Gateway to Baseball Heaven: A St. Louis Cardinals Podcast

GTBH 1/5/20: New Year, Same Team

Every week, two of the Best Fans in Baseball (TM) bring you all the news and analysis you need about the St. Louis Cardinals.  With the holidays over and Winter Warmup on the horizon, Daniel (C70 At The Bat, @C70) and Tara (Birds on the Black, @tarawellman) get together and talk about what has been happening--or not happening--with the Redbirds.  The Cards signed a new pitcher from the Korea--what does that mean for Carlos Martinez, if anything?  Can Carlos be the dominant pitcher he used to be?  The lineup hasn't gotten a similar infusion--will their faith in Jeff Albert prove to be prescient or to be their weakness?  Plus another check-in on Marcell Ozuna and some talk about what another team is doing with their roster.  Happy New Year, everyone!

GTBH 12/1/19: Minor Contractions

Every week, two of the Best Fans in Baseball (TM) bring you all the news and analysis you need about the St. Louis Cardinals.  While there's not much going on with the Cards, Daniel (C70 At The Bat, @C70) and Tara (Birds on the Black, @tarawellman) talk about what has happened, which is pretty much the waiving of Dominic Leone, but spend most of their time on Tara's recent post about the contraction threat looming over minor league baseball.  What in the world is MLB thinking?  What's going on with this whole thing?  Tara does an outstanding job of lining out the issues and why the minor league teams are very frustrated and really in the dark about everything.  It's an ongoing situation so be sure to check out Tara's posts on the subject!

GTBH 11/10/19: S'more Enthusiasm, Please

Every week, two of the Best Fans in Baseball (TM) bring you all the news and analysis you need about the St. Louis Cardinals.  The Cards had their end-of-season press conference and Daniel (C70 At The Bat, @C70) and Tara (Birds on the Black, @tarawellman) came away less than excited about the offseason to come.  While the organization has somewhat painted itself in the corner, is it really a good plan to just hope that everyone is going to be better next season?  As Daniel likes to say, rebellions are built on hope but not baseball teams.  Is there a large disconnect between the front office and the fanbase?  What happens if things don't work out?  All that plus some excellent analysis of Adam Wainwright's s'mores technique!

GTBH 10/27/19: Wrapping Up The Season

Every week, two of the Best Fans in Baseball (TM) bring you all the news and analysis you need about the St. Louis Cardinals.  The season has wrapped up but that doesn't mean there aren't things for Tara (Birds on the Black, @tarawellman) and Daniel (C70 At The Bat, @C70) to talk about.  Will the failure of the NLCS spur an active offseason or will the club just tinker?  What should they do with players that won't (or, as Tara points out, really can't) get on the Jeff Albert train?  And you know Tara has thoughts about Kolten Wong being a Gold Glove nominee.  Come join us for a little pre-Hot Stove talk!

GTBH 10/13/19: Where Has All the Offense Gone?

Every week, two of the Best Fans in Baseball (TM) bring you all the news and analysis you need about the St. Louis Cardinals.  While the Cardinals were able to rally past the Braves and make it to yet another NLCS, it seems the bats might be still on the tarmac in Atlanta.  Daniel (C70 At The Bat, @C70) and Tara (Birds on the Black, @tarawellman) sort through the rubble of the first couple of games, trying to figure out what exactly has gone wrong and what the chances are that things will improve.  It's not the most upbeat of shows but neither was last week and that series turned out all right, so maybe there's a chance......

GTBH 10/6/19: Trying To Make Sense Of It All

Every week, two of the Best Fans in Baseball (TM) bring you all the news and analysis you need about the St. Louis Cardinals.  October baseball is frustrating baseball, at least this season, whether it is Carlos becoming Car-Loss, Mike Shildt with a headscratcher, or an offense that apparently was only rented for a couple of innings and isn't going to extend the agreement.  Daniel (C70 At The Bat, @C70) and Tara (Birds on the Black, @tarawellman) talk about all things NLDS, including the chances of survival, before wandering down a bit of a philosophical rabbit trail.  Still more hits than the Cards over the last few days, however!

GTBH 9/29/19: Your NL Central Champions

Every week, two of the Best Fans in Baseball (TM) bring you all the news and analysis you need about the St. Louis Cardinals.  After a very bumpy ride (and with a little help from their new best friends in the Mile High City), the Cardinals are back in the playoffs as divisional champions.  Daniel (C70 At The Bat, @C70) and Tara (Birds on the Black, @tarawellman) talk about this team, how it got through to the playoffs, and whether some of the decisions on Sunday were a pointed rebuke of the team across the way.  They also discuss how this title is different than 2015 and what might be coming in regards to the postseason roster.  Time to fly, everyone.  October is waiting.

GTBH 9/22/19: We Don't Believe What We Just Saw

Every week, two of the Best Fans in Baseball (TM) bring you all the news and analysis you need about the St. Louis Cardinals.  Or at least they try to, because this week Daniel (C70 At The Bat, @C70) and Tara (Birds on the Black, @tarawellman) are pretty dumbfounded by what the Cardinals did this weekend.  So much so they don't even touch the Nationals series, where the Cards beat Stephen Strasburg and Max Scherzer.  No, all the attention is on this weekend, where for the first time in almost 100 years, the Cards swept a four-game series in Wrigley Field.  Your intrepid hosts try to make sense of it but spend much of the time just reveling in what was a remarkable weekend for baseball (and for Mike Shildt's Manager of the Year hopes).  Come in and join the celebration!

GTBH 9/15/19: Gut-Wrenching

Every week, two of the Best Fans in Baseball (TM) bring you all the news and analysis you need about the St. Louis Cardinals.  An agonizing loss on Sunday dropped the Cards to just two games ahead of the Cubs with a tough two week stretch to go.  Daniel (C70 At The Bat, @C70) and Tara (Birds on the Black, @tarawellman) talk about some of the decisions that were made in Sunday's games and what the losses mean for the team going forward.  They also discuss the lackluster offense and what to expect in the coming week.  Plus some thoughts about Adam Wainwright!

GTBH 9/8/19: Starting to Feel Real

Every week, two of the Best Fans in Baseball (TM) bring you all the news and analysis you need about the St. Louis Cardinals.  Another very successful week for the Cardinals, coupled with the Brewers taking care of business against the Cubs, has Daniel (C70 At The Bat, @C70) and Tara (Birds on the Black, @tarawellman) riding high.  The Cards have reached 81 wins and have a 4.5 game lead in the division.  Daniel and Tara talk about how they've gotten there (the offense, the starting pitching) and what has started to show a little strain (the bullpen).  Plenty of fun things to talk about as the Cardinals drive toward October!