After watching the Cardinals and Astros empty the dugouts (and bullpens) twice in as many days, I found myself musing about the differing reactions of the umpires viz-a-viz the ballplayers, fans, and announcers involved; and the changes in baseball culture since the late 1970s.

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with the passing of my father, Bill Merritt, of St. Louis at his home Sunday evening. He left this world surrounded by both his children, his wonderful second wife (who succeeded my late mother) and her two children.

My father had a brief baseball career as a catcher in Class "D" with the (then) Washington Senators. He passed along his love of baseball and the Cardinals to me, and some of my fondest memories of my father came at Sportsman's Park and Busch II, watching our Redbirds.

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After a five-run inning where the Northsiders proved (once again) that they're Still The Cubs, Carlos Zambrano blew up in the dugout, sccording to this story.

The Braves had already scored runs when the Cubs were unable to catch routine pop-ups... twice!

I'm mildly surprised Sweet Lou didn't just hand Z a bat and his permission to "kill 'em all"...

In honor of the start of the Stanley Cup Playoffs tonight, I thought I'd pitch in with some of my baseball-related thoughts from a full day of watching baseball (while my patient, long-suffering bride read at least two full novels...)

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This has been one thrill-ride rollercoaster of a season... but as with hockey's Stanley Cup playoffs, the Cards and Tigers have proven that the most important part of the post-season is to get into the playoffs...

With that in mind, I've changed the words to one of my favorite cartoon theme-songs ever... (You'll recognize the tune as soon as you see the chorus)

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For those that don't (or can't) remember, there were several reasons Cardinal fans thought of the Mets as "Pond Scum".

First of all, the Mets were supposed to be the dominant National League team of the 1980s, according to the national media.  (Yes, East Coast Bias [TM] existed even before the advent of ESPN!)

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While it's admittedly been a frustrating season for the Cardinals, I found myself screaming my lungs out in front of the TV on Speezer's game-winning, bases-loaded triple yesterday.  Win, lose, or draw, it's moments like that that make me remember just why I'm a fan.

Watching Adam Wainwright close it out in the ninth also stirred an idea... being a fan of a certain age, Beatles songs come to mind more easily than ditties of more recent vintage, so, for your enjoyment (I hope) I present:

ADAM'S YELLOW HAMMER!

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(and a middle-aged-fart "gold star" if you know where that musical reference comes from...)

I just don't get it.  Gerald Perry gets an eight-game suspension for sucker-punching Dave Duncan... Lloyd McClendon gets a one-game suspension for arguing with Dunc... and Dunc gets a four-game suspension for getting sucker-punched????

Okay, maybe Dunc shouldn't have said anything to Rick White (the pitcher who buzzed Luna, and a pitcher Dunc formerly coached.  But c'mon, players and coaches from opposing teams talk to each other all the time!  (Officially, they're not supposed to... it's called the "fraternization rule."  But it's been basically ignored since Kenesaw Mountain Landis was commissioner.)

The upshot of this brouhaha, imo, hurts the Cardinals far more than it hurts the Pirates.

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I read on this site and others throughout the blogosphere much wailing, cries of woe, and (figurative) gnashing of teeth over the fact that the Cardinals gave up Daric Barton in the Mark Mulder trade.  Now, I'm not here to make any comments about Barton's bat so far as a minor-leaguer, nor his projection as a major-league hitter.  Suffice it to say, he's been a very good hitter to this point in his career, and may well become an outstanding major league hitter.

Having said that, I have just one question for those who claim the Cards never should have included him in the Mulder deal...

Had Barton remained with the Cardinals' organization, WHERE WOULD HE PLAY???

He was signed as a catcher, and has moved to first base (and DH) with the A's organization.  The current catcher, Yadier Molina, is 23 years old.  He supplanted a three-time Gold Glove winner (Mike Matheny) largely because of Yadi's own defense.  While Molina's offensive numbers will most probably never compare to Barton's, that point is moot... the Cardinals want the "D" from their catchers first, and any offensive output they get from them is gravy.  If Barton is going to be as good with the bat as many think, it would be foolish to have him be the "backup" catcher behind Molina.

The Cardinals' first baseman is 25-year-old Albert Pujols.  He ain't going anywhere.  (Remember the elbow problem AP had in left field a couple years ago?)

It's doubtful Barton has the speed to play in the outfield, and he would be blocked at third base by an All-Star with a long-term contract, as well.

So, to get a lefthanded starter for the top of the rotation, the Cards gave up a promising young starter, a middle reliever, and... a guy who would have had to find a position in the major leagues, in a league without the benefit of a DH... a guy they wouldn't be able to use, anyway!