St. Louis Cardinals (MLB 09: The Show)

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ROSTER: Ridin's Trade Deadline
SLIDERS: DrUrsus
DIFFICULTY: All-Star

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Opening Day Roster

Lineup
2B-Julio Lugo
3B-Mark DeRosa
1B-Albert Pujols
LF-Matt Holliday
RF-Ryan Ludwick
CF-Rick Ankiel
C-Yadier Molina
SS-Brendan Ryan

Bench
Skip Schumaker
Nick Stavinoha
Troy Glaus
Colby Rasmus
Jason LaRue

Rotation
Chris Carpenter
Adam Wainwright
Joel Pineiro
Kyle Lohse
Mitchell Boggs

Bullpen
LRP-Todd Wellemeyer
LRP-Jason Motte
MRP-Josh Kinney
MRP-Dennis Reyes
SU-Kyle McClellan
SU-Trever Miller
CP-Ryan Franklin

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Pirates shoot down Cardinals on Opening Day


Chris Carpenter had a rough start to the season, giving up 10 hits and 8 runs in just 3.1 innings

April 6, 2009 - Everything that could have possibly gone wrong for the Cardinals on Opening Day, did. Chris Carpenter, the ace of the pitching staff threw most likely the worst game of his career, and was replaced in the 4th inning by a former member of the starting rotation, Todd Wellemeyer. But the 4 runs - produced on 2 home runs - given up in the first inning had demoralized the Cardinals completely, and there was no way to claw back. The five pitchers used combined their stats to give up 20 hits, 10 runs and an ERA of 31.50. Carpenter was handed the loss in this pathetic outing. The offense struggled as well, getting only 6 hits and 2 runs. The RBIs were awarded to Julio Lugo, who brought home Brendan Ryan with a Sac Fly, and Ryan Ludwick, whose RBI double allowed Matt Holliday to get to the plate. Slugging MVP Albert Pujols went 0 for 4 in the game, and the Cardinals seem to be in for a lot of trouble early in the season, unless they can turn it around real quick. Tony LaRussa and his coaching staff better have these guys ready for tomorrow's game, if they want to have any hope of winning this series against the Pirates. The starting pitchers will be Adam Wainwright for the Cardinals, and Paul Maholm for the Pirates.

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
PIT	4	0	0	5	0	1	0	0	0	10	20	0
STL	0	0	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	2	6	1

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Oh and by the way, I'm still learning to use the HTML code properly, so expect the layout to get better as the journal goes along.

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Busch Stadium April 7,2009
	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Pittsburgh	0	0	0	0	1	0	2	0	0	3	7	1
St. Louis	3	0	6	0	0	2	0	0	X	11	17	0

CARDS STRIKE BACK, PUMMEL PIRATES



Albert Pujols got his first hit and homerun in Game 2 against the Pirates

NOTABLES
Pujols: 1-3, HR, 2 BB
DeRosa: 3-4, 2 HR
Holliday: 2-4, HR, 3 RBI
Wainwright: 7 IP, 5 SO, 3.86 ERA

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Pittsburgh 5, St. Louis 3

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
PIT (2-1)	0	0	0	0	0	2	0	3	0		5	6	2
STL (1-2)	0	1	0	1	0	1	0	0	0		3	7	0

W: L: SV:

S. Jackson 1-0 K. McClellan 0-1 M. Capps 1

April 8, 2009 | Busch Stadium

BULLPEN FAILS TO SEAL THE DEAL, CARDINALS DROP GAME 3

APRIL 8, 2009--It seemed like the Cardinals would move to 2-1, as their bullpen was providing some solid innigs, following Tony LaRussa's decision to pull starting pitcher Joel Pineiro from the game in the 7th inning. Dennys Reyes followed with a masterful job of retiring the 2 batters that he had to face in order to get three outs, and it seemed like Kyle McClellan would also do a fine job, as he retired the first two to face him at the plate.

But then came Andrew McCutchen, who drew the walk, followed by Ryan Doumit, who singled. Lastings Milledge sealed the deal by crushing the ball for a homer, and the Redbirds saw the Pirates take the lead for the first time in the game.

After Albert Pujols got on base with a walk in the 8th, St. Louis still harbored some hope of getting back into the ballgame, with power hitters Matt Holliday, Ryan Ludwick and Rick Ankiel following. Both of them struck out, forcing the Cardinals out of the inning. Rick Ankiel - who had all three RBIs for the team, also grounded out in 9th, and the game was over.

At best, the Cardinals can tie the series tomorrow, and face their next opponent - the Houston Astros - with a .500 record.

Pittsburgh Pirates
Hitters	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
A. McCutchen, CF	3	1	0	0	1	1	.250
G. Jones, LF	3	1	0	0	0	2	.083
R. Doumit, C	4	2	2	2	0	1	.307
L. Milledge, RF	4	1	2	3	0	1	.538
A. LaRoche, 3B	4	0	2	0	0	0	.538
S. Pearce, 1B	4	0	0	0	0	1	.333
R. Vazquez, 2B	4	0	0	0	0	1	.307
R. Cedeno, SS	4	0	0	0	0	0	.250
R. Ohlendorf, P	2	0	0	0	0	0	.000
J. Jaramillo, PH	1	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Totals	33	5	6	5	1	7

Pittsburgh Pirates
Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	ERA
R. Ohlendorf	6.0	6	3	3	1	5	4.50
S. Jackson W 1-0	1.0	1	0	0	0	0	5.40
J. Hanrahan H 1	1.0	0	0	0	1	0	0.00
M. Capps SV 1	1.0	0	0	0	0	0	0.00
Totals	9.0	7	3	3	2	5

St. Louis Cardinals
Hitters	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
S. Schumaker, 2B	4	0	0	0	0	0	.000
M. DeRosa, 3B	0	0	0	0	0	0	.416
A. Pujols, 1B	3	1	1	0	1	1	.200
M. Holliday, LF	4	0	0	0	0	2	.333
R. Ludwick, RF	3	2	2	0	1	0	.583
R. Ankiel, CF	4	0	3	3	0	0	.333
Y. Molina, C	4	0	0	0	0	2	.083
B. Ryan, SS	4	0	1	0	0	0	.363
J. Pineiro, P	2	0	0	0	0	0	.000
C. Rasmus, PH	1	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Totals	33	3	7	3	2	5

St. Louis Cardinals
Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	ERA
J. Pineiro	6.1	4	2	2	1	6	2.84
D. Reyes H 1	0.2	0	0	0	0	0	0.00
K. McClellan L	1.0	2	3	3	0	1	9.00
T. Wellemeyer	1.0	0	0	0	0	0	3.37
Totals	9.0	6	5	5	1	7

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Pittsburgh 5, St. Louis 6

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
PIT (2-2)	0	0	0	1	0	0	1	3	0		5	9	1
STL (2-2)	0	0	2	0	0	3	0	1	X		6	12	0

W: L: SV:

J. Kinney 1-0 J. Hanrahan 0-1 R. Franklin 1

April 9, 2009 | Busch Stadium

BULLPEN ALMOST BLOWS IT AGAIN, BUT FRANKLIN SAVES THE DAY



April 9, 2009--The St. Louis Cardinals almost allowed another comeback by divisional opponent Pittsburgh Pirates, but this time the offense managed to produce the go-ahead run in the 8th inning, and Ryan Franklin picked up save number one on the year, as the Redbirds improved to 2-2 to finish the series. The man of the moment was - for a second game in a row - outfielder Rick Ankiel, who went 3-for-4 with a double and an RBI.

Jason Motte and Josh Kinney allowed three runs in the 8th inning, but Ankiel managed to bring in Albert Pujols with an RBI single when it was St. Louis' turn to bat, leaving closer Ryan Franklin with the task of sealing the deal.

Starting pitcher Kyle Lohse also had a nice game, pitching 7 innings with 5 strikeouts and an ERA of 2.57. He also had an RBI single.

Next up is another home series, against the Houston Astros.

Pittsburgh Pirates
Hitters	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
A. McCutchen, CF	4	0	1	0	0	1	.250
G. Jones, LF	4	0	0	0	0	2	.063
R. Doumit, C	4	2	2	1	0	0	.352
L. Milledge, RF	4	1	1	2	0	1	.470
A. LaRoche, 3B	4	0	2	1	0	1	.529
S. Pearce, 1B	4	1	2	0	0	0	.375
R. Vasquez, 2B	3	0	0	1	0	0	.250
D. Young, PH	1	0	0	0	0	0	.000
R. Cedeno, SS	4	0	0	0	0	1	.187
C. Morton, P	2	0	0	0	0	2	.000
B. Moss, PH	1	1	1	0	0	0	.500
Totals	35	5	9	5	0	8
BATTING 2B: LaRoche, Moss 3B: Pearce HR: Milledge RBI: Doumit, Milledge 2, LaRoche, Vasquez GIDP: Cedeno
BASERUNNING
FIELDING E: LaRoche

Pittsburgh Pirates
Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	PC-ST	ERA
C. Morton	5.2	7	5	4	2	1		6.35
S. Jackson	0.2	3	0	0	0	0		4.50
J. Chavez	0.2	0	0	0	0	0		0.00
J. Hanrahan L 0-1	0.2	2	1	1	1	0		2.70
K. Hart	0.1	0	0	0	0	0		8.10
Totals	8.0	12	6	5	3	1
PITCHING

St. Louis Cardinals
Hitters	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
S. Schumaker, 2B	3	0	1	1	1	0	.142
M. DeRosa, 3B	4	0	1	0	0	1	.375
A. Pujols, 1B	4	1	2	0	0	0	.285
M. Holliday, LF	4	0	0	0	0	0	.250
R. Ludwick, RF	4	0	1	0	0	0	.500
R. Ankiel, CF	4	2	3	1	0	0	.437
Y. Molina, C	3	1	1	0	1	0	.133
B. Ryan, SS	3	1	1	1	1	0	.357
K. Lohse, P	3	1	1	1	0	0	.333
C. Rasmus, PH	1	0	1	1	0	0	.500
Totals	33	6	12	5	3	1
BATTING 2B: DeRosa, Ankiel HR: Ryan RBI: Schumaker, Ankiel, Ryan, Lohse, Rasmus SF: Schumaker GIDP: Pujols
BASERUNNING
FIELDING

St. Louis Cardinals
Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	PC-ST	ERA
K. Lohse	7.0	5	2	2	0	5		2.57
J. Motte H 1	0.2	2	2	2	0	2		10.80
J. Kinney W 1-0	0.1	1	1	1	0	1		7.71
R. Franklin SV 1	1.0	1	0	0	0	0		0.00
Totals	9.0	9	5	5	0	8
PITCHING

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Houston 2, St. Louis 1

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
HOU (2-2)	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	1	0		2	10	0
STL (2-3)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1		1	9	0

W: L: SV:

B. Moehler 1-0 M. Boggs 0-1 J. Valverde 1

April 10, 2009 | Busch Stadium


OFFENSE STRUGGLES AS BIRDS FALL TO ASTROS



APRIL 10, 2009--Again the Cardinals held the game close. They didn't let their opponent get too far away as Mitchell Boggs was doing a terrific job in his first major league start, and after he started giving up hits, Todd Wellemeyer stepped in and continued with the same rhythm. But this time it wasn't enough, as the Redbirds went on to lose to the Houston Astros, another NL Central rival, 2-1. Julio Lugo brought in Rick Ankiel in the ninth, but pinch hitter Colby Rasmus wasn't able to keep the rally going, and the Cardinals had to succumb to their third loss of the season.

On a positive note, Albert Pujols seems to be finding his swing, as he got another hit today. Now we're just waiting for those RBIs and home runs that we know the man is capable of. Same goes for Matt Holliday, who's been in a slump for the last two games.

Houston Astros
Hitters	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
K. Matsui, 2B	4	0	1	0	0	0	.176
M. Tejada, SS	5	0	0	0	0	0	.235
L. Berkman, 1B	4	0	1	0	0	0	.250
C. Lee, LF	4	0	0	0	0	0	.313
H. Pence, RF	3	2	2	0	1	0	.187
I. Rodriguez, C	4	0	3	1	0	0	.286
G. Blum, 3B	3	0	2	0	0	0	.643
M. Bourn, CF	4	0	1	1	0	0	.308
B. Moehler, P	3	0	0	0	0	2	.000
D. Erstad, PH	1	0	0	0	0	1	.000
Totals	35	2	10	2	1	3
BATTING 2B: Rodriguez, Pence RBI: Rodriguez, Bourn GIDP: Tejada, Bourn
BASERUNNING
FIELDING

Houston Astros
Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	PC-ST	ERA
B. Moehler W 1-0	7.2	8	0	0	1	5		0.00
D. Brocail H 1	0.1	0	0	0	0	1		9.00
J. Valverde SV 1	1.0	1	1	1	0	0		9.00
Totals	9.0	9	1	1	1	6
PITCHING

St. Louis Cardinals
Hitters	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	AVG
S. Schumaker, 2B	4	0	1	0	0	1	.182
M. DeRosa, 3B	4	0	2	0	0	0	.400
A. Pujols, 1B	3	0	1	0	1	0	.294
M. Holliday, LF	4	0	2	0	0	1	.300
R. Ludwick, RF	4	0	0	0	0	2	.400
R. Ankiel, CF	4	1	2	0	0	0	.450
Y. Molina, C	4	0	1	0	0	0	.158
J. Lugo, SS	4	0	0	1	0	0	.154
M. Boggs, P	1	0	0	0	0	0	.000
T. Wellemeyer, P	2	0	0	0	0	2	.000
C. Rasmus, PH	1	0	0	0	0	0	.333
Totals	35	1	9	1	1	6
BATTING 2B: Schumaker, Ankiel RBI: Lugo GIDP: Ankiel
BASERUNNING
FIELDING

St. Louis Cardinals
Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	PC-ST	ERA
M. Boggs L 0-1	4.0	6	1	1	1	2		2.25
T. Wellemeyer	5.0	4	1	1	0	1		2.35
Totals	9.0	10	2	2	1	3
PITCHING