<3 Brandon Phillips

[CincyCubsFan]

I love it.

[SouthSideRyan]

They're gonna wear black armbands the rest of the season in honor of Jason LaRue's skull.

[Butterscup1679666578]

RIP Mullet

[Keener98]

Id put odds of LaRue actually not being hurt at all at about 70/30. I can see LaRussa playing up the "Cueto kicked the [expletive] out of him and hes got concussion, etcc..." just to try getting Cueto a longer suspension knowing losing Cueto really hurts the Reds. LaRussa already is lobbying MLB for swift disciplinary action.

[illiniguy]

Lost in all this is the teabagging the Cards put on the Reds. Suck on that Dusty.

[SouthSideRyan]

Lost in all this is the teabagging the Cards put on the Reds. Suck on that Dusty.

 

IG's a real glass half-full kind of guy. It's not that somebody has to win, but somebody's definitely going to lose.

[mjohnson71]

Rain delay bottom of the 7th with the Cardinals up 6-0 and two out.

 

They actually have the game on the radio here at my work which is supposedly a no-no. However the boss okay'd it. *sigh*

[reggiemiller rules]

According to some of my Facebook friends, the Cardinals weren't really trying all year long and didn't have any passion, but now they do.

 

They were going through the motions, and now they aren't.

 

Dumbest fans in baseball?

 

It is a dumb thing to say, but no different then when Lou got kicked out of the game a few years ago and the Cubs went on a huge run. The media and all the fans were saying Lou getting upset light a fire under the Cubs, but it had more to do with the Cubs being more talented then any team in the Central Division that year.

[illiniguy]

Lost in all this is the teabagging the Cards put on the Reds. Suck on that Dusty.

 

IG's a real glass half-full kind of guy. It's not that somebody has to win, but somebody's definitely going to lose.

Yep, this was a no lose scenario. Although out of the two, I'd prefer it to be the Cardinals. Their fans have proven to be super intelligent with their equating their team to the Hulk. But, I still enjoy Dusty eating a bag of Macias.

[jersey cubs fan]

According to some of my Facebook friends, the Cardinals weren't really trying all year long and didn't have any passion, but now they do.

 

They were going through the motions, and now they aren't.

 

Dumbest fans in baseball?

 

It is a dumb thing to say, but no different then when Lou got kicked out of the game a few years ago and the Cubs went on a huge run. The media and all the fans were saying Lou getting upset light a fire under the Cubs, but it had more to do with the Cubs being more talented then any team in the Central Division that year.

 

No, not all the fans.

[Andy]

According to some of my Facebook friends, the Cardinals weren't really trying all year long and didn't have any passion, but now they do.

 

They were going through the motions, and now they aren't.

 

Dumbest fans in baseball?

 

It is a dumb thing to say, but no different then when Lou got kicked out of the game a few years ago and the Cubs went on a huge run. The media and all the fans were saying Lou getting upset light a fire under the Cubs, but it had more to do with the Cubs being more talented then any team in the Central Division that year.

 

No, not all the fans.

Really, not even close to all of them. The Cubs didn't really take off until Aramis's walk-off against Milwaukee almost four weeks later.

[Formerly Snayke]

I just don't understand my fellow Cardinals fans sometimes. I mean...really? Because Brandon Phillips went all O.G. this means the Cardinals are better than they were three days ago? They have the second best run differential in the NL, the second best ERA+ and the third best OPS+. If they start playing well it'll be a result of them playing at their level -- not because of anything Phillips said or did.

[NonProfitCow]

I just don't understand my fellow Cardinals fans sometimes. I mean...really? Because Brandon Phillips went all O.G. this means the Cardinals are better than they were three days ago? They have the second best run differential in the NL, the second best ERA+ and the third best OPS+. If they start playing well it'll be a result of them playing at their level -- not because of anything Phillips said or did.

I know what you mean, but every fan base is like that. Like someone said earlier, lots of fans believe that Lou getting ejected energized the team. Or the Zambrano - Barrett fight kicked things off. Etc, etc.

[CubColtPacer]

According to some of my Facebook friends, the Cardinals weren't really trying all year long and didn't have any passion, but now they do.

 

They were going through the motions, and now they aren't.

 

Dumbest fans in baseball?

 

It is a dumb thing to say, but no different then when Lou got kicked out of the game a few years ago and the Cubs went on a huge run. The media and all the fans were saying Lou getting upset light a fire under the Cubs, but it had more to do with the Cubs being more talented then any team in the Central Division that year.

 

No, not all the fans.

Really, not even close to all of them. The Cubs didn't really take off until Aramis's walk-off against Milwaukee almost four weeks later.

 

I don't think that's really true either. Aramis's walkoff was the Cubs 7th win in a row and their 17th in the last 25 gmaes. And the June record could have even been better if not for the fights (Lilly getting kicked out in the first inning in Atlanta and Lee getting kicked out of the Padres game almost a week later).

 

And after that Aramis homerun, they were only 5-4 in their next 9 before getting hot again.

 

Lou's tirade didn't change the season but that timing did happen to be when the Cubs starting playing better. The rest of June and July were both excellent and Aramis's walkoff was right in the middle of that long good stretch of play.

[reggiemiller rules]

According to some of my Facebook friends, the Cardinals weren't really trying all year long and didn't have any passion, but now they do.

 

They were going through the motions, and now they aren't.

 

Dumbest fans in baseball?

 

It is a dumb thing to say, but no different then when Lou got kicked out of the game a few years ago and the Cubs went on a huge run. The media and all the fans were saying Lou getting upset light a fire under the Cubs, but it had more to do with the Cubs being more talented then any team in the Central Division that year.

 

No, not all the fans.

Really, not even close to all of them. The Cubs didn't really take off until Aramis's walk-off against Milwaukee almost four weeks later.

 

I don't think that's really true either. Aramis's walkoff was the Cubs 7th win in a row and their 17th in the last 25 gmaes. And the June record could have even been better if not for the fights (Lilly getting kicked out in the first inning in Atlanta and Lee getting kicked out of the Padres game almost a week later).

 

And after that Aramis homerun, they were only 5-4 in their next 9 before getting hot again.

 

Lou's tirade didn't change the season but that timing did happen to be when the Cubs starting playing better. The rest of June and July were both excellent and Aramis's walkoff was right in the middle of that long good stretch of play.

 

Allright all was the wrong word to use, my point was that fans of both teams were saying stupid stuff like that.

[ELCABALLO45]

If somebody called you and your teammates a bunch of little bitches and then tried to act like he was just kidding and it's all good...

 

I was concerned about the Cardinals winning the division again this year until last night. I'm not anymore. Phillips poked the bear.

 

The Reds are a Dusty Baker team and they're showing it.

 

The biggest showdowns between Dusty Baker teams and the Cardinals were the '02 playoffs. (Dusty won), the '03 stretch run (Dusty won), and now this year.

 

Maybe LaRussa should stop being such a hotheaded prick and his team would stop following suit

 

The Cardinals are going to win the division because Brandon Phillips made them angry?? They're not the Hulk

 

This x1000

[Guest]

SSR is money in this thread.

[DanzaSlap]

I've complained about Yadi all year, but God bless him for getting in Phillips' face. I was worried before, but now I have no doubt the Cardinals will win the division.

 

the cards have the ability to get better at baseball when they're mad? those guys are awesome

 

In a tight division race, where it may come down to one or two games, getting the Cardinals fired up enough to sweep the Reds could potentially be a big deal. Yeah, there's still 50 games or so left in the season, but this series may become pivotal, or at least be looked upon as a turning point. It's not a matter of the Cards becoming better at baseball, it's a matter of the Reds giving up a game or two in a race where there's no margin for error.

[Soul]

I really hate that Phillips did this, then the Reds laid a turd though.

 

That sucks. Would have been nice if they could have at least held serve.

[SouthSideRyan]

I've complained about Yadi all year, but God bless him for getting in Phillips' face. I was worried before, but now I have no doubt the Cardinals will win the division.

 

the cards have the ability to get better at baseball when they're mad? those guys are awesome

 

In a tight division race, where it may come down to one or two games, getting the Cardinals fired up enough to sweep the Reds could potentially be a big deal. Yeah, there's still 50 games or so left in the season, but this series may become pivotal, or at least be looked upon as a turning point. It's not a matter of the Cards becoming better at baseball, it's a matter of the Reds giving up a game or two in a race where there's no margin for error.

 

How are they giving up a game or two due to Phillips's comments if not from the Cards becoming better at baseball?

[ManEatingTarp]

I'm not saying that the Cardinals will win the division because of what Phillips said. I do believe that his comments had an effect on the level of play in the series, and "if" the Cardinals win the division this will probably be looked back on as a turning point in the season. The Reds' terrible defense and poor hitting were the big reasons for the sweep, but I think taking the emotional element out of a 162 game grind is short sighted.

[SouthSideRyan]

I'm not saying that the Cardinals will win the division because of what Phillips said. I do believe that his comments had an effect on the level of play in the series, and "if" the Cardinals win the division this will probably be looked back on as a turning point in the season. The Reds' terrible defense and poor hitting were the big reasons for the sweep, but I think taking the emotional element out of a 162 game grind is short sighted.

 

So you think Phillips made the Cardinals play better or the Reds play worse?

[ManEatingTarp]

I'm not saying that the Cardinals will win the division because of what Phillips said. I do believe that his comments had an effect on the level of play in the series, and "if" the Cardinals win the division this will probably be looked back on as a turning point in the season. The Reds' terrible defense and poor hitting were the big reasons for the sweep, but I think taking the emotional element out of a 162 game grind is short sighted.

 

So you think Phillips made the Cardinals play better or the Reds play worse?

 

I'm saying that his comments had an effect on the series.

 

For instance. The brawl was a direct result of Phillips comments. I think the brawl had a big effect on Cueto and how he pitched that day. He was on a roll of several great starts in a row, and then he blows up. So yeah, I think Phillips' comments helped result in poor play for Cueto. I do not think that he helped Jay or Holliday hit key doubles, or kept Stubs from making routine plays on foul balls in the outfield.

 

I don't believe in a magic on/off switch that players can flip to play better or worse, but I do believe that later in a 162 game season that players can be searching for motivation in any form they can find it.

[SouthSideRyan]

Why weren't the Reds motivated by the fight?

 

Why weren't the Cardinals motivated by playing the 1st place team in the division?

[davearm2]

It really comes down to whether you think the proverbial "bulletin board material" has any impact in a sport like baseball (or any sport for that matter).

 

Or put another way, does added incentive/motivation improve performance/production. Impossible question to answer definitively IMO.