Brandon Phillips started a fire through the media Tuesday and then made things worse when the game started. Phillips greets catchers with a tap on their leg and did so to Yadier Molina. Molina wasn’t in a friendly mood after being called out and he made sure Phillips knew it. A bench-clearing brawl ensued, making this already huge series that much more interesting. St. Louis won the game 8-4 and the Reds need a win to save face tonight. Video highlights after the jump along with more reactions on this later in the day.

I love players who do all the little things. The guys who make their names with their gloves, lay down the bunt to move the runner over, and always sprint down the line on a routine groundout. Taking care of the details wins games and builds chemistry.
The little things earn the respect of your teammates and opponents.
Catchers are often the glue guys who stand in the background while the home run hitters and flashy gloveman soak in the spotlight. They take a beating physically, constantly in a crouch taking foul balls off the helmet and dealing with the stray baserunner [...]

The St. Louis Cardinals have been frustrating in an up-and-down first half of the 2010 season and at times embarrassing according to one St. Louis baseball expert.
The All-Star Game selections were a surprising highlight for this struggling Cardinals team. St. Louis tied the Atlanta Braves with five selections for the most in the National League. Albert Pujols and Yadier Molina were voted in by the fans as starters. Pujols led the league in voting for the second straight year despite a ho-hum first half. It will be his ninth consecutive All-Star appearance. Molina, hitting .231, benefited from fan voting and his [...]

After a full day of Albert Pujols talk, the focus shifted back to the action on the diamond. St. Louis used a four-run sixth inning to take control and win the game 5-4. Ryan Ludwick started the explosion with an RBI double. He also accounted for the Cards only other run with a homer in the fourth. Yadier Molina and David Freese drove in the other three runs to put St. Louis up 5-2. Blake Hawksworth made things interesting in the seventh with a throwing error that allowed a run to score and set up another. He left after 1/3 [...]

The Cardinals used a late-game surge to top the Braves in the series opener in St. Louis by a score of 4-3. St. Louis trailed 3-0 after five innings before scoring four runs from the sixth to the eighth inning. Yadier Molina was the hero with an RBI double in the eighth to give the Cardinals their first and only lead of the game. Ryan Franklin headed to the mound and got the final three outs to complete the strong finish.
Albert Pujols, who got the comeback started with an RBI groundout in the sixth, had three hits for St. Louis. [...]

Yadier Molina is hitting .208. Not exactly a brilliant start with the bat for the St. Louis catcher. But one could argue that no one had been more important to the Cardinals winning start to the season. Yes, even more important than Pujols and Holliday and Carpenter and Wainwright. Molina’s influence doesn’t show up in the box score every night. His impact goes beyond statistics. So, all you sabermetrics fanatics, put down the charts and numbers and watch the game.
No, he doesn’t hit like Pujols or Holliday. Or even Rasmus or Ludwick for that matter. But take Yadier Molina out of [...]

The Cardinals opened the 2010 season with a bang. Albert Pujols reminded everyone why he is the best player in baseball and made St. Louis fans forget about that contract negotiation issue. It’s time to play baseball now. Nothing else matters. And play baseball the Cards did.
Pujols got the party started in his first at bat of 2010 with a blast over the left centerfield wall. I mean, we all know he’s great and nothing should surprise us, but that’s pretty impressive. Pujols and Co. kept their collective foot on the pedal the rest of the afternoon to thump the [...]

After spending the last week of the spring sitting out with an oblique strain, Yadier Molina will start today behind the plate for the Cards. Brendan Ryan, who also battled injury, will also be starting at short today. Chris Carpenter takes the ball for St. Louis; Aaron Harang will be the first challenge for this new look St. Louis lineup.
The game starts at 12:10 p.m. in the Midwest at Great American Ballpark. The game will be on ESPN if you’re free today.
The first matchup with the Reds is more intriguing than past years. Cincy is a trendy pick as a [...]

Empty. It’s the best way to some up the feeling surrounding the Syracuse basketball season. After a brilliant run through the Big East and to a No. 1 ranking, it’s all over. Poof. The six-month long season ended in a matter of 40 minutes Thursday. The Orange put together a sloppy performance and was upset by the Butler Bulldogs. A season that could have been so much is now finished. The players and fans were left in disbelief. With Syracuse’s basketball season over, there’s only one thing left to look forward to this semester: baseball.
As one season comes to a [...]

As part of the United Cardinal Bloggers recent project, I will add my take to the all-decade team of the 2000s. It was a great decade for the Redbirds, as the franchise made the playoffs seven times, won the NL Central division title seven times, was crowned NL champs twice, and of course, won the 2006 World Series. In this dominant decade in the Central, many great players passed through baseball’s best city. So, who were the best at each position for the Cards in the 2000s? Here’s my take:
First Base: Albert Pujols. Is there really a need for explanation [...]