Babbling About the Birds

     Whenever I am watching a Cardinals game at Busch, watching the game at a sports bar without the sound, or watching it on a channel that isn't Bally Sports Midwest, there is always something missing. This being the voice of Dan McLaughlin.      Dan McLaughlin is the voice of the St. Louis Cardinals television broadcast. He has been calling games for the St. Louis Cardinals for 25 years and rooting for them for 48. Since McLaughlin is a lifelong Cardinals fan and has been in the city of St. Louis for his entire life, his current position is a fitting one.       His love for the team goes beyond a paycheck as he truly cares about the success of the team. He offers genuine reactions that are rather hard to find in the world of sports. This commentary whenever the Cardinals do good or bad, makes it seem as though you are listening to a diehard fan who just wants what is best for his team. It seems like this is the case because it is.       Throughout the last couple of decades, McL

     Before I truly understood the game of baseball, became passionate about the sport, and was intrigued by the St. Louis Cardinals' and their history, I would ask my dad, "Why are we Cardinals fans?" At this time, his answers were never actually thought out and were just quick and simple answers that you would give a 5-year-old kid who is asking a very open-ended question. He would respond by saying things like, "Because the Cubs stink" or "They have the best uniform in baseball." However, as I got older, I knew this couldn't actually be the reason why. So, I decided to sit down with an "expert" in St. Louis Cardinals baseball and talk about why he is a Cardinals fan, and what it has been like being a fan for 50 years.      I began my interview by simply asking him, "What made you become a fan of the St. Louis Cardinals?" To this, he responded by telling me, "At first it was because of my father, but after some time it wa

https://redbirdrants.com/2022/09/11/st-louis-cardinals-braves-extensions/        This article, like many others published by Redbird Rants, introduces a unique idea, which in quick summary is what the St. Louis Cardinals should do moving forward in regard to contracts and extensions. While I think this article is rather sensible and packed with high-quality content, I still don't 100% agree with everything that is written.       Giving contracts like this to players that are relatively unproven can be a big win or a huge loss. The idea the team has when signing a guy to a contract like this is that they can sign a 22-year-old to a contract now, while he is unproven, for far less than they could sign him for when he is 26 and most likely proven. However, this is not always the case, because not every player who is projected to be good ends up being good. While I do think there is a great possibility that guys like Nolan Gorman and Jordan Walker could live up to a larger contract, I

    St. Louis Cardinals slugger Albert Pujols is arguably one of the greatest right-handed hitters of all time. He has a resume that is packed full of accolades and will certainly be finding himself in the Hall of Fame when it is all said and done. However, there is some unfinished business that he hopes to take care of before this happens. This involves Pujols hoping to become the 4th person in Major League Baseball history to hit 700 home runs. As of September 9th, 2022, he is only 5 away from doing so, but with just 23 games left in the Cardinals season, will he be able to reach 700?        In the last couple of months, Pujols has been one of the better hitters in all of baseball. He has shown the power that he has not been able to show for multiple years and looks like he has gone back in time. However, as he is only really finding success against left-handed pitching, and the league is dominated by righties, it is hard to say how many more chances he will truly get. Therefore, it

    The Cardinals are good, but they could be better. However, those individuals who have the opportunity to make the team better chose not to. These individuals are those who make up the St. Louis Cardinals' ownership, Bill DeWitt Jr., the principal owner, Bill DeWitt III, the team president and John Mozeliak, the president of baseball operations. These three men have the power to make every move possible to help the Cardinals succeed, but it seems like they always fall short.      During the last few seasons, these men have done a lot of good things. They traded for Nolan Arenado, Paul Goldschmidt, Jordan Montgomery, and Jose Quintana, brought in free agents like Miles Mikolas, Steven Matz, and Kwan-Hyung Kim, and helped develop multiple players who could eventually become superstars.  While these have made the Cardinals a better team, they have not gotten them to where we, the fans, want them to go. This being the World Series.     While a ll these moves have helped satisfy our

     The title of this post has a double meaning, as I will be looking at Paul DeJong. DeJong is currently playing for the St. Louis Cardinals, and just so happens to be an Illinois State University Alumni. Which would make him two times the Redbird. Unfortunately, I am not happy that Paul DeJong represents either, as he is one of the St. Louis Cardinals' biggest disappointments, and hopefully, you will understand this after reading the information below.       In 2019, Paul DeJong was an All-Star. Although his stats weren't too impressive from the season when it came to batting average and on-base percentage, he did hit 30 home runs, which was good enough to get him this recognition. However, since this 2019 season, he has been almost unplayable. Yet, he is still somehow playing, and playing all too often.       I'm not going to give him too much grief for his performance in 2020, as that was the shortened COVID season, and nothing went as planned for the MLB. None of the

As of September 5th, 2022, I think it is safe to say that the St. Louis Cardinals are World Series contenders, and here are 5 reasons why.  1. Getting hot at the right time While the Cardinals were not one of the better teams in baseball to start the season, they are now. In every professional sport, timing is everything. When teams get hot down the stretch, they are more likely to succeed than if they were to get a good jump from the start. Since the All-Star break, which is the midseason mark for Major League Baseball, the Cardinals are 29-11. This is no easy feat and has made it to where the Cardinals are one of the best teams in baseball.  2. Being able to beat the good teams  To go along with the Cardinals getting hot, they are doing so while also beating good teams. Although their easy schedule has made it to where they have not had to face too many tough opponents since the halfway mark, they have beaten the few that they have had to. Since the All-Star break, the Cardinals have

    Every  team in baseball needs to rely on its bullpen and the Cardinals are no exception. The St. Louis Cardinals bullpen consists of one of the best relievers in baseball, Ryan Helsley, and one of their most consistent arms, Giovanny Gallegos, whom I would say are tier 1 guys. They also have guys like Jake Woodford, Jordan Hicks, and Andre Pallante, who have proven to be reliable, and can get outs when needed, but are not as solid as Helsley or Gallegos, so for that reason, they belong in tier 2. There are also guys like Jojo Romero, Zack Thompson, James Naile, and Chris Stratton, who have good potential, but still have a lot to prove to get to that next level, which makes them tier 3.       These are the guys who make up their bullpen as of September 4th, 2022, and most of these guys will be the arms in their bullpen come the postseason. With that being said, based on each of their performances so far this season, I'd say I am confident in these guys, and I think everyone else