The Royals wrap up their California road trip this weekend with a three game series with Oakland.  With the Tigers getting their series with the red hot Rangers off to a humiliating start, this could be a great chance for the Royals to close the one game lead in the American League Central.  Here are the matchups by the numbers.

The A’s are coming off of a losing series against the Rangers.  They were out scored in that series by only a single run.  In 42 games, the A’s have scored 199 runs for an average of close to 5 runs a game.  Strangely enough, the number of runs scored against the A’s is an identical 199.  If the Royals can contain Oakland’s offense this weekend they are sure to like where they sit in the rankings come Monday morning.

Friday:

James Shields gets the start for the Royals.  Shields took the loss in his last game against the Yankees and a no decision against the White Sox.  Both were tough losses for the Royals as Shields only allowed 2 runs to New York and none at all to the Sox.  Shields has struck out close to a batter an inning and owns a 0.97 WHIP.  Look for Big Game James to keep the Oakland offense in check on Friday night.

The A’s will send Jarrod Parker to the hill on Friday to face Shields.  Parker has been pretty terrible thus far.  His only wins so far this year have only come when his team has provided great run support behind him such as his 10-6 win against the Angles.  His ERA is approaching 7 and has been allowing close to 2 base runners an inning.  If Parker turns this around on Friday it will be surprising.

Saturday:

Ervin Santana will start for the Royals.  Santana is coming off of a disappointing game against the Yankees giving up 8 hits, 2 of which were home runs.  The long ball can at times be Santana’s biggest weakness and as mentioned before, the A’s can hit.  Fortunately, the Coliseum is a pitcher friendly park and should help Santana keep in on the field.

Santana will face off against Tommy Milone.  Milone has been pretty hit or miss so far this year.  His ERA is a deceiving 3.71.  He has surrendered 13 earned runs in his last 5 starts, however in two of those starts he shut his opponents down completely.  The Royals hope they get the Tommy Milone that gives up an earned run per inning and not the Tommy Milone that gives up none at all.

Sunday:

Luis Mendoza gets the start on Sunday.  Mendoza has had a rough year so far.  Unlike Santana, his troubles extend past giving up home runs.  Mendoza has given up lots of hits as well as the occasional walk and he has yet to pitch past the 6^th inning.  The Royals are going to have to provide Mendoza with a lot of run support to keep this game in control.

Run support could be hard to come by though as A.J. Griffin will be starting for the A’s on Sunday.  Griffin posted a 3.06 ERA last year and has looked sharp so far.  His 3.48 ERA this year is somewhat bloated thanks to one horrendous start against the Red Sox where he gave up 7 runs in 4 innings.  The Royals will have to try to get to Griffin early for the finale of the series.

Welcome to a new feature on I70 Baseball, the Royals Power Rankings. Each week we’ll rank the top five Royals in 2013 with a heavy emphasis on their performance in the past seven days. Just moments ago, Alex Gordon topped a 4-1 week with a walk off hit in the tenth inning. The club now sits at 17-10, on pace for 102 victories. As awesome as Gordon’s hit was, the week belonged to Lorenzo Cain, who continues to be the best hitter on the club in 2012.

#5 James Shields- Big Game James was brought in to be the ace and I seriously doubt the Royals thought his 3.00 ERA would rank third on the starting staff more than a month into the season. Shields picked up a victory off his old team with a gutsy performance on Tuesday night. After surrendering two runs in the first, Shields proceeded to pitch six shutout innings and notch his second victory of the season. It was the third time this season Shields has pitched 6+ innings and given up two runs of less.

#4 Alex Gordon- Sunday’s big hit aside, it was a rough week for the Royals’ left fielder. Gordon was 3/23 on the week before his 10^th inning stroke and saw his average slide from .337 to .303 this week. Still, he leads the team with 20 RBI and is tied for the team lead in both home runs (3) and doubles (6)

#3 Jeremy Guthrie- The performance of the week goes to Guthrie for his complete game shutout of the White Sox on Saturday night. Guthrie completely owns the Sox, and has now gone a club-record 17 straight starts without a loss. Guthrie hasn’t given up a run in his last two starts.

#2 Ervin Santana- The official stats will tell you that Ervin Santana didn’t even pitch last week, but of course we all know that’s not true. Santana continued his dominance on Thursday afternoon before a snow out erased his efforts. To say Santana has been great this year would be underselling it. He’s struck out 31 batters in 36 innings and sports a 2.00 ERA.

#1 Lorenzo Cain- Cain was one of the biggest question marks heading into the 2013 campaign and so far he’s been incredible. He leads the club with a .341 average and didn’t do anything to hurt that this week. We was 8/20 with five runs scored and five RBI on the week (including the only two RBI in the team’s 2-0 win on Saturday night. Through five weeks Cain has been the best player on the team and one of the best in the league.

Honorable mention: Bruce Chen- Chen picked up his second victory of the season with two shutout innings against the Rays on Wednesday night. Chen has now made five appearances out of the pen without allowing an earned run. Perhaps more impressively, he’s struck out 11 batters in only 9 2/3 innings.

The biggest move of the winter took center stage on Opening Day for the Kansas City Royals.  No longer a team that is rebuilding, David Glass and company took steps this off-season to become contenders.

The top prospect in the organization was packaged away in order to get the one thing the Royals felt they needed more than anything else: a pitcher that could truly be an ace.  In addition, they got a pitcher who possesses the nickname to define his role with the club.  Welcome to 2013 Royals baseball, let us introduce “Big Game” James Shields.

Opening Day showed the fans exactly what they wanted to see.  Shields took the mound and pitched like the ace that he is.  He got in small bits of trouble, refused to be shook up about it, and fought out of the jams.  He struck out six batters without issuing a single free pass.  He battled, giving up eight hits and still managed to pitch six innings.  He showed Royals fans that he was exactly as advertised.

Aaron Crow and Kelvin Herrera furthered what fans already knew.  The rebuilt rotation would be supported by the strength of the team the last few years: the bullpen.  They were not perfect, but the were close enough.  Three strikeouts, one walk, and two innings later, the Royals pitching staff had put the team in a great position to win a baseball game.  With the exception of one poor pitch from their starter, the Royals were great.  All they needed was two runs to win the game.

That, on the other hand, proved to be difficult.  White Sox starter Chris Sale was Shields-like in his own right.  He scattered hits, kept guys off the bases, and stayed out of trouble.  He went deep into the game and then allowed his bullpen to close the door.  The Royals had their chances, but simply could not deliver.  Ultimately, it came down to the top of the ninth inning with the potential game-tying run sitting in scoring position at second base.  Eric Hosmer had drawn a walk and stole second, trying to ignite something to happen.

Jeff Francoeur grounded out weakly to the shortstop, unable to beat out a possible infield single and drawing the curtain on the first game of the season.

Do not fret, Royals fans, this offense will not sputter like this frequently.  If Shields continues to give up one run per outing, he will find himself winning a lot of games in Royals blue.

But for one day, at the beginning of the 2013 campaign, it sure felt a lot like deja vu.

Bill Ivie is the editor here at i70baseball.
You can follow him on Twitter by clicking here.

With the Hall Of Fame election announcement coming on January 9, 2013, it is time to review the ballot, go over the names, and decide who belongs in the Hall Of Fame.

There are twenty four men on the ballot for the first time this year and we will take a look at each one individually prior to official announcements. You can find all of the profiles in the I-70 Baseball Exclusives: Cooperstown Choices 2013 menu at the top of the page.

In this article, we take a look at Curt Schilling

Why He Should Get In
Schilling’s case is one that is defined by his performance in big games and the postseason.  While most of his regular season stats put him as a borderline hall of famer, his postseason numbers are seldom rivaled.  With a 11-2 record, a 2.23 earned run average, an average of over 7 innings per start, a WHIP below one and a strikeout per nine innings over eight, his postseason prowess will have many clamoring for his induction based on the postseason alone.

Why He Should Not Get In
Yes, he was a huge pitcher in the postseason and had monumental success on the biggest stage.  That being said, he does not have the hardware to back up his claim to Cooperstown.  Finishing second multiple times for the Cy Young Award simply makes him the second best pitcher during those seasons.  According to Baseball-Reference, he ranks as a slighly above the average hall of fame pitcher (according to the Jaffe WAR Score System).  However, advanced statistics have yet to play a large influence on hall of fame voters.

Bill Ivie is the editor here at I-70 Baseball
Follow him on Twitter here.

Our good friends over at Kings of Kauffman posed an interesting question on Twitter. If the Royals were in a one-game, must-win situation, which starting pitcher would you put on the mound? The response thus far has been mostly in support of Bruce Chen, and when I saw that I wondered what criteria their followers had for making the selection. Not that I necessarily thought Chen was wrong, but were they just picking him because he’d been the Royals most reliable and (and by virtue of the others’ lows) best pitcher? Is that what you want in a one-game, must-win situation? I’m not so sure.

If I’m facing a must-win situation, I want the guy with the highest ceiling, almost regardless of his floor. Theoretically, in a must-win situation nearly everyone is available, so it is fairly easy to circumvent an “off” night from your starter by simply giving someone else a chance. Sure, you have to be ready to have a quick trigger finger, but the reward of a dominant performance outweighs the risk, at least in my mind. That being said, which Royals starter has the highest one-game upside heading into 2012? Let’s take a look:

For the purposes of this study I did not consider anyone with less than a full season at the major league level. That rules out phenoms Mike Montgomery, Jake Odorizzi, and even Danny Duffy. One of them may very well turn into the best pitcher on the club, but for now it would be ridiculous to suggest giving the ball to them when it is all on the line. Let’s take a look at the other four probable starters for the Royals, starting with the favorite on Twitter:

Bruce Chen- I certainly do not want to disparage the 2011 Royals Pitcher of the Year. His consistency and, for lack of a better word, craftiness, have been essential to the Royals maintaining some sort of a rotation. That being said, I came into this study expecting that Chen’s ability to dominate a major league lineup was much less than it is. Five times last season Chen pitched 8 innings while allowing one run or less. That is absolutely dominant and far more than I remembered. As impressive as that is, it is important to note that he accomplished against the Mariners, White Sox (twice), and Twins (twice). Those teams ranked 18^th, 25^th, and 30^th in runs scored last season. Furthermore, three of the games came in September, against the Sox and Twins who had absolutely nothing to play for. Chen had accomplished this feat just once before in the last five years and heads into the season as a 34 year old with four career complete games and a 4.52 career ERA (4.28 with the Royals). Surely we have someone more likely of putting up a dominant performance, right?

Felipe Paulino- Okay, I love Paulino, and so does Rany…but let’s not get crazy here. A workhorse he may be, but that has not, to this point, translated into dominant performances. His K/9 innings ratio is outstanding, and good for 6^th in the AL last year, but not quite enough to outweigh his control issues. Does Paulino have the greatest potential amongst Royals starters? Maybe, but the unknown makes him too risky.

Jonathan Sanchez- As the only real splash made by the Royals this offseason I am surprised Sanchez didn’t get more love. He had four of these “dominant” performances in 2010, after posting one each in 2008 and 2009. He is five years younger than Chen, and certainly is regarded to have more “dominant” stuff, at least when he throws strikes. That “when he throws strikes” issue is probably the reason more people didn’t choose him, but is there any more easily assessable problem with pitchers than not having control of the zone?

Luke Hochevar- I may be biased here, because Hochevar is my pick for a breakout performance in 2012, as Cool Hand Luke has lowered his ERA over the last three seasons from 6.55 to 4.68. He is 28 years old and, in my opinion ready for a career year in 2012. Hochevar has been maddeningly inconsistent, and has only thrown four so-called “dominant” starts in the last three years. Still, Hochevar posted a 3.52 ERA from the All-Star Game forward in 2011, allowing opposing hitters to hit just .222 off him. I can certainly understand the argument against him, but I’m betting by June he may be our number one choice, with a bullet.

The bottom line is this is absolutely a subjective choice, and subjectively I would absolutely take Cool Hand Luke in a “one-game must-win situation.” Chen may very well be the “ace” because his consistency makes him the guy you want out there the most often. Sanchez may be the most hyped just because Dayton would like to pump up his new acquisition. But for my money, I’ll take Hochevar when it is all on the line. Disagree? I’d love to here your choice in the comments.

Last August, it was a sweep to remember for the St. Louis Cardinals over the Cincinnati Reds. They came into town in 2 ½ game behind the Reds in the NL Central race…and less than 48 hours later, the team jetted out of town in sole possession of 1^st place. The sleeping “big dog” of the division had seemingly been awoken by the loud mouth of Brandon Phillips, who talked a big game before the series, then backed it up by going hitless in a 3-game dismantling at the hands of the Cardinals.

Most thought it would mark the turning point in the 2010 season for both clubs, but as it turns out, it was the way the two clubs responded to the sweep that made the difference. The Reds went on to win their next 7 games, while the Cardinals won just 1 of their next 6. That 5 ½ game swing was essentially the difference in the season standings as the Reds took the NL Central by 5 games when it was all said and done.

The Cardinals seemingly went from the highest of momentum boosts into an endless free-fall after that series…and it’s really hard to understand why. Matt Holliday played some of his best baseball towards the end of last season. Jaime Garcia, Adam Wainwright, and Chris Carpenter had dominated opposing teams all year. Albert was Albert. How did THAT team sweep the Reds, then win just 10 of its next 31 games?

Perhaps a better question is: “How will the players respond to this latest chapter in their renewed rivalry with the Reds?” Frankly, the Cardinals’ players should be extra motivated this time around. Reds closer Francisco Cordero taunted the dugout after getting the final out of the sweep. Brandon Phillips continues to taunt them. Johnny Cueto still needs to be punished for ending Jason Larue’s career. But the ultimate motivating factor should be this: “There’s nothing more frustrating in life than knowing you’re better than someone, but not getting the desired results.” If some you work with gets a promotion over you, and you think YOU deserve it, that puts a HUGE chip on your shoulder. The Cardinals are better than the Reds, and both teams know it. The Cardinals went 12-6 against Cincinnati last season. They beat the Reds 2 of 3 earlier this season at Busch, a series that would’ve been a sweep had it not been for Ryan Franklin’s continued inability to get people out. They had game 1 of this past series in the bag, only to let another bullpen meltdown do them in. So what if the Reds beat them down Saturday and Sunday? It’s baseball, it happens, you’re not gonna win ‘em all. Cincinnati caught Albert Pujols and Lance Berkman in the middle of slumps. They caught Carp and Kyle McClellan on bad days. Over the long haul, the Cardinals have the better team.

The Cardinals players should already have July 4^th circled on their calendars. That’s the next time they face the Reds…and it’s back home at Busch. This time around, they need to respond with a vengeance. We saw what happened last year… the Cards dropped 21 of their next 31 games. These next few weeks should help us get a true feel for what the 2011 Cardinals are made of.

Had his life spanned a more recent era of Cardinals baseball, Jack Buck’s Hall of Fame speech might’ve included his gratefulness for the arm of Chris Carpenter or Adam Wainwright, and he probably would have touted the bat of Albert Pujols. But I think there’s little doubt that he’d have been thankful for the glove of Jim Edmonds.

Edmonds’ 8 years as a Cardinal provided fans with almost nightly amazement!

I grew up watching Cardinals baseball in the 1980’s, and in doing so developed a love for defense at a very young age. You don’t spend your childhood watching Ozzie Smith win 13 straight gold glove awards and not take notice as to how important solid defensive skills are. Edmonds brought back to the forefront an important piece of the game that, much like bunting for a hit, seems to have faded in recent years: He brought back a focus on defensive excellence.

“80% of the earth’s surface is covered by water, the other 20% is covered by Jim Edmonds.”

That’s one of my favorite sayings, and I grin every time I hear it, because it truly seemed that way–a ball hit into the air & anywhere near centerfield was far from safe. And if you’re thinking of hitting a HR over the 400’ sign on the CF wall, you’d better hit the ball at least 408’, or there’s a good chance Jimmy’s bringing it back! I can recall twice seeing a player on television mouth “Oh my gosh!”. My favorite was Pettitte’s (obviously), but Edmonds did it too…after he amazed even himself by robbing a homerun (in, I believe, Cincinnati). Watching Edmonds made me truly appreciate the Endy Chavez catch–the finest catch I have ever seen…and that coming from a guy who watched Jim Edmonds play every day.

Eight gold glove awards, two top-five finishes in MVP voting, four All-Star appearances, one big game six homerun, and countless catches that left many-a-jaw on St. Louis area floors over the years are just a few of the ways we’ll remember “Jimmy Ballgame”. A member of the “MV3”, Edmonds was no slouch at the plate & could handle the lumber with the best of them. A beautiful left-handed swing, comparable to Griffey Jr, and that famous upper-cut made Edmonds’ stance & swing recognizable to millions.

Oct 20, 2004: Edmonds’ 12th inning HR forces game 7

Towards the end of his career, he bounced around the National League Central division, spending time with the Brewers, Cubs & Reds after he left the Cards & headed to San Diego. If not for “the catch”, it’s possible that some may even forget that Edmonds actually spent seven years in the American League West as an Angel (‘93-’99). But he will be remembered by most for his years in St. Louis as the Cardinals’ centerfielder, and I suspect there would be little question as to which team logo he’d choose to wear on his cap, should he one day enter Cooperstown (a conversation for another time).

For different reasons than his former teammates, Aaron Miles & Scott Spiezio, when Jim Edmonds took the mound this past Thursday, it was for a ceremonial pitch–the first pitch of the 2011 season. He was very well-received by the fans at Busch that afternoon, and I suspect he’ll always be welcomed & appreciated in Cardinal Nation.

Thank you, Jim Edmonds for the memories, the highlights, and for keeping the flame of exciting & superb defense alive for another generation of Cardinals fans!

Many in Cardinal Nation railed against the marginalization and eventual trade of Brendan Ryan. No doubt this was a personnel (personal?) move, not a baseball one. After all, no sane baseball organization would find it fundamentally sound to preach “pitch to contact” to its staff then trade away the best defensive shortstop in the league, right?

But that is exactly what happened, and not because a better shortstop was biding his time in the minors waiting for his opportunity or because the Cards had a new defensive whiz for second base. No, the Cardinals had already acquired their new starting shortstop in Ryan Theriot, and they are keeping Skip Schumaker at second. Theriot and Schumaker are, in many ways, mirror images of each other. They both have the stats to be OK leadoff options. Theriot has a little more speed; Schumaker has a little more pop. And both are considered tough-minded, focused, hard-working gamers.

That’s where Ryan fell short. He was flaky. He talked too much. He was often tardy, whether it would be to practice in Spring Training or the now-famous incident with Chris Carpenter in the middle of a big game in Cincinnati. The Cards were able to win the NL Central in 2009 with him as their starting shortstop, so the “clubhouse cancer” branding can be thrown out the window. But by all accounts, Ryan had become persona non grata with the St. Louis Cardinals—skill set and low salary be damned. The team was simply tired of his act, so they moved him for next to nothing…which is a nicer way of saying they dumped him.

And that’s where they may be disingenuous. David Freese remains penciled in as the starting third baseman and will be given every opportunity to prove himself worthy of the role in 2011. Why does he get yet another chance, while Ryan was shipped to Seattle for a virtually unknown prospect?

Freese has a past that is easily more checkered than Ryan’s. Before the 2009 season, Freese wrecked his car on the way to a fundraiser. The accident injured Freese’s ankle, which would eventually need surgery. Initially some eyebrows were raised when Freese failed to notify the team immediately (his agent called them a couple of days later), but the front office brushed that off as a rookie mistake. Fair enough. Then in December of 2009, Freese was arrested for driving while intoxicated. Freese was given the benefit of doubt, went through counseling, and remained the heir apparent to the starting job at third for the 2010 season. But only a couple of months in, Freese injured his other ankle during a game. Injuries happen, right? And this was only a bruise, nothing serious. That is until he dropped a weight on his foot while rehabbing, which led to another surgery and ended his season.

So on one hand we have Ryan, the starting shortstop for two seasons (plus significant time in two more). He has never proven to be much with the bat, but he is near the top of the league defensively. And his personality was just too much for the team to handle, so they willingly accepted a downgrade in the field to unload him and his goofy, distracting presence.

On the other hand we have Freese, who has survived the last two seasons on potential alone. When healthy he plays well, though not well enough to survive the stellar 2009 platoon of Joe Thurston and Brian Barden. In 2010 no one stood in his way and he only managed to stay on the field for 70 games. Freese has had multiple ankle surgeries; is it too soon to attach the “injury-prone” label? What about dropping a weight on his foot; is that just bad luck or a lapse in concentration/attention? And yes, everyone makes mistakes, but the DWI is still a serious lapse in judgment…more so than being a minute or two late to take the field, one would think.

The team has done little to address depth issues like they had at third base in 2010. If Freese is unable to contribute a full season yet again and Ryan makes noise as the Seattle Mariners’ starting shortstop in 2011, the Cardinals will need to seriously reevaluate what they believe to be a detrimental presence in the clubhouse.

Chris Reed is a freelance writer from Belleville, IL who also writes about the Cardinals for InsideSTL on Mondays and Bird Brained whenever he wants. Follow him on Twitter @birdbrained.

On October 3rd, Jeff Suppan made his last 2010 start for the St Louis Cardinals. It may also have been his last start in the majors. Suppan was a key figure in the last Cardinal title run, so as he rides into that sunset here’s an appreciation of his time as a Cardinal.

Suppan was drafted right out of high school in 1993 (second round), but by the time the Cardinals signed him as a free agent 10 years later, he had bounced around on 4 different teams. He was primarily known as an innings eater, having thrown 200+ innings in his previous 5 seasons. He would thrive, however, in St Louis.

2004 – Beginnings

Based solely on won/loss record, 2004 was the finest season of Suppan’s career. The most remarkable thing about this season was his success on the road. The Cardinals lost only 2 of his 14 road starts; in one of those losses, he allowed 1 run in 8 innings. He continued his magic in the post-season, beating Los Angeles in Los Angeles to clinch the NLDS. The only team to best him when the Cardinals were a visitor turned out to be Houston. They handed him his only regular season road loss on 29 Sept, then beat him in NLCS Game 3 17 days later. Suppan also started Game 7 of that series, and appeared to be on his way to a bitter loss until Jim Edmonds’ spectacular diving catch robbed Brad Ausmus, snuffing out a second inning rally. Suppan held Houston in check over the next 4 innings (1 unearned run), and the Cardinals rallied to win the game and the series.

The World Series was forgettable for Cardinal fans, and probably Suppan too, especially after he got caught off third in the third inning of Game 3 to kill a rally, then gave up 3 runs over the next 1 2/3 innings. However, his reputation as a big-game starter was beginning.

2005 – Building

Statistically this was Suppan’s finest season. He won the same number of games as he had in 2004, but his ERA was a half-run better (his FIP was almost the same, 4.77 in 2004 and 4.53 in 2005), and his ERA+ was a career best 119 over the full season. Jeff did not post the gaudy road record he did in 2004 (9-5; how pedestrian), but his ERA improved by almost a run and a half on the road. Jeff was superb down the stretch everywhere, going 7-3 with a 2.78 ERA the second half of the season. From 31 August to the end of the season he gave up 1 ER or less in 5 of his 6 starts. He only got one post-season start – Game 4 of the NLCS in Houston – and he continued the trend, allowing 1 ER in his 5 innings. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, Brendan Backe was just as good, and the Cardinals eventually lost the game 2-1. Houston would go on to win the National League pennant.

Still, Suppan had been very good over the season, and had pitched well in his lone post-season opportunity, setting the stage for the 2006 campaign.

2006 – Breakout

Suppan statistically was the second best Cardinal starter in 2006 behind Chris Carpenter. His 12 wins were second most on the club. His 4.12 ERA was second lowest, and his FIP of 4.66 was third lowest amongst the starters (Mark Mulder posted a 4.49 FIP before his arm troubles started). His season mirrored his 2005 campaign. He struggled mightily in the first half (6-5, 5,83), but dominated in the second (6-2, 2.39). He did continue a trend of struggle on the road, however, posting an ERA of almost 6 in 15 road starts, and getting cuffed around to the tune of a .331 BABIP.

His regular season, however, is not what cemented his legacy in St Louis. It was that October. He began badly, losing the only game the Cardinals dropped to San Diego in the NLDS. After that, he became a dynamo. Suppan threw 8 shutout innings in Game 3 of the NLCS, beating the Mets and giving the Cardinals a 2-1 series lead. In Game 7, he allowed two hits, a walk, and a run in the first, then threw six no-hit innings. He did walk 4, two in a highly adventurous sixth inning which saw the Mets load the bases with one out (the other runner reaching on a rare throwing error by Scott Rolen). He struck out Jose Valentin and enticed Endy Chavez to fly harmlessly to center, ending the threat. Yadier Molina’s HR, and Adam Wainwright’s curveball, gave St Louis the win and the pennant. It is, however, no understatement to say without the start Jeff put together for seven innings, the stage would not have been set for those ninth inning heroics. Jeff was named the MVP of the NLCS for his two superlative starts.

His World Series Game 4 win is almost an afterthought, but it gave the Cardinals a 3 games to 1 lead. St Louis would win the title the next night.

Aftermath

Suppan would cash in on his three great years with the Cardinals, but it would not be St Louis who paid him. He signed as a free agent with Milwaukee. Sadly he did not continue to show the form he had displayed the previous 3 seasons. Ultimately he was banished to the bullpen this season, then released. He came back to the Cardinals mid-season. He didn’t recapture his 2004-2006 form, and statistically he was the same pitcher in St Louis as he was with the Brewers, but he did find a small measure of success down the stretch for the Cardinals.

Jeff is due $12.75M in 2011, with a $2M buyout clause. That is considered by many too much for the Cardinals to carry with their current roster configuration, so most expect the club to exercise the buyout. He’s pitched 15 years in the majors and is on the back slope of his career, which is why there might not be much interest in his services. Cardinal fans should remember that, for the 2004-2006 teams, Jeff Suppan was one of the most reliable starters we had, and his 2006 post-season performance made him one of the unlikeliest heroes in Cardinal history.