Springfield, MO – The St. Louis Cardinals have announced that Cardinals 1B Matt Adams will join the Springfield Cardinals on a rehab assignment this Friday through Sunday.
Springfield hosts the Tulsa Drillers at Hammons Field on Saturday and Sunday, both starting at 6:09 p.m. Click below to get your tickets right now.
Adams, 24, started the 2013 season in St. Louis and is hitting .542 (13-for-24) with three home runs and eight RBIs through eight games with the Cardinals. The Philipsburg, PA native made his Major League debut on May 20, 2012 and appeared in 27 games with the Cardinals last year.
Adams spent the entire 2011 season with the Springfield Cardinals, compiling a .300 batting average with 32 home runs and 101 RBIs through 115 games en route to being named the 2011 Texas League Player of the Year. He was originally selected by St. Louis in the 23rd round of the 2009 June Draft out of Slippery Rock University (PA).
Phillip Wellman, the hitting coach of the Springfield Cardinals, once had a monumental tirade on a baseball field.
That tirade has made it’s rounds on the internet and television for many, many years. It resurfaced around the Cardinal corner of the internet a few years ago when Wellman was named the hitting coach for the Double A franchise.
Not sure what I am talking about? Here you go:
Fast forward a few years and, thanks to Volkswagen and a Super Bowl Ad, and Wellman has found new life for an old tirade.
The following commercial ran during the 2013 Super Bowl. At the :20 mark, we see a brief clip of the above “highlight” and by the 1:08 mark, he’s tossing bases around the grassy hill.
Don’t worry, I will always keep a look out for a little Cardinal baseball, even during the Super Bowl.
Bill Ivie is the editor here at I-70 Baseball Follow him on Twitter here.
ST. LOUIS, January 13, 2013 – The St. Louis Cardinals are urging fans attending this weekend’s Winter Warm-Up (#WWU) to donate a baseball glove in support of the “Gloves 4 Troops” effort organized by Cardinals minor league infielder Vance Albitz who hopes to collect at least a thousand baseball gloves and balls by Spring Training 2013.
“This is a great opportunity to support our troops while also helping kids in our community,” said Michael Hall, Vice-President of Community Relations and Executive Director of Cardinals Care. “We are inspired by Vance’s selfless efforts and want to do our part to help him achieve his goal.”
Cardinals Care, with the help of Rawlings, will have a number of collection bins set up as fans enter the 17th Annual Warm-Up at the Hyatt Regency St. Louis at the Arch. Fans are encouraged to donate gently used gloves and balls. Cardinals Care has enlisted the support of the local chapter of Hope for Heroes of the Epsilon Sigma Alpha organization at Scott Air Force Base to assist with the delivery of the gloves to the troops deployed oversees.
“Gloves 4 Troops” (#Gloves4Troops) is a volunteer effort organized by Albitz, an infielder with the Springfield Cardinals, who has already collected over 200 gloves. Fans can learn more at www.gloves4troops.com .
The highly-anticipated annual Winter Warm-Up takes place Saturday, January 19 through Monday, January 21, 2013 (Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day). The event times are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Monday. Fans may still purchase passes for the three day event at www.cardinals.com/winterwarmup.
Cardinals Care was established to give fans a way of teaming up with Cardinals players and the Cardinals organization to help children in our community – both on and off the baseball field. Since it was established 16 years ago, Cardinals Care has invested nearly $18 million in helping children, including providing nearly $11 million in grants to over 800 non-profit youth organizations, and building 19 youth ball fields in neighborhoods in both Missouri and Illinois. For nearly a decade, Cardinals Care has run the innovative Redbird Rookies program, a free baseball league for kids who otherwise might not have the opportunity to play. In addition to providing all the uniforms, gloves, bats, balls and other equipment needed for each team, Redbird Rookies also provides extensive off-field support in the areas of health, education, mentoring and the cultural arts for each of the nearly 4,500 kids who participate in the program each year.
Springfield Cardinals Named Team of the Year Baseball America Tabs Springfield as Top Minor League Team in 2012
November 30th, 2012
Springfield, MO – The Springfield Cardinals have been named by Baseball America as the Minor League Team of the Year in 2012.
Springfield captured their first Texas League Crown by defeating the Tulsa Drillers in the North Division Finals in five games before besting the Frisco RoughRiders in four games.
The St. Louis Cardinals Double-A Affiliate was littered with talent including seven of the Top 30 prospects according Baseball America and Texas League Player of the Year, Oscar Taveras. The 20-year-old outfielder was the first Springfield player to lead the league in batting average (.321), doubles (37), extra-base hits (67) and total bases (273) while finishing in the top five in home runs (23), RBI (93), runs scored (83), triples (7) and slugging percentage (.572).
The Cardinals boasted five Post-Season All-Stars including Taveras, second baseman Kolten Wong, and pitchers Trevor Rosenthal, Keith Butler and Seth Maness.
“We are honored to be named the 2012 Team of the Year by Baseball America,” Vice President and General Manager Matt Gifford said. “This is a tremendous honor for arguably one of the best teams in Springfield Cardinals history. It’s a tribute to player development and the coaching staff for putting together a great club and to the players for their hard work throughout a long season.”
First year Double-A Manager Mike Shildt guided the Cardinals to a 35-35 record in the first half before the team hit their stride in the second half, winning the North Division Second Half crown with a 42-26 record. Overall, Springfield finished a franchise best 77-61, the best record in the North and third best record in the league. For Shildt, the 2012 title was his third straight after capturing back to back Appalachian League titles in 2010 and 2011 with Johnson City.
Springfield will open up the 2013 season on the road in Corpus Christi April 4th before returning home to Hammons Field April 11th for a six-game homestand against the Hooks and San Antonio Missions. Season Ticket Packages are on sale now. Please call (417) 863-0395 or visit www.springfieldcardinals.com for more details on how you can become a season ticket holder.
The Springfield Cardinals have been down more than up this year and frustrations are not far behind.
New manager Mike Shildt, who took over for Ron “Pop” Warner after Pop was promoted to Memphis to manage the Tripe-A Redbirds, took exception to a call in a game against the Northwest Arkansas Naturals on 5/11. An argument ensued and Shildt would not let it die for a good while. Unfortunately, before all was said and done, he flipped his helmet into the field of play. The bigger problem was that the umpire stood between him and the location he was flipping the helmet to.
Very seldom does throwing equipment come out as a good idea. Check out the video below, provided by our friends at Rambling Morons.
Bill Ivie is the editor here at I-70 Baseball He is the host of I-70 Radio, hosted every week on BlogTalkRadio. Follow him on Twitter here.
The Double-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals, the Northwest Arkansas Naturals, experienced the joy of participating in one of baseball’s truly rare moments, the no-hitter. The Double-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals experienced the agony of being on the receiving end.
The following press releases were sent in to the i70 mailbox from the two teams.
SPRINGDALE, AR- The Northwest Arkansas Naturals (17-16) got the second no-hitter in franchise history topping the Springfield Cardinals 2-0 on Thursday night at Arvest Ballpark. The no-hitter was the first in the history of Arvest Ballpark, and the second for the Naturals, the last coming on July 19, 2011 at North Little Rock.
Greg Holland was brilliant in his second major league rehab start. He used just 14 pitches to strikeout the side in order. The Naturals offense wasted not time getting to Cardinals (14-19) starter Trevor Rosenthal (2-4) getting three consecutive singles to start the game. The last one was an RBI single from Wil Myers to give the Naturals a 1-0 lead. Rosenthal was able to get Mario Lisson to ground into a force out and strike out Eric Duncan to strand runners on second and third. The Naturals offense tacked on a second run in the bottom of the fourth inning when Julio Rodriguez smacked an RBI single to right field to score Duncan making it 2-0.
Chris Dwyer (2-4) came in the second inning and picked up right where Holland left off. Dwyer worked six and two thirds inning without allowing a hit walking two and hitting one batter. Brendan Lafferty came on and kept the no-hit bid alive getting Kolten Wong to fly out to Paulo Orlando just one step in front of the fence.
Kendal Volz got Jermaine Curtis to line out to Colon at short to get the first out of the ninth inning. Cardinals top prospect Oscar Taveras grounded out to second base for the second out. Kyle Conley stepped to the plate as the last chance for the Cardinals and he grounded out to shortstop to complete the no-hitter.
Naturals No-Hit Cardinals in 2-0 Loss Springfield Suffers First No-Hitter in Franchise History
Springfield, MO –After a tremendous eight-game homestand which saw the Cardinals go 6-2, the Springfield squad embarked on yet another eight-game road trip beginning with four in NW Arkansas against the Naturals.
The last time away from Hammons Field the Cardinals went 0-8 and set a franchise record for most consecutive road losses in a row; they looked to snap that stretch Thursday night with Trevor Rosenthal on the mound. The Naturals countered with Major League Rehabber Greg Holland for an inning then lefty Chris Dwyer, coming off a start in which he allowed 10 runs to Springfield.
After a quick top of the first, Rosenthal battled through to bottom of the inning. After allowing three straight singles, including an RBI single by Wil Myers, the Naturals had a 1-0 lead. The righty settled down however to retire the next three batters to limit the damage to just the one run.
The Naturals added another run in the 4th as former Springfield Cardinal Eric Duncan singled, stole second with two outs and scored on an RBI single by Julio Rodriguez to grab a 2-0 lead. Rosenthal would leave after just 4.1 innings and gave way to Kevin Thomas with a runner at second and one out. Thomas would strikeout the next two batters to keep the game 2-0 after five.
Springfield had their first real scoring chance in the 6th with two outs after a hit by pitch and a walk brought Oscar Taveras to the plate, but the Cardinals’ centerfielder flied out to shallow center field to retire the side.
Chris Dwyer was dominant for the Naturals pitching 6.2 innings of no-hit ball while striking out five and walking just two. After a two out walk in the 8th, Dwyer gave way to Brendan Lafferty. Kolten Wong was able to get good wood on the ball, but flied out to the wall in right field keeping the Cardinals out of the hit column.
In the 9th, closer Kendal Volz retired the Cardinals in order to complete the second no-hitter in Naturals history. It was the first time in Springfield’s history that they were no-hit.
The Redbirds will continue their four-game set against the NW Arkansas Naturals Friday night at 7:30pm. Michael Blazek will start for Springfield against Jake Odorizzi of the Naturals.
SPRINGDALE, AR – Jake Odorizzi set a new single-game franchise record punching out 11 batters as the Naturals snapped their four-game slide with a 5-0 win over the Springfield Cardinals Monday night in the opener of a four-game series at Arvest Ballpark.
Odorizzi (2-1), in by far his most dominating Double-A outing since his mid-summer promotion last season, fanned 11 in seven innings to set a new franchise record. Four different Naturals’ hurlers – most recently left-hander Will Smith last August 30th – had fanned ten in an outing. The Royals’ top right-handed pitching prospect, Odorizzi scattered his 11 strikeouts over his seven frames – setting down at least one batter via the strikeout in each inning in a brisk game that ended in two hours and 19 minutes.
Northwest Arkansas (6-11) started the effort necessary to back Odorizzi with a pair of runs in the third. Johnny Whittleman’s two-run double in the bottom of the third scored Christian Colon and Wil Myers and put the Naturals up by a 2-0 margin.
They added three runs of insurance in the eighth. Sharlon Schoop, inserted in the eighth as a defensive replacement at first base, homered to left and then after back to back singles by Kurt Mertins and Paulo Orlando, who was also inserted for defensive purposes, Julio Rodriguez recorded the first two RBI’s of his Naturals’ career with a two-run double.
Patrick Keating, the Naturals’ franchise leader in saves, worked around an eighth inning walk to help Odorizzi and the Naturals complete the four-hitter. For Keating, who had a rough outing in the road series opener Thursday at North Little Rock, it was his league-leading fourth save on the season.
Starter John Gast took the loss for Springfield (8-9). Coming into the game with the league lead in wins, Gast (3-1) allowed a pair of runs and eight hits over six frames of work.
Christian Colon and Kurt Mertins had two hits each for the Naturals, who totaled 12 on the night. Outfielder Lorenzo Cain, on a rehab assignment from the Kansas City Royals, served as the designated hitter and leadoff batter. He hit the ball very hard, but ended the night 0-for-5 in the second game of his rehab.
Game two of the series with Springfield is Tuesday night. Left-hander Noel Arguelles (0-2, 6.08) will take the hill for Northwest Arkansas opposite right-hander Trevor Rosenthal (1-2, 4.30) for the Cardinals. First pitch is 7:00 P.M. Listen live on News/Talk 1030 KFAY. The game will also be available on Milb.TV (subscription required).
SPRINGDALE, AR – The Kansas City Royals announced a handful of transactions in order to set the Naturals’ 25-man opening day roster as the team opens Thursday evening at Whataburger Field in Corpus Christi.
Veteran infielder Eric Duncan has been transferred to the Naturals’ roster from Triple-A Omaha and has been placed on the seven-day Disabled List. Duncan was a former first round pick of the New York Yankees (27th overall) in 2003, and appeared in the Texas League last season as a member of the Springfield Cardinals where he batted a career-best .274 with 22 homers and 64 runs batted in.
Catcher Julio Rodriguez has been transferred to the roster of the Idaho Falls Chukars, the Royals’ short-season rookie affiliate in the Pioneer League. Rodriguez was acquired last season from the Detroit Tigers in the Wilson Betemit trade and finished the season with Class-A Advanced Wilmington.
Left-hander Andrew Dobies, signed as a minor league free agent last July and appeared in 12 games for the Naturals, has been placed on the seven-day DL. He is joined on the disabled list by Edgar Osuna, who has spent time over the past two seasons in Northwest Arkansas, and left-hander John Lamb, who underwent Tommy John Surgery last June and is continuing to rehab. Lamb had the procedure in early June of last year and could return to action in July.
The Royals also announced that they had loaned the contract of right-hander Federico Castaneda to the Mexico City Red Devils of the Mexican League. A member of the Naturals during the 2009 and 2010 seasons, Castaneda pitched in the Mexican League last season and finished the campaign out with Triple-A Omaha.
After the roster moves, the Naturals’ roster stands at the Texas League limit of 25 active players. Active rosters in both Double-A and Triple-A were expanded from 24 to 25 players starting for the 2012 season.
The Northwest Arkansas Naturals are the Double-A Texas League affiliate of the Kansas City Royals and play at state-of-the-art Arvest Ballpark, located in Springdale. Visit our website, nwanaturals.com, for information on season tickets and ticket plans.
Springfield, MO - The St. Louis Cardinals have announced the Springfield Cardinals roster for the upcoming season.
New Manager Mike Shildt and returning Hitting Coach Phillip Wellman and Pitching Coach Bryan Eversgerd will be well stocked heading into the 2012 season.
Returning to the roster are 15 players who appeared in a Springfield uniform last year, including Texas League All-Star Pitchers Michael Blazek and Scott Gorgen. Blazek led the Cardinals with 11 wins and finished second in the Texas League in strikeouts (128). Gorgen, coming off of Tommy John Surgery that made his miss the 2011 season, was 5-1 with a 1.26 ERA for Springfield in 2010.
The starting staff will feature Gorgen, #17 prospect John Gast (9-8, 4.02 ERA), #11 Prospect Trevor Rosenthal (7-7, 4.11 ERA), Michael Blazek (11-6, 5.45 ERA) and lefty Tyler Lyons (9-4, 4.50 ERA Several other familiar names from the mound will be at Hammons Field in 2012 as starter John Gast and relievers Sam Freeman, Deryk HookerJorge Rondon, Scott Schneider, Jesse Simpson and Kevin Thomas return to Springfield. New to Springfield bullpen are right handers Keith Butler (1-1, 1.23 ERA with Quad Cities and Palm Beach) and Eric Fornataro (7-13, 3.67 ERA with Palm Beach as a starter) and lefty Justin Wright (5-1, 1.26 ERA with Quad Cities and 0-0, 0.57 ERA with Palm Beach).
Leading the infield at second base is newcomer Kolten Wong, a 2011 1st round pick out of the University of Hawaii and the 5th best prospect in the organization. Xavier Scruggs returns to Springfield after slugging 21 homers in Palm Beach and Jose Garcia (.318 and 19 steals) will be Wong’s double play partner. Niko Vasquez also makes his return to the hot corner. Fellow University of Hawaii product Greg Garcia will make if Double-A debut this year.
Number three Prospect Oscar Taveras will patrol the Hammons Field outfield after skipping Palm Beach entirely to make his Texas League debut in 2012. Taveras batted .386 with eight homeruns and 62 RBI in only 78 games for Quad Cities last season. Tommy Pham returns to Springfield after an injury plagued 2011 season and will be joined by newcomers Adam Melker, Raniel Rosario and Jake Shaffer, who was signed by the Cardinals out of the Mariners organization on March 31st.
The team arrived on Sunday and hosted the defending world champion St. Louis Cardinals Monday in a 3-2 defeat. They start the season against the Frisco RoughRiders tonight and 7:08pm! Scott Gorgen is scheduled to pitch for the Cardinals against Justin Grimm of the RoughRiders. All games in 2012 can be heard live on JOCK 98.7 FM as well as online at springfieldcardinals.com with play-by-play voice Jeff Levering.
Opening Night will feature 5,000 fans receiving a Great Southern 2012 Magnet Schedule/Picture Frames, the first of nine “Buck a Brat” $1 Johnson Bratwurst nights and everyone will enjoy a post-game Fireworks Spectacular thanks to AM Pyrotechnics. Tickets are available by visiting the Hammons Field Ticket Office, online at www.springfieldcardinals.com or by calling (417) 863-2143.
Springfield, MO – With the recent announcement of Mike Matheny taking over as the head man in St. Louis and naming former Springfield manager Chris “Hammer” Maloney as the first basecoach, the Cardinals will now have three new managers at their top three levels within the organization.
Mike Shildt will take over the reins as Manager of the Springfield Cardinals. He is coming off of back-to-back Appalachian League (Short Season Rookie League) championships in 2010 and 2011 with the Johnson City Cardinals. In his three year stint as the skipper with the Cardinals, he amassed a .617 winning percentage going 124-77. Shildt has also been the minor league spring training coordinator since 2008.
The 43-year-old native of Matthews, North Carolina was a 1991 graduate of UNC-Asheville where he played baseball for three seasons and earned his degree in business.
Ron “Pop” Warner has been promoted to Triple-A Memphis as their new manager and holds the franchise lead in career victories with 358 during his five year tenure at the helm in Springfield.
“We are very excited to welcome Mike into the Springfield Family,” Vice President / General Manager Matt Gifford said. “The player development staff has said great things about our new manager, and we look forward to seeing him continue to guide the future of Cardinals baseball on their way to St. Louis. I would like to congratulate ‘Pop’ on his promotion to Triple-A and thank him for the last five season in Springfield. In addition, we wish ‘Hammer’ all the best in St. Louis as the Cardinals prepare to defend their 2011 World Series Championship.”
Fans will see familiar faces in the dugout as Bryan Eversgerd will return as the Springfield pitching coach, Phillip Wellman will continue to be the hitting coach and Jason Hall will again serve as the Athletic Trainer.
Bryan Eversgerd continues as the pitching coach in Springfield where his staff finished 6th in the Texas League in strikeouts last season. A former major leaguer with the Cardinals, Rangers and Expos, Eversgerd won the only game he started in his career in 1994 against the Marlins. 2012 will be Eversgerd’s fourth in Springfield and 10th overall in the Cardinals Organization.
Springfield will also welcome back hitting coach Phillip Wellman. The Cardinals offense ranked 1st in the Texas league in team batting average (.278), homeruns (166), slugging percentage (.443) and finished second in runs scored. A former minor leaguer with the Braves, Twins and Pirates, Wellman has 24 years of coaching experience including 15 years a manager in the Reds and Braves organizations.
Rounding out the 2012 Field Staff will be Athletic Trainer, Jason Hall. Jason previously worked with the Chicago Cubs before joining the Springfield Cardinals in 2011. Hall was with the Cubs for two seasons and was also a strength and conditioning intern with the Florida Marlins.
The Springfield Cardinals will host the St. Louis Cardinals in an exhibition game April 2nd at 6:08pm at Hammons Field before beginning the regular season on April 5th at home. For information about the best ways to catch a game at Hammons Field, please call the Springfield Cardinals Front Office at (417) 863-0395 or visit www.springfieldcardinals.com.
