouse held the Cubs to two runs in seven innings before being relieved by Haines. A 24-game winner in 1927, Haines, making his second and last relief appearance of the season, shut out the Cubs over the final two innings, earning the save and preserving the win for Frankhouse in a 6-2 Cardinals victory. Frankhouse also contributed two hits in three at-bats. Boxscore

Four days later, on Sept. 11, Frankhouse got his second start. He responded with a four-hit shutout, pitching the Cardinals to a 5-0 victory over the Dodgers at St. Louis. The game finished in 1:48. Left fielder Harvey Hendrick got three of the Dodgers’ hits (two singles and a double). The win lifted the Cardinals into a second-place tie with the Giants, two games behind the Pirates. Boxscore

On a roll

Cardinals manager Bob O’Farrell started Frankhouse for the third time on Sept. 15 in the second game of a doubleheader against the Giants at St. Louis. The Giants had five future Hall of Famers in the No. 2 through No. 5 spots in the batting order: Freddie Lindstrom, Edd Roush, Rogers Hornsby, Bill Terry and Travis Jackson.

Frankhouse yielded five runs, but got the win and his second consecutive complete game in an 8-5 Cardinals victory. The game was called after the top of the eighth because of darkness. Frankhouse retired another future Hall of Famer, Mel Ott, with a runner on base to end the game. The Cardinals, who had lost the opener, closed the day still tied with the Giants for second place, but 4.5 behind the Pirates. Boxscore

The Pirates, featuring a lineup with Pie Traynor and brothers Paul and Lloyd Waner, were distancing themselves from the Cardinals and Giants, winning 11 in a row from Sept. 9 through Sept. 17.

On Sept. 19, Frankhouse made his fourth start and pitched his third consecutive complete game, a 12-5 Cardinals victory over the Phillies at St. Louis. Backed by five RBI from his catcher, Frank Snyder, Frankhouse improved his record to 4-0, even though he yielded nine hits and walked five. The Cardinals trailed the Pirates by four with 10 to play. Boxscore

Five days later, on Sept. 24, the Giants beat the Pirates. The Cardinals, behind a fourth consecutive complete game by Frankhouse, defeated the Braves, 4-3, at St. Louis. With Frankhouse improving to 5-0, the Cardinals were within two of the Pirates. Boxscore

NL staple

St. Louis won five of its last six _ the lone loss was by Frankhouse, a 3-2 setback at Cincinnati against the Reds _ and finished the season in second place at 92-61, 1.5 behind the champion Pirates (94-60). The Giants (92-62) finished third, a half-game behind the Cardinals, and the Cubs ended up fourth at 85-68.

In six starts for the 1927 Cardinals, Frankhouse was 5-1 with a 2.70 ERA. The Sporting News called him a “sensational flash.” He pitched a total of 311 innings that season, including 50 for the Cardinals.

Frankhouse was 3-2 in 21 games for the NL champion 1928 Cardinals and 7-2 in 30 games for the 1929 Cardinals. After a rough start to the 1930 season (2-3 with a 7.32 ERA in eight games), Frankhouse and pitcher Bill Sherdel were shipped to the Braves for pitcher Burleigh Grimes on June 16. In four years with the Cardinals, Frankhouse was 17-8 with a 4.05 ERA.

The trade was significant for the Cardinals. Grimes helped them win consecutive pennants and a World Series title. Grimes was 13-6 for St. Louis in 1930 and 17-9 in 1931. He also earned two wins against the Athletics in the 1931 World Series, including the decisive Game 7.

Frankhouse pitched seven years with the Braves (63-61) and three years with the Dodgers (26-28). In 13 big-league seasons, his overall record was 106-97 with a 3.92 ERA.

He died on Aug. 17, 1989, at 85.

Previously: Cardinals home opener links Michael Wacha, Jerry Reuss

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How Cardinals mounted their biggest 9th-inning rally

Posted in Games, Hitters, Opponents on April 30, 2015| 3 Comments »

Starting with a walk to Yadier Molina and culminating with a home run by John Mabry, the Cardinals completed the biggest ninth-inning comeback in franchise history.

On May 2, 2005, the Cardinals overcame a six-run deficit by scoring seven runs in the ninth and defeating the Reds, 10-9, at Cincinnati.

The Cardinals sent 12 batters to the plate in that memorable inning and rallied against two relievers on a combination of four singles, two walks, two home runs and an error.

“I’ve never seen this happen,” Cardinals infielder Abraham Nunez told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “I hope I don’t see it happen again either.”

The Cardinals never had rallied from six runs behind in the ninth inning. The Reds hadn’t blown a six-run lead in the ninth since June 29, 1952, when an 8-2 advantage turned into a 9-8 loss to the Cubs at Cincinnati. Boxscore

“It’s not easy to give a big-league game away, but that’s what we did,” said Reds reliever Danny Graves after yielding the game-winning home run to Mabry. “It takes 27 outs, not 26 (to win).”

Walks will haunt

With the Reds ahead, 5-3, in the eighth, Graves began to throw in the bullpen in preparation for pitching the ninth. When the Reds scored four in the eighth, however, manager Dave Miley decided to save his closer and instead sent David Weathers to pitch the ninth, entrusting the 15-year big-league veteran with a 9-3 lead.

“The only way they could get back in the game is if we walked guys _ and I walked guys,” Weathers said to The Cincinnati Post.

Weathers walked the first two batters, Molina and Nunez. David Eckstein singled, loading the bases with none out.

“I was just all over the place,” Weathers said of his pitches.

Still, he almost escaped the jam unscathed.

Roger Cedeno struck out.

When Albert Pujols followed with a grounder to shortstop Rich Aurilia, it appeared the Reds might turn a game-ending double play.

Aurilia fielded the ball cleanly and tossed to D’Angelo Jimenez for the forceout of Eckstein at second base. Jimenez, however, couldn’t complete the turn and Pujols was safe at first. Molina scooted home from third on the play, making the score, 9-4.

The Cardinals remained alive, with Nunez on third, Pujols on first and two outs.

Reggie Sanders, the ex-Red, then singled, plating Nunez, moving Pujols to second and making the score 9-5.

Said Weathers: “It’s embarrassing … No excuses. That’s just bad pitching.”

Edmonds delivers

Miley lifted Weathers and replaced him with Graves, who had converted all eight of his save chances that season.

The first batter Graves faced was Jim Edmonds.

Hoping to catch the Reds by surprise, “I was thinking about bunting, honestly,” Edmonds told the Associated Press.

The slugger changed his mind, though, and decided to swing away.

Graves’ third pitch to Edmonds was a hanging breaking ball.

Edmonds belted it for a three-run home run, making the score 9-8.

Reds unravel

The Reds were reeling, but the Cardinals still trailed with the bases empty and two outs.

“Nobody wants to make that last out,” said Mabry. “That’s what it comes down to.”

Following Edmonds was Mark Grudzielanek. He smacked a grounder directly at Sean Casey. The ball ricocheted off the first baseman’s arm for a two-base error.

That brought up Mabry, who started the game at third base in place of Scott Rolen, who was nursing a back strain.

With the tying run at second, “I was just trying to drive the run home by staying inside the ball and driving it to the big part of the ballpark,” Mabry said.

Mabry did even better. He hit the first pitch over the center-field fence, a two-run homer, giving the Cardinals a 10-9 lead.

“That’s why baseball’s a beautiful game,” Mabry said.

A rattled Graves yielded singles to Molina and Nunez before retiring Eckstein on a fly out to right.

As Graves left the mound, the crowd, estimated at fewer than 10,000 in the ninth, was “booing at the top of their lungs,” The Post reported.

“To have that happen just makes us feel really small,” Graves said to Post columnist Lonnie Wheeler.

Finish the job

With closer Jason Isringhausen unavailable, Cardinals manager Tony La Russa chose Julian Tavarez to pitch the bottom of the ninth.

The first batter, Joe Randa, singled. Aurilia tried a sacrifice bunt, but Randa was forced out at second.

Tavarez then plunked Jason LaRue with a pitch, advancing Aurilia to second.

The drama finally ended when Austin Kearns grounded into a double play. Boxscore

“We have no baseball luck, I guess,” said Graves, “and in this game you do need a lot of luck along with skill.”

Three weeks later, Graves ran out of luck with the Reds. They released him.

Previously: How David Bell rang up a special Cardinals home run

Previously: Jim Edmonds was dandy for Cardinals in 2004 NLCS

Previously: Slugging, fielding give Jim Edmonds hope for Hall of Fame

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How Dizzy Dean got the best of his matchup with Babe Ruth

Posted in Games, Hitters, Opponents, Pitchers on April 24, 2015| 2 Comments »

(Updated May 5, 2020)

In a showdown of two master showmen, Dizzy Dean upstaged Babe Ruth.

Ruth, 40, entered his final big-league season with the 1935 Braves. The fading home run king had gone to the National League after 21 years (1914-34) in the American League with the Red Sox and Yankees.

Dean, 25, was the colorful Cardinals ace and reigning NL strikeout king who had earned 30 wins the year before and pitched St. Louis to the 1934 World Series championship.

They faced one another for the first time in a regular-season game on May 5, 1935, at Boston before a crowd of at least 30,000, including three sons of President Franklin Roosevelt.

Seeking a strikeout

In the book “Diz,” Dean biographer Robert Gregory wrote, “He had been looking forward to his first league showdown with Babe Ruth and telling everybody he’d have no choice in the matter. He would have to strike him out.”

Ruth and Dean greeted each other cordially before the game and took part in a newspaper-sponsored promotion with local youth players.

Then, it was show time.

“Babe was watching me pretty closely while I was warming up before the game,” Dean said in the book “Ol’ Diz” by Vince Staten. “He had that old eagle eye of his on every move I made.”

In his first at-bat, Ruth walked.

When Ruth came to the plate for the second time, Dean upped the ante. “I figured that if I didn’t steal the show he would,” Dean said.

Play deep

As Ruth took his practice cuts, Dean smiled at him and turned toward his outfielders.

“He motioned them to play farther back,” wrote Gregory. “They retreated a few steps, but Diz shook his head, no, no, that’s not deep enough, and kept waving his glove until they were almost at the walls.”

Then, Dean went to work on Ruth. He got the count to 1-and-2. On his fourth delivery, Dean unleashed his best fastball. Ruth took a mighty swing and missed. Dean had his strikeout of the Bambino.

“Babe almost broke his back going for that steaming third fastball,” according to the Associated Press.

Dean “whiffed the great man with marvelous eclat,” wrote the Boston Globe.

In his third at-bat, Ruth got “a fast one through the middle, waist high,” the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. “Ruth took a tremendous swing at the ball, but he missed.”

Ruth and Dean looked at one another and laughed.

“I never saw a man take such a cut in my whole life,” Dean told the Post-Dispatch. “Lordy me, if he had hit that ball it would have gone to New York or Pensacola. I had to laugh at him swinging like that and he was laughing because he hadn’t expected to get a fast one like that, right through the heart of the plate.”

When the at-bat resumed, Ruth grounded out to shortstop Leo Durocher, who was playing back on the grass on the first base side of second.

Basking on the stage set for him, Dean slugged a home run that sailed over Ruth’s head before clearing the left-field wall. He earned the shutout in a 7-0 Cardinals victory. Boxscore

“Dizzy Dean stole the Babe’s thunder and color,” the Boston Globe declared.

Encore performance

Two weeks later, on May 19 at St. Louis, Ruth and Dean had a rematch. Again, Dean prevailed. Ruth was 0-for-4 with a strikeout. Dean pitched another complete game and drove in two runs, leading St. Louis to a 7-3 victory. Boxscore

In five games against the Cardinals in 1935, Ruth batted .071 (1-for-14) with a single, three walks and five strikeouts. With his overall average at .181 in 28 games that season, Ruth retired at the end of May.

In his prime, Ruth faced the Cardinals in two World Series. He hit .300 (6-for-20) with four home runs and 11 walks in the seven-game 1926 World Series. In the 1928 World Series, Ruth hit .625 (10-for-16) with three home runs and three doubles in four games.

Previously: Stan Musial: ‘Babe Ruth was the greatest who ever played’

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