The Curious Case Of Garry Templeton's Record

The guy who does my taxes is a fellow baseball fan, and to break up the tedium of emailing each other about 1099-INT forms and property tax payments, we often email each other about baseball trivia, which our wives think is only slightly less boring. Last night, he dropped by the house to have us sign our tax return, and he asked me, “Who was the first player to have 100 hits from each side of the plate in a single season?”

Baseball Essential

Larry Dierker & His Unsatisfying Stint With Cardinals

Larry Dierker was one of the most popular, personable and productive pitchers to play for the Astros. He was as smooth a fit for Houston as oil, aerospace and barbecue. Imagine then the shockwaves when he was traded to the Cardinals.

RetroSimba

The Day The Cardinals Fired Red Schoendienst

Concerned about the direction of a franchise that had gone eight consecutive years without qualifying for the postseason, the Cardinals pushed sentiment aside and fired manager Red Schoendienst.

RetroSimba

Why Cardinals Dealt Ken Reitz After Gold Glove Season

Enticed by the chance to add a left-hander to the starting rotation and a potential power hitter to the batting order, the Cardinals gave up a Gold Glove Award winner at third base.

RetroSimba

Cardinals Enjoying Embarrassment Of Pitching Riches

Ever since I’ve been a Cardinal fan, they’ve always had some good pitching, and many times they’ve had power arms. The template was set long ago, but when I started watching, Bob Gibson was still an intimidating force. Back in the 70s, they traded for guys like hard-throwing lefty Pete Falcone from the Giants in 1976 and fireballing righthander John D’Acquisto from San Francisco in 1977. They joined closer Al Hrabosky, who was a hard thrower for his time, and John Denny. In the 80s, during the Whiteyball era, Joaquin Andujar could throw hard, Danny Cox had a pretty good fastball, and Todd Worrell came up in 1985 throwing 95 mph.

101 ESPN

Tom Underwood Was Key In Major Cardinals Trades

Tom Underwood’s time with the Cardinals was brief (19 games pitched in 1977), but he was an integral part of two trades that significantly shaped the St. Louis team.

Retro Simba

Joel Pineiro's Bizarro Three-True-Outcomes Night

Following Todd Wellemeyer, whom we’ve cited in this space for his three-true-outcome pitching propensity, in the rotation, Joel Pineiro took the mound against the Mets and pitched to contact. A lot of it. Pineiro got the Mets to put the ball in play, but kept it in the park, facing 30 batters en route to the team’s 5-2 win Wednesday.

Fungoes