Tag: Stephen Piscotty

First base belongs to Stephen Piscotty

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KSDK
KSDK

Let’s just play along in a world where Jason Heyward signs with the St. Louis Cardinals and retains his spot in right field. All signs point to the two sides coming to an agreement sometime this winter. I wouldn’t bet your mortgage on it, but take a leap of faith with me anyway and let’s talk about first base in 2016. For my money, the position belongs to Stephen Piscotty, the Stanford whiz kid who came up and energized what existed of the Cards second half attack.

Piscotty was one of the few Cards to contribute more than a solo home run in the postseason against the Chicago Cubs. He helped put Game 1 away, tried to pull his team back in Game 3, and started off Game 4 right with a two run home run. He was the Cards best hitter from August until the end, so that means you make room for him in 2016. Whether it is in the outfield or at first base, Piscotty will play.

When Heyward returns, he takes over right field. Randal Grichuk, who was challenging Kris Bryant and Joc Pederson for the rookie of the year award before an August elbow injury slowed him down, takes over center field. Matt Holliday enters the final deal of his seven year contract and will play in left field. An offseason of rest should do that 35 year old body good after an i  njury plagued 2015 campaign. Tommy Pham and Jon Jay will anchor the 4th and 5th outfielder spots, giving the starters rest and challenging for more time. Don’t sleep on Pham remaining a mere backup, but he starts 2016 that way if J Hey returns.

That leaves first base to Piscotty and for good reason. I am sorry, but the Matt Adams starter show at first is over and has been for a while. Since the midway point of 2014, Adams has lost his power stroke and become an ordinary hitter. He doesn’t even take the ball to left field anymore or hit for average. This trend was in high gear before he tore his quad in May. Adams was on a tear in the first half of 2014, but after the All Star break, he only slugged .358. In 2015, he slugged .377. Somewhere along the line, Adams lost his big gravy boom stick. When he was slugging, his weak showing against lefties was digestible, but once the power left he became a dry entity. The future is now, and that is Piscotty, who I like call “COTTY” because it’s less characters on Twitter and rolls off the tongue better.

Piscotty is too good to make wait. He hit .305 in 233 at bats and slugged .494 and contributed several big hits down the stretch and in the playoffs. If the Cards want to get better on offense, shoving three guys at a position and seeing who sticks isn’t the right move. If the Cards retain Brandon Moss(same type of hitter as Adams but more flexible in field), there’s no room for Adams. If the plan is to bring Heyward back, there is no room for Adams. He’s a worn out idea in St. Louis and with the decreasing slug and out of time position play, he could be a trade candidate this winter. With Piscotty’s emergence, Adams became expendable.

First base is an important spot to have nailed down heading into 2016 with a beefier more menacing division to deal with and Stephen Piscotty solidifies that position for the Cards moving forward.

5 Reasons the 2015 Cardinals are done

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Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports
Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports

It’s over. The 2015 St. Louis Cardinals are done. The Chicago Cubs, via a fiery lineup and surprisingly solid bullpen, knocked out the Birds at Wrigley Field. The Cubs first playoff series win in 12 years happened for many reasons but I’ll toss five at you as the nerves go on ice for the offseason.

I’ll be honest and say it hurts. Seeing another team celebrate in front of your team is an event I can’t say someone should ever get used to. It’s ugly. You can’t say there will be another game tomorrow. You can’t say there’s a chance. It’s over and the dust settles and lockers are cleaned out.

5. Too much power from Chicago. Anthony Rizzo. Kris Bryant. Kyle Schwarber. Javier Baez. Addison Russell. List goes on and on. Schwarber hit a mammoth shot that hasn’t even landed yet. Rizzo wrongly predicted the NL Central winner but his smoked solo blast was the deciding blow in Game 4. While the Cards hit eight home runs, the Cubs made their ten blasts count and had more men on base for a few of them. They are a tough team to play in Wrigley and showed their ability to change a game instantly with the long ball. Cards couldn’t keep up.

4. Mike Matheny’s decisions. Once again, the skipper made some questionable calls, especially at Wrigley. In a tight five game series, every move will be scrutinized. Matheny refused to pitch Tyler Lyons, a guy capable of throwing 2-3 innings, for the entire series. He brought in Kevin Siegrist in the 5th and 6th innings, which didn’t end well. He pulled Seth Maness in the middle of an inning when he needed a double play and brought in Adam Wainwright, who immediately allowed a two run Game 3 deciding home run to Jorge Soler. Matheny wasn’t the main reason, as many on Twitter will point out, the Cards lost but he made some dicey moves that shouldn’t be overlooked. He also started Jaime Garcia with a stomach virus when Lyons was down there. The same Lyons who took over for Carlos Martinez after three batters in a late September game.

3. The plate discipline left the window. The Cardinals tried to impersonate the Cubs and became home run hitters. They struck out over 48 times in the series, averaging 12 per game. They struck out 27 times in their last 54 at bats. They swung at pitches in the dirt or at their chin. Sure, the strike zone was bad for the majority of the series, but that doesn’t excuse the terrible plate discipline by this team. They drew walks but struck out far too often.

3a.-The veterans coming up short. Matt Holliday hit .129 in the series, hitting third. Jhonny Peralta hit .143 and batted fifth. Both unacceptable. 

2. The bullpen got smoked, with the biggest culprit being Siegrist. The guy led the National League in appearances in 2015, threw a lot of pitches and was fatigued but saw himself entering the game midway. He served up a bomb to Rizzo on Monday night.  He entered on Tuesday with the game tied at 4 and promptly hung a pitch for Rizzo to blast into nearly the same spot. Siegrist missed location horribly on both pitches. He finished by serving up a majestic blast to Kyle Schwarber that left the stadium, 418 feet away. In 2013, Siegrist was unhittable until late September and got beat by David Ortiz and the Red Sox in the World Series. Two years later, he failed to pitch well in the playoffs. He wasn’t alone in bullpen blasting but he is the guy who stands out. As a reliever, you have to be efficient with your pitches and keep the game in hand. Siegrist did not and got smoked. Maybe next year don’t make him throw so many pitches. Anyway…

1. The Jaime Garcia implosion. As the Cards faced elimination, I kept wondering how the series would have went if Game 2 went a different way. As in, what if Garcia didn’t start and Lyons did. What if the enigmatic starter known as Jaime didn’t wait until an hour before the game to tell Matheny he was very sick and take the mound again in the playoffs impaired. Or, what if Garcia fields that bunt cleanly and flips to Yadier Molina to nail Austin Jackson at home plate? What if the Cubs don’t score 5 runs that inning? What if the Cards win Game 2 and don’t need to start John Lackey on short rest in Game 4? All these conundrums and so much time to answer them. Starting a sick Jaime Garcia was a costly and stupid move. Most of that fault falls on the player for not admitting sickness earlier, thus putting his own legacy(or need to remake it) in front of team importance.

Yeah, there’s more. Lackey serving up a two out RBI single to Jason Hammel that preceded the Baez home run. Kolten Wong hitting .143 and swinging at everything in the dirt. Mark Reynolds breaking windows in batting practice but whiffing in real games. Yadier Molina playing badly hurt without an ability to hit. There are more things but the five above explain the meat of the reason the Cards aren’t advancing.

It’s over folks. The 2015 Cardinals took us on a ride that we won’t soon forget, for better or worse. It was thrilling, frustrating and ultimately disappointing while being impressive at the same time. Despite injuries, they won 100 games. In the end, the pitching broke down and the bats couldn’t keep up. 2016 holds a lot of questions, mostly fun and interesting. For now, ice the mind and toss the stress in the trash can. There’s plenty of time in the next six months to think about what could have been.

2015 Cardinals are the most resilient team you’ve ever seen

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imageThere they were. Standing over their fallen teammate in the outfield. Kolten Wong, Matt Carpenter and Peter Bourjos looked like a ton of bricks just fell on their shoulders. Stephen Piscotty was down and out, barely moving after a collision with Bourjos in the 7th inning of Monday’s hotly contested series opener. After being carted off the field on a stretcher and giving the proverbial “I’m okay” wave, Piscotty’s absence hung over a team that came into the game with a MLB best 98 wins but seemed bruised and removed from competition for the moment. An hour later, they had a piercing 3-0 win that trimmed the magic number to 2. The Cardinals are officially the toughest team in baseball. They take hits and seem to move faster and more efficiently than before.

There was Mark Reynolds pumping his fist after a two run home run that silenced PNC Park even more than the Piscotty collision did and even elicited some boos. His blast emptied the lower levels of the ballpark and stamped a expiration date on the chances of the Bucs catching the Cardinals. Monday night showed baseball fans why the game can be so frustrating and uplifting at the same time.

It wasn’t pretty. The Cardinals tried to lose the game multiple times. They gave the Pirates ten walks, free passes to score. The Pirates loaded the bases four times and couldn’t score. This was the ugliest shutout in recent memory. Lance Lynn, the up and down rotation cheddar dispenser, gritted his teeth for five stout pressurized innings. He escaped jams with pop ups, strikeouts and amazing defense that included a Jason Heyward assist in the second inning. Heyward’s cannon shot from center field to nab the Pirates risky attempt at an early lead seemed to swing things back in the Cardinals direction. It’s just the following events didn’t play out that way.

Pirates starter J.A. Happ(owner of one of the best earned runs averages in baseball since coming over from Seattle) shut the Cards down for six innings. A maddening stretch that totaled 13 innings of shutout baseball over two starts from Happ on the Cards. When he left, it felt like Sandy Koufax was taking a holiday. Okay, maybe not, but the man was dealing.

The Pirates bullpen, one of two teams with a better ERA than the Cards’ backend arms, denied the Cards access for two more innings before the 9th inning. Mark Melancon, owner of 50 saves and a build that reminds me of Ken from Street Fighter, took the mound and quickly dispatched Greg Garcia on a strikeout. His cutter, which he picked up from Mariano Riveria in New York, was filthy and was causing roadblocks in the Cards lineup all season. He was the slightly less hopeless divisional rival behind Aroldis Chapman. Matt Carpenter poked a single to right center. Jon Jay followed with a seeing eye single that caused Gregory Polanco to fumble it and Andrew McCutchen to also mishandle it, allowing Carpenter to score from first base. Reynolds followed with the smoker and it was time for Rosenthal.

Following back to back outings of serving up heartbreaking losses, Rosenthal immediately lit fires around the hearts of Cardinal Nation in the 9th inning. He walked Cutch and then Starlin Marte got a single. Neil Walker came up and seemed to take a 20 minute at bat, which nearly ended with a groundout but Walker pleaded with the umps that he fouled it off his foot. Too bad he faked it by hobbling on the wrong foot. Rosenthal blew him away with a 98 mph heater tailing away to send him walking back to the dugout. Francisco Cervelli lined out to Heyward and then it was Aramis Rameriz, the famous Cardinal killer nicknamed the Sith Lord by my good friend Daniel Shoptaw. Rameriz lined out. It was over.

The Cardinals crossed Heartbreak Ridge again with a narrow victory that looked more like 3 to 2.5 plus blood, sweat and tears rather than a 3-0 shutout. Rosenthal picked up his 48th save, which gives him the single season record for a Cardinal. He did so in classic Jason Isringhausen fashion, putting runners on and playing with St. Louis fans blood pressures and nerve endings. Would we have it any other way? Don’t answer that.

With a win Tuesday, the Cardinals would collect win #100 and clinch the National League Central division. It’s that close, ladies and gentlemen. The worries of a long hard 162 season coming down to one last win. The mark seems more special this year due to the numerous injuries and setbacks.

The Cardinals have been dealing with loss since last October, when the team lost young phenom Oscar Taveras in a brutal drunk driving related car accident. The death rocked Taveras’ best friend, Carlos Martinez and the clubhouse. In March, Tommy Pham injured his quad in spring training. Jaime Garcia went down in March also with a leg injury, not returning until May 21st. In April, Adam Wainwright and Jordan Walden went down. In May, Matt Adams tore his quad. In June, Matt Holliday tore his quad. Jon Jay was injured for the majority of the season. Reliever Matt Belisle missed 2.5 months. Randal Grichuk injured his elbow in August. Now Piscotty goes down. The Cardinals just keep winning, making this 2015 group a truly special band of brothers.

Word on Piscotty is all tests for concussion and other head related injuries came back negative, meaning the kid will be sore today but otherwise escaped a more drastic setback. Finally, a bit of luck for the Birds.

Tonight, it’s Michael Wacha and Charlie Morton, a matchup heavily favoring the Cardinals, which is why you should expect a 1-1 game in the 9th inning. With this team, anything is possible. They take “You Never Know” to a whole new level.

As Joe Buck said in 2011, “What a team. What a ride.” I have a feeling this October will be even more memorable. Stay tuned for more roller coaster theatrics.

Stephen Piscotty: Silent but deadly

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KSDK

Stephen Piscotty is all business. He doesn’t talk much. The St. Louis Cardinal rookie outfielder doesn’t get too emotional, loud or particularly down on the baseball field. After all, this kid has discipline in spades. During this past offseason, he went back to Stanford and completed his degree in Engineering. Baseball just comes easy, and while the pressure is as prevalent as it is for any 24 year old, Piscotty doesn’t let it show on the field.

While General Manager John Mozeliak’s deadline acquisition of Brandon Moss brought out the critics(including myself), Piscotty has been the real key acquisition in 2015. Where would the offense be without this kid? Since he showed up on July 21st, Piscotty has collected 71 hits in 227 at bats(.313) and put together an OPS(on base+slugging percentage) of .872. After a white hot start, Piscotty slumped a bit but he has endured at the plate while providing steady defense all over the field.

First, he’s a smart hitter. He takes a good at bat and has an easy going fluid swing at the plate. He doesn’t get cheated but he also doesn’t swing at everything. For a team with three strikeout kings(Mark Reynolds, Randal Grichuk, Moss), Piscotty is a breath of fresh air. His bat is the logical professor to the other windmill type sticks. He only has 54 strikeouts(23 %) in 2015.

Second, Piscotty can hit anywhere in this lineup. He can hit #2 and be a good jumpstarter for offense or he can supply power(as seen by his 7 home runs and 26 total extra base hits). He can also be a middle of the order bat due to his ability to not only drive in runs, but do what is necessary to get an important run home. In a game against Atlanta last weekend, Piscotty didn’t over swing or try to do too much. He simply lifted a ball deep enough to right field to score the winning run. He doesn’t swing at the first pitch and will make a pitcher earn his stripes.

Third, Piscotty is flexible in the field. He can play left field, right field and also take reps at first base if Reynolds and Moss start to whiff like golf balls are being thrown at them. He played the infield in college and played at first the week before he was called up, so Piscotty isn’t secluded to the outfield. Part of the reason he found himself in St. Louis was his ability to move around. He’s stayed in the lineup because of his steady bat. Unlike Xavier Scruggs, Piscotty’s bat doesn’t seem to be slowing down or powering up. It’s just getting smarter with each trip.

Fourth, the Cards need him right now. Moss has pop, but his bat can go silent at times. Part of the reason Mo didn’t have to go big at the deadline was the promise of Piscotty and wanting him to play every day. A bigger bat comes in here(especially a rental) and the kid may sit more than the team wants him to. With Matt Holliday and Jon Jay out for a significant period of time and other Memphis outfield options pursued or tapped out, Piscotty is the last known quality prospect that was ready to roll up I-55. He will get his shot.

Piscotty is the perfect foil for Grichuk’s power. Here you have a pair of young gun renegades who are getting full time slots to help a championship caliber team bulldoze through the tireless months of the season. Another farm system assisted tool on display. The latest example of The Cardinals working in house to solve major leaks and issues. If people want a #1 reason for Mo not seeking a bigger bat at the deadline, remember guys like Piscotty and Grichuk. They aren’t doing that bad filling in the holes in offense.

As quiet as he is and choice with his words, Piscotty’s bat has done more than enough talking thus far.

7 Ways Matt Holliday can make an impact

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imageedit_1_6786761481Health is finally reentering the St. Louis Cardinals clubhouse, as Matt Adams is back in the starting lineup and Matt Holliday has been activated from the disabled list. Randal Grichuk has returned and made an impact, and within a week the Cards could be fully stocked with lethal weapons in the field. With the rise of Grichuk and Stephen Piscotty, guys like Holliday have been forgotten about a bit this summer. After all, Holliday has only played in 11 games since June 8th. His value can’t be misplaced by even the casual fan, but just how important may have lingered. Here are 7 reasons Holliday can make an impact.

7. He will force weaker bats to be weeded out of the lineup. Slumping bats like Brandon Moss, Jon Jay and Peter Bourjos won’t be able to accumulate as many starts with Holliday returning to left field.

6. He will bring a sense of power back to the Cardinals lineup. Sure, 2015 hasn’t been a glamorous season for Holliday bombs(4 in 207 at bats), but everybody knows the big guy’s bat gets extra hot in September and always has the capability to launch one.

5. Love or hate the stat but Holliday likes coming up with meaningful hits. He was among the league leaders in game winning hits the past two seasons. His average with runners in scoring position is .400 with a .733 slugging percentage in 45 at bats in 2015. Over the past three seasons, his average with RISP(432 at bats) is .331.

4. He’s an on base percentage machine. Before he went down this season, pitchers were having a hard time getting this Hulk out. He had a .409 on base percentage when he reinjured the quad on July 29th.

3. He will stabilize the lineup. When you put Holliday back into the 3rd spot, Jhonny Peralta can be moved down and the lineup reloads so to speak. Piscotty can stay at #2 and Peralta, Molina and Adams can shuffle lower in the order. When Holliday was healthy and thriving, this lineup was scoring big time.

2. He likes playing his rivals. From 2012-15, Holliday is hitting .310(269-866) with 38 HR and 155 RBI off his National League division opponents.

1. The effect on the team. Any time you get a well respected veteran climbs back onto the active roster, the entire roster gets a boost. Rookies want to prove their worth and the fellow vets get an extra kick in the butt. The return of Holliday should help the Cardinals in many ways physically but mentally there will be an effect as well.

The N.L. Central has gotten too close for comfort, with the lead dangling down to as low as 2 games before play started in Milwaukee Tuesday. The return of Holliday can have a positive effect on this tiring Cardinals team. Expect the Hulk of Stillwater, Oklahoma to provide some big moments down the stretch once he gets his legs back at the plate.

Leave the power and take the OBP with Matt Holliday

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With the new sensations in town in Stephen Piscotty and Randal Grichuk, word on the street is Matt Holliday seems to expendable when it comes to the formation of the St. Louis Cardinals’ outfield this year, next year and beyond. While nobody is asking for the big guy to be traded or sent out, their lineups aren’t highlighting a hitter with some pop and production left in his bat. As Holliday works his way back from his second quad injury in 2015 and an injury plagued season, I’ll warn you. Don’t write off the Stillwater, Oklahoma native just yet.

Piscotty and Grichuk may be the brisket rub of the moment in this town, but they’ve been doing this for less than a season. Their contributions are great and have helped a team carrying an inconsistent offensive attack, but dismissing the idea of Holliday returning is quite humorous considering how this lineup thrives with him in the #3 spot.

It’s true. Matt Holliday doesn’t have the big boom in his stick anymore. It’s doubtful he will reach 30 home runs again. Those days are behind him but that doesn’t render his bat optional. While it’s nice to see Jon Jay making progress and Grichuk starting to do some activities, Holliday is the bat I am looking forward to seeing the most.

The Cards don’t run on power. They run on consistently good at bats and on base percentage. Holliday provides both and has been doing so for years.

People will complain he gets hurt a lot. Wrong. In five of the last six seasons leading up to 2015, Matt Holliday has played in 140 games or more. Holliday is no Tulo. He’s still durable at 35 years of age, and that comes from staying in marvelous physical shape and being smart with his choices.

Leave the power, take the OPS with Holliday. While his slugging percentage has decreased from .525 to .420 this season, his on base percentage still sits near .400. Before he got hurt, Holliday got on base 40 percent of the time. With his healthy .290 average maintaining fuel, Holliday’s OPS is a robust .829 this season. Over the past three seasons, it’s .876, .879 and .811. He isn’t diminishing in overall offensive value, so why hand this man the walker?

I understand transformation and bringing in new players but the kids will have to do more than spark a wire in a hot car during one summer in order to push Holliday to reserve status. He’s going to play when he gets back and he’s going to be here next year and more than likely, the year after that. If that means Matt Adams has to hold off Piscotty at first base, so be it. Competition keeps the kids hungry and the veterans on their toes.

Come postseason time, you’ll want Holliday and his 13 career October home runs. He has a thing for showing up in big moments. The man churns out game deciding hits like John Mozeliak changes bow ties. Sorry he doesn’t make diving catches in the outfield but there’s a guy named J-Hey for that.

Holliday has simply transitioned into a different hitter as his career hits the final strip of pavement. He has went from a power hitting Coors Field resident to an all around Busch Stadium stinger. Holliday still hits the ball harder than most, and his line drive rate is healthy. His plate discipline has never been better than it was this year, with 39 walks to just 44 strikeouts. He’s a smart guy at the plate and in a lineup full of easy 100 strikeout guys this season, that discipline is required.

While it’s normal to talk about the next generation of players, it’s wrong to start writing off Matt Holliday. If he is 100% in September and can contribute, he will play. He’s earned that right. Not to mention the effect he has on this clubhouse as a leader and in the community becoming the face of St. Louis Albert Pujols was before he departed for the West. Holliday can also hold his own in a broadcast booth, but that’s icing on the cake.

Appreciating Matt Holliday in 2015 is a little harder than it used to be, I know. The Baseball Card mafia has to look a little closer and see a guy with some gas left in the tank. Just remember this. Home runs are fascist and Matt Holliday isn’t going anywhere and for good reason.