Allen Craig

Maplewood: An Updated Guide to Restaurants on Manchester, from Big Bend to the City Limits

St. Louis' neighborhoods are gems in their own right: full of history, great people and, as far as Gut Check is concerned, fantastic food. Each week we'll take you into a specific neighborhood and point you in the direction of the best places to grab some bites. Maplewood crams a lot of life into a ... More >>

Mark McGwire Gamble Paid Off For Cardinals; Will Successor Prove The Same?

So apparently it's become like a thing now for Cardinals sluggers to leave the team in the offseason and head for Southern California. Last year it was Albert Pujols, aka the Second Greatest Cardinal (and who will never, ever reach number one on that list), leaving the Redbirds and taking his talent ... More >>

Cards Hold On Against Giants; Take 1-0 NLCS Lead

It went about as well as one could have possibly hoped for the Cardinals in game one of their National League Championship Series matchup against the San Francisco Giants. The offense broke through for a big chunk of runs against Madison Bumgarner, and the pitching staff flipped the expected script, ... More >>

Cards Finish Off Sweep of Astros; Gain Real Breathing Room

It may not have been the prettiest game any of us have ever seen -- or the prettiest the Cardinals have played -- but it got the job done. The Cards finished off a three game sweep of the Houston Astros yesterday at Busch Stadium behind a shaky-but-effective Jaime Garcia pitching performance an ... More >>

The Cardinals' Offensively Awesome Offense

So the Cardinals actually managed to finish off the sweep of the Houston Astros yesterday. I have to admit, I'm a little surprised they pulled it off. Not because the Astros are a particularly tough test; they are far and away the worst team in baseball, and the fact Jeff Luhnow has decided to ... More >>

Cards Shut Out Houston; Adam Wainwright Does a Thing (Again)

What the Cardinals did last night was exactly what they needed to do. Now, if they can just remember that feeling and do that same thing a couple dozen more times, we might be in business. The Cards were playing the Houston Astros, the worst team in baseball. Unfortunately, the Astros being the ... More >>

The Cardinals Run a Marathon -- And Come in Second

It took 19 innings, but the Cardinals managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory in the end. It was, in a very special way, the perfect version of a 2012 Cards game. Coming into this latest series against the Pittsburgh Pirates -- aka the team the Cards are chasing in the standings -- th ... More >>

A Turning Point For the Cardinals? (Again)

It may be that at the end of the season we will look back on the series sweep just completed by the Cardinals as a singularly important moment. I say singularly, but that may not be the absolute most correct word. I think we could very well see this series as an extraordinarily important moment ... More >>

The Allen Craig Show: It's Better than the Albert Pujols Hour of Power

Allen Craig is good at the baseball. We already knew that, of course; he's hitting home runs at a pace of roughly one every 13.5 plate appearances and owns an OPS of 1.046. For his career, that home run pace is one every 18.5 PAs; his wOBA last season was .399, and this year it's .431. Allen Cr ... More >>

A Brief Cardinals Draft-Day Primer

The Major League Baseball first-year player draft is just a few hours away, taking place in New York City and beginning at six pm central. The Houston Astros have the first overall pick, and are expected to take Mark Appel, a right-handed pitcher out of Stanford, with their selection. Appel isn't a ... More >>

Should We Be Worried About Cardinals' 0-4 Slump?

The Cardinals are mired in their first real slump of the season. That's not to say the Cards haven't faced any adversity before now, of course; there have been a couple of really tough losses already in 2012, and they have seemed to come in bunches, little clusters of misery amidst what has bee ... More >>

Allen Craig to Return Tonight

The Cardinals have been one of the best offensive teams in all of baseball so far this season, ranking behind only three American League teams (who obviously have the benefit of the designated hitter), as far as OPS. In runs scored, the Atlanta Braves currently have an edge on the Cards for the top ... More >>

Cards Win Beltran Sweepstakes

It's like Ed McMahon dropped by Busch Stadium yesterday, with a big check that read 4.0 WAR in the dollar amount box. ​Christmas came a little early for Cardinal fans this year. For the Cardinal offense, too. The Cards agreed to terms with Carlos Beltran yesterday on a two-year deal for appro ... More >>

During Historic World Series, Henry Bollinger Shines Many Lights

​Henry Bollinger woke up at 5:30 a.m. last Friday and tried not to disturb his wife and two young boys. He stepped out into the early-morning chill of Oakville, Missouri, and drove north, stopping only for a cup of coffee on his way to Busch Stadium. Once there, he took the elevator two flight ... More >>

Chris Carpenter: The REAL World Series MVP

In Carp we trust.​You know what's really a dick move? Just a couple days after a thrilling, beautiful victory in the World Series, and just one day after a parade that brought together thousands of strangers in the streets to celebrate a shared joy, taking to task the guy who won the Most Valuable ... More >>

Cardinals' Bullpen Phone Gets Twitter Account

So, just to review: Allen Craig's fictitious pet turtle has a Twitter account. So does the Cardinals' rally squirrel and Jason Motte's glove. Only fitting, then, that the mysterious bullpen phone should also get its own Twitter handle. Then again, if it can't communicate effectively via the phone li ... More >>

Game 5: Mid-Season Cardinals Come Home to Roost

No! Not now. Not the 10-15 June Cardinals.​Remember mid-season when the sputtering St. Louis Cardinals took two steps backward for every one step forward? Remember, particularly, that week-long stretch in June when the Redbirds dropped seven in a row? Well, sports fans, that team has returned to t ... More >>

The Bullpen Phone, and Why It Doesn't Matter

​So apparently the bullpen phone is a problem. Because, you know, the Cards can't seem to get the right reliever up at kind of a big moment. As far as problems go, though, the bullpen phone isn't even close to the biggest one the Cardinals had last night. The fact the bullpen shenanigans of n ... More >>

An Apology to Jaime Garcia, And Then a Bunch of Criticism

I'm sorry, Jaime. Really. Truly.​Dear Jaime, I am very, very sorry for ever doubting you. I'm sorry for thinking you a head case, for calling you a blow-up waiting to happen. I'm sorry I thought you were probably worn down after throwing close to 50 more innings this season than you ever had ... More >>

World Series: Game 1 Observations From an Idiot Sports Reporter

Observation 1: That was a friggin' big flag they unfurled at the start of the game.​Major League Baseball was nice enough to extend media credentials to Riverfront Times for the fall classic. Why? We're not sure. But believe us, we tried our best to look like legitimate sports reporters last nigh ... More >>

Three Things to Be Happy About From Game One (Well, Besides Winning)

What? No, I haven't seen this movie. But, you know, it's called Happiness. I'm sure it's an uplifting, inspirational kind of story. Why are you looking at me like that? ​​Good time to be a Cardinal fan, right? I mean, the Redbirds just took care of business last night in game one of the World Se ... More >>

Cardinals Do Some Serious Backsliding

​And just when things seemed to be going so well, too. The Cardinals headed into game four of the NLCS last night up two games to one, with all the cards in their favor. They had stolen home field advantage from the Brewers thanks to a road win in game two, and a brilliant bullpen performance ... More >>

How Not to Take a Good At-Bat (Cardinals' Examples A, B, C)

commons.wikimedia.orgJon Jay wins our Worst Plate Appearance of the Night award. ​The Cardinals won last night, taking a two games to one lead over the Brewers and keeping alive their chances to clinch at World Series berth at home. The bullpen was the real hero, along with an early offensive outb ... More >>

Phillies 3, Cardinals 2: Missed Opportunities and One Very Bad Decision

​If you're surprised it was a double play that broke the Cardinals' collective back, then you just haven't been paying attention. The story of the season -- the historic number of double plays the Cards have grounded into this year -- popped up once again, killing an eighth inning bases loade ... More >>

Doughnuts with Sprinkles Key To Cardinals Game 2 Victory?

One might get that impression reading the twitter feed of Allen Craig's pet tortoise (and online alter-ego), @tortycraig. The Cardinals outfielder has tweeted all kinds of locker-room intrigue in recent weeks, including the following scene from yesterday morning when the Redbirds needed some fried d ... More >>

Tonight: The Cardinals' Last Stand

General George Custer, moments before telling one of his men, a Lieutenant Patterson, he had, "Complete faith you can lead us to victory over these Algonquin sunsabitches."​Things have not been going all that well for the Cardinals lately. What's that, you say? You expected an expletive-laced ... More >>

No Pujols? No Problem.

​So I'm sure everyone's heard by now that Albert Pujols, formerly unstoppable baseball machine, will miss somewhere between four and six weeks with a fractured wrist/forearm/whatever other random bone you like. There are plenty of questions and concerns in the wake of Albert's injury, not least of ... More >>

Cards Are Swept Out of First Place by The Brewers -- So What Now?

The Cards ran into one of these over the weekend. There were no survivors. ​It was, to put it lightly, a bad weekend to be a Cardinals fan. The Redbirds headed into Milwaukee up 2.5 games in the divisional race after taking 2 of 3 from the Astros. Three days later, the Cards limped out of Miller P ... More >>

Keith Law Releases New Prospect Rankings; Two Cardinals Make the List

​Keith Law, ESPN's prospect guru, released his updated rankings of the top 25 minor league prospects Tuesday, and the first couple names on the list aren't really all that surprising. The Angels' Mike Trout, who began the year atop virtually every prospect list in creation, is still there, followe ... More >>

The Allen Craig Experiment

Tony La Russa, center, discussing Allen Craig's future with John Mozeliak, left. Craig is shown far right. ​It's been an interesting season, to say the least, for the Cardinals so far in 2011. Between injuries to top players, one of the most fraught, complex slumps in major league history, and ple ... More >>

The Cards' Third Base Curse Strikes Again: Freese Out Longer than Expected

That white orb in the left corner is actually a piece of David Freese's brittle wrist bone.​Monday was a bad day for the Cardinals. They opened up a four-game series against the Florida Marlins with a 6-5 loss, the second day in a row they had given up that many runs to an opponent. Since reaching ... More >>

Matt Holliday Lost to Appendicitis

Holliday, moments before the appendectomy caught up with him. ​The 2011 baseball season is exactly one game old. So far, here's the good news: David Freese's ankles have yet to catch on fire, Colby Rasmus looked good in game one, and Albert Pujols should be significantly more affordable after a se ... More >>

Cardinals Trade Ryan Ludwick in Three-Team Deal

commons.wikimedia.org​According to various and sundry sources, the Cardinals have completed a three-team deal with the San Diego Padres and Cleveland Indians that will send Ryan Ludwick to the Padres and bring Jake Westbrook to the Cards. At first blush, I really liked this deal, thought it w ... More >>

Roy Oswalt: The Deal That Just Won't Die

commons.wikimedia.org​So after a full week and a half of serious, intense speculation, discussion, and coverage, the Roy-Oswalt-to-the-Cardinals trade is...right about where it was a week and a half ago. A quick rundown of the pertinent facts: The Houston Astros want to move Roy Oswalt.  ... More >>

Carp Comes Back In a Big Way

commons.wikimedia.org​One start isn't really enough to make any determinations about a player's overall health, you know. We can't just look at this one game and conclude Chris Carpenter is just fine and ready to dominate in the second half of the season. That being said, Chris Carpenter is b ... More >>

Roster Roulette: The 2010 Cardinals team includes some serious question marks

The Redbird Relief Race Heading Into the Home Stretch

Coming into spring training, the Cardinals only had a few real holes to fill. Well, perhaps not holes to fill, really, but at least decisions to make on how best to utilize their resources. Ryan Franklin and his awful beard will once again be closing games for the Cardinals this season. The res ... More >>

Rumor Roundup: The Return of Jimmy Baseball

Literary legend Thomas Wolfe evinces his displeasure upon being told he will one day be referenced in a baseball blog post. ​You can't go home again. It's just the way things are. We all fight it, we all do what we can to hold out on our younger worlds, but facts, as they say, is facts. You can ne ... More >>

An Extension for El Piñata?

Sure, he hasn't actually pitched like a piñata this year, but it's just too good a nickname to stop now. ​Apparently, Joel Piñeiro really wants to stick around with the Cardinals a while longer. He has reportedly told his agent to get a deal done that will keep him here if at all possible.&n ... More >>

Young & Restless: Will 2009 finally be a breakthrough year for top Cardinals prospects?

The Cards aren't likely to challenge for the pennant this year. In a way, that'll make them all the more interesting to watch.