One week to go on the trading-deadline clock, and I’m counting down and looking around the National League. Here come the sharp traders, playing the angles, looking for the fools to exploit. And those fools will find fool’s gold. Here come the nervous front...
WEEKEND AT BERNIE’S Injuries are never a good thing for a team, but there can be benefits. When someone goes on the Injured List, his absence creates an opportunity for another player. And that can pay off. Which brings us to Alec Burleson. Since outfielder Lars...
THE REDBIRD REVIEW What a wonderful evening of baseball at Rickwood Field in Birmingham. It was all we hoped it would be, from the pregame music, to the gathering of esteemed retired Negro Leagues players, to a warm celebration of Black baseball history, to the...
The late Willie Mays was such a great player, it made him underrated. Wait a second. Underrated? Yes, underrated. This is what I believe. I know Mays was chosen to play in a gazillion MLB All-Star Games, and he won a dozen Gold Glove awards for his extraordinary...
The 2024 season is just two weeks old, and pitchers are breaking down all over the place. The assortment of injuries include elbows that don’t require Tommy John surgery and elbows that do require Tommy John surgery. There are frayed shoulders, strained forearms, sore...
If their offseason plan goes as expected, and if the independent projection systems are reasonably accurate, the St. Louis Cardinals will contend for a postseason spot. The Cardinals have two gateways. They can do it by winning the NL Central. They can return to the...
Are the San Francisco Giants a more dangerous postseason contender after signing free-agent third baseman Matt Chapman? Probably so. They can join the muddle with other National League wild-card contenders. Making assumptions can be a featherbrained exercise, but for...
It’s Friday afternoon … which means it is time for BERNIE BITS Hitting some fungoes … — Sure, the Blues should deal Pavel Buchnevich at the NHL trade deadline if (a) they receive an attractive offer, and (b) they aren’t fully confident about signing...
Stay warm out there! I’ve been warming to the possibility of the Cardinals being better in 2024. They can’t be any worse, right? True. Of course. But I’m talking about legitimate improvement. A team that goes from a last-place finish in 2023 to a spot in the 2024...