We repeat: there is a reason why Stan Kroenke is extremely successful.

Late last week the owner of the St. Louis Rams started panic throughout the Gateway City when he announced that his team will play regular season home games in London, England during the 2012, 2013 and 2014 seasons. Said another way, a few weeks after the Summer Olympics fold their tents and extinguish their flames, on a late October afternoon the Rams will play Super Bowl participant New England across the pond instead of the artificial tundra at the facility formerly known as the Trans World Dome. 

In his announcement Kroenke said, “This is a tremendous honor for our franchise, the city of St. Louis and our fans throughout the world. We are excited about the opportunity to reach new audiences globally. This is a great platform to showcase the city of St. Louis to London and the UK. We’ve seen first hand the increased popularity of the NFL not only in London but throughout Europe. To play a role in that growth over the next three years will be incredible and is a testament to the many good things happening not only in the NFL but also in the St. Louis Rams organization.”

Meanwhile, local conspiracy theorists and media types are already trying to connect dots and decode hidden meanings.  From the screechings on squawk radio airwaves to the misspellings on Internet bulletin boards, these Agatha Christie-wannabes have deducted that Kroenke already owns a Premier League soccer team in London and knows that market. It’s believed the League considers London future franchise site. When the Rams finish their British invasion tour in 2015, their lease at the Dome could be expired and the team might be free to bolt the area: with jolly old England as a possible destination.

If the London announcement didn’t strike a local nerve, this week’s latest rumor fanned the flames for local conspiracy theorists. According to the Los Angeles Times Kroenke is exploring a bid to purchase the Los Angeles Dodgers out of Bankruptcy Court.

Meanwhile in early-February, St. Louis Convention & Visitor’s Bureau is scheduled to make a proposal to the Rams for enhancements to the Dome. According to the covenants of the lease, after the twenty-year threshold of the thirty-year lease, the facility Dome must be a ‘first-tier” facility for teams in that rich & arrogant cartel better known as the National Football League. If that covenant is not met, the Rams would be free of their lease obligations after the 2014 season.

Get it? There are lots of moving parts here for conspiracy theorists.

So let the panic begin. Is Kroenke really interested in buying the Los Angeles Dodgers? OMG: Isn’t that the same Los Angeles that hasn’t hosted a rich & arrogant cartel better known as the National Football League franchise since the first term of the Clinton Administration? OMG: isn’t LA looking to get the NFL back inside its borders? OMG, isn’t there a chance the Rams lease could end at the conclusion of the 2014 regular season? OMG: doesn’t Kroenke have a beach house in the Malibu area? OMG: the Rams will be playing games in London where Kroenke has solid connections.

And as all this unfolds Silent Stan remains silent. I wouldn’t want to play poker with this guy. We repeat: there is a reason why Stan Kroenke is extremely successful. 

Being a shrewd businessman, knowing a little bit about commercial real estate transactions and pitting municipalities against each other, Kroenke is wise to sit back quietly and let the locals overreact. Here’s the given: Kroenke holds all the leverage in this debate. He owns the names: whether they are Wal Mart or that rich & arrogant cartel better known as the National Football League. These brands are coveted by regions and are considered licenses to print money in the form of tax revenue and local jobs.

Stan Kroenke can negotiate a hard line because he can. He owns and controls something the communities badly want. There is no need for the Owner to say anything.

We have said in this space previously and still hold to the opinion that the Los Angeles professional football situation will be resolved before the Rams’ lease at the Dome could expire in 2015. The reported bid to buy the Dodgers could not have come at a better time for Silent Stan. These published reports provide more fuel and intrigue for conspiracy theorists and provides additional cause for alarm to many in the St. Louis area. 

But aside from LA, there is now a new option for Kroenke. London provides something more important: a potential relocation spot. As country music legend Roger Miller once sang, “England swings like a pendulum do.” So do this upcoming debate. 

Financially, moving the games from St. Louis to England is a no-brainer. Have you seen how many empty seats showed up for Rams home games last season? Kroenke will make loads of cash from a few likely sellouts at Wembley Stadium. This is simple economics, boys & girls. Where will you get the most for your buck (or in this case, pound)? Plus Kroenke gets an “Atta-Boy” from his fellow owners while being swooned by the Brits.

With London out there as a potential NFL market, Kroenke now has a new bargaining chip. Silent Stan doesn’t have to say anything. Much like a kicker trying to boot a game winning field goal, Kroenke can make the St. Louis region “think about it”. Plus the timing of all this worked out perfectly for the Rams’ Owner. With the reported Dodger bid and Dome Management scheduled to make a proposal for enhancements in a few weeks, Kroenke has maneuvered these events and this timing for maximum visibility. 

Despite all the outcries, ultimatums and demands from local politicians, media scribes, gab-masters or TV talking heads, the only vote that counts is Silent Stan’s.

Barring a settlement or a default the Rams cannot leave St. Louis before January 2015. This gives the team and the area about two-plus years to come up with a mutually agreeable long-term solution. In all likelihood, the long-term answer will be a new football playpen. The big issue is who will pay for it?

Kroenke likely knows he will never get the sweetheart deal from this region that John Shaw negotiated/extorted with the Eagleton Finance Agency in 1994. Hopefully this town won’t repeat the same mistake of building a stadium and then look for a team to fill it. But that doesn’t mean Kroenke won’t ask for everything. Any good businessman will. Remember: you can ask for anything. Whether or not you get it may be another story.

When the Cardinals completed the financing for Busch Stadium III, the final agreement was a split between 78% private to 22% public funding. One would think that might be the model for the Rams. But Kroenke isn’t saying: because he doesn’t have to.

“This is a tremendous honor for our franchise, the city of St. Louis & our fans throughout the world. We are excited about the opportunity to reach new audiences globally.”

“England swings like a pendulum do.” Much like big time business deals: Let the games begin and start playing the chips. Stay tuned but keep one thing in mind:

There is a reason why Stan Kroenke is extremely successful.

The Gateway Tech Jaguars had one of the St. Louis  area's  most lethal dual threats in high school football in senior quarterback Paul Rice. Recently voted the Public High League's player of the year by the coaches, Rice helped lead his team to the state quarterfinals.

Meanwhile the Soldan-International Tigers produced one of the area's top passing combinations in quarterback Steven Irving and receiver Paul McRoberts.

All in all, the Public High League maintained a level of credibility in the recently concluded 2011 gridiron campaign.Rice passed for 2,037 yards and rushed for another 1,678 yards to help spark the Jaguars to a 10-3 mark. Irving passed for 2,653 yards and 32 touchdowns, including 23 to McRoberts, who caught 64 passes for 1,607 yards to go along with those 23 scoring strikes, as the Tigers posted a 7-4 mark. Soldan defender Kawan Griffin, on the other hand, was one of the area's top pass rushers, getting credit for 18 sacks.

The Jaguars were bidding to become the first PHL program since the 2007 Vashon Wolverines to make it to the state semifinal, which is essentially the equivalent of the state basketball final four tournament. But along the playoff journey, the Jaguars had to beat longtime league nemesis Career Academy twice- first 30-14 in the district rounds, then 50-14 a couple of weeks later in the sectionals.

Beating the same team twice in the same season is never a small feat as the Jaguars learned just the previous year, 2010, when they blew out Roosevelt 63-28 in the district rounds, only to lose to the same Roosevelt team 23-20 in overtime, a couple of weeks later in the sectionals.

"We had been preaching that all week," said Jaguars coach Jason Dulick, who was assistant head coach last year with the Jaguars before assuming the  head coaching position this  season. "It's hard to beat the same team twice. We let them know what happened to them against Roosevelt last year. We were ready to play. We had a team with strong leadership."

Gateway Tech's season came to an end with a 31-14 defeat to host Farmington in the Missouri Class 4 semifinals, while Soldan's season ended a couple of rounds earlier when the Tigers were overwhelmed by powerful 14-1 Mary Institute-Country Day (MICDS, which made it to the state final before losing, 47-12 in the regional rounds.

=====

posted December 4

SLU senior forward Brian Conklin (14) led all scorers with 19 points to go with 5 rebounds, 2 steals, and 3 turnovers
-----


Billikens junior forward Cody Ellis (24) fights inside of Pilots sophomore forward Ryan Nicholas (32). Ellis finished the game with 16 points, 1 rebound, and 1 blocked shot

=====

Mark Bausch
Editor
St. Louis Sports Online
editor@stlsports.com
====================
posted October 31

Tony La Russa Career Managerial Record

*In the 1979 season, La Russa was the 2nd of 2 CWS managers
**In the 1986 season, La Russa was the 1st of 2 CWS and the 2nd of 2 Oakland managers
***Manager of the Year not awarded until the 1983 season
=====
Tommy Lasorda Career Managerial Record (Hall of Fame 1997)

Dear reader, if you were lucky, you had a high school sweetheart or two.

I had mine...and in my mind's eye, the young lady in question was the prettiest girl in school.

But the prettiest girl in school went away to college. There, she found another gentleman's charms a little (a lot?!) more to her liking than those of yours truly.

On the night we parted, it was obvious her mind was made up because my words and logic were insufficient as far as changing her mind was concerned. What sticks in my mind is that it seemed that the young lass was the umpire, that I had struck out looking, and her last words were 'yer outta here!'.

She was so certain that the new fella was her #1 guy...I don't think the late Johnie Cochran (the lawyer that got OJ off) could've persuaded her otherwise. Her mind was made up and she was certain she was right.

(And now we'll find out which friends and family members read stlsports.com...)

Back to baseball.

But before the main entree...a short story.

One night in the late 1990's, a half-hour or so after an extended mid-September extra-inning game at Busch Stadium II, a game that the Cardinals lost, yours truly was the only media-type in the manager's office...when a couple of  'Friends of Tony' were hustled in through the side door. The couple, who were introduced to me as married to each other, were apparently long-time California-based friends of manager Tony La Russa and his family. They traded stories about the visitors' children...and a bit of chat ensued about the game that had just ended.

La Russa was clearly relaxed in their presence, and took pains to say...'now this is off the record, but our last pitcher...'; and his voice trailed off. It was as if he was apologizing to his visitors for his team's sorry performance. His words were not condescending but simply stated what was obvious.

The implication was clear--the manager did not have significant confidence in the lefthander in question; the team was far out of contention and the pitcher was a late-season call-up who had already failed a couple of times in a season marked with similar failures by other hurlers.

The next day, I asked La Russa about his general thinking pertaining to the way he utilizes his bullpen.

His response? "Look. It is not that complicated. I replace pitcher A with pitcher B if I think B has a better chance of getting the hitter out. It is not that complicated."

I've never forgotten that conversation...one that was punctuated with a sharp hand gesture from the manager aimed in my general direction.

=====

A good friend of mine (we'll call him IMB) long ago made up his mind regarding the managerial skills and abilities of the current Redbirds' skipper, Tony La Russa.

IMB is the ultimate Cardinals' fan, but not all that unique as far as adult male southern Illinoisans are concerned--Cardinals' baseball is like religion in these parts.

How serious is IMB's jones for the Redbirds? When baseball season ends, he cancels his cable TV subscription, because, in his words, "the only reason I get cable TV is to watch the Cardinals, my beloved Cardinals".

IMB's cable TV comment is an exact quote. As long as his health and employment allow him the time, IMB watches and studies and dissects every pitch of every single Cardinals' game.

The man knows his baseball.

I have discussed the finer points of baseball, and Cardinals baseball, with IMB...for hours.

And over the past couple of months, Tony La Russa's utilization of his pitching staff has been a signficant part of that discussion.

Trust me when I say this: like many from these parts, IMB is NOT a fan of Tony La Russa.

=====

A primary reason, if not THE primary reason, that IMB finds fault with the managerial style of Tony La Russa has to do with his perception of the way La Russa manages his pitching staff.

"My Dad feels the same way I do," IMB told me. "Whenever La Russa, late in the game, heads to the pitching mound, he gets up and TURNS OFF THE TELEVISION." (Emphasis added because IMB was shouting as he uttered these words.)

IMB continued: "La Russa acts like he has to put his stamp on every game he manages. You don't see other managers changing pitchers the way he does. He wears out his relievers. He overuses his bullpen. It has been going on for years, and I am sick and tired of it."

IMB is in good company regarding (part of) his perception of Tony La Russa's handling of his pitching staff.

Within the past 72 hours, MLB Network's Peter Gammons, ESPN's Jayson Stark, and TBS NLCS commentator Ron Darling (who started 130 games for La Russa's Oakland A's in the early 1990's) and more than one Fox Sports Midwest staffer...all supplied their views that La Russa utilizes his bullpen more than any other manager.

Over and over, on national radio shows and on local radio shows...for several years, from people who should know better--the same sentiments have been expressed by literally dozens of broadcasters, writers, and baseball fans: Tony La Russa changes pitchers more than any other manager.

So is this sentiment...this perception...is it real?

What statistical evidence is available regarding how Tony La Russa, while serving as Cardinals manager for sixteen seasons, has utilized his bullpen?

Three sets of season-long stats, and three related questions, come to mind (for the 1996-2011 Cardinals regular seasons, all managed by La Russa):

*total number of complete games per season for Cardinals starting pitchers (STL CG)
DO LA RUSSA'S STARTING PITCHERS COMPLETE FEWER GAMES THAN OTHER NATIONAL LEAGUE TEAMS?

*average number of innings that the Cardinals' starting pitcher completes per start, before he is removed for a reliever (STL IP/S)
DO LA RUSSA'S STARTERS PITCH FEWER INNINGS PER START THAN OTHER NATIONAL LEAGUE TEAMS?

*total number of relief pitchers used, per season, for the entire Cardinals season (STL RP)
DOES TONY LA RUSSA USE MORE RELIEVERS THAN OTHER NATIONAL LEAGUE MANAGERS?

Let's go to the videotape.

=====

In the Table below, STL CG and NL team CG (avg) are the number of complete games for the Cardinals and for the entire National League (per team, average), respectively, and STL rank in NL is how the Cardinals ranked that season, in the National League, in complete games.

(discussion continues below table)

For example, in the Cards' 2004 105-win regular season (in yellow above), their starting pitchers completed four (!) games...a total that matched the average number of complete games by the other fifteen NL squads that year. Four complete games placed the Cards in a tie for 7th place for the year.

For La Russa's entire sixteen-year run as the STL manager, his teams average seven complete games per season...while, during those sixteen years, the other NL teams averaged six complete games. In other words, Tony La Russa's starting pitchers complete slightly more games than other NL hurlers.

No evidence of Captain Hook here.

=====

Do La Russa's starters pitch fewer innings (per start) than other NL starters?

In the Table below, STL IP/S and NL team IP/S (avg) are the innings pitched per start, for the Cardinals and for the entire National League (per team, average), respectively, and STL rank in NL is how the Cardinals ranked that season, in innings pitched per start.

(discussion continues below table)

For example, in the Cards' 1997 73-win regular season (in green above), their starting pitchers averaged 6.2 innings pitched...a total that was two-tenths of an inning greater than the average number of innings pitched by the starting pitchers for the other thirteen NL squads that year. The 6.2 innings pitched per start, in 1997, placed the Cards fourth-highest for the year in that category.

For La Russa's entire sixteen-year run as the STL manager, his team's starters average 6.1 innings per start, while, during those same sixteen years, the other NL teams' starters average 6.0 innings per start.

In other words, Tony La Russa's starting pitchers remain in the game slightly longer than other NL teams' starters.

No evidence of Captain Hook here, either.

=====

Does Tony La Russa replace pitchers more often than other NL managers?

In the Table below, STL REL and NL team REL (avg) are the total number of relief pitchers used, per season, for the Cardinals, and for the entire National League (per team, average), respectively, and STL rank in NL is how the Cardinals ranked that season, in total number of relief pitchers used..

(discussion continues below table)

For example, in the Cards' 2011 90-win regular season (in blue above), 468 relief pitchers made appearances. Relievers for the other fifteen NL staffs were utilized (on average, per team) 487 times. Restating, the average NL manager, in 2011, changed pitchers 21 more times than Tony La Russa.

In the 2011 season, the Cardinals placed fourteenth in the National League in the number of relief pitchers used. Only two NL teams (Philadelphia and Arizona) utilized relief pitchers fewer times than the Cardinals.

For La Russa's entire sixteen-year run as the STL manager, his team's relievers averaged 456 appearances per year, while, during those same sixteen years, managers for the other NL teams used 455 relievers per year.

In other words, Tony La Russa, over the course of sixteen NL seasons, used EXACTLY ONE more relief pitcher, per season, than his fellow NL managers.

Still no evidence of Captain Hook here, as well.

[Side Note #1: The original Captain Hook was Sparky Anderson, who, in the 1975 and 1976 seasons, did the left-right-left-right relief pitcher shuffle years before Tony La Russa made his managerial debut with the Chicago White Sox in 1979.]

[Side Note #2: Sixteen years in STL...averaging 88 wins with multiple post-season appearances; Tony La Russa's managerial career in St. Louis alone puts him in the conversation for Hall of Fame consideration. Think about it. One more World Series title and a couple of more seasons in STL would solidify that very argument.]

=====

So back to sweethearts and IMB.

IMB has demonstrated, time after time, that he just does not like Tony La Russa. It is likely that no amount of logic and facts are going to change his mind. At this point he has too much invested to look at things in a different way. Nevertheless...

For the past sixteen years, Cardinals' starting pitchers completed one more game than starters on other NL teams (per season).

For the past sixteen years, Cardinals' starting pitchers pitched slightly more innings, per game, than the starters on other NL teams.

And for the past sixteen years, Cardinals' relievers have made one more appearance, per season, than relievers on other NL teams.

But hey...about all those folks, like IMB, 'hating on' Tony La Russa?

Something tells me that the Cardinals manager would revel in all of the criticism, and take on twice as much of it...if in return he could collect one more World Series championship as manager of the St. Louis Cardinals.

IMB won't change his mind, though.

And that high school sweetheart? Well, Miss Amy...she didn't change her mind, either.

====================

posted October 8

Isn’t this something?

Over the past seven days baseball fans in St. Louis, Philadelphia and all across the fruited plain have been treated to an outstanding playoff series as the Cardinals and Phillies went the distance in the National League Division Series opening round. This was God’s most perfect game in all of its glory; proudly displayed on a national stage.

This series was your classic David versus Goliath match-up. Philadelphia was the heavy favorite with 102 regular season wins and a Dream Team starting pitching rotation. The Cardinals qualified for the party on the last day of the regular season with a win in Houston and an Atlanta loss, ironically against the Phillies. 

Despite the perceived lopsided match-up, the series went the distance with three of the five games being decided by one run. The series was unexpectedly entertaining.

Yet when the dust finally settled in the town that boasts of the ultimate underdog “Rocky” as one of its favorite sons, David knocked off Goliath. And much like David, Goliath was defeated because of a strong and accurate throwing arm. The Cardinals defeated Philadelphia 3 games to 2 to advance to the 2011 NL Championship Series.

No doubt about it, folks: I would have lost that bet—big time. (Feel free to refer to some of my bloviating over the past weeks) And now suddenly, it’s starting to feel like 2006.

After losing Game One to Roy Halladay in Philadelphia, St. Louis had to now win three of the next four games against starters named Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels, Roy Oswalt and Halladay. The Red Birds won Game Two. Both teams split in St. Louis. The deciding game was in Philly with two former Cy Young Award Winners taking the mound.

But at the end of the night, despite holding a hand of four starting aces, the raucous Philadelphia fans left Citizen’s Bank Ball Park humming “If they had a Carpenter”.

The Red Bird starter Chris Carpenter was nothing short of spectacular on this gorgeous October night in eastern Pennsylvania. #29 demonstrated what a big-time pitcher does: he wins big games. St. Louis scored one run after the first two batters of the game. Carpenter took it and never looked back. In a deciding playoff game #29 fired a three-hit, complete game. Heck, #29 actually got twenty-eight outs after a batter reached first base on a dropped third strike. Carpenter was dominant in a must win situation.

Throughout the series, moves by the Cardinal Manager sent the “Down with Tony La Russa” crowd crawling back into their basements to hide and away from their keyboards and their telephones. From starting Carpenter in Game Two, to successfully matching up hitters against relief pitchers in key late inning situations, to “working” umpires on ball/strike calls, to starting Ryan Theriot (four hits) in a key game, to starting Edwin Jackson in a St. Louis Game Four win, to starting Skip Schumaker at second base and centerfield (and the only RBI in Game 5) to starting Nick Punto and his defensive skills at 2nd base in Game 5, to allowing Carpenter to complete Game 5 despite leading only by one run and throwing 110 pitches, the Red Bird Skipper was much more right than he was wrong during this past week.

These results contradict Little League Dad Tony Rasmus when he said in late July after his son was traded to Toronto, “La Russa would like to have 25 pitchers: like he thinks he has to put his stamp on every ball game.” Enjoy those long, cold Canadian nights, Mr. R.

Suddenly it’s on to Milwaukee. 2011 has been a very good year for the sports fans in Wisconsin. The Packers captured the Super Bowl. The University of Wisconsin football team played in the Rose Bowl and the Badger men’s basketball team advanced to the Sweet Sixteen in the NCAA Tournament. Now the Brewers have advanced to the NLCS. Life is good these days in Wisconsin.

Now the only thing standing in the way for the Brewers to return to the World Series in almost thirty years is La Russa and the Cardinals. You know, the same Cardinals that finished second to Milwaukee in the NL Central. Throughout the regular season Brewer Nation has been annoyed by St. Louis in general and La Russa in particular.

Milwaukee fans likely remember with disdain La Russa’s comments about the scoreboard ribbons and other issues at Miller Park. Heck, the media even picked up an incredibly wild-eyed, silly rumor about Milwaukee mascot Bernie the Brewer having a hidden camera installed in his centerfield chalet to steal signs from opposing catchers. How many times over the next few days do you think we are going to see the Nyjer Morgan meltdown in the 9th inning against Carpenter in early September and be reminded of his immature comments that followed? Said another way the Cardinal Manager got into the Brewers and their fans heads during the season.

Now, only the Red Birds are all that stand in Milwaukee’s way back to the Fall Classic.

Right now, the Cardinals are a dangerous team. They are playing with the house’s money. No one expected them to reach the playoffs. No one expected them to defeat Philadelphia. It’s likely that most don’t expect St. Louis to knock off Milwaukee. Therefore, ergo and hence, much like in Philadelphia, the Red Birds have nothing to lose and everything to gain. The Cardinals are foot loose and fancy free. Meanwhile, now the Brewers are expected to win. They have the best home record in the league. They have gone all in to win in 2011: building their roster with potential free agent pitcher signings and potential free agent Prince Fielder at first base. Milwaukee has very good, All Star caliber ballplayers at several positions. Suddenly the always bridesmaid Brew Crew are the favorites to reach the World Series. They just have to do is win a best of seven series.  

All they have to do is beat the St. Louis Cardinals in that seven-game series. 

Game 1 starts Sunday afternoon at Miller Park with Kyle Lohse as the likely Cardinal starter. This bureau sees this as a pivotal game. If St. Louis can somehow steal a win in the opener, La Russa could then start Edwin Jackson in Game Two: with Carpenter in Game 3 with Jaime Garcia (who pitches much better in Busch Stadium) in Game 4. It will also set up the rotation for Carpenter to start a possible Game 7 in Milwaukee.

As said earlier, this October reminds me of 2006: when the Cardinals reached the playoffs on the last day of the season, were heavy underdogs in each series, but wiggled into winning the World Series. During his St. Louis tenure, La Russa’s teams have fared much better when they were not expected to win. St. Louis is not expected to win in 2011. But as the late Jack Buck used to say, “What will the score be?” Stay tuned.

Game 1 & 2 will be in Milwaukee with Games 3 &4 at Busch Stadium. (BTW, for those of you planning an October excursion to the great state of Wisconsin, should there is a Game 6, the Rams will be playing the Packers in Green Bay that very afternoon. Great: as if the undefeated Packers need more motivation at Lambeau Field).

And just think, the Red Birds are not supposed to be here.

But you still have to play the games. This really is the most wonderful time of the year.

And isn’t this something?