I haven't blogged a lot lately. Work, and other things getting in the way...and I will admit laziness. However, I am now taking the time to blog about one of my favorite things: Baseball! The Boys of Summer are back!! After months of waiting baseball season is finally in full swing!! Horray!!
Spring Training started off great, Wainwright and Carpenter looked solid. And then Wainwright hurt his elbow and had season-ending Tommy John Surgery (I wish him a speedy recovery). Carpenter is doing really well, he just needs support from the bullpen. His record is 0-2 but there should be at least one win, the bullpen cost him that one. Jamie Garcia has really stepped up (3-0 record) and has been a reliable starter. Kyle Loshe is also showing more promise than he did last season- he seems to have more control of the ball and his mechanics seem improved. He also currently has the lowest ERA of the starting pitchers at 2.01 and a record of 3-1. Kyle McClellan is also doing extremly well, he also has a record of 3-0 with an ERA of 2.16.
After getting off to a slow start, the Birds on the Bat are starting to heat up! As of right now, the Cardinals are in first place in the NL Central with a 12-11 record and a .522 record. Critics have said the Cards will finish in 4th place this season. My vote: its too early to tell so the verdict is still out. Ask me again in August. We have some new Birds on the Bat (as always) this year.
First up is former Astro Lance "Puma" Berkman. Berkman was one of the Astros "Killer B's". Whenever he came up to bat, they would play that awful buzzing sounds. Berkman played firstbase while in Houston. He has transitioned to the outfield specifically right field- as we have Pujuls at first base- and seems to be doing really well. He has been hitting really good and has made some good defensive moves. All in all, he is a great addition to the team.
Ryan Theriot- a former Chicago Cub, don't hold it against him- he was one Cubbie I didn't like coming up to the plate- I knew he could hit. Theriot seems to be heating up and fitting in well with the club. The FSN announcers have compared his hiting style to that of former Cardinal David Eckstien- not a big power hitter like Pujols, but capable of producing timely hits.
There are some other new additions, but honestly these are the two I have heard the most about.
Even though we lost ace Wainwright, the rest of the starting pitchers have stepped up and are producing. It is our bullpen that needs the most work. I know, easy for me to say. Unfortunately a lot of the game is mental. I admire the players and the way they can play. I really admire the way the can stand up to all of the pressures and critisms of the game. Its only April and (thankfully) we still have a lot of baseball left! I get to go to my first game of the year on May 3rd with my baseball buddy JR and then again on May 7th (again w/ JR).
As always, all of my facts (numbers/ERA's) can be checked on the Cardinals website. My opinions are just that. At the moment, I will respectfully decline on opinions of manager Tony LaRussa.
Por Siempre: Let's Go Cardinals!!
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Rising Waters
St. Louis has been through some rough weather lately. And it doesn't appear we are going to get a break any time soon. Since my last posting about the tornado I have learned more about it. I found out that the tornado traveled 22 feet and was a 1/4 mile wide (the width of my street- two lanes plus a nice shoulder on each side). This tornado made the one that hit Sunset Hills and Fenton back on New Year's Eve look like nothing. Not to diminish what happend then, its just this tornado inflicted a lot more damage. Miracuously no deaths! KMOV did a fantastic job of covering the storm and it seems like everyone had a lot of warning and a lot of information about the storm! Obviously that helped. I keep reading and hearing more about the tornado. The one thing I heard that made me soo happy was that of the volunteers coming out and helping everyone! I love hearing stuff like that, proves that there are caring people in our city. Some people have been helping by reaching out to friends and asking for things. Every little bit is appreciated I am sure. Times are going to be tough, but I think we are going to come out of this okay. It appears that there really are some wonderful people in St. Louis.
Now going to the title of my post: Rising Waters. It has been raining constantly since (and even before) the tornado it. (did St. Louis turn into Seattle and I missed it?) The ground is saturated from previous rainfalls so there is nowhere for the water to go. So the rivers are cresting. One levey, in Poplar Bluff, has already failed. One road by my house has been closed because it is under water. I heard that the levey gate in Valley Park was going to close, but it remains open. News casters are saying that the Meramec River is going to crest t/m at 24 ft. I would imagine that before that the levey gate in Valley Park will close. I am really worried about this flooding. My house will not be affected; I live on top of a big hill. If my house floods somebody better be building an ark and collecting 2 of each animal (except for squirrels and geese). What I am concerned about is 141 at 44 going under. If that happens, I can still get to work, it is just going to take a lot longer to get there. I really don't want that to happen- and call me selfish if you want- I just don't want to have to use all that gas considering the gas prices! I mean really, do the oil companies think we are made of money?! All we can do now is wait and hope for the best.
Now going to the title of my post: Rising Waters. It has been raining constantly since (and even before) the tornado it. (did St. Louis turn into Seattle and I missed it?) The ground is saturated from previous rainfalls so there is nowhere for the water to go. So the rivers are cresting. One levey, in Poplar Bluff, has already failed. One road by my house has been closed because it is under water. I heard that the levey gate in Valley Park was going to close, but it remains open. News casters are saying that the Meramec River is going to crest t/m at 24 ft. I would imagine that before that the levey gate in Valley Park will close. I am really worried about this flooding. My house will not be affected; I live on top of a big hill. If my house floods somebody better be building an ark and collecting 2 of each animal (except for squirrels and geese). What I am concerned about is 141 at 44 going under. If that happens, I can still get to work, it is just going to take a lot longer to get there. I really don't want that to happen- and call me selfish if you want- I just don't want to have to use all that gas considering the gas prices! I mean really, do the oil companies think we are made of money?! All we can do now is wait and hope for the best.
Sunday, April 24, 2011
EF4 Tornado Hits St. Louis
Friday night, April 22nd, Good Friday, St. Louis was hit by an E4 Tornado. Lambert Airport and surrounding areas suffered the most damage.
Tornados are graded on the Fujita scale from 1 to 5. They are measured by how much they "eat" aka destroy. The higher the number, the greater the damage. This link gives you an idea of how they grade each number.
St. Louis suffered incredible damage; houses were leveled, Lambert international had a roof taken off, windows blown in, and a teriminal flooded. Debris littered the halls of Busch Stadium. The pictures of the damage I have seen are enough to break my heart. Miracuously though, there were no fatalities. All that damage and not one life lost. God was truely watching over St. Louis Friday night. Even those of you who do not believe in God, you have to admit there was something greater watching over us. I was fortuate in that all of my friends and family are safe and unharmed by the storm. Others were not as fortunate.
President Obama has promised Federal Aid to the victims. This and insurance will help. Let me repeat HELP... but not solve all the problems. It takes a long time for insurance claims to be processed. It will take time for the Federal money to arrive and be properly distributed. In the meantime, people will have to rely on the strength and love of their friends and family. The generosity of strangers will also be a booon to them. Those with Tornado insurance will have advantages of being able to rebuild faster, the insurance will provide them with money to get a hotel, get food and clothes. This will HELP, not solve. And it will take time for insurance to get the money to its customers, and while they are waiting they will have to use precious funds for the basic necessities just to survive. I am not saying all this to be cold or rude, nor am I minimizing the situation, as it has been suggested to me. There are some amazing people out there who have already stepped forward and are helping the vicitms. A friend of mine is reaching out to her facebook community and asking for small donations to help a friend of hers who lost her house. She is not asking for a lot, just small things; gift certificates for food and clothes, and donations of diapers. It may seem small but in the long run it is a lot. Remember that the tiniest ripple in the pond can produce the largest waves. Translation: even the smallest acts of kindness can make the biggest difference. KMOV asked for stories of people doing good for a special segment on Monday, so I submitted what my friend is doing. The news needs to highlight more stories like this more often. I am impressed and awed by what people are doing to help out. There are truely some amazing people in St. Louis. For those of you who want to help, click here for ideas.
Tornados are graded on the Fujita scale from 1 to 5. They are measured by how much they "eat" aka destroy. The higher the number, the greater the damage. This link gives you an idea of how they grade each number.
St. Louis suffered incredible damage; houses were leveled, Lambert international had a roof taken off, windows blown in, and a teriminal flooded. Debris littered the halls of Busch Stadium. The pictures of the damage I have seen are enough to break my heart. Miracuously though, there were no fatalities. All that damage and not one life lost. God was truely watching over St. Louis Friday night. Even those of you who do not believe in God, you have to admit there was something greater watching over us. I was fortuate in that all of my friends and family are safe and unharmed by the storm. Others were not as fortunate.
President Obama has promised Federal Aid to the victims. This and insurance will help. Let me repeat HELP... but not solve all the problems. It takes a long time for insurance claims to be processed. It will take time for the Federal money to arrive and be properly distributed. In the meantime, people will have to rely on the strength and love of their friends and family. The generosity of strangers will also be a booon to them. Those with Tornado insurance will have advantages of being able to rebuild faster, the insurance will provide them with money to get a hotel, get food and clothes. This will HELP, not solve. And it will take time for insurance to get the money to its customers, and while they are waiting they will have to use precious funds for the basic necessities just to survive. I am not saying all this to be cold or rude, nor am I minimizing the situation, as it has been suggested to me. There are some amazing people out there who have already stepped forward and are helping the vicitms. A friend of mine is reaching out to her facebook community and asking for small donations to help a friend of hers who lost her house. She is not asking for a lot, just small things; gift certificates for food and clothes, and donations of diapers. It may seem small but in the long run it is a lot. Remember that the tiniest ripple in the pond can produce the largest waves. Translation: even the smallest acts of kindness can make the biggest difference. KMOV asked for stories of people doing good for a special segment on Monday, so I submitted what my friend is doing. The news needs to highlight more stories like this more often. I am impressed and awed by what people are doing to help out. There are truely some amazing people in St. Louis. For those of you who want to help, click here for ideas.
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