Gateway to Baseball Heaven, 5/14/17

It was another winning week for the Redbirds and Daniel Shoptaw (C70 At The Bat, @C70) and Tara Wellman (Bird Seeds, @tarawellman) were glad to have more wins to discuss.  While the record may not really reflect it, the Cardinals stepped up in competition this weekend against the defending World Champs and acquitted themselves nicely.  Does that mean that this really is a good team and not just a team taking it out on soft competition?  How important are Tommy Pham and Magneuris Sierra to the recent resurgence?  More importantly, how long are they going to be with the team?  We saw a great start from Adam Wainwright on Sunday–turning the corner or a blip in a bad pattern?  All this and much, much more!

Note: We so, SO wanted to title this episode #ThatsCub but we couldn’t quite bring ourselves to do it.

GTBH 5/14/17: Not Getting Sick of the Winning

Gateway To Baseball Heaven, 5/7/17

This was a painful week for the Cardinals, less because of the results (4-2) than the outfielders that dropped like flies.  While that did let us get a look at Tommy Pham and Mags Sierra, how severe are these injuries?  Will Dexter Fowler return quickly or be the next to the DL?  And if so, who is left to come to St. Louis?

Daniel Shoptaw (C70 At The Bat, @C70) and Tara Wellman (Bird Seeds, @tarawellman) tackle that and other things about this week, such as the growth of both Kolten Wong and, surprisingly, Mike Matheny.  Is Wong finally developing into the every day second baseman?  Has Mike taken the next step in his managerial evolution?  Listen and find out!

GTBH 5/7/17: No Podcasters Were Injured During the Making of This Show

Gateway to Baseball Heaven, 4/30/17

This week, Mother Nature got as many wins as the Cardinals did losses, which made for a stop-and-start schedule especially with an off-day mixed in.  Even though the Redbirds went 3-2 since last Sunday, Daniel (C70 At The Bat, @C70) and Tara (Bird Seeds, @tarawellman) still see plenty to be concerned about.  For a team that was supposed to emphasize pitching and defense, there’s not been a huge increase from last year’s weak showing.  (In fact, some stats indicate the opposite.)  The bullpen–strength or ticking time bomb?  Can Adam Wainwright adapt?  All that plus discussing how bad it must be to be replaced by Pete Kozma!

Gateway to Baseball Heaven 4/30/17: One Month Down, Five To Go

Gateway to Baseball Heaven, 4/23/17

This week’s show is much more upbeat than the last few, as the Cardinals won six of the seven games they played this week.  That doesn’t mean that all is hunky-dory, however, and Daniel Shoptaw (C70 At The Bat, @C70) and Tara Wellman (Bird Seeds, @tarawellman) look at some of the issues that are still out there.  When you win three games by 2-1 scores and two other games because of the offensive exploits of your pitchers, you might think that the offense still needs some work.  Seung-hwan Oh still is doing his best Jason Isringhausen.  How long can that keep going?  And what’s up with Carlos Martinez?  All that and more on this week’s show!

Gateway to Baseball Heaven 4/23/17: Filling In the Hole

Gateway to Baseball Heaven, 4/16/17

Every week, two of the Best Fans in Baseball (TM) bring you all the news and analysis you need about the St. Louis Cardinals. Actually, this week there’s little analysis you need–the club is just really bad right now. The Cards won one single game this week (against Max Scherzer, so don’t tell us baseball doesn’t have a sense of humor) so Daniel and Tara go back and forth trying to figure out what to do say about a team that looks lackluster and listless in the early going. There’s not a lot of options for John Mozeliak and the ones that he does have may not have much of an impact, but that doesn’t stop us from talking about them.

All this plus a discussion about Adam Wainwright!

GTBH 4/16/17: It’s Either Laugh, Cry, or Rant

Gateway to Baseball Heaven, 4/9/17

This week Daniel Shoptaw (C70 At The Bat) and Tara Wellman (Bird Seeds) are fairly flummoxed about all that’s going on. When you have a week that sees you drop four of six, including two shutouts against the Reds, perhaps the worst pitch Adam Wainwright has ever thrown, a ball sticking to Yadier Molina’s chest protector, and a trip around the bases that got Stephen Piscotty not only on SportsCenter but on Jimmy Kimmell……well, you try to explain it.

Tara and Daniel tackle the biggest issue of the day, the seeming fascination with Matt Adams in the outfield. That might have gotten the focus this week–with good reason–but there have been other woes. The bullpen has been allowing home runs like they were facing the 2016 Cardinals. Some major cogs in the lineup are well below the .200 mark. Even the starting pitching took a hit at the end of the week with the Reds proving much tougher for Carlos Martinez to solve than the Cubs.

It was a wild, wild, wild, wild week and hopefully the next one will restore some order to the galaxy. After all, they are just playing….the Nationals and the Yankees. No problem!

Also, make sure you stick around for the first post-credits comments ever in a GTBH podcast!

Gateway to Baseball Heaven 4/9/17: Hey, We Weren’t Ready To Start Yet!

Gateway To Baseball Heaven, 4/3/17

The 2017 season is finally underway and, as of right now, the standings are back to their rightful place with the Cards on top.  Daniel Shoptaw (C70 At The Bat) and Tara Wellman (Bird Seeds) go through the highs and lows of the opener.  At which point did Mike Matheny make an egregious error?  How amazing was Carlos Martinez?  Has Randal Grichuk learned control?  Plus the two discuss the contract extensions for Yadier Molina and for Stephen Piscotty.  It’s a cram-packed thirty minutes and it’s worth every penny!  (Please remember it’s free.)

Gateway to Baseball Heaven 4/3/17: Opening Up the Debate

Gateway To Baseball Heaven, 3/19/17

This week, Daniel Shoptaw (C70 At The Bat) and Tara Wellman (Bird Seeds) still don’t have first-hand opinions for you, having seen little to none of the games over the past seven days, but that’s never stopped them before!  The two discuss the pressures that Tommy Pham is playing, what Matt Adams in the outfield really means, and the nice spring of Lance Lynn.  Plus comments on Bengie Molina’s comments and #CardsMadness!

Gateway To Baseball Heaven, 3/19/17

Gateway To Baseball Heaven, 3/12/17

We’re about halfway through the spring and we can start to get the feel about what this team might be.  Success on the diamond isn’t everything while you are in Jupiter, but it’s nice and Daniel and Tara spend some time on what’s going right, especially Adam Wainwright and Michael Wacha, plus a resurgent Matt Adams.  Not everything is working, though, and they talk about Jordan Schafer and his forearm stiffness.  Plus, find out who Tara thinks would make the best figure skater!

Gateway to Baseball Heaven 3/12/17