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Remember when Allen Craig was caught stealing with Albert Pujols at the plate in the sixth inning of Game 5 of the recently concluded World Series?

Remember when Allen Craig was caught stealing with Albert Pujols at the plate in the ninth inning of the same game?

Those plays generated some controversy, but Albert Pujols and Tony La Russa defended the plays.

That wasn’t the case following a game that the Cardinals  won at home on May 23, 2010 against the Los Angeles Angels

The Cards were leading 9-5 in the bottom of the eighth inning. Albert Pujols was batting with Ryan Ludwick on first and two outs.

Inexplicably, Ludwick  took off for second.  Mike Napoli threw him out, just as he would do to Craig in the 2011 World Series.

Albert Pujols was beyond livid. He would not bat again unless the Angels scored four runs in the ninth inning.

Even if Ludwick, who had been caught stealing three times and had not yet stolen successfully during the young season, had reached second base, Pujols would bat with first base open. 

Yes, there was a runner in scoring position. How many of us think that perhaps Mike Scioscia would have walked Pujols intentionally?

Pujols flipped his bat and helmet on his return to the dugout. Then he smacked two trays of gum from the bench against the dugout wall.

Tony La Russa told Pujols:  “That’s enough.”

The disagreement became more intense, with La Russa telling Pujols: “I (expletive) know how to manage.”

The next day, the Cardinals were trailing the Angels 10-4 in going to the top of the ninth inning. La Russa replaced Pujols.

All managers try to rest their top player in games that appear to be lost, but in baseball, as in life, one never knows.

The Cardinals rallied and, thanks to a pair of Angels errors, cut the deficit to three runs with two on and two outs. Jon Jay, batting in Pujols’ spot, stuck out to end the game.

Pujols was not happy, but La Russa’s move was not unusual.

Baseball’s best player and, until he retired, baseball’s best manager, got along during Pujols’ 11 seasons. Flare-ups and disagreements are inevitable when two greats are doing everything in their power to win.

Pujols knows the game as well as any player in the game. La Russa, with the possible exception of Jim Leyland, knows the game better than any manager in the game.

Don’t be a conspirator. La Russa didn’t retire so that Albert would remain a St. Louis Cardinal.

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Joe Torre  has the reputation of being an individual who favors diplomacy over force. He is concerned about how he treats adversaries and how they react to him.

In the spring of 1995, Torre hired Bob Gibson as the St. Louis Cardinals‘ bullpen coach.

Torre and Gibson had been teammates with the Cardinals. When Torre managed the New York Mets, Gibson was his pitching coach. When Torre managed the Atlanta Braves, Gibson was his pitching coach.

Gibson had really been an “attitude” coach with the Mets and Braves. He certainly had what some referred to as an attitude.

Bob Gibson was the meanest, toughest and most fearsome pitcher of his era.

Torre loves to describe his friend. “Just say he’s proud, he’s opinionated, sometimes he doesn’t have a lot of tact. But above all, Bob Gibson loves baseball.”

Rick Mahler, the Cardinals’ minor-league pitching coordinator, had been a pitcher with the Atlanta Braves when Gibson was their pitching coach. Mahler hit the nail on the head, not only about Gibson but about most of today’s players.

“He had this attitude that I’m sure carried over from the 60s and 70s,” Mahler says. “Players back then played for a pure love of the game not that guys don’t today, but there’s so much money these days. Everyone respected Bob for his attitude.”

Then Mahler made the point that separates modern players from Gibson, Tom Seaver, Pete Rose, Mickey Mantle and others of their ilk.

“You know how some guys are, they go 4 for 4 in a game they lose, they’re still a little upbeat. But whenever they’d walk by Bob Gibson, they’d wipe that smile right off their face. You just didn’t want to make him mad.”

At the age of 58, Gibson seemed to have mellowed. He still hated to lose, but he could tolerate human failing more than in the past.

Speaking to the media after he was hired as the Cards’ bullpen coach, Gibson removed any doubt about what his attitude would be if he played in 1995.

“Look, if I was a ballplayer, I’d probably still be a (jerk), but on the whole, I’d have to say that I’ve mellowed. Age will do that to you,” he says.

“There are things from my past that used to anger me so much I couldn’t even talk about it. Now I can. I remember the days that I was forced to drink from a different water fountain (than white people).

“There was a time I wouldn’t have been allowed on Treasure Island (a wealthy neighborhood in St. Petersburg). Now I own a condo there. These are things you never forget. They’re with you forever, but age softens you.”

When he was on the mound, merely facing a hitter who had a successful at-bat against him would upset Gibson. He would be the same today, despite his 76 years.

When the new Cardinals management took over, general manager Walt Jocketty told Torre that he had free reign with respect to his choice of bullpen coach. Gibson, who had been out of baseball, understood the politics of the business world.

“I did learn that once a player retires, he has to learn how to lie, to play little social games in this world. Sometimes, that’s not easy for an athlete who was used to getting by on his own ability.”

The Cardinals were looking for a legend to help their image after finishing a dismal fourth in the newly-created Central Division.

Few could rival Gibson as a legend.

Source Citation

Klapisch, Bob. “Firing again.” The Sporting News 27 Feb. 1995: 23. General OneFile. Web. 19 Nov. 2011.

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The St. Louis Cardinals are going for their 11th World Series championship, which would strengthen their hold as the team second only to the New York Yankees with respect to titles.

The Cardinals and Yankees have met five times in the World Series. The Cardinals won in 1926, 1942 and the last time the teams met in 1964. The Yankees beat St. Louis in 1928 and 1943.

There is no question the Cardinals are one of baseball’s iconic franchises. To play in St. Louis means playing under great scrutiny and even, at times, greater pressure.

The Cardinals have had some great first basemen. Stan Musial, Jim Bottomley, Orlando Cepeda and Johnny Mize are all in the Hall of Fame. Keith Hernandez might have been the second greatest defensive first baseman in the annals of baseball history next to Hal Chase.

Musial was the National League MVP three times and Cepeda won it once and Hernandez won it once.

The current Cardinals’ first baseman, Albert Pujols, has surpassed them all, with the possible exception of Musial. He has already won three MVP awards.

In the second game of the 2011 World Series, Cardinals’ center fielder John Jay made a weak throw home in the ninth inning. Pujols lunged for the ball but failed to cut it off, allowing the Texas Rangers‘ Elvis Andrus take second base on his single.

No error was charged until the game had been over for quite a while.

Pujols didn’t speak to the media after the game for which those in the media excoriated him—not just the actions, but the man.

Joel Sherman, who is employed by the bastion of fair reporting, the New York Post, concluded that Pujols was an extremely fortunate individual.

Sherman pointed out that Pujols should be grateful that Mark Teixeira was a New York Yankee, that Adrian Gonzalez was a Boston Red Sox, that Ryan Howard was with the Philadelphia Phillies and that the New York Mets were a financially challenged team.

Why did the perceptive Mr. Sherman think that the above were fortuitous circumstances for Pujols? 

Because none of the the big northeast markets would be in the bidding for his services when he becomes a free agent.

It is a blessing, according to Sherman, because Pujols couldn’t handle playing in any of those cities. The primary reason is that Pujols couldn’t take the booing.

That says it all about Mr. Sherman.

He doesn’t realize that Pujols wouldn’t have to take the booing because he would bask in the cheering. He denigrates the greatest player in the game who has done fairly well in some cities where the fans know how to boo.

He has batted .331/.436/.589 with 15 home runs and 46 RBIs in the postseason, including batting .333 in the 2004 World Series against the Boston Red Sox and their friendly fans.

Sherman ranks among the most upset by the fact that Pujols refused to speak to the media after the tough loss.

“He should figure out how to stay in St. Louis, where he forever will have a city that loves him and an organization that will cover for him, and where his small-time behavior and big biceps are an acceptable combination.

“New York, Boston and Philadelphia would not kowtow to this behavioral model.”

Mr. Sherman seems bothered that the “big market” teams were all “upset” before they could get to the World Series. He is at a loss to explain to explain why Pujols, Lance Berkman and Yadier Molina weren’t available to express their remorse after a really tough loss.

Well, Mr. Sherman, perhaps you might have read that after the seventh game of the 1960 World Series, reporters found Mickey Mantle sitting at his locker. His head was in his hands and he was crying. The reporters walked away.

Winners need time to accept the fact that their team lost. Some, like Mantle in this instance, never can accept that reality.

Contrary to the propaganda of the media and Bud Selig, Pujols’ role is not to help MLB and Fox Sports to make money. They are quite good at that task.

Pujols makes money for them by being Albert Pujols. He makes money for them by hitting home runs or by not hitting home runs when he is beaten by a pitcher. His job, and his only job, is to play baseball. It is not to give interviews on demand.

Albert Pujols, unlike Joel Sherman and most others in the media, is a winner.

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The St. Louis Cardinals were unable to take both games at home to start the 2011 World Series against the Texas Rangers, making Game 3 on Saturday night a must-win for the Cardinals on the road.

Since the series will switch to an American League park, the designated hitter is play, which gives the already dangerous Rangers lineup another quality bat to use.

After losing the first game by just one run, the Rangers survived Game 2 by the score of 2-1, and took home-field advantage with them to Texas.

The Cardinals have to win Game 3 because falling behind 2-1 with two more games to play in Texas would be tough to come back from, especially since the Cardinals have just one ace who can dominate a game in Chris Carpenter.

The scary thing for the Cardinals is the Rangers offense has yet to awaken, and playing in their hitter-friendly home ballpark might be exactly what they need to get their struggling bats fired up.

The Cardinals can win a close game, but it’s unlikely they can survive a slug-fest for three games in Arlington.

For the 14th time in 107 World Series, the first two games were decided by just one run. It’s also the fourth time in the last 32 years that this feat has happened.

History shows us that most of time when a World Series begins with two really close games, the series will likely go six or seven games total.

However, the Cardinals don’t have the firepower or the dominant pitching to survive any six- to 10-run games. They have done it a few times in these playoffs, but it’s unlikely they can contain a very talented lineup like Texas top to bottom to just a few runs per game much longer.

The Rangers’ bats are going to break out at some point, so the Cardinals need to win Game 3 to put the pressure on Texas and put some fear and panic into their minds.

One of the best ways to get a good lineup off of its game is to have them pressing and trying to hit a home run every at bat because they are down in the series and feel like they need to make up ground in one swing.

The Cardinals can really put the Rangers in a tough position tonight with a win, and in the process, give themselves lots of confidence to wrap things up in Texas or possibly go back to St. Louis up 3-2, with two shots to win the title at home.

Nicholas Goss is a Featured Columnist at Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter for the latest sports news and updates.  Follow @NicholasGoss35

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Jason Motte we hardly knew thee. As we all know by now, game two of the World Series ended on an… exhilarating? No… Exciting? No… Sacrifice fly? There it is. 

I should take that back. To be honest, I’m sure the Texas Rangers and their fans were plenty ramped up when Elvis Andrus crossed the plate on Michael Young’s shot to center. All-in-all, it ended the game—and for me, evened up a bet that I made before game one with a co-worker here at Bleacher Report.

The pitching matchup for Game Three is not the star-studded matchup that many were hoping for. Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee and CC Sabathia? Not this time. Tonight we have Kyle Lohse and Matt Harrison readying up their arms to guide their teams to a big advantage heading into game four. 

While you may not be very familiar with the names, their pitching stats seem to be familiar with each other. They’re almost identical. With the Cardinals, Lohse pitched to a 14-8 record with a 3.39 ERA. Funny, that’s the exact same ERA that Matt Harrison had this season, while also notching 14 wins with the Rangers.  

Neither of these arms are known for big strikeout numbers, but they are workhorse pitchers that every team needs if they’re trying to make it to the Fall Classic. 

With names like Albert Pujols, Matt Holliday, Nelson Cruz and Josh Hamilton putting their clutch reputations on the line, there are sure to be some fireworks in this critical Game Three.

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Entering last night, I had pretty much been on Albert Pujols’ side with regards to the actions he took in the aftermath of Thursday’s World Series Game 2. That is, until he chose to make some fairly insensitive comments about this controversy.

His arrogance when discussing the issue, in which he was actually “in the right,” was disheartening to say the least. Throughout his statement, he made a number of good points regarding the frequency in which he does address the media and the rarity that he skips out on a chance to answer tough questions. All very valid points and all quite true.

Then there was this statement from ESPN.com, “My responsibility is to my God and my family, I don’t have any responsibility to anybody else.”

I’m not a religious person, but I respect the rights of anyone and everyone to practice their faith. That being said, this is a fairly arrogant statement. Michael Young made some very valid points with regards to addressing the media and, while I know nothing of Young’s religious beliefs, it seems quite obvious that he recognizes the importance of treating others in the manner in which you’d like to be treated.

From the same article, “I do think there is a responsibility,” Young said. “You guys have a job to do. These are big games and it’s just a matter of being respectful. You guys have jobs to do, too. You’re not here for your health. If I can help I will.”

Pujols could perhaps think about someone else in the equation besides his god and his family. Other people have those things, too. It’s not all about him.

This was one of those non-issues magnified by the magnitude of the World Series. Had it been a regular season game, it wouldn’t even be noticed by most of the national press. It is the World Series, though. To somehow act shocked or amazed that normally minor stories can become major would be naive to say the least. If Pujols was eating his postgame meal, and was not notified that he was wanted by the media, then that’s fine. It’s okay to make a mistake, it’s okay to have a miscommunication. 

It’s also okay to admit some form of fault. From Lance Berkman, another veteran who did not make himself available to the media, “That won’t happen again. I’ll make sure—if I have to stand in there—that one of us is available for comment, win or lose.”

Stan Musial is probably considered the greatest Cardinal in history. He probably made mistakes in his career, though. He also probably handled them with more grace than Pujols did.  There were members of the media who, in the immediate aftermath of Thursday’s disappearing act, were quick to pounce all over Pujols, painting him in a terrible light for one of his few miscues. That was wrong. Two wrongs don’t make a right.

Sorry Albert, you do have a responsibility to other people besides your god or your family. For a player with a fairly spotless reputation throughout a spectacular eleven-year career Pujols made a minor mistake on Thursday Night, and then compounded it by showing an inability to act like an adult. That doesn’t mean he’s a bad guy, it’s just disappointing.  

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If you’re a Cardinals fan who followed them from opening day this year through the second game of the World Series, you know about the bouncing ball that has been the bullpen. Well, the woes reared their ugly heads Thursday night in St. Louis.

Speaking of ugly heads, what’s the deal with the hole in Ron Washington’s Afro? The brother looks like Bozo the baseball manager clown, but his haters have to back off clowning him.

The media and some fans were all over his decision-making in the first game. Among several moves that some displeased people voiced, they criticized his move to keep Josh Hamilton in the third spot.

If Hambone had been moved down in the lineup then maybe the Rangers lose the game. He ended up being in the perfect spot to drive a huge run in the top of the ninth inning.

The Cardinals, on the other hand, need to lift their heads in order go get him and the other Rangers hitters out tonight in Arlington, Texas. Washington’s team will be at home and ready to feast on home-cooked meals in the form of Cardinals pitching.

The Cardinals are still cooking and aren’t out of it. They have been outstanding on the road this postseason against both Milwaukee and Philadelphia. Here are five ways the Redbirds can bounce back and reclaim their own advantage.

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Albert Pujols reached base three times, Jaime Garcia fanned five without a walk in nearly five innings and the St. Louis Cardinals blew the game open late to take a 3-2 lead in the NLCS over the Milwaukee Brewers.

The series now heads back to Milwaukee, where Game 6 will take place Sunday at Miller Park.

Ryan Braun and the Brewers will not go quietly. Manager Ron Roenicke’s team won 57 of its 81 regular-season home games and is 4-1 at home thus far in the playoffs.

It does seem, though, that St. Louis’s advantage in depth is beginning to wear down Milwaukee. Game 6 will be pivotal because the Brewers are desperate to get Yovani Gallardo to the mound for Game 7, and if nothing else, the Cardinals would love to have Chris Carpenter ready to go in Game 1 of the World Series. 

They have to get there first. Read on for a look at Game 6.

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The St. Louis Cardinals made some major moves to take care of two weaknesses at the trade deadline: relief pitching and defense. Those two factors were the difference in the game Friday night as the St. Louis Cardinals took a 3-2 series lead against the Milwaukee Brewers in the NLCS.

Albert Pujols and David Freese continued to do their share of the offensive damage as they combined for two hits, a walk, two runs and an RBI on three of the Cardinals’ runs.

Matt Holliday, for the second night in a row showed indications that his finger is recovering as he went 3-for-5 with two RBI and a double. 

Catcher Yadier Molina also started showing signs of getting his bat going as he went 3-for-4 with one RBI and one run. 

But the real story in Game 5 of the NLCS for the Cardinals was again their bullpen, as they threw for 4.1 innings and gave up zero runs. The Cards bullpen on the series has now thrown 21.2 innings—just one less than that Cardinal starters—have given up only 12 hits over that span, and have a collective ERA of only 1.69. 

Part of that is the brilliance of Cardinals manager Tony LaRussa getting the right pitcher in against the right batter. Many of the key pitchers are also those who who were acquired at the trade deadline or off the waiver wire. 

Friday night’s winner, Octavio Dotel, was one of the pitchers picked up in the trade with Toronto and picked up his second postseason win.

Marc Rzepczynski, aka The Alphabet, pitched a key out to get Prince Fielder to strike out with two men on base. 

Lance Lynn was moved to starter after he came off the DL, in part because the trade for Edwin Jackson allowed that luxury. Lynne pitched 1.2 scoreless innings in Game 5.

Finally Jason Motte has solved the “closer” problem whether he’s officially the closer or not. While he’s not a new acquisition, he’s been the primary closer since the trade deadline, and has only blown one save since and has an ERA. 

Motte has now been perfect in 8.0 postseason innings, retiring all 24 batters he’s faced this year, and in one inning of work in 2009. 

The other major factor in the game was defense, as four Milwaukee errors resulted in five Cardinals runs. In adding Rafael Furcal before the trade deadline, the Cardinals addressed their largest defensive liability.

The Cardinals were one of the worst offenders in the regular season in terms of giving up errors, but in the postseason they’ve only committed three—fewer than what Milwaukee did in the latest outing.

For now, the Cardinals and Brewers will face off in Miller Park on Sunday afternoon, though that may change should Texas win Game 6 Saturday and clinch their series.

Should that happen, it’s likely the St. Louis-Milwaukee clash would move to the prime time slot at 7:05 PM EST. 

The projected starters in that game are Shaun Marcum and Edwin Jackson, another acquisition.

Marcum’s postseason ERA of 11.25 does not bode well though. Should the series go to a seventh game, it is likely aces Chris Carpenter for St. Louis and Yovani Gallardo for the Brewers would square off. 

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With the American League Championship Series under way and the National League’s edition starting up next week, some of the best-hitting teams in the league are squaring off against each other. 

So I thought I’d look at ten players who are likely to make an impact on the batting side of things.

Three things are looked at in this: traditional performance, 2011 Regular Season performance, and 2011 Division Series performance.

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