McGwire returns; allegations and criticism to follow

ST. LOUIS — So the season is over and changes were expected in the St. Louis Cardinals’ clubhouse, but things look oddly familiar.

Tony La Russa is still the manager, Dave Duncan is back for another season to continue his mission of turning around the careers of pitching has-beens. And Mark McGwire is wearing a Cardinals uniform.

No, it’s not 2001. But stories from nearly a decade ago are likely to resurface throughout this offseason and into the 2010 campaign.

Hal McRae is out as St. Louis’ hitting coach, and general manager John Mozeliak and principal owner, Bill DeWitt Jr. have brought the former Cardinals slugger back to coach up the hitting abilities of the current Redbirds.

McGwire has taken a lot of flak for going into hiding after the congressional hearings that accused him and others of abusing performance-enhancing drugs. McGwire denied all claims and infamously repeated the line, “I’m not here to talk about the past.”

Now that he is back in the spotlight, he might have little choice. McGwire is expected to speak soon via conference call and will then take questions from reporters.

Just curious — has a line been set on the over/under of questions that will refer to PED’s? Maybe answering questions over the phone will be a little easier to handle, but there is little reason to think it will keep reporters from asking the questions. And what will his response be?

By midseason, all of the hype around McGwire’s troubled history might have passed by. But there might be other problems. There’s no question that he made his mark in Major League Baseball by hitting home runs and at one time, setting the single-season record that has since been broken.

But remember that high-priced outfielder Mozeliak lured away from Oakland? Matt Holliday came into his own and eventually broke out of his slump that had A’s fans frustrated, and he did it right before he arrived in St. Louis.

And his solution didn’t come until he broke the bad habits taught to him during the previous offseason and went back to what had made him so successful.

Whoever told him to get rid of that high leg kick that produced so many home runs and base hits should never be allowed set foot in a major league clubhouse. He must have no clue what he is talking about. The problem is, McGwire is the one that messed up the St. Louis Savior’s swing.

And now he will be working with the entire Cardinals’ roster, ideally to improve their swings.

It’s true, McGwire worked with Skip Schumaker to improve his hitting performance and he did, in fact, have a decent season. Maybe he can work wonders and help the rest of the Cardinals improve as well.

True Cardinals fans will likely welcome the former home-run king back to Busch Stadium with open arms. Once he arrives, the PED allegations won’t matter and the only things that will be remembered are the good times and winning moments. The most overplayed video clip at the beginning of next season will probably be that of McGwire’s record-setting home run and the high-fives exchanged between he and Sammy Sosa after he rounded the bases.

Regardless of the media bashing that will likely take place, the red-headed Redbird will always have a place in the heart of St. Louisans.

Let’s just hope he stays away from Mr. Pujols.

MLB regular season roundup and comparison of predictions

It’s been awhile, but now might be as good a time as any for Midwestern Banter to return to action. And what better way than to continue talking baseball.

Is it safe to consider an end-of-regular season roundup for Major League Baseball? Perhaps it shouldn’t be too surprising that there will be a one-game playoff to help decide the AL Central.

Thanks to the NFL and the Minnesota Favres, we will have to wait an additional day. But as for preseason predictions, here is how Midwestern Banter fared in picking the 2009 MLB winners.

Preseason picks

	American League East New York Yankees Tampa Bay Rays Boston Red Sox Toronto Blue Jays Baltimore Orioles	American League Central Minnesota Twins Chicago White Sox Detroit Tigers Kansas City Royals Cleveland Indians	American League West Los Angeles Angels Oakland Athletics Texas Rangers Seattle Mariners
	National League East Florida Marlins Philadelphia Phillies Atlanta Braves New York Mets Washington Nationals	National League Central Chicago Cubs St. Louis Cardinals Milwaukee Brewers Cincinnati Reds Houston Astros Pittsburgh Pirates	National League West Arizona Diamondbacks Colorado Rockies San Diego Padres Los Angeles Dodgers San Francisco Giants

Final Standings*

	American League East New York Yankees Boston Red Sox Tampa Bay Rays Toronto Blue Jays Baltimore Orioles	American League Central Detroit Tigers Minnesota Twins Chicago White Sox Cleveland Indians Kansas City Royals	American League West Los Angeles Angels Texas Rangers Seattle Mariners Oakland Athletics
	National League East Philadelphia Phillies Florida Marlins Atlanta Braves New York Mets Washington Nationals	National League Central St. Louis Cardinals Chicago Cubs Milwaukee Brewers Houston Astros Pittsburgh Pirates Cincinnati Reds	National League West Los Angeles Dodgers Colorado Rockies San Francisco Giants San Diego Padres Arizona Diamondbacks

Midwestern Banter took quite a bit of flack from readers and comment posters about this year’s predictions. Though the Chicago Cubs presented their usual collapse, MB decided to give the Northsiders and General Manager Jim Hendry the benefit of the doubt. Like clockwork, the Cubs flopped without even a respectable end-of-season fight. The Cardinals were, however, the MB’s wild card pick.

A link to the original post had been initially included, but all comments have since been deleted by the respective posters – perhaps to save face. Here is one commenter’s post following the initial picks:

“To think the Cardinals are in competition to go anywhere after their 162nd game of the year is not only a stretch, it won’t happen. Wainwright and Carpenter are top of the line pitchers. That’s no secret. Pujols is their offense. Ludwick and Ankiel are are not quality hitters but they will go into an occasional 7-10 day hot streak. In all reality, there is nothing else positive to say about the Cardinals. I do hope the Cardinals exceed your expectations. And I also recommend you do not set yourself up for a lot of disappointment. If you want to see how things will actually turn out, you should read my picks for this season.”

– Jim Skinner

Though Mr. Skinner’s picks were nowhere to be found, it might be safe to assume he is a Cubs fan, or maybe enjoys watching the Pirates or Orioles. Postseason baseball is officially here, but for those disinterested, there’s always football season…or next year.

Sanchez, Jets are overhyped match made in media heaven

It’s rather curious that the No. 5 overall pick is already getting much more coverage than the draft’s top selection.

It would seem that a team which failed to win a single game last season and drafted the top-rated quarterback in the draft would be the best story.

The Detroit Lions have been looking for a quality pick – any decent pick at all – for who knows how long, and have virtually an entirely new front office. They got that in Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford.

Conventional wisdom might suggest that Detroit’s story would be headlining all sports shows, national print publications and Web sites.

Instead, the national sports media is showing the same bias it has been accused of for years.

Instead of Detroit being in the spotlight, it is the New York Jets and former USC quarterback, Mark Sanchez. Now before comments and emails begin flooding this way, the previous statement likely tells the story: New York, USC.

But why is a quarterback who has barely started for one full season, didn’t graduate from college and really hasn’t proven nearly as much on the field as Stafford more deserving of air time?

If anything, a team with a history of losing that would make even the Chicago Cubs feel good about themselves should be getting pumped up.

The difference and reason is really quite simple. However unfair it might be, it’s simple.

New York and Southern California have such a common, sexy appeal to the coastal press corps that the fit couldn’t have been better if the quarterback was drafted by his hometown team.

Imagine if it were the Jets who had gone 0-16 last season and selected with the No. 1 overall pick, Stafford. The story would have been genuinely covered as the top story coming out of the draft.

It’s also somewhat difficult to believe that Sanchez would be getting the same amount of coverage if he had been picked by the Lions. Then the likely story line would be about how Detroit made another mistake, and Stafford and the Jets met at the corner of Destiny and Dynasty while waiting for the Super Bowl bus to arrive.

Where are the inspirational and motivational stories of Michael Oher (OT, Mississippi) or Aaron Curry (OLB, Wake Forest)? Those are the stories worth telling. Those are the stories that truly make sports worthwhile.

NFL Draft: Bears GM Jerry Angelo might get it right this year

Bears land pool jumper, Jarron Gilbert

LAKE FOREST – There was certainly cause for concern among Bears fans when General Manager Jerry Angelo let the first day of the 2009 NFL Draft fly by without even attempting to make a selection.

While a number of moves were uncharacteristically made by Angelo & Co. prior to the draft to help fill holes and secure positions with reputable veterans, there were definitely a handful of glaring needs the Bears had to address.

And despite not picking a receiver with their first pick in the third round, the Bears still finished the day with relative success. Of course, the truth won’t be known for at least a year or so – maybe even three. But Angelo just might have ruined his reputation for being a horrible draft-day general by selecting a number of players who, at first glance, should be able to contribute right away.

The two receivers, Juaquin Iglesias (Oklahoma) and Johnny Knox (Abilene Christian), selected in the third and fifth rounds respectively, should be in good position to compete this summer at camp. Given the current state of the Chicago receiving corps., the starting spots should be up for grabs and there for the taking for whichever playmaker shows the most promise heading into the season.

But the draft pick that will likely grab the most attention is on the defensive side of the ball. The Bears made it no secret that they were concerned about the state of their defensive line, and with new DL coach Rod Marinelli taking over, it might not matter who gets the nod to start.

YouTube sensation, Jarron Gilbert, was taken by the Bears with the fourth pick in the third round (68th overall) out of San Jose State. For those that maybe didn’t keep up with San Jose State, Gilbert made himself famous by way of a YouTube video showing him jumping out of a pool. The video was impressive on its own and became an instant hit.

While it might be entertaining to watch, the feat clearly shows his strength and athleticism, and the fact that he’s 6-5, 288 pounds doesn’t exactly hurt his chances of being a force on the line.

“What stands out about Jarron is just an imposing, physical player as far as height, weight, speed,” Bears scout Marty Barrett said in a video interview on the team’s Web site. “He’s 6-5, 288 (pounds). Very strong, athletic, powerful, and he ran in the mid 4.8s. His ability to jump, close, and cover ground is very good.”

According the Barrett, Gilbert has the ability to play both inside and outside. In 2008, he was a team captain, All-American, All-WAC, conference co-Defensive Player of the Year and team MVP. Gilbert started all 12 games for the Spartans at left defensive tackle registering 52 tackles, led the nation with 22 stops for loss and had 9.5 sacks.

Perhaps most impressive is his unbelievable reach and wingspan.

“He’s an imposing guy when you meet him in person,” Barrett said. “His wingspan is really unbelievable. On a normal door, he can touch the floor with one hand and the other hand touch the top of door jam. And on top of that, he’s a very smart kid, well grounded and he’s going to work hard. So, I really think the sky is the limit.”

In all of this, Marinelli might be the biggest winner.