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Archive for the ‘Pitchers’ Category

Rick Ankiel: Rookie strikeout artist for Cardinals

Posted in Games, Pitchers, Prospects, Records on May 14, 2013| Leave a Comment »

As a Cardinals rookie, Rick Ankiel struck out 11 batters in a game four times, twice doing it before his 21st birthday.

rick_ankiel3Here is a look at those performances:

_ Cardinals 7, Marlins 6, at St. Louis, May 25, 2000: Ankiel earned his fourth win of the season, striking out 11 in 6.2 innings.

The effort was controversial because Ankiel threw 121 pitches. Scott Boras, Ankiel’s agent, said he believed the Cardinals had agreed to limit Ankiel to 100 pitches a game.

Ankiel, who was averaging 4.25 walks per game, didn’t yield a walk to the Marlins. He struck out the side (Preston Wilson, Derrek Lee and Alex Gonzalez) in the second inning and did it again (Danny Bautista, Cliff Floyd and Wilson) in the fourth. Boxscore

_ Indians 3, Cardinals 2, at St. Louis, June 4, 2000: Six of the Indians’ first seven outs were on strikeouts. Ankiel struck out 11 in five innings and walked none, but was lifted after reaching 98 pitches.

“I had a lot of strikeouts, but I really wasn’t going that well,” Ankiel said to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Ankiel struck out the side (Alex Ramirez, Jolbert Cabrera and Jim Brower) in the second and did it again (Sandy Alomar, Richie Sexson and Ramirez) in the fourth. Boxscore

_ Cardinals 12, Astros 1, at Houston, July 21, 2000: Two days after turning 21, Ankiel struck out 11 in seven innings and improved his record to 7-5. Ankiel struck out Craig Biggio twice and Lance Berkman once.

“He’s got an electric arm,” said Astros slugger Jeff Bagwell.

Said Cardinals manager Tony La Russa: “Sometimes it’s hard to remember how young he is. With him, it’s all about command. His stuff is so good.” Boxscore

_ Cardinals 9, Pirates 5, at Pittsburgh, Sept. 13, 2000: In the last game the Cardinals would play at Three Rivers Stadium before the Pirates moved into PNC Park, Ankiel struck out 11 in 6.2 innings, earning his ninth win of the season.

Ankiel struck out the side (John Wehner, Mike Benjamin and Adrian Brown) in the second.

“The ball explodes out of his hand,” said Pirates manager Gene Lamont. “He’s going to be one of the best pitchers we’ve seen in a long time.”

Said La Russa: “I’d love for him to get the Rookie of the Year (Award) because those nine wins do not reflect how well he’s pitched. He’s learning to pitch. He’s not just out there throwing.” Boxscore

Less than a month later, Oct. 3, 2000, Ankiel, a surprise starter in Game 1 of the National League Division Series against the Braves, walked six and threw five wild pitches in 2.2 innings, triggering the downward spiral that led to the end of his pitching career. Boxscore

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First Rockies lineup had prominent Cardinals connection

Posted in Games, Opponents, Pitchers, tagged , , on May 8, 2013| Leave a Comment »

The Cardinals-Rockies rivalry, known for its high-scoring games, began, improbably, with a shutout.

rene_arochaThe Rockies, a National League expansion team, faced the Cardinals for the first time on April 20, 1993, at St. Louis. The Cardinals won, 5-0, on a combined shutout by Rene Arocha and Omar Olivares.

There was a strong Cardinals connection to the first Rockies team that faced St. Louis. Don Baylor, the Rockies’ manager, had been the hitting coach on manager Joe Torre’s staff with the 1992 Cardinals. Rockies first baseman Andres Galarraga and starting pitcher Bryn Smith had played for the 1992 Cardinals. Center fielder Alex Cole had been in the Cardinals’ minor-league system.

Galarraga, who broke his wrist in the Cardinals’ second game in 1992 and finished with a .243 batting average and 39 RBI, signed with the Rockies as a free agent. He entered the Rockies’ first game against the Cardinals with a .422 batting mark and 14 RBI after 11 games.

Before facing the Cardinals, Galarraga told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, “I’ve always been able to hit, even since I was a little boy in Venezuela. After the injury, I tried too hard when I came back. It got worse. I was swinging at bad pitches.”

Said Baylor: “He’s hitting the ball to right field more. That’s what he has to do to be successful.”

The starting lineups in the first Rockies-Cardinals game:

ROCKIES

1. Eric Young, second base

2. Alex Cole, center field

3. Dante Bichette, right field

4. Andres Galarraga, first base

5. Charlie Hayes, third base

6. Jerald Clark, left field

7. Joe Girardi, catcher

8. Freddie Benavides, shortstop

9. Bryn Smith, pitcher

CARDINALS

1. Geronimo Pena, second base

2. Ozzie Smith, shortstop

3. Gregg Jefferies, first base

4. Ray Lankford, center field

5. Mark Whiten, right field

6. Todd Zeile, third base

7. Brian Jordan, right field

8. Hector Villanueva, catcher

9. Rene Arocha, pitcher

On a chilly Tuesday night before 30,516 at Busch Stadium, the Cardinals scored three in the first and two in the fourth against Smith.

Arocha, a rookie, was cruising through 5.2 innings until a line drive by Bichette struck the pitcher’s gloved hand, fracturing a finger. Olivares relieved and retired the 10 batters he faced. So dominant were Arocha and Olivares that Cardinals outfielders handled just one fly out. Boxscore

The win was the only one Arocha earned against the Rockies in four big-league seasons. The Cardinals won seven of 12 games against the expansion Rockies.

Previously: Revisiting the Gregg Jefferies deal: Cardinals’ good gamble

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How lack of runs kept Bob Gibson from 25 wins in 1968

Posted in Games, Opponents, Pitchers on May 6, 2013| Leave a Comment »

(Updated Nov. 23, 2024)

Like the rest of the Cardinals’ rotation in May 1968, Bob Gibson nearly was untouchable. Unfortunately for Gibson and the Cardinals, he wasn’t unbeatable.

bob_gibson13Led by Gibson, Cardinals starters had an ERA of 2.03 in May 1968.

In six starts, Gibson’s ERA in May 1968 was 1.27, but his record that month was 2-4. Both wins required him to pitch extra innings.

Gibson yielded only 10 runs (eight earned) in 56.2 innings in May 1968, but the Cardinals never scored more than three runs in any of his six starts that month. In Gibson’s four May losses, the Cardinals scored three runs total.

Asked about that lack of run support in a 2018 interview with Stan McNeal of Cardinals Yearbook, Gibson said, “I was frustrated. Whenever I pitched, I would be pissed off even before I started because I knew we weren’t going to score.”

May was the only month Gibson had a losing record in 1968. He was a combined 12-0 in June and July.

Gibson finished the 1968 regular season with a 22-9 record, 1.12 ERA, 268 strikeouts, 28 complete games and 13 shutouts. He earned both the National League Most Valuable Player Award and Cy Young Award.

With better run support, he could have been a 25-game winner that season.

Here’s a game-by-game look at Gibson’s six May starts in 1968:

_ Cardinals 3, Astros 1, 12 innings, at Houston, May 1, 1968: Gibson limited the Astros to an unearned run in 12 innings. After the Cardinals scored twice in the 12th, Julio Gotay, a former Cardinal, led off the Astros’ half of the inning with a double. Gibson retired the next three batters on a pair of infield pop-ups and a fly out. Boxscore

_ Cardinals 2, Mets 1, 11 innings, at St. Louis, May 6, 1968: Gibson improved his career record against the Mets to 18-3 in winning a duel with Tom Seaver. Both aces went the distance. They worked so efficiently that the 11-inning game was completed in 2 hours, 10 minutes. In the 11th, Lou Brock tripled and scored on Orlando Cepeda’s single. Boxscore

_ Astros 3, Cardinals 2, at St. Louis, May 12, 1968: Gibson struck out 10 in eight innings, but Denis Menke lifted the Astros with a two-run single in the seventh. Boxscore

_ Phillies 1, Cardinals 0, 10 innings, at Philadelphia, May 17, 1968: In the 10th, Phillies pitcher Woodie Fryman singled. Two outs later, he scored on a single by Bill White, the former Cardinal and Gibson’s friend. Boxscore

_ Dodgers 2, Cardinals 0, at St. Louis, May 22, 1968: Gibson yielded one hit in eight innings. It was a RBI-double by Wes Parker in the third. The Dodgers added a run off reliever Joe Hoerner in the ninth. Boxscore

Frustrated that the Cardinals had failed to score in his last two starts, Gibson was in a foul mood when approached by his catcher after the loss to the Dodgers. In his book “Stranger to the Game,” Gibson said, “(Tim) McCarver followed me into the trainer’s room and said, ‘Hoot, I’m really sorry. I know our crappy hitting has gone on for too long.’ I stopped him in the middle of the apology and snapped, ‘I’m tired of listening to these … excuses.’ Then I turned and disappeared into the shower. I don’t why I took out my frustrations on McCarver _ I guess he was good for that _ but I wouldn’t talk to him for hours afterwards.”

_ Giants 3, Cardinals 1, at St. Louis, May 28, 1968: Gibson yielded a solo home run to Dick Dietz in the sixth and a two-run home run to Willie Mays in the seventh. The homer by Mays, 37, was the last of three in his career against Gibson. Boxscore

 

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Rick Camp couldn’t block Cardinals’ path to 1982 title

Posted in Games, Opponents, Pitchers on April 26, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Not even a word from Bob Gibson could prevent Rick Camp from surrendering the hit that propelled the Cardinals to their first National League pennant in 14 years.

rick_campThe Cardinals completed a three-game sweep of the best-of-five 1982 National League Championship Series, beating Camp and the Braves, 6-2, in Game 3 at Atlanta. The victory vaulted them into the World Series for the first time since 1968, when Gibson was their ace.

Camp is remembered most for the home run he hit with two outs in the bottom of the 18th inning of a July 4, 1985, game against the Mets, tying the score 11-11. The Mets won, 16-13, in 19 innings and Camp was the losing pitcher. Boxscore

In Cardinals history, Camp is better recalled for his second-inning woes in the deciding game of the playoff series.

After Camp retired the Cardinals in order in the first, Keith Hernandez led off the second with a single and Darrell Porter walked. Camp thought he struck out Porter on a pitch instead ruled a checked swing.

George Hendrick singled, scoring Hernandez and advancing Porter to third, and St. Louis led, 1-0.

As Willie McGee approached the plate, Gibson, a Braves pitching coach for manager Joe Torre, went to the mound to talk with Camp. Torre split the pitching coach duties between Gibson and former catcher Rube Walker. “Rube teaches them how to pitch,” Torre told The Sporting News. “Gibby teaches them how to win.”

On Camp’s first pitch after Gibson’s visit, McGee tripled to right-center, scoring Porter and Hendrick.

“I made a bad pitch,” Camp told the Rome (Ga.) News-Tribune. “It was a fastball belt high, a fastball that was up, and that’s what broke it open.”

After the next batter, Ozzie Smith, singled to center, scoring McGee and giving the Cardinals a 4-0 lead, Torre lifted Camp for Pascual Perez. Boxscore

“From the beginning, in the bullpen, I didn’t have anything,” Camp said. “I thought maybe I would work it out in the first two or three innings.”

Instead, Camp faced eight batters, yielding four runs, four hits and a walk. Video

In a nine-year career with the Braves (1976-85), Camp made 28 appearances against the Cardinals, posting a 4-4 record and 4.25 ERA.

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Take a look at the worst bullpen in Cardinals history

Posted in Games, Pitchers, Records on April 24, 2013| Leave a Comment »

The 1954 Cardinals had the worst bullpen ERA (5.46) in franchise history.

So desperate for relief were they that Harvey Haddix, who led the club in games started (35) and wins (18), also ranked second in saves, with four in eight relief appearances.

Haddix was the starting and losing pitcher in the Cardinals’ season opener, a 13-4 loss to the Cubs on April 13, 1954, at St. Louis. Boxscore Two days later, in the Cardinals’ second game of the season, versus the Braves at Milwaukee, Haddix again was the losing pitcher _ this time, in relief. Boxscore He worked as long in his relief stint, 2.1 innings, as he did in his start.

Haddix didn’t pitch in the Cardinals’ third game of the season, but he was one of the few on the staff who didn’t. On April 17, 1954, the Cubs defeated the Cardinals, 23-13, at Chicago. Five Cardinals relievers combined to give up 16 runs in seven innings in relief of starter Gerry Staley. The game took 3 hours, 43 minutes to play _ the longest nine-inning game in National League history at that time. Boxscore

In The Sporting News, Bob Broeg wrote that the Cardinals’ start to the season was a “humorless first week when their pitching … was cuffed incredibly.”

After 10 games, manager Eddie Stanky said of his bullpen, “I don’t know what I’m going to do, but I know this _ I’m not going with what I’ve got.”

A look at the relievers who were the most prominent members of the infamous 1954 Cardinals bullpen:

_ Al Brazle. The side-arming left-hander was the Cardinals’ closer. He had been effective in the previous two years, saving 16 for St. Louis in 1952 and 18 in 1953, but he had just eight saves and a 4.16 ERA in 1954. He was far better on the road (2.27 ERA) than he was at home (5.55 ERA). Brazle, 40, was released after the season and never appeared in the big leagues again.

_ Cot Deal. A right-hander, Deal, 31, yielded 85 hits, including 14 home runs, in 71.2 innings. He had more walks (36) than strikeouts (25) and an ERA of 6.28. Left-handed batters hit .341 against him. Deal never pitched in the big leagues after 1954, but he went on to coach for 15 years in the majors, including on the staff of manager Johnny Keane’s 1965 Yankees.

_ Joe Presko. Primarily a Cardinals starter from 1951-53, the right-hander had an 8.61 ERA in 31 relief appearances for the 1954 Cardinals. He lost four relief decisions in a span from May 28 to June 17. Presko surrendered 59 hits in 38.2 innngs of relief. After the season, Presko, 25, was acquired by the Tigers.

_ Royce Lint. A 33-year-old rookie, Lint pitched two scoreless innings of relief in the Cardinals’ season opener, but the left-hander finished his lone big-league season with a 5.19 ERA in 26 relief appearances.

_ Stu Miller. Though The Sporting News would name this right-hander the National League Fireman of the Year with the 1961 Giants and the American League Fireman of the Year with the 1963 Orioles, Miller, 26, wasn’t an effective reliever for the 1954 Cardinals. He had a 5.96 ERA in 15 relief appearances, walking 16 in 25.2 innings.

Three pitchers on the 1954 Cardinals were used as both starters and relievers. They were:

_ Gerry Staley. He pitched in 48 games, 20 starts and 28 relief stints. He had a 3.77 ERA and three saves as a reliever.

_ Brooks Lawrence. The rookie pitched in 35 games, 18 starts and 17 relief appearances. He was 6-4 with a 3.25 ERA as a reliever.

_ Tom Poholsky. He pitched in 25 games, 13 starts and 12 relief stints. He had a 5.30 ERA as a reliever, yielding five home runs in 18.2 innings.

Previously: Bobby Shantz: First Cardinals pitcher to win Gold Glove

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How Woody Williams pitched like a pillar, not porcelain

Posted in Games, Pitchers, Records on April 22, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Entering the 2003 season, some were concerned Woody Williams no longer was effective. The Cardinals pitcher was 36, his spring training ERA was 14.54 and he had been limited to 17 starts in 2002 because of two stints on the disabled list.

woody_williams3In the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Joe Strauss asked whether an aging, fragile Williams would be treated by the Cardinals like “a pricey piece of red-and-white pitching porcelain.”

Instead, Williams opened 2003 like a staff pillar, posting three wins without allowing a run in his first three starts.

Here’s what Williams achieved:

_ Cardinals 7, Brewers 0, April 2, 2003, at St. Louis: Williams held Milwaukee to two hits in 6.2 innings. The Brewers were hitless until Eric Young tripled with two outs in the sixth. Milwaukee’s only other hit off Williams was a single by Jeffrey Hammonds in the seventh.

“I picture doing that every game,” Williams said. “That’s what I strive to do _ not a no-hitter, but every inning I pitch I want to get a zero.”

Mike Matheny backed Williams’ effort with a three-hit, two-RBI performance. Boxscore

_ Cardinals 3, Astros 0, April 12, 2003, at Houston: After skipping his second scheduled start at Colorado because of neck stiffness, Williams showed no signs of a problem against the Astros, pitching six scoreless innings and extending his streak to 12.2.

A Houston native, Williams improved his career record versus the Astros to 6-2. “I worked ahead and threw good pitches when I needed to,” Williams said.

In the first inning, Houston threatened when Geoff Blum singled and Jeff Bagwell doubled. Lance Berkman followed with a groundball to first baseman Tino Martinez, who threw to the plate to nail Blum. “That’s a veteran Gold Glove play to come up with that throw,” Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said.

“The play Tino made was huge,” said Williams. “It stopped the momentum.”

_ Cardinals 6, Diamondbacks 3, April 18, 2003, at St. Louis: Williams yielded three hits in seven scoreless innings. Arizona was hitless until Lyle Overbay singled with one out in the fifth. The Diamondbacks scored their runs in the ninth off Russ Springer.

Williams’ scoreless innings streak was at 19.2. “If he ever comes out there and doesn’t have real good stuff and real good location, we’re all going to pass out,” La Russa said. Boxscore

_ Braves 4, Cardinals 3, April 24, 2003, at Atlanta: Williams kept the Braves scoreless for 5.1 innings before the streak ended at 25 when Julio Franco scored from third on a Johnny Estrada single. Boxscore

Williams rewarded the 2003 Cardinals by producing 18 wins in 220.2 innings, both single-season career highs for him.

Previously: Deal for Woody Williams sparked 2001 Cardinals

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