TERRE HAUTE — The St. Louis Cardinals are good enough to win the National League Central, but they need to make a move to get to the next level.
However, the Cardinals do not have what it takes to win a pennant, let alone a world championship. No disrespect whatsoever to what this successful organization does year in and year out, but they will win the division by default. What could have been one of the best divisions in baseball, has turned into a second-rate division this year.
Unfortunately for this long-time NL fan, the American League Central is the best division in the majors, and it’s not even close. The Detroit Tigers are no mirage; manager Jim Leyland’s club is for real. If there’s any Detroit fans out there, check out Detroit band Natives of the New Dawn. They’ve got an excellent song called Who’s Your Tiger (Detroit’s a Winner).
The Tigers are playing great baseball, but I think the White Sox win the division, leaving Detroit with the wild-card spot. That should leave the New York Yankees at home for the playoffs. (Insert favorite I hate the Yankees adage here.)
Back to the league in which the pitchers bat.
The Cardinals have a four-game lead after Thursday’s thrilling extra-inning affair with the Dodgers. The Reds solidified their bullpen with the additions of Gary Majewski and Bill Bray, but they gave up Austin Kearns and Felipe Lopez to do it.
The Astros, with the addition of left-handed bat Aubrey Huff at third base, are the team whom the Cardinals should be worried. Roger Clemens and Roy Oswalt have been leading Houston’s charges in the late season and expect them to get Houston in the playoffs again this year.
General Manager Walt Jocketty is confident that his starting pitching staff can get him through the season, assuming Mark Mulder overcomes his rotator cuff troubles before the season ends.
If you count the big southpaw and the acquisition of Jeff Weaver, manager Tony LaRussa will have a total of six starters. The others are Chris Carpenter, Jeff Suppan, Jason Marquis, and Anthony Reyes.
While you can never have enough pitching, I would find out what the Washington Nationals’ asking price is for Alfonso Soriano and give them anyone except for Carpenter.
I I I
n Congratulations to Athletic Director Ron Prettyman on gathering three distinguished finalists for the vacant baseball coach position at Indiana State.
From what I’ve read and heard about these three men’s backgrounds, Prettyman cannot make a mistake by choosing any of these three.
n Rants — I’m tired of the constant stories about Dusty Baker’s future with the Chicago Cubs. It’s not Baker’s fault, but maybe next year he and general manager Jim Hendry can prepare the team to win without Mark Prior and Kerry Wood. Waiting around for Wade Miller is another lost cause.
n Ride Across Indiana — A group of 20 men from Terre Haute participated in the Ride Across Indiana bicycling event Saturday. The riders began at the Illinois-Indiana state line and finished at the Ohio state line, pedaling a total of 160 miles.
The men all had the goal of making the ride in less than eight hours. Seven of them accomplished that goal, a few others ran into mechanical problems caused by another rider’s crash, Terre Haute attorney and one of the cyclists Tom Newlin said.
“We’re just a bunch of amateurs, having fun, trying to stay in shape,” Newlin said.
The men who participated and began training in January were: Steve Fleschner, Scott Thomas, Tom Newlin, 67-year-old Dave Voltmer, Ed Pabst, Brent Vanlandingham, Dave Fouts, Troy Charters, Andy Bent, Tom Standers, Bruce Aukerman, Mike Knepper, Craig Reynolds, John Mullican, Aaron Crawn, Chris Wiggins, Drew McCulley, Jeff Miller and Mike Russell.
Congratulations guys.
Craig Pearson can be reached by e-mail at craig.pearson@tribstar.com or by phone after 4 p.m. at (812) 231-4356.
Given to Fly
July 15, 2006
Given to Fly: Halfway home, can the Cards do it?
- Given to Fly
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GIVEN TO FLY: Come to expect new standards of excellence
Records are definitely meant to be broken; athletes today are faster and stronger than those in the past in many endeavors in athletics.
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GIVEN TO FLY: ISU women have solid recruiting class
The caliber of athletes that the Indiana State women’s basketball coaching staff is bringing in is on an upswing.
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GIVEN TO FLY: Major leaguers John, Dorsett meet up at tonight’s game
Terre Haute’s only two big leaguers of the last 50 years — Tommy John and Brian Dorsett — will catch up with one another today.
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FOOT NOTES: Valley natives perform well on national stage
Several Wabash Valley natives continue to shine on the national track and field scene.
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'Til It's Over: Sycamores ‘in a good place,’ but searching for more in MVC
Can Teri Moren lift Indiana State, last year’s seventh-place team in the Missouri Valley Conference, to one of the league’s contenders in her first year on campus?
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'Til It's Over: Two sets of identical twins should keep North Central baseball a contender
The last high school baseball team standing in the Wabash Valley was the North Central, the Thunderbirds falling short 4-3 in the Class A Semistate on Saturday just one game shy of Victory Field.
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'Til It's Over: Jarvis, Anderson confident Olney, hard work leads to Division I dream
Olney, Ill., population 8,000-plus and known for its population of white squirrels, might not be the dream destination for high school basketball players in Indiana.
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'Til It's Over: Robinson 7-footer more focused in postseason; 6-foot Jones keeps producing
Robinson 7-footer Meyers Leonard is not going to be the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA some day, but his odds of reaching the league are pretty solid if his game continues to evolve as it has during high school.
- 'Til It's Over: ‘Stepping stone’ game points Sycamores in right direction Whether the win comes against a top-25 team or a conference pushover, ending a four-game losing streak is always a relief.
- 'Til It's Over: Indianapolis ISU recruit rolling along in senior season As Indiana State recruit Anna Munn approached Christmas with the Decatur Central basketball team, the senior guard didn’t seem to need much of a wishlist.
- 'Til It's Over: Magic’s still there for '79 Sycamores For the former Indiana State players who visited the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame in late November, the weekend was a chance to relive memories with teammates and see Larry Bird’s career with the Sycamores celebrated again.
- CRAIG PEARSON: North has strong history in cross country state finals Vigo County is home to just four IHSAA state championships in team sports. Most recently, Terre Haute South won girls titles in basketball (2002) and tennis (2001).
- 'Till It's Over: It’s been rough year but no need to break up Cubs' core Chicago Cubs general manager Jim Hendry is only in the first year of a three-year contract, and aren’t back-to-back division championships enough to keep him around despite this year’s season filled with bad luck?
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'Til It's Over: Hansbrough, Hibbert give Pacers glimpse of future
You might have heard of the Indiana Pacers’ 2009 first-round draft pick. He was on the television once in a while during his four-year career at North Carolina.
- 'Til It's Over: Bertoli, Moore put on show in abundance of events “Anthony and Erica” may not have the marketing capability of “Dan and Dave,” but neither of Indiana State’s outstanding multi-event participants had let-down performances this weekend in the Missouri Valley Conference Championships.
- ‘Walking wounded’: ISU seniors return to provide spark All three ISU seniors will graduate in May, and all three will be in uniform today as Indiana State battles Bradley in the Missouri Valley Conference tournament quarterfinals.
- Given to Fly: Northview standout runner Thacker coming to ISU Doc Brown told an old-timer in a saloon in “Back to the Future III” that despite having automobiles in the future people run for recreation.
- Given to Fly: Schilli’s Rodman-like performance aids ISU With Indiana State’s women’s basketball team ranking eighth in the Missouri Valley Conference in field-goal percentage (36.5), the Sycamores need as many shot attempts as possible to maintain their standing on top of the league.
- Given to Fly: A classic in every sense of the word What tournament director and co-founder Gary Fears had in mind when creating the tournament came to fruition Tuesday. Marshall, with an enrollment of 438 students, became the smallest school to win the Pizza Hut Wabash Valley Classic in the ninth season of the tourney.
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Given to Fly: ISU women should build confidence off strong outing
Indiana State did not pull off the monumental upset Saturday against No. 23 Kansas State, but the Wildcats are —aside from Connecticut in 2005 — the best team the Sycamores have played in the Jim Wiedie era.
- Given to Fly: ISU women's hoops team slides onto commercial radio Coach Jim Wiedie expects the Indiana State women’s basketball team to have a bit of a retro feel this season, meaning the Sycamores have the potential to get back to creating havoc with their full-court press.
- Given to Fly: ISU vets hope to prove pundits wrong Indiana State’s only two seniors were surprised to see they were picked ahead of just three Missouri Valley Conference women’s basketball teams Tuesday morning.
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Footnotes: In first marathon, former Sycamore comes out a winner
Indiana State graduate Dani Prince made her debut in the event with a victory in the Columbus Marathon on Sunday.
Prince’s goal was a time under 2 hours and 50 minutes, and she ran a 2:48.56. -
Given To Fly: ISU volleyball turning things around
It was an extremely busy weekend for Indiana State athletics this weekend.
- Footnotes: Here’s hoping perfect weather is still around for Nationals in November The weather made for a perfect fall afternoon Saturday at LaVern Gibson Championship Course. For what it’s worth, the Farmer’s Almanac calls for more sunny conditions from Nov. 20-24, with the NCAA Championships falling on the 24th this year.
- Terre Haute natives cherish memories of ‘House that Ruth Built’ Yankee Stadium was packed as usual on Easter Sunday in 1979. George Steinbrenner’s Yankees were one loss away from being swept by the Milwaukee Brewers to start the season. That was no way for the two-time defending World Series champions to perform, so the boss had a conversation with his new veteran left-handed starting pitcher prior to the game.
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Footnotes: Oregon men and women have strangehold on preseason NCAA cross countryrankings
The Oregon men and women were almost both unanimous picks as the No. 1 teams in the nation in the preseason cross country national rankings released recently.
- Given to Fly: Bronze medalist has strong ISU ties One of the remarkable American medalists of this 2008 Olympics thus far also provided one of the most sparkling stories in the brief history of the LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course here in Terre Haute.
- Former ISU QB gets back to Amarillo This week, Indiana State signed its most highly-touted football prospect in years, and former quarterback Julian Reese is ripping it up for the Amarillo Dusters of Arena2.
- Indiana State track sending strong group to NCAA regional Three sophomore women and three senior men lead a large Indiana State contingent of track and field athletes into the NCAA Mideast Regional this weekend at Fayetteville, Ark.
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