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Cardinals twice mirrored Game 6 in regular seasons

Posted in Games, Hitters on October 30, 2011| 2 Comments »

(Updated May 30, 2020)

Among the factors that make Game 6 of the 2011 World Series an instant classic is the extreme rarity of the type of comeback mounted by the Cardinals.

The Cardinals twice were a strike away from elimination but rallied to score twice in the ninth to tie and twice in the 10th to tie before winning, 10-9, in the 11th on a home run by David Freese. Boxscore

Until Game 6 against the Rangers, only twice before had the Cardinals rallied from two-run deficits in the ninth and 10th innings to win games, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. Both of those occurred in regular-season games.

Here’s a look at both:

CARDINALS vs. PADRES

On May 30, 1982, at St. Louis, the first-place Cardinals scored three in the ninth to tie the score and three in the 10th to beat the Padres, 6-5.

With the Padres ahead, 3-0, the Cardinals’ Keith Hernandez and George Hendrick each singled off Gary Lucas in the bottom of the ninth, and Lonnie Smith doubled, scoring Hernandez.

On a groundout by Mike Ramsey, Hendrick held third and Smith held second. Julio Gonzalez followed with a grounder to shortstop Mario Ramirez, who flipped the ball to third baseman Luis Salazar. As Hendrick broke for home plate, Smith got caught in a rundown and collided with Salazar in the basepath. Smith appeared to have been tagged out, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported, but Salazar was called for obstruction by umpire Joe West. Smith was awarded third base, Gonzalez took second and Hendrick scored, cutting the Padres’ lead to 3-2.

“If we execute the play right, then we’re OK,” Padres manager Dick Williams told United Press International. “It was a routine rundown play, but we didn’t execute it.”

With first base open, Lucas intentionally walked David Green, loading the bases.

Tommy Herr, batting for pitcher Doug Bair, hit a sacrifice fly to left, scoring Smith with the tying run. Ozzie Smith grounded out, ending the inning.

In the 10th, the Cardinals turned to closer Bruce Sutter, who gave up two runs on a pair of singles, a double and a walk.

After Lucas retired the first two Cardinals batters in the 10th, Hendrick singled, Lonnie Smith drove him in with a double and Ramsey singled in Smith with the tying run.

Rattled, Lucas hit Gonzalez with a pitch and was relieved by rookie Floyd Chiffer. Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog countered by sending Dane Iorg to bat for Green.

“What I didn’t want to have happen eventually did,” Williams said to the Associated Press. “… I didn’t want to face Iorg with a right-handed pitcher.”

Said Iorg: “I was calm. I was probably the calmest player out there.”

With the count 1-and-1, Chiffer delivered a high, inside pitch. Iorg swung, breaking his bat, and hit a soft liner to center for a single, scoring Ramsey from second and giving the Cardinals a 6-5 victory. Boxscore

“As long as I have a line drive stroke, it doesn’t make any difference where it hits my bat,” Iorg said.

CARDINALS vs. PHILLIES

On June 6, 1990, at St. Louis, a struggling Cardinals team scored twice in the ninth to tie and three times in the 10th to beat the Phillies, 12-11.

The Phillies went ahead, 9-7, in the top of the ninth on a two-run home run by Ron Jones. “As the ball landed in the right field seats, lightning cracked over the rim of Busch Stadium,” the Philadelphia Daily News reported, “and thunder rumbled and a full moon broke through the dark and stormy skies.”

In the bottom half of the ninth, the Cardinals had Dave Collins on second with two outs when Phillies manager Nick Leyva replaced Pat Combs with closer Roger McDowell.

The move backfired. Ozzie Smith singled, scoring Collins. Smith stole second, Willie McGee walked and Pedro Guerrero drove in Smith with a single, tying the score at 9-9. After a walk to Terry Pendleton, Todd Zeile grounded out, forcing extra innings.

In the 10th, the Cardinals turned to Frank DiPino, who gave up a two-out, two-run single to Sil Campusano.

Undaunted, the Cardinals began the bottom of the 10th with singles by Milt Thompson and Jose Oquendo against McDowell. Denny Walling singled, scoring Thompson.

After Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog sent in Rex Hudler to run for Oquendo, Vince Coleman executed a sacrifice bunt, advancing Hudler to third and Walling to second. Leyva ordered McDowell to walk Ozzie Smith, loading the bases.

With Willie McGee up next, Leyva replaced McDowell with Terry Mulholland and positioned his outfielders to play shallow. McGee responded with a double over the head of center fielder Len Dykstra, scoring Hudler and Walling for a 12-11 Cardinals victory. Boxscore

“That might be the screwiest game I’ve ever seen,” Herzog told the Post-Dispatch.

Said McGee: “The only better game I’ve played in was against Chicago in 1984 when Ryne Sandberg hit two home runs off Bruce Sutter (and McGee hit for the cycle).”

DiPino, amazed he earned the win, said, “I almost fainted in the dugout.”

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Power personified 2011 World Series champ Cardinals

Posted in Hitters, Opponents, Pitchers on October 29, 2011| 4 Comments »

(Updated Oct. 28, 2017)

In a 2011 World Series jammed with dramatic moments, the Cardinals’ championship was defined, in large part, by the home run.

_ Albert Pujols hit three home runs in Game 3.

_ David Freese hit a walkoff 11th-inning home run in Game 6.

_ Allen Craig hit three home runs, including a go-ahead shot in Game 7.

_ The eight home runs hit by the 2011 Cardinals established the franchise record for most in a World Series. The previous mark was set in 1968 when the Cardinals hit seven home runs in a World Series against the Tigers.

_ The nine home runs allowed by the 2011 Cardinals are tied for the second-most in the franchise’s World Series history. Only the Yankees, with 10 in 1964, hit more home runs against the Cardinals in a World Series.

_ The 17 total home runs by the Cardinals and Rangers are the most in a World Series involving the Cardinals. The previous high was 15 total home runs _ in the 1964 World Series between the Cardinals and the Yankees and again in the 1968 World Series between the Cardinals and the Tigers.

Here are the home run totals in World Series involving the Cardinals:

YEAR…….CARDINALS HRS…….OPPONENT HRS…….TOTAL HRS

1926………4………………………….4…………………………8

1928………1………………………….9…………………………10

1930……..2………………………….6………………………….8

1931……..2…………………………..3…………………………5

1934……..2………………………….2………………………….4

1942……..2………………………….3………………………….5

1943……..2………………………….2………………………….4

1944……..3………………………….1………………………….4

1946……..1………………………….4………………………….5

1964……..5………………………….10……………………….15

1967……..5…………………………8………………………….13

1968……..7…………………………8………………………….15

1982……..4…………………………5………………………….9

1985……..2…………………………2………………………….4

1987……..2…………………………7………………………….9

2004…….2…………………………4…………………………..6

2006…….2…………………………4…………………………..6

2011……..8…………………………9………………………….17

2013…….2………………………….4………………………….6

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Yadier Molina: Most RBI in Series game by a Cards catcher

Posted in Games, Hitters, Records on October 23, 2011| Leave a Comment »

(Updated Dec. 21, 2024)

Lost amid the historical splendor of Albert Pujols’ performance in Game 3 of the 2011 World Series was the achievement of Yadier Molina.

Though it paled in comparison to the hitting of Pujols (the first Cardinals player with three home runs, five hits and six RBI in a World Series game), Molina also accomplished a franchise standard in Game 3.

Molina became the first Cardinals catcher with four RBI in a World Series game.

Molina produced a two-run double in the fifth inning off Scott Feldman, a sacrifice fly in the sixth off Mike Gonzalez and a RBI-double in the eighth off Mark Lowe in the Cardinals’ 16-7 victory over the Rangers Oct. 22. Boxscore

The performance by Molina continued a remarkable year for him at the plate. In the regular season, Molina hit a team-best .305, with 32 doubles, 14 home runs and 65 RBI.

Asked about his hitting approach, Molina said to Stan McNeal of Cardinals Yearbook in 2019, “One thing my dad told me was never strike out. Try to hit the ball. That’s something that has stayed with me. When I get two strikes, I just try to hit the ball.

“Right now, players want to hit the ball so hard, but they’re striking out too many times. Why? If you hit the ball 100 mph but strike out more than 100 times, why don’t you hit the ball 95, 90 mph and get base hits? They’re trying to hit the ball 450 feet, but you can hit it 380 and still get a home run.”

Recalling how Yadier learned to hit as a youth in Puerto Rico, his brother Bengie Molina, who also played in the majors, said in an article he did for the 2019 Cardinals Yearbook, “Our game was tape ball. We’d get a newspaper and scrunch it into the shape of a ball, then wrap it with electrical tape. For hitting, we’d cut a broomstick down to the length of a bat.

“We also learned to hit by doing a really challenging drill with my dad. He would sit in a chair and flip corn kernels or dried beans to us, which we tried to hit with a broomstick … The more we practiced that drill, the better our hand-eye coordination got. I believe that’s one reason Yadi has never struck out much.”

Until Game 3 of the 2011 World Series, Molina had played in 10 World Series games over three years (2004, 2006 and 2011) and had produced one RBI. That came on a double in Game 4 of the 2006 World Series against the Tigers. Boxscore

Tim McCarver and Joe Garagiola had held the club record for most RBI by a catcher in a World Series game, with three. McCarver did it twice. As a broadcaster on the telecast of the Cardinals-Rangers Game 3, McCarver witnessed Molina’s performance.

Here’s a look at the three-RBI games by McCarver and Garagiola:

TIM McCARVER

In each World Series game in which McCarver drove in three runs, one swing produced the RBI each time.

In Game 5 of the 1964 World Series, McCarver hit a three-run home run off Yankees reliever Pete Mikkelsen in the 10th inning, snapping a 2-2 tie and carrying the Cardinals to a 5-2 victory. Boxscore

Four years later, McCarver launched a three-run, fifth-inning home run off reliever Pat Dobson in the Cardinals’ 7-3 Game 3 victory over the Tigers in the 1968 World Series. Boxscore

JOE GARAGIOLA

One of three Cardinals in the game to get four hits (Whitey Kurowski and Enos Slaughter were the others), Garagiola drove in his three runs off three relievers in St. Louis’ 12-3 victory over the Red Sox in Game 4 of the 1946 World Series. Boxscore

Garagiola had a RBI-single off Jim Bagby in the third inning, a RBI-double off Bill Zuber in the seventh and a RBI-single off Mace Brown in the ninth.

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Danny Litwhiler: Perfect fit for champion Cardinals

Posted in Hitters on September 28, 2011| Leave a Comment »

Danny Litwhiler, left fielder for the Cardinals’ National League championship teams in 1943 and 1944, was manager Billy Southworth’s kind of player.

In 1942, when Litwhiler was with the last-place Phillies, he beat the Cardinals in a September game by stretching a single into a double and later crashing into catcher Walker Cooper to score the winning run. Southworth was impressed by Litwhiler’s all-out hustle while playing late in the season for a terrible team.

On June 1, 1943, on the advice of Southworth, Cardinals general manager Branch Rickey acquired Litwhiler and outfielder Earl Naylor from the Phillies for outfielders Buster Adams, Coaker Triplett and Dain Clay.

Among the many good trades made by Rickey, this was one of the best. Litwhiler fit perfectly on Cardinals teams that dominated the National League in 1943 and 1944.

In the book “Stan Musial: The Man’s Own Story,” Musial said Litwhiler “was a high-class fellow and a man I was proud to have as my friend.”

A right-handed batter, Litwhiler hit .279 with seven home runs and 31 RBI in 80 games for the 1943 Cardinals. He took over in left field for Debs Garms, who, at 36, was nine years older than Litwhiler.

In the book “The Spirit of St. Louis” by Peter Golenbock, Litwhiler described his feelings about being traded to the Cardinals and playing for Southworth:

“I felt pretty bad about (the trade), because I really liked Philadelphia. In fact, I cried. It broke my heart, because I was leaving Philadelphia. I really liked the fans … Billy (Southworth) and I started off in pretty good shape. He was a great teacher … Billy’s offensive philosophy was to bunt the ball and get the runner over. That’s why we won. He taught the fundamentals … It was bunting, and learning how to slide, even the pitchers, and we would take the extra base.”

Though he wasn’t a dominant slugger (107 home runs in 11 big-league seasons), Litwhiler had power. On June 27, 1943, at Chicago’s Wrigley Field, the Cubs led the Cardinals 2-0 after six. In the seventh, Litwhiler hit a solo homer off Claude Passeau, and in the ninth he slammed a two-run shot off Passeau, lifting St. Louis to a 3-2 victory. Boxscore

In the 1943 World Series against the Yankees, Litwhiler batted .267 (4-for-15) with two RBI. In Game 3 at Yankee Stadium, Litwhiler made a shoestring catch of Joe Gordon’s drive in the second and drove in both Cardinals runs off Hank Borowy in New York’s 6-2 victory. Boxscore

Batting primarily from the sixth spot in the order, Litwhiler hit .264 with 15 homers and 82 RBI in 140 games for the 1944 Cardinals. He batted .359 against the Cubs in 22 games that season and .302 against the Dodgers in 18 games.

On July 29, 1944, Litwhiler slugged a grand slam off Dodgers rookie Ralph Branca in the Cardinals’ 14-2 victory at Brooklyn. Boxscore On Aug. 3, Litwhiler drove in six runs, including three on a homer against Preacher Roe, in St. Louis’ 15-2 victory at Pittsburgh. Boxscore

In Game 5 of the 1944 World Series, the Cardinals were clinging to a 1-0 lead against the crosstown Browns when Litwhiler led off the eighth with a homer to right-center off Denny Galehouse, capping a 2-0 Cardinals victory. Boxscore

“When I hit my home run off Galehouse, the fielder jumped up, and I heard this terrific roar,” Litwhiler told Golenbock. “I thought, ‘… He jumped up and caught it.’ But I looked out, and I saw the ball bouncing in the stands. I thought, ‘… It’s a home run!’ I don’t even remember touching the bases after that.”

The Cardinals won the World Series championship in six games. “A great feeling, one you’ll never forget,” Litwhiler said.

In 1945, Litwhiler served in the Army Special Service. He returned to the Cardinals in May 1946, but Southworth had left St. Louis to become manager of the Braves and the Cardinals had committed to rookie Erv Dusak as the left fielder. On June 9, 1946, the Cardinals sold Litwhiler’s contract to the Braves, where he was reunited with Southworth.

Litwhiler finished his big-league career with the Reds in 1951. His career batting mark was .281.

Litwhiler became baseball coach at Florida State, compiling a 190-83-1 record in nine seasons, and at Michigan State, where he was 488-362-8 in 19 seasons. Among the college players he prepared for big-league careers were Dick Howser and Woody Woodward at Florida State, and Steve Garvey and Kirk Gibson at Michigan State.

A brilliant innovator, Litwhiler developed the radar speed gun and created a powder, known as diamond dust, that enabled wet infields to dry quickly.

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In 1945, Cardinals hit into fewest double plays

Posted in Hitters, Records on September 14, 2011| 3 Comments »

(Updated July 2, 2014)

When it comes to double plays, the Cardinals, more than any other National League franchise, have experienced the extremes.

The 2011 Cardinals set the NL single-season record for grounding into the most double plays, with 169. The 1958 Cardinals had held the NL mark of 166. The single-season major-league record for double plays is 174 by the 1990 Red Sox.

A Cardinals team also holds the NL and major-league single-season record for grounding into the fewest double plays. The 1945 Cardinals hit into 75.

Because of military service during World War II, the 1945 Cardinals were without top hitters such as Stan Musial, Enos Slaughter, Harry Walker, Terry Moore, Walker Cooper and Danny Litwhiler.

The lineup was short on sluggers but loaded with contact hitters who ran the bases exceptionally well.

In its Sept. 6, 1945, edition, The Sporting News wrote of the Cardinals:

Despite the fact the Redbirds have gained a nationwide reputation as speedboys in winning their last three pennants, (manager) Billy Southworth’s scheme of attack is based more on the hit-and-run, and taking that extra base on a hit, than trying to steal his way around.

The 1945 Cardinals ranked first in the NL in hits (1,498) and second in runs (756) and sacrifice hits (138).

Third baseman Whitey Kurowski was the lone Cardinal to reach double figures in hitting into double plays (10).

Reserve outfielder Augie Bergamo had 304 at-bats and never hit into a double play.

Among the regulars, rookie left fielder Red Schoendienst had 565 at-bats, 157 hits and grounded into just six double plays. Center fielder Buster Adams slugged 20 home runs and 26 doubles in 578 at-bats, with just eight double plays. Second baseman Emil Verban struck out only 15 times in 597 at-bats and hit into just nine double plays.

To put that into perspective, Pirates first baseman Babe Dahlgren hit into 23 double plays in 1945 and Reds first baseman Frank McCormick hit into 20. Each was one of four players on his team to reach double figures in hitting into double plays.

Even though Kurowski, Schoendienst, shortstop Marty Marion, first baseman Ray Sanders, outfielder Johnny Hopp and catcher Ken O’Dea all missed games because of injuries, Billy Southworth had the 1945 Cardinals playing fundamentally sound baseball. St. Louis posted a 95-59 record and finished in second place, three games behind the Cubs.

In the Oct. 4, 1945, edition of The Sporting News, Frederick G. Lieb wrote:

Nothing but praise can be bestowed on Billy Southworth for his grand job in keeping the Cards in the race until next to the last day of the season. Everyone votes it Billy’s greatest managerial job … There was scarcely a day that he had his regular lineup in the field.

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Ray Lankford did what Willie Mays, Mickey Mantle couldn’t

Posted in Games, Hitters, Records on September 12, 2011| Leave a Comment »

(Updated May 4, 2018)

In a sport noted for great center fielders, the Cardinals’ Ray Lankford established a production standard for the position that largely hasn’t received the attention it deserves.

In 1992, Lankford became the first center fielder in major-league history to achieve at least 40 doubles, 20 home runs and 30 steals in a season.

Since then, two others have accomplished the feat: Carlos Beltran of the 2002 Royals (44 doubles, 29 homers, 35 steals) and Jacoby Ellsbury of the 2011 Red Sox (46 doubles, 32 homers, 39 steals), according to MLB.com.

Lankford (40 doubles, 20 homers, 42 steals) remains the only National League center fielder to meet the standard.

Four others who came close to achieving those numbers were Willie Mays of the 1959 Giants, Vada Pinson of the 1959 Reds, Andre Dawson of the 1980 Expos and Mike Trout of the 2013 Angels.

Mays (43 doubles, 34 homers, 27 steals) missed by three stolen bases; Pinson (47 doubles, 20 homers, 21 steals) missed by nine stolen bases; Dawson (41 doubles, 17 homers, 34 steals) missed by three home runs; and Trout (39 doubles, 27 homers, 33 steals) missed by one double.

Hall of Fame center fielders such as Ty Cobb, Tris Speaker, Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle and Duke Snider never came close. Same with other top center fielders such as Ken Griffey Jr. (he missed by 12 steals in 1991, the only season he had a chance to match Lankford), Jim Edmonds, Bernie Williams, Kirby Puckett, Andruw Jones, Dale Murphy and Torii Hunter.

Lankford did it in dramatic fashion: his last two hits of 1992 were a double and a home run, putting him exactly at the 40 and 20 totals for those categories.

On Oct. 2, 1992, in the opener of a season-ending three-game series with the Phillies at St. Louis, Lankford hit a two-out, sixth-inning double to right off Curt Schilling. (The Cardinals won, 2-1, even though Schilling pitched a four-hitter). Boxscore

After going 0-for-4 the next day, Lankford went into the season finale on Sunday, Oct. 4, needing a home run to reach 20. He got it in the first inning _ a two-run blast to right-center off Tommy Greene, giving the Cardinals a 2-0 lead in a game they won, 6-3. Boxscore

The home run also enabled Lankford to become the first Cardinals player to achieve 20 homers and 20 steals in a season since Lou Brock in 1967.

Although Lankford struck out a NL-leading 147 times, the 1992 season was a breakthrough for him. Thanks, in large part, to the work of first-year hitting coach Don Baylor, Lankford led the Cardinals in 13 offensive categories. After hitting .251 with nine homers and 69 RBI in 1991, Lankford batted .293 with 20 homers and 86 RBI in 1992.

When Baylor resigned after the 1992 season to become manager of the Rockies, St. Louis general manager Dal Maxvill told The Sporting News, “His importance to the Cardinals was demonstrated by the development of our young hitters last season, especially Lankford.”

After 1992, Lankford hit 20 or more homers five times and topped 30 steals once more, but he never again achieved 40 doubles in a season.

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