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I wanted a Red Sox start, but fuck it. We are not getting swept by the goddamn Royals. Preview will be posted here in the morning.
ETA:
ETA:
Molina likely out one more day
06/19/2008 12:58 AM ETBy Matthew Leach / MLB.com
ST. LOUIS -- Yadier Molina will probably plead his case on Thursday morning, but he's not likely to win.
Molina has not played since Sunday as he recuperates from a concussion he suffered in a violent collision at home plate that day. He's feeling better every day, and he'd like to play, but he's still encountering some headaches, and concussions are not the sort of injury with which you want to be overly aggressive.
So the Cardinals hope to be able to remain cautious with their starting catcher. That preference is magnified by Thursday's early start time. Bright sunshine and St. Louis summer heat are no friends to a player trying to deal with the aftereffects of a head injury.
The issue, however, is that Jason LaRue may not be sound enough to play for a third straight day. The Cardinals have hesitated to overexpose LaRue, who has dealt with significant knee problems in recent years.
"[Molina] is going to want to play," said manager Tony La Russa. "I'm going to see how Jason feels. My preference would be not to play Yadier. If Jason can go, he goes. We'll give Yadier an extra day. It's a day game. I don't think it's smart [to push him]."
If LaRue is able to play, however, he may contribute quite a bit more than his season-long statistics would indicate. After an extremely rough start to the year, LaRue has been solid at the plate lately.
Since May 11, he's 11-for-34 (.324) with three extra base hits and five walks for a .425 on-base percentage and a .471 slugging percentage.
Interleague record: 86-79 overall, 2-3 in 2008
2008 Interleague Schedule • May 16 vs. Rays: Lost, 3-1
• May 17 vs. Rays: Won, 9-8
• May 18 vs. Rays: Won, 5-4
• June 17 vs. Royals: Lost, 2-1
• June 18 vs. Royals: Lost, 3-2
• June 19 vs. Royals
• June 20 at Red Sox
• June 21 at Red Sox
• June 22 at Red Sox
• June 24 at Tigers
• June 25 at Tigers
• June 26 at Tigers
• June 27 at Royals
• June 28 at Royals
• June 29 vs at Royals
Pitching matchup
STL: RHP Brad Thompson (1-1, 4.58 ERA)
With Anthony Reyes going on the DL due to elbow soreness, the Cardinals activated Thompson perhaps a bit more quickly than they anticipated. Thompson earned a rotation spot in Spring Training, but was bumped when Joel Pineiro came off the DL. He struggled in relief, was placed on the injured list himself and has made two rehabilitation starts. Thompson's an extreme groundballer when things are going well, and he'll try to keep the ball down against a Kansas City team that has hit three homers the past two games.
KC: RHP Zack Greinke (5-4, 3.48 ERA)
Greinke worked himself into tough jams on Friday night at Arizona but managed to wiggle free and pitch seven shutout innings before being relieved. Pitching carefully to the tough Diamondbacks, he walked a career-high seven but gave up just three hits. The no-decision meant he hasn't won in five straight starts after starting the season 5-1. Working in 100-plus degree heat, he threw 111 pitches and still looked strong. Against the Cardinals, he's 1-2 with a 7.04 ERA in four games.
Tidbits
Thompson's last Major League start came on April 8, when he allowed three earned runs in four innings at Houston. ... Thompson has a 5.50 ERA in 16 career Interleague appearances (three starts). ... Adam Kennedy is 3-for-6 lifetime against Greinke. ... The Cardinals had won or split nine consecutive series before this one.
Tickets
Buy tickets now to catch the game in person.
On the Internet
MLB.TV
Gameday Audio
• Gameday
• Official game notes
On television
• FSN-HD
On radio
• KTRS 550
Up next
• Friday: Cardinals (Kyle Lohse, 8-2, 3.77) at Red Sox (Tim Wakefield, 4-4, 4.19), 6:05 p.m. CT
• Saturday: Cardinals (Mitchell Boggs, 1-0, 5.56) at Red Sox (Daisuke Matsuzaka, 8-0, 2.53), 2:55 p.m. CT
• Sunday: Cardinals (Joel Pineiro, 2-3, 4.02) at Red Sox (Jon Lester, 6-3, 3.18), 12:35 p.m. CT
06/19/2008 12:58 AM ETBy Matthew Leach / MLB.com
ST. LOUIS -- Yadier Molina will probably plead his case on Thursday morning, but he's not likely to win.
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So the Cardinals hope to be able to remain cautious with their starting catcher. That preference is magnified by Thursday's early start time. Bright sunshine and St. Louis summer heat are no friends to a player trying to deal with the aftereffects of a head injury.
The issue, however, is that Jason LaRue may not be sound enough to play for a third straight day. The Cardinals have hesitated to overexpose LaRue, who has dealt with significant knee problems in recent years.
"[Molina] is going to want to play," said manager Tony La Russa. "I'm going to see how Jason feels. My preference would be not to play Yadier. If Jason can go, he goes. We'll give Yadier an extra day. It's a day game. I don't think it's smart [to push him]."
If LaRue is able to play, however, he may contribute quite a bit more than his season-long statistics would indicate. After an extremely rough start to the year, LaRue has been solid at the plate lately.
Since May 11, he's 11-for-34 (.324) with three extra base hits and five walks for a .425 on-base percentage and a .471 slugging percentage.
Interleague record: 86-79 overall, 2-3 in 2008
2008 Interleague Schedule • May 16 vs. Rays: Lost, 3-1
• May 17 vs. Rays: Won, 9-8
• May 18 vs. Rays: Won, 5-4
• June 17 vs. Royals: Lost, 2-1
• June 18 vs. Royals: Lost, 3-2
• June 19 vs. Royals
• June 20 at Red Sox
• June 21 at Red Sox
• June 22 at Red Sox
• June 24 at Tigers
• June 25 at Tigers
• June 26 at Tigers
• June 27 at Royals
• June 28 at Royals
• June 29 vs at Royals
Pitching matchup
STL: RHP Brad Thompson (1-1, 4.58 ERA)
With Anthony Reyes going on the DL due to elbow soreness, the Cardinals activated Thompson perhaps a bit more quickly than they anticipated. Thompson earned a rotation spot in Spring Training, but was bumped when Joel Pineiro came off the DL. He struggled in relief, was placed on the injured list himself and has made two rehabilitation starts. Thompson's an extreme groundballer when things are going well, and he'll try to keep the ball down against a Kansas City team that has hit three homers the past two games.
KC: RHP Zack Greinke (5-4, 3.48 ERA)
Greinke worked himself into tough jams on Friday night at Arizona but managed to wiggle free and pitch seven shutout innings before being relieved. Pitching carefully to the tough Diamondbacks, he walked a career-high seven but gave up just three hits. The no-decision meant he hasn't won in five straight starts after starting the season 5-1. Working in 100-plus degree heat, he threw 111 pitches and still looked strong. Against the Cardinals, he's 1-2 with a 7.04 ERA in four games.
Tidbits
Thompson's last Major League start came on April 8, when he allowed three earned runs in four innings at Houston. ... Thompson has a 5.50 ERA in 16 career Interleague appearances (three starts). ... Adam Kennedy is 3-for-6 lifetime against Greinke. ... The Cardinals had won or split nine consecutive series before this one.
Tickets
Buy tickets now to catch the game in person. On the Internet
MLB.TV Gameday Audio• Gameday
• Official game notes
On television
• FSN-HD
On radio
• KTRS 550
Up next
• Friday: Cardinals (Kyle Lohse, 8-2, 3.77) at Red Sox (Tim Wakefield, 4-4, 4.19), 6:05 p.m. CT
• Saturday: Cardinals (Mitchell Boggs, 1-0, 5.56) at Red Sox (Daisuke Matsuzaka, 8-0, 2.53), 2:55 p.m. CT
• Sunday: Cardinals (Joel Pineiro, 2-3, 4.02) at Red Sox (Jon Lester, 6-3, 3.18), 12:35 p.m. CT
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