Monday:

• Mayfield's Mutterings...: How 'bout those Cardinals

• High school baseball

• High school softball

• High school track and field

• Redbird baseball wins first game of doubleheader

• Double forfeit ruled in baseball brawl

• Redbird baseball drops Sunday game to Indiana State

• 'An Evening With the Redbirds' moves to spring date

Saturday:

• High school baseball

• High school softball

• High school track and field

• Lincoln College softball

• Redbirds win first Friday Valley game, 8-5, over Indiana State

• Lightning strike cancels WJBC webcasts for weekend games

• Larson steps down as coach of Redbird gymnastics

Friday:

• High school softball

• High school baseball

• Johnson inks new deal

Thursday:

• High school baseball

• Lincoln College softball vs. Lewis & Clark

• Guest speaker Dick Vitale inspires Redbird student-athletes and coaches

• Bruce Weber named UI basketball coach

Wednesday:

• High school baseball

• High school softball

• High school track and field

• LCC signs Clinton player

Tuesday:

• High school baseball

• High school softball

• Golfers sign with LC

• Illinois basketball has a bright future

You knew going into the thing that probably Matt Morris and Woody Williams were going to shine. But did you count on much from Brett Tomko, Jason Simontacci or even Garrett Stevenson? How 'bout the outing Simontacci delivered in Busch Stadium Friday night to 41,000-plus delirious redbird backers sporting their FREE new T-shirts? He completely dominated Montreal almost from start to finish. And to get an outing from him like that now, when the Cards' bullpen is completely dismantled, couldn't be bigger. Then follow that up with a huge performance by Stevenson and then another rock steady show by Morris, and the Birds are covering up a multitude of deficiencies.

How can I say that? Look at what the pen has provided over the last couple of weeks… or should I say, what they HAVEN'T provided? Two or three times over that span they have blown huge leads in the ninth! Great or even good teams canNOT survive on a steady diet of that. I guess you could say that the good news is that somehow St. Louis has weathered most of those storms. But as the old adage goes, where there's smoke there is fire; and our hurlers have spent more time tossing gas on the flames than getting the fires out! Hopefully, as injuries begin to heal up, so will the bullpen's woes. If not, the Birds may just tease their fans along all year.

You do have to be happy with the everyday lineup, as I really wasn't trying to downplay it all that much. Fernando Vina has been on a holy tear since shaving off his Fu Manchu! He's even hit his first two homers in something like his last thousand at-bats. He's also made a few spectacular plays in the field. Tino Martinez has delivered a few times as well, after a woeful start last season. Scott Rolen continues to show why he was one of the best pickups in baseball over the last few years, and he plays a very stingy third base as well. And what can you say about Edgar Renteria? He may be the Cards' MVP over the long haul, when you consider how consistent he has been with both the bat and glove; he is nothing short of amazing.

As you roam the Cardinals' outfield you are not stunned by the names save one: Albert Pujols. Pujols is simply and easily one of the five best players in the game right now. And to think just a couple of hundred games ago he was playing Class A baseball. Is baseball a funny game or what? Who knows what will happen with J.D. Drew? Labeled as a can't-miss superstar, injuries have slowed him almost continually. Now he is making solid contact but hitting the ball right at people. He can't seem to buy a break. Don't know if the Cards will wait him out to see what he can do when and if he ever gets healthy, or if they will continue to shop him and maybe continue to shore up the pitching corps. You'd have to say that Eduardo Perez, Eli Marrero and Orlando Palmiero have done an excellent job for St. Louis. Without that trio and some of the work by Kerry Robinson, the Birds could have been in a hole by now that they may never have been able to climb out of.

It is still way too early to predict how these redbirds will fare. Though Card fans throughout the region are hoping for a return to the glory of the 1982 season!

Cardinal fastballs

--Former pitching great Danny Cox will be managing in the independent league.

--Another former redbird hurler, Ricky Horton is now serving as the director of the St. Louis area Fellowship of Christian Athletes.

--The secret weapon, Jose Oquendo, is getting so aggressive as the Birds' third base coach, he's beginning to remind longtime fans of Hal Lanier. Remember the awesome job Lanier used to do for the Cards?

--The Cards outscored the Expos and the Mets 48-16 during the homestand.

--The last time the redbirds swept a homestand of six or more games was Aug. 13-19, 2001, when they swept Cincinnati and Philadelphia for seven games.

--The last time they swept Montreal was Sept. 28-30, 1992.

--St. Louis will play only NL Central opponents for the next month.

--The Cardinals will get their first look at the Reds' new Great American Ball Park starting tonight in Cincinnati.

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