Best Podcast in Baseball

But is it a ... Question mark? Or, exclamation point! In response to an 0-7 road trip, the Cardinals rearranged manager Mike Matheny's coaching staff and, beneath the headlines, sent a clear message: Impatience has arrived. A series loss to Milwaukee only underscores the Cardinals' disappointment with the team they have -- and, in the words of general manager John Mozeliak, the team they did not "envision." In the latest full-length episode of the Best Podcast in Baseball, St. Louis Post-Dispatch staff writers Derrick Goold (?) and Benjamin Hochman (!) explore the root cause of the Cardinals' issues, whether it can be fixed, and what Mozeliak's message really was with the great rearrangement. Punctuation personalities are also discovered as one host realizes he's a question mark and the other an exclamation point. A dog makes a cameo appearance. Truman Capote is referenced. And, finally, a Cardinals mystery is teased. Subscribe. Rate. Review. Tweet.

Before Scooter Gennett went and rewrote the whole day with his four-homer launch into history, two beat writers who cover teams in the National League Central met in Cincinnati newsroom for the crossover podcast event of the summer. Or at least a close second. C. Trent Rosecrans, of the Cincinnati Enquirer, and Derrick Goold, of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch, merged the Reds Beat Podcast and the Best Podcast in Baseball for one hourlong talk on ETAs. When will the Reds arrive as a contender? When will the Cardinals depart as one? Are both closer than either team is willing to admit? Debate ensues. Musical interludes do not. Enjoy the sound quality that comes from recording in a room made for podcasting.

A foursome of Cardinals minor-leaguers have announced their presence at spring training with strong performances in the early Grapefruit League games: scrappy Harrison Bader, speedy Magneuris Sierra, resurgent Patrick Wisdom, and Paul DeJong. He's a bit of everything. And that's the point. A third baseman when draft, DeJong has come to his first major-league spring training as a shortstop, and that's where the Cardinals intend to start him at Class AAA. They want to find as many places as possible for his glove so that when his bat is ready they have the spot that matters most -- in the lineup. DeJong, a graduate of Illinois State, was on a pre-med track when he realized baseball was a possible profession. In this BPIB short, St. Louis Post-Dispatch baseball writer Derrick Goold talks positioning, Ozzie Smith, exit velocity, and chemistry with one of the Cardinals' most-intriguing prospects.

Former Cardinals manager Tony La Russa used to refer to a game where he got a key player rest and won the game as "winning a doubleheader." He also would refer to a loss that also cost him a player as "losing a doubleheader." It's been a tricky week for the Cardinals, as the title of this brand new, double-length Best Podcast in Baseball implies. Matt Adams traded. Extra innings lost. Luis Robert signed -- by the White Sox. Post-Dispatch staff writers Derrick Goold and Benjamin Hochman explore what all of these topics have in common, and mixed in the middle is a BPIB Short: "The one with Andrew Baggarly." The San Jose Mercury News baseball writer and Jeopardy! champion joins in the middle of the show to discuss the NL West, preview the teams the Cardinals are facing on this road trip, and whether we'll see Buster Posey and Yadier Molina in Cooperstown, or just one of the era's elite catchers. A discussion about "Cocktail," the movie, was edited out for time. The Gong Show reference remains. There is an intermission so you can take this BPIB in two gulps. Please check out all of Cardinals coverage and other podcasts at StlToday.com.

After a runaway road trip that saw the Cardinals welcome the future and outpace the past, the club returns to St. Louis in first place and set to host the team everyone thought would be in first place, the archrival…

Or, Hold On To Your Seat Cushions. In this latest full-length Best Podcast in Baseball, co-hosts Derrick Goold and Benjamin Hochman, staff writers at The St. Louis Post-Dispatch, discuss how the Lego blocks of the Cardinals' lineup are starting to snap together, and whether there is both the balance and production necessary for the Cardinals' offense to start compensating for some of the ragged defensive play or unsettled bullpen work. The night when seat cushions filled the air back in 1987 after Tommy Herr's walk-off grand slam is revisited, as is Matt Carpenter's similar grand slam against Toronto 30 years later. That invites a discussion about whether baseball's new fly-ball revolution -- viva launch angles! -- is complicating the Cardinals' approach with runners in scoring position whether they have the personnel to overcome a shift in philosophy. There have been a lot of weather delays around the ballpark, so please allow for some "buffering."

After the Cardinals' series victory in Milwaukee, the NL Central is a mosh pit of teams with eight, nine, or 10 wins. What do the standings really tell us, and are there any early indicators of what team's record is misleading? That's the question that opens the latest full-length episode of the Best Podcast in Baseball. Co-hosts Derrick Goold and Benjamin Hochman, of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch and StlToday.com, discuss the stat that is an early barometer of long-term success, the confidence level of the five Cardinals starters driving that stat, and how the Cardinals' precision-crafted roster has to mesh like clockwork or their attempt to contend will run slow before running out. Stay for the end and an Enos Slaughter story that you may never have heard before. Unless you bought Goold's book. Then you know it. Unless you skipped that chapter. The audio version is better. It's shorter.

During the same week the baseball stuck to the catcher, the Cardinals stuck a first baseman in left field and found themselves stuck in a bullpen quandary. It's not even tax day, and there are already numerous sticky storylines involving the 2017 Cardinals. In this brand new full-length episode of BPIB, co-hosts Derrick Goold and Benjamin Hochman dissect the week that was, to see if it was a microcosm of weeks to come. And in this very coming week, the Cards will unveil Trevor Rosenthal ... but which Rosenthal will we see? No longer a closer, is he a 'Fixer'? And how does he balance out the bullpen? After the podcast, the boys prepare to hit the road. And Derrick readies for an extra-special trip to cover the Cardinals in the Bronx, but not because he'll be reunited with Pete Kozma.

In the span of three days at the start of the 2017 season, there were three major commitments made in St. Louis: A three-year extension for Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina, a six-year contract for right fielder Stephen Piscotty, and one a little closer to home for BPIB co-host Benjamin Hochman. With that as the narrative thread of this full-length episode, recorded at a St. Louis-area coffee shop (roll that beautiful bean grinder audio), explores the core the Cardinals have committed to and how it compares to the supernova-laden core the Cubs have. Can the star of a team not be a star at all, but a stat? Introducing your MVP ... OBP. And why does it seem we -- media, fans, culture -- are so consumed by What's Next when what really matters for the 2017 Cardinals is What's Now. Can't stand the rain? Take the Best Podcast in Baseball with you to the river, to destination anywhere, even to the dark end of the street. This podcast will post in the midnight hour.

For this year's 2017 Cardinals Baseball Season Preview Section in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, baseball writers Rick Hummel and Derrick Goold were charged with making an all-time lineup, drawing from the 125 years of Cardinals baseball. This podcast captures their decisions, their research, and their negotiations to complete the lineup that will appear in the April 2, 2017 edition of the Post-Dispatch. Three position players were obvious, even if their positions weren't, and two positions elicited the most debate. Join Hall of Fame journalist Hummel and BPIB co-host Goold this podcast special -- and email your own 125th anniversary Cardinals lineup to [email protected] for use in future podcasts.