Dave Duncan will do his magic with another pitching project - this time Smoltz, and betcha dollars to donunts, will rejunventate him and make him another payoff acquisition the Cards have made this year. Also, shows the Cards want to win - which is great for the club and the fans - the best in baseball.

If the AL is so damn good they can afford to get rid of the abomination that is the DH.

As a lifelong Cards fan, I'm thrilled with this. For years I had to watch Smoltz tear up the Cardinals. I have to believe he can still be an effective pitcher.

As far as the difference in the two leagues, I have the general impression the AL is better.

But hasn't the NL won two of the last three World Series? Cards in 2006, Phillies in 2008.

As a lifelong Cards fan, I'm thrilled with this. For years I had to watch Smoltz tear up the Cardinals. I have to believe he can still be an effective pitcher.

As far as the difference in the two leagues, I have the general impression the AL is better.

But hasn't the NL won two of the last three World Series? Cards in 2006, Phillies in 2008.

the AL is so damn good at pitching BECAUSE OF the DH - that's why the NL is pitcher friendly and also a rest home for the guys who still have a little bit left to give.

Good luck with him. He was atrocious as a starter this year in Boston. They gave him far too many chances, and lost quite a few games because of it. The only team he looked good against was Kansas City.

are the cardinals really that far ahead in the standings that they can afford to lose every fifth game?

It might be a good idea he plays in the NL. He wasn't even competitive in the AL. It was like a bad car accident. You only watched his start against the Yanks out of depraved curiosity.

My question is...if the AL is so darn superior, why has the NL won 2 of the last three world series? The difference between the leagues is the DH. That's what makes the AL seem superior. Having that additional true hitter in your lineup helps to inflate pitchers ERAs. Neither league is hands down SUPERIOR. I get so sick of hearing that.

They are already losing every fifth game. At Smoltz will be someone new. Trust me as a Cards fan, President Obama couldn't do worse than our fifth starters have this year. And his pitch didn't even make it to home plate.

The Cards are losing every fifth game now. Smoltz can't be worse than the guys who have been filling that slot.

Regardless of which league is perceived as superior the bottom line is - will this acquisition improve the cardinals. I think "Yes" and the reason, as I've stated before, is that the Cards have the best manager/pitching coach combination in baseball, will make Tom their latest project and get the most out of him - which is better than what the had as the 5th starter. And they already have one of the best set of starters and low ERA to show for.

So - YES - this was a great acquistion - PERIOD, ended, no more discussion needed.

(and you AL fans can go suck on you DH - that's just not baseball as it was intended)..

This is classic Cardinals. Take an experienced proven player and put him back into a healthy environment (coaching, players, supportive fans) and watch him return. This is a great player and a great organization. Sorry Cubs.

Kevin Ehrhart
kmehrhart@smog-ortho.net

Better than losing every other game you turds!

They're losing every 5th game right now with Wellemeyer and Boggs. Low risk, high reward in getting Smoltz.

Sorry but this move is no slam dunk. No one can say if he is going to succeed or not. I personally feel that he should be used in relief. He still may fall flat on his face. Or, finally, he may revert to the old Smoltz of the past, and lead them to the W-S. It will be seen very soon. A lot of fun to watch.

Shely

Obviously, you haven't looked at the interleague and All-Star results in a few years...

Let's remember guys, he's only going to be a 5th starter until the post-season, then he's getting moved to the bullpen to be the 8th inning setup guy for Franklin.

This is the good news for Cards fans... his 1st inning numbers are VERY impressive, even if the greater 2009 resume isn't. 1st inning ERA is 0.65, and I seem to remember him being pretty effective out of the bullpen once before....

I am a Yankee fan living in St. louis and get sick of hearing how great the Cards and their fans are. LaRussa has choked with more great teams than any manger in basbeall and Duncan is a good coach for Vets but can't develop young pitchers. The fans are no better or worse than any other fans, they just have noting better to do in the part-time town of St. Louis. If Smoltz has any success it will be beaise he is pitching in the weak NL central down the stretch.

Well the Cards are playing GREAT ball except every fifth day. So really they have nothing to lose by bringing him in for a try. It is costing them nothing and he can't be any worse than what they already have as a fifth starter. Plus I would assume his leadership alone is worth the $97,000 they are paying him.

Why is everyone still talking about this? DENNIS AGAIN said "no more discussion needed." Isn't that enough for you folks? Why must you continue to debate and discuss when DENNIS AGAIN has spoken?

Hey Mike, I've been to every stadium in baseball and the Cards have the best fans and baseball environment BY FAR! They are knowledgable, courteous to home and away players alike, and just enjoy baseball in general. I have yet to go to another stadium where the fans cheer for a sac bunt or for working the count. As a Yankees fan you should definitely not be talking about teams choking especially given the astronomical payroll, crybaby players (some), and lack of titles since 2001 for the Yanks. LaRussa and Duncan have developed young pitching as well... Wainwright and Haren are two right off the top of my head. Name the last Yankee developed pitcher to be a Cy Young contender... Joba doesn't count yet and Phil Hughes has not lived up to potential. If you can't find things to do in the "part-time town" of St. Louis then you aren't looking hard enough. Keep hating and being miserable and then go back to NY where you can be unhappy and complain all you want and fit right in.

Love it... Go John.... Boston bytes anyway, you are much better off with the cards and the NL.

THEY LOSE EVERY FIFTH GAME ANYWAY trying to fill that hole as it is. i havent seen wellemeyer pitch a decent game since may, Boggs is too inexperienced and unproven to fill the shoes of a dependable starter, all of Thompson's wins have been high scoring events won by the sheer power of the card's offense and certainly not by any lights-out pitching of his own. bring in smoltz i say...let's see what he's got, it cant be any worse than the variable riff raff the 5 spot current holds

SOooo....youre saying that wins by the AL in the all star games and interleague play respectively outweigh wins by the NL in world series' the last 3 years? .....i was gonna get out the scales on this one but lemme just take a stab at a reply and simply say: youre high. Additionally if you love your Yankees so much then i suggest you got back to that armpit you call new york and root for your crappy teams there...that is if YOU can find a full time job fool.

Rock on Matt!!! Let's not forget folks the simple mathematics of 1) Losing every 5th game is a winning percentage of .800 for crying out loud...I'll take it! 2) NO manager since 1900 has won more games than Tony LaRussa - 300+ more than Torre, and 3) Mike is clearly a product of the NY public school system as he couldn't figure out the 2 aforementioned statistics. Welcome aboard John Smoltz, I can't wait to see what he brings...it's gonna be awesome, just like the city, the cards, and the fans.

Smoltz didn't pitch that poorly in Boston, but the Sox defense behind him was terrible and he was unlucky. Take a look at his BABIP and FIP. Given time, his ERA in Boston would have lowered quite a bit. Add in escaping the Fenway bandbox and Smoltz' numbers should rebound considerably.

Can't all you guys just wait and see? This is no slam dunk. I personally feel he can be tried as the 5th starter, however, he will be more valauable as the set up man for one or two innings. By the way, the Yankees do have the best atmosphere in baseball in which to play. It is all and only because of the past great teams. However, the fans are nuts and do not deserve such recognition. Although it is there right to boo and scream at every player who doesn't hit a home run with every AB, they do not support the player. It is all and only about money. Not a good situation for a sport team. The only worse fan base in the country in Philly. Unfortunately, Boston is a close third, and gaining on NY. I have been to all three places for some duration, and rate each of them at the bottom of the list as far as fans go. If only we had another winner in Cinti., we could show what true fans are like. Even so, with the loser that we have, we draw about 2 mil. a year. The fan base in Stlou. is one of the best around. Ive' been there too for 15 years.

Shely in Cincinnati.

UNLUCKY ??? YEAH, THE YANKEES ARE A VERY LUCKY TEAM........

BEST RECORD LUCKY, GREAT OBSERVATION, STOP WATCHING SO
MUCH CARTOON NETWORK ON SECOND THOUGHT KEEP WATCHING, YOU
ARE SO FUNNY.......

Petite, Mariano Rivera, Chen Mein Wang, Ted Lily... Haren sucked until he left St.louis so your argument is shot right there. Believe me, if I could leave here I would. You've obviously never been to Yankee Stadium, Camden Yards, Anehiem etc.. if you think the Cardinals are the only fans who cheer for good baseball. It's a PR ploy to make people feel good about living in a crime infested, pitifully educated, drug fueled, horrible pizza eating town like this. Why don't we meet at Ted Drewes and talk about the 1904 world fair?

Well, Dave Duncan (the greatest pitching coach on the planet) fixed a mechanical flaw and also stopped him from tipping his pitches, and Smoltz responded by pitching 5 shutout innings with 9 strikeouts for a win in his first St. Louis start, albeit against the Padres. Especially with Lohse out for the next 2 weeks, this is great news for the Cardinals and a huge steal from the Red Sox.

Spot on, Mike. New York is flawless. Nothing bad ever happens there...

With all of your complaining, you are only supporting Matt's observation. Perhaps you should take a little tour through this lovely city before you list more complaints.

No true fan can go to Yankee stadium because they charge $100 dollars for a bleacher seat. They will bilk every last dollar out of you suckers so you can have the illusion of a real team. They have not had a cohesive unit in years, and this year is no exception. Oh and the Bronx and Queens are just beautiful landscapes for baseball. One of the only few places you go to game and hope your not raped or mugged on the trip from the train.

Mark- Bleacher seats at yankee stadium: $14. Busch:$22, so you're an idiot. Must be a public school grad. (where'd you go to high school?) ....Wow, Really(nice gay name) I live in this "lovely city" so I am often walking thorugh it. Problem is that after 7pm I am usually the only one on the street. I never would imply that nothing bad happens in New York, only that more good happens. Actually, since nothing happens in Stl, I guess it is safe, ecxcept that it usually makes the top 5 of the countries most dangerous cities. I didn't make that up. the fact that very few, if any, of the players actully live here in the off-season should say something.

Well, first of all. http://www.ticketsnow.com/InventoryBrowse/Texas-Rangers-at-New-York-Yankees-Tickets-at-The-New-Yankee-Stadium-in-Bronx?PID=727554 - Where's that $12 ticket? Even the parking pass is $22. Nosebleed seat for around $30, not bad. Now, here are your St. Louis tickets. http://www.ticketsnow.com/InventoryBrowse/Houston-Astros-at-St--Louis-Cardinals-Tickets-at-Busch-Stadium-in-Saint-Louis?PID=725457 - Nosebleed tickets for around $5. Only thing over $100 are diamond box seats. Mike, you must not have received your education in St. Louis because they would have taught you how to research a topic before a discussion. I'm not sure where you found anything about the team not living in St. Louis, because if search the web you will find that many players have permanent homes here. Pujols part-owns a restaurant in Maryland Heights. I don't understand why you are even here if you dislike it so much. If your reason is job related, might I suggest you find a new job in New York? I will agree with your point on St. Louis being one of the most dangerous cities, but living in the suburbs I find myself unaffected by any harm. It really depends where in St. Louis your located, much the same with any other city.

You really need to quit while you have some shred of dignity. Ticketsnow is a ticket broker that only a genius like you would buy baseball tickets from. I prefer to get them from the box office or team website. The reason why Cards tickets may be cheaper on this site is because no one wants to see the Astros play the Cardinals. Check the ticket prices on the team sites. Also, I said the bleacher seeats at Yankee stadium are $14 dollars, not 12. If you hold out both hands and open your fingers, that is 10. Now take off a shoe and subtract 2 of your toes, that would give you 4. Add it up and it is 14. Alos, if you define "many" as 3 then you're right, many players do reside here. You need to get back the the suburbs, your meth is burning.

The only "disparity" as you say between the two leagues can be explained in two words. Designated hitter. Not the NL's fault that the other guys would rather play beer league rules that a half trained monkey could manage.

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