I got my hands on a box of the new Wheaties Fuel cereal (courtesy of my friends at General Mills). It’s not due in stores until January, but you can get the Collector’s Edition box online now for $10. I joked on the Wheaties_Fuel Twitter that I really needed to find out what a $10 box of cereal tasted like (like John Travolta needed to find out what a $5 milk shake tasted like in “Pulp Fiction”). Of course, Wheaties_Fuel responded with more of an interest in how it made me feel. Needless to say, I was intrigued. And after …read more

After a successful regular season run, the St. Louis Cardinals sputtered in the first round of the 2009 Major League Baseball playoffs. Since the end of their postseason run, the Cardinals have one big question mark: Will Tony La Russa return as manager?
La Russa, who has coached the Cardinals for 14 years, says that he will make an decision soon.
“I know the organization needs an answer. I told them when I figure out whether there’s fire in there or not I’ll let them know. I’m not going to take forever,” said La Russa to the Associated Press.
The Cardinals easily won …read more

Albert Pujols enjoyed one of the finest seasons of his Hall of Fame career in 2009, however apparently he wasn’t completely healthy. On Tuesday, the St. Louis Cardinals slugger had arthroscopic surgery on his troublesome right elbow. The Cardinals expect him to be ready for the beginning of next season.
While the reason for his surgery isn’t known, sources indicate that the surgery was likely in regards to bone spurs. Last offseason, Pujols had surgery on the same elbow to correct nerve irritation.
In 2009, Pujols had 47 homers, 135 RBIs, 124 runs, 16 steals, a batting average of .327 and an …read more

On Sunday, Albert Pujols had the day off — or so the Pittsburgh Pirates hoped. In the tenth inning, Pujols hit a pinch-hit blast off of Matt Capps to put the St. Louis Cardinals up 2-1. Ryan Franklin closed it out in the bottom of the tenth to pick up his 37th save of the season.
That the homer came off of Capps is significant. The last time Pujols faced Capps, the reliever was ejected for hitting Pujols in the ribs with a fastball. However, Pujols said that it wasn’t a matter of revenge.
Said Pujols: “Not revenge. What I’m trying to …read more

After being the star of the All-Star festivities that took place in St. Louis, Albert Pujols was back to work on Friday. Against the Arizona Diamondbacks, Pujols hit two homers to help the Cardinals win by a final count of 6-1.
In the fourth inning, Pujols hit a solo shot to put the Cardinals up 1-0. The Cardinals doubled their lead to 2-0 when Pujols hit a homer in the sixth inning. Thanks to Chris Carpenter, that’s all St. Louis needed to score.
In eight innings, Carpenter carved up the D’Backs. He scattered seven hits and one walk while striking out seven …read more

Since we are at the All-Star break, it’s a great time to take a look at the statistics. Here’s a glimpse at the league leaders in both the National League and the American League.
National League
Batting Average: Hanley Ramirez – .349
Home Runs: Albert Pujols – 32
RBIs: Albert Pujols – 87
Wins: Jason Marquis – 11
ERA: Dan Haren – 2.01
Saves: Heath Bell – 23
American League
Batting Average: Joe Mauer – .373
Home Runs: Carlos Pena – 24
RBIs: Jason Bay – 72
Wins: Beckett and Wakefield – 11
ERA: Zack Greinke – 2.12
Saves: Brian Fuentes – 26
In the NL, Albert Pujols has a great chance to win the …read more

In the 2009 Home Run Derby, Albert Pujols was supposed to be king. Bashing in front of his St. Louis Cardinals home fans, Pujols was considered the favorite. If Pujols wasn’t going to win, then it had to be hometown hero Ryan Howard, right?
Guess again.
The king on of the Home Run Derby turned out to be a prince — Prince Fielder of the Milwaukee Brewers. In the final round of the competition, Fielder was able to out-slug Nelson Cruz of the Texas Rangers. Both Pujols and Howard were eliminated in earlier rounds.
Fielder hitting the ball hard is nothing new. On …read more

The 2009 National League All-Star roster has been announced. Besides these players, the fans still have the power to vote in one final player. The players on that ballot are Cristian Guzman, Matt Kemp, Mark Reynolds, Pablo Sandoval and Shane Victorino.
STARTERS
Catcher – Yadier Molina – STL
First Baseman – Albert Pujols – STL
Second Baseman – Chase Utley – PHI
Shortstop – Hanley Ramirez – FLA
Third Baseman – David Wright – NYM
Outfielder – Carlos Beltran – NYM
Outfielder – Ryan Braun – MIL
Outfielder – Raul Ibanez – PHI
PITCHERS
Pitcher – Heath Bell – SD
Pitcher – Chad Billingsley – LAD
Pitcher – Jonathan Broxton – LAD
Pitcher …read more

The 2009 National League Most Valuable Player award will go to Albert Pujols as long as he stays healthy. On Saturday, there was more proof of why that is the case. Against the Minnesota Twins, Pujols smashed two homers as the St. Louis Cardinals pulled out a 5-3 win.
On the game, Pujols was 2-for-2 with two runs, four RBIs, two homers and two walks. He’s now hitting .328 with 28 blasts, 74 RBIs, 59 runs and an on-base percentage of .450. He’s leading the entire big leagues in homers, RBIs, runs and on-base percentage.
Against the Twins, Pujols hit a two …read more

Coming into Sunday’s game, Albert Pujols was in a little bit of a slump. He had only three hits in his last 16 at-bats. However, on Sunday that was all forgotten.
In five at-bats, Pujols had four hits, two homers and six RBIs. His biggest hit was in the fourth inning when he hit a grand slam to break a 4-4 tie. That long ball powered the St. Louis Cardinals to a 12-5 victory over the Kansas City Royals.
Pujols is now hitting .329 with 26 homers, 68 RBIs and 56 runs. His homers, RBIs and runs are all major league highs. …read more