How do you remember the 2009 Cardinals

[imadangman]

A lot of talk lately about how good certain teams were, best teams on paper, and what teams we think may have been missed opportunities as far as a pennant or title (2004 always leads the conversation, with mentions often of 00, 01, 02, 05... and of course 2006 made up for all those).

2009 has to be in the conversation right. This was the best rendition of the Carpenter / Wainwright duo. Pujols big season with 47 homers 135 rbi. The Holliday acquisition was the definition of a successful deadline move. It turned out for us like a replay of the Manny Ramirez trade to LA a year earlier. Holliday hit .353 .419 .604 with 83 hits, 13 hr and 53 rbi for us in 63 games after July 24th with us.

It didn't stop with Holliday. Several veteran players came aboard: DeRosa, Lugo, Smoltz. By the time Troy Glaus started to get activated this looked like potentially the best team in the NL with the pedal mashed to the floor. And it's a very short list of Cardinal teams we can remember that had that type of deadline action.

They went from 52-46 to 84-57 (32-11) July 24 to Sept. 9. Then, they hit a 7-14 slide to end the season at 91-71 and they didn't get it together in time to win any of the 3 games against the Dodgers. And the season came to an end with Rick Ankiel swinging out of his shoes through a 3rd strike for his last time in a Cardinal uniform, and bringing in the cool fall weather with it. And the Holliday questions began soon after.

Pujols hit his 47th homer coincidentally on Sept 9, and did not homer in the final 21 games. Perhaps he missed his best chance at a 50 homer season. And perhaps the Cardinals missed a chance at a deep playoff run. Dodgers, Phillies, Yankees... why couldn't the Cardinals been as good as any of them that year?

In comparing playoff rosters, I'd be curious to compare records and run differentials of all the playoff teams that year for just the games after July 24 or even just the 2nd half. Looking at a full season run diff. to compare playoff rosters doesn't make sense because it doesn't represent the team in its final form. After the deadline, the final form of the 2009 Cardinals with Holliday looked very good.

And talking about Holliday. That was the season where you had the Holliday line drive off his (redacted). That was literally the final out of that game he dropped. And that win for the Dodgers proved pivotal. Going back to Busch 0-2 instead of 1-1 is a big difference.

So I don't know, a few things here and there luck-wise and I bet we would have been remembering that season more highly. They were a (bleep) good team. Too bad they got cold at the wrong time.

[Gob]

Not the best team by any means but one of the more fun seasons I can remember. Swung for the fences with the Holliday trade, young up and comers, and some legends in their absolute prime.

[CorneliusWolfe]

You pretty much summed it up perfectly. I thought they’d go all the way, and we had a good track record of dealing with the Dodgers in the playoffs so thought they were a good draw to get back rolling.

I remember my wife getting really mad after the Holliday play because the camera kept cutting to him and showing him eating sunflower seeds and for some reason that really bothered her lol!

As if he shouldn’t be allowed to enjoy a snack after having a ball bounce off his sack.

[Futuregm2]

Going into the playoffs I was as confident in that team as almost any we’ve had. And then they failed. That’s how I remember them.

[imadangman]

You pretty much summed it up perfectly. I thought they’d go all the way, and we had a good track record of dealing with the Dodgers in the playoffs so thought they were a good draw to get back rolling.

I remember my wife getting really mad after the Holliday play because the camera kept cutting to him and showing him eating sunflower seeds and for some reason that really bothered her lol!

As if he shouldn’t be allowed to enjoy a snack after having a ball bounce off his sack.

So a couple mixed responses here ranging from not the best team to some thinking they'd go all the way. I was confident in them too, first round exit was a real let down.