July 27, 1989: Coleman's Streak Stops at 50

     On July 27, 1989, Vince Coleman's record setting streak of 50 consecutive stolen bases was snapped in Montreal during a 2-0 Cardinals win over the Expos. Coleman attempted to swipe a bag in the fourth, but was gunned down by Montreal's backstop Nelson Santovenia. It may be one of the greatest highlights of Santovenia's short career in the majors. While the streak came to an end, Coleman did figure into the victory by making a game saving play in the ninth, when he scaled the wall and robbed second baseman Damaso Garcia of a game-tying double to preserve the victory. Coleman went right back to work in the ninth by stealing a base, then scoring the second Redburd run of the day to take a little pressure off the pen. The 50 consecutive steals is a record that still stands today. The previous record holder had been Davy Lopes, who stole 38 in succession as a member of the 1975 Los Angeles Dodgers. Coleman ran right past that one, and kept on running until Santovenia gunned him down. All good things must come to an end, however, all good things should be remembered as well.

Several men have surpassed Lopes' streak, but only Ichiro Suzuki seriously threatened Coleman's 50 consecutive steals with 45 consecutive stolen bases in 2006.

Check out the box score here: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/MON/MON198907280.shtml

July 26, 1901: The Birds and Bucs Brawl In The Lou

     On July 26, 1901, the Cardinals whooped the Pirates in more than one way, as they smacked them around with their fists, then beat them 12-7 on the scoreboard. The Bucco's came out swingin', as they scored six runs in the first, and looked like they may just roll over the Cardinals, Then the Birds came flying back into the fray with a run in the second, then four more in the third. It was during the four run third that all hell broke loose.

     The Birds strung together a few hits against Deacon Phillippe, scored a couple runs, on a timely hit by player/manager Patsy Donovan, which was followed by a hotshot up the middle by third baseman Otto Kruger. The Pirates second baseman Claude Ritchey fielded the ball, but threw it away when he tried to run down Kruger at first. Now the account in the Pittsburgh Press claimed that the Cardinals players gathered around the ball, as their former teammate, who was now catching for the Pirates, Jack O'Connor scrambled toward the dugout in an attempt to retrieve the ball. An account out of the St. Louis Republic claimed the players on the Cardinals bench scattered. I guess the writers had on their home team glasses on that fine day, and saw it through them when they sided with one team or the other. The paper out of St. Louis did acknowledge that O'Connor had come into contact with several Cardinals players, before finding the ball, while another run scored.

     At that point O'Connor was enraged, so he went after the closest man to him, which was the skipper Donovan, who by all accounts was clearly assaulted. O'Connor picked the wrong battle, because every single player on the St. Louis bench had his back, and one player in particular, a 24-year-old pitcher by the name of  Eddie Murphy flew in and floored O'Connor with a knockout blow to the jaw. According the Pittsburgh Press "The catcher fell and was dead to the world." Benches began to clear, before the police got involved to break up the melee. The officers had their hands full, as they also had to contain a crowd of men who attempted to storm the field, A good five minutes later the police got it under control, but the teams were hot, and there were tense moments throughout the rest of the game.

      The Pirates maintained a 7-5 lead until the Cards blew the door open with a four runs in the seventh, then three more in the eighth to put the visitors away. In the end it was called the most exciting game that happened at League Park up to that point, for a team that would finish fourth in the standings that season. The Pirates won the National League pennant with 90 wins, but this was two seasons before the World Series would begin between the National and American leagues. While the Pirates came out on top of the standing that season, they knew when they had to face the Cardinals they would have a fight on their hands. They sure did on that day in late July.

The account of the game in the photo above was taken out of the Pittsburgh Press, while the picture of the (sort of weird) fan came out of the St. Louis Republic. If you are interested in reading the Republic's account of the game you could do that here:
http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84020274/1901-07-27/ed-1/seq-4/

I would have liked to clip it completely, but quite frankly it was too large, so I went with the rather laughable piece out of Pittsburgh.

July 25, 1962: Stan The Man Becomes The National League's RBI King

     On July 25, 1962, Stan The Man Musial set the National League RBI record by knocking in his 1,862nd run with a two run blast in the sixth inning at Busch. The bomb was all the offense the Redbirds could muster on that day against Don Drysdale's Dodgers, who put five runs on the board to take the contest 5-2. While the end result of the contest was not what the fans in the stands had hoped for, the crowd of more than 24,000 witnessed a special moment in the career of The Man. He had surpassed the legendary New York Giant Mel Ott. Musial finished his career with 1,951 ribbies, which stands as seventh on the all time list as we sit here today.

Check out the box score here: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SLN/SLN196207250.shtml

July 24, 1979: Simba Returns To The Lineup

     On July 24, 1979, Ted Simmons made a triumphant return to the lineup, after a broken bone in his wrist had sidelined him for a month. The backstop made his presence known early, as he ripped a first inning double that gave the Cardinals a 2-1 lead, and there was no looking back, as they prevailed 7-3 over the Atlanta Braves at Busch. Garry Templeton also returned to the lineup after sitting for three days due to a leg injury, and contributed with a lead off double in the first, and RBI double in the second, a sac fly in the fourth, then tripled and scored on a Lou Brock single in the seventh. It was the 2,979th hit of Lou's career. Simmons' return was the headliner of the day. He also drew a walk, and a single in the contest, but it was his presence behind the dish that made the pitching staff rejoice. Particularly that day's starter Pete Vuckovich, who scattered six hits and struck out eight. Simmons put together a strong season despite being on the shelf for a bit. In fact, he hit a career high 26 home runs that season. His days as a Cardinal would end after the 1980 season, however, Simba would forever be a Cardinal.

Check out the box score here: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SLN/SLN197907240.shtml

Happy Birthday to an old friend of mine Mrs. Valerie Ashcraft. She celebrated her first birthday on that fine day, and has celebrated many wins since.

July 23, 1947: Red Caps Off The Rally

     On July 23, 1947, down 5-2 to the New York Giants in the bottom of the ninth, the Cardinals put together a four run rally to win 6-5 at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. Red Scheoendienst capped off a four run rally by knocking in the tying and winning runs.

     You can look at this game and see how different a pitcher was treated in those days, as New York's starter Dave Koslo was still on the bump when the bottom of the ninth rolled around. It was well before the days of the pitching specialists that had specific roles for the late innings, therefore this was  Koslo's game to win or lose, and luckily for Eddie Dyer's Redbirds it was the latter of the two. The game winning rally started with a single by White Kurowski to lead things off, then Ducky Medwick picked up a one out single, before Koslo walked Marty Marion. The heat was on at the ole ballpark with the bases full.

    With that said, the wheels had not come off of the Giants bus completely. Koslo picked up an out when pinch hitter Erv Dusak hit a grounder that took Marion out at second base, however, it did score Kurowski, and the Birds were in business. Del Wilber then had his number called on to pinch hit for the pitcher Al Brazle, and he came though with a RBI double to score Medwick that put the club within one run of tying it up, as Dusak was standing on third. Rather than tie it up, Red pounced on the first pitch he saw, and ripped it right through the box in center and won the ballgame. Dusak and Joffre Cross, who ran for Wilber came into score the game winner. Moments later, the boys trotted off the fields with smiles beaming across their faces, as the crowd stood and cheered. They had witnessed quite the rally.

Check out the box score here:
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SLN/SLN194707230.shtml

July 22, 2005: Eckstein Wins It With a Squeeeeeeeeeeeeeze!!!!

     On July 22, 2005, David Eckstein led the Cardinals to victory by dropping down a perfect bunt in the to squeeze in the winning run in the bottom of the eleventh, to bear the Cubs 2-1 at Busch. The inning started with a leadoff triple by pinch hitter John Mabry. Luna took over at third, then scored uncontested when Eckstein dropped down the bunt. It was the second squeeze play winner for Eckstein that month. He had accomplished the feat on July 6th as well. At first glance, some would never guess that the man who stood 5' 6" could make it in the major leagues. However, he not only made it, he was a two champion, and the MVP of the 2006 World Series. I know that Cardinal Nation will always hold a special place in their heart for the scraptastic player who wore the 22.

     On that same day William Ashcraft celebrated the first Redbird winner of his life. He was born a fan the day before this contest was played. He started things off right with what I consider a true thriller. I actually remember that game quite well. It was a great one, and it was fun to watch Eckstein play. Happy Birthday William. I hope you had a great birthday, and I hope you get to enjoy tons and tons of great Cardinals baseball for years to come.

You can read the game account here: http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/gametracker/recap/MLB_20050722_CHC@STL

Check out the box score here: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SLN/SLN200507220.shtml

July 22, 1934: Dazzy Strikes Out His 2,000th Victim

     On July 22, 1934, the Cardinals took two from the Braves in Boston. The Birds took the first game by the score of 5-4, then came right back and took the second one by the score of 4-2. It was a day of significance for Dazzy Vance, as the 43-year-old veteran of the diamond struck out the 2,000th batter of his career. The victim was Wally Berger in the sixth inning of the contest. Berger hit a home run in both contests, so he was more than a formidable opponent. Vance went the distance in this game, which was the last time he would accomplish that feat in his Hall of Fame career. Vance struck out 45 more batters before he hung up the cleats after appearing in 442 ballgames over a 16 year span. He only spent 47 of those 442 games with the Birds on the Bat across his chest, which obviously came during the twilight of his career. With that said, that season was a special one for the man they called Dazzy, as he would go on to celebrate as a champion at season's end. He even appeared in a game in the Fall Classic and struck out three Detroit Tigers. It had to be one of the greatest moments of his life standing on baseball's biggest stage.

     Vance spent more than a decade in the minor leagues before getting his shot at the age of 31. To say he made the most of that shot would be a vast understatement. He posted double-digits in the win column 10 times, and led the National League twice in wins as a member of the Brooklyn Dodgers. His finest season came in 1924 when he led the league with 28 wins. You can read all about the life and times of Dazzy here: http://sabr.org/bioproj/person/5c1fec75

Check out the box scores below here

Game 1: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/BSN/BSN193407221.shtml

Game 2: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/BSN/BSN193407222.shtml