Welcome to our presentation of Sports Jeopardy…our host, Pat Tk-a-vaca will moderate the show that has two guests…1st from Los Angeles is Jared and our other guest is from St Louis is Louie, “welcome to both of you…let’s get started…you know the rules”…Our 1st question….
…”without doubt the St Louis Cardinals have spoiled the fan base with winning baseball….when was the last sub .500 year for the St Louis Cardinals? Jared…you buzzed..
Jared…”I’m guessing 1999 ..I know McGwire was hitting HR but it wasn’t a good team” Pat “ Sorry Jared, yes 1999 was below .500 and also a flood of other years in the 90s when the Cards were under .500 but it wasn’t the most recent..so Lou your guess please”
Louie…” it was 2007 with a 78-84 record, 3rd place… That’s right Lou—ur off to a good start..
Pat, “next question,TV star of NCIS on since 2003, Mark Harmon, was the starting QB for what University?….here’s a bonus….take your pick…what was his record as the starter or his two famous bro-in-law…Jared, you’ve buzzed first”
Jared, “it’s UCLA….he was the starting QB in 1972-73”
Pat, “ what about the bonus?”
Jared, “ I think I have it….the UCLA Bruins were 17-5 in his 2 years of starting QB and a double bonus..his two bro-in-laws are Ricky Nelson and Sam DeLorean.
Pat, “Very, very good Jared..now back to baseball… ….what % of runners attempting to steal did Yadi Molina throw out in 2016? What was his best year? I hear Jared again.
Jared “probably about 80% because he was down a bit last year”
Pat, “sorry Jared…Louie any idea?”
Lou, “ well…let me guess since a significant age is 21, I’ll try that…Yadi threw out 21% of attempted stolen base runners in 2016”
Pat, “Well….Louie ur luck has changed..that’s correct”….the bonus is to name his best year
Lou, “ I’m going way, way back…how about 2005”
Pat, “WOW….that’s right Jared……his best year was 2005 when he threw out 64%…that was tough … congratulations….our next question now is easier….only 2 current MLB teams have NOT played in the World Series, who are they? Jared, it’s you there first”
Jared, “It’s gotta be Milwaukee and Miami”
Pat, “ Sorry Jared…how about you Louie?”
Louie, “ I’m guessing ..the 2 teams are the Washington Nationals (or their predecessor Montreal Expos) and the Seattle Mariners…
Pat, “Correct Louie….our next question is a bit softer…name any two of the 4 SLU grads who have played the longest in the NBA…now no help calling Joe F in Fenton for help. Neither of you are buzzing….so, here’s the answer and then we’ll throw it out.. The correct answer is—the top 4 are (with their high schools): Larry Hughes (CBC)-1999-2012; Easy Ed Macauley (SLUH) 1950-59; Bob Ferry (Cleveland HS)-1960-69 and Gene Moore (Sumner) 1969-1975…there… let’s move down the ice….a hockey question….in 1968-69, the Blues had a tandem of older…actually really old…goalies….both these guys were HOF…easy part of the question…who were they….and tougher part…how old were they at the time (within 2 years of each)?…I hear Louie buzzing”
Lou, “ I grew up watching those two…..it was Jacque Plante & Glenn Hall….these old geezers were..hmm.. 38 & 40.
Pat, “Correct Louie…..but Hall was 37 and Plante 39…Here’s a follow up…were they the oldest goalies in blues history, if not who was?
Lou, “ I would think so”
Pat, “Sorry Louie, Eddie Johnston was Blues goal keep from 1974-77 in the 76-77 year…he was 41 years old. Now onto our next questions–the Cards are currently espousing the idea that they want the bulk of their players to be “home grown”. In 1964, 1982 and 2004…three of their most successful years….how many players were on those teams that started in the field for the Cards on a daily basis came thru the system? That’s a tough question…jeaopardy music in background…..sorry time has elapsed without a buzz from either of you..here’s the answer–in 1964… with 8 starting field players… here’s the starting 8…yes means developed by Cards—Tim McCarver-yes; Bill White-no; Julian Javier-no; Ken Boyer-yes; Lou Brock-no, Curt Flood-no; Mike Shannon-yes..so 3 of the 8 were developed by Cards… in 1982…not much difference….Darrell Porter-no; Keith Hernandez-yes; Tommy Herr-yes; Ozzie Smith-no; Ken Oberkfell-yes; Lonnie Smith-no; Willie McGee-no; George Hendrick-no..so 3 players were developed by Cards; 2004 team that won 105 games—Mike Matheny-no; Albert Pujols-yes; Tony Womack-no; Edgar Renteria-no; Scott Rolen-no; Reggie Sanders-no; Jim Edmonds-no; Ray Lankford-yes..in 2004 there were just 2 players “home grown”….maybe our current brass should …as they said in the play Oliver…. “reviewing the situation” about winning big with home grown products.. oops…that’s not a question…
Pat, “That concludes today’s Sports Jeopardy Show…both contestants did so well…Jared answered every non-St Louis question & Louie handled all the STL questions….we’re giving you a free read of Bob’s Blogs for a year Thx for making it to the end of the show…

Other Thoughts of the day…
….Mizzou better update their football page…on that page is listed their “rivals”….the teams listed are—Kansas, Arkansas, Illinois, Nebraska, Oklahoma….currently, the Tigers are only playing Arkansas….how can these other teams be rivals if we don’t play them any longer? Instead of playing MO State, U Conn, Idaho & Purdue this year…why don’t we see any of those “rivals”?…come on…we know why….the “W” means more than rivalries..btw the 2020 Mizzou schedule already has listed two “biggies” as non-conference foes—E. Michigan & Central Arkansas….ya know..often when there’s a direction in the name….it’s not the primary school of the state..hence…a cupcake…if there’s two directions…e.g. southeast something or other…ya can bet it’s an easy cupcake
…the leading RBI man in the MLB? Charlie Blackmon-Colorado-45. Mark Reynolds & Jake Lamb are tied for 2nd in MLB with 42 ribbies. Nelson Cruz & Bryce Harper have 40 RBI’s.
….the more I watch Matt Carpenter play…the more I become convinced that his back is a real issue…maybe that HR swing that he now uses is the cause?..who knows…btw…he’s run into some horrible outs…trying to stretch a 2B into a 3B with no one out…come on….they say he’s a “smart” player…I’m beginning to have my doubts about the people calling him a “smart” player
…my brother asked me why the Pitchers take so many warm ups in the bullpen…they get 8 warmups on the mound…do they need another 10 pitches to get ready…as usual…I didn’t know the answer.
…Milwaukee Brewers high in the standings with a starting staff that HOPES to get thru the 5th inning…I think it’s good that they are competitive. At least for a while…but those bullpen guys may have a hard time lifting up their arms ..much less pitching … by August 1.
….minor league update…Cards catching prospect, Carson Kelly is hitting .321 with an OPS of .928
….why is it…year after year the Dodgers lead the MLB in spending-$244m in 2017…yet…they struggle to win their division and haven’t won the Series since 1988 ….LA has lost the last 9 NL Div Championship Series that they’ve played!?… Arguably they have the best 8 field players …but it’s that god-awful pitching…for example this year….after Kershaw(133-62)—who is terrific…. is pure mediocrity –Rich Hill (37 years old, debuted in 2005,lifetime wins-39; Brandon McCarthy is a sub .500 pitcher in his career (61-69); Kenta Maida – who has 20 lifetime wins in the MLB at age 29; Hyun-Jin Ryu –30 wins in MLB at age 30..wouldn’t ya think that THEY would be the team signing successful veteran pitchers who are ready to reach free agency…rent em for a month or two…win some close games.
….Top 5 MLB pitchers in WHIP (walk&Hits per inning)…Chris Sale 0.81, Clayton Kershaw 0.82, Erwin Santana 0.83, Dallas Keuchel 0.86 and Mike Leake 0.93….he’s been really good to be on this list as of Friday night.
…Steve Ott named Blues assistant coach?….Guess he doesn’t require any training or experience in coaching to step right in for a team that needs to go deep in the playoffs next year
In some high school sports that are winding down the 2016-17 sports year…
…Congrats to the Parkway Central Colts who edged the St. Mary’s Dragons in Class 3 of MO HS boys volleyball…the Colts (32-4) won their 3rd STATE crown in boys volleyball after dropping the 1st set, 17-25, 25-23, 25-22 over the Dragons. In Class 4, third time was a charm for the Lafayette Lancers. Lafayette lost in the finals the last 2 years to SLUH but 2017 was different. The Lancers toppled the Jr. Bills 25-20, 15-25, 25-23
…the MSHSAA Baseball playoffs have advanced to the State Semifinals…in Class 4, Lutheran South outlasted Sikeston in 8 innings 5-4 in the quarters. That earned them the right to tangle with the team with the best record in Class 4…Westminister Christian Academy (33-1). Vianney Golden Griffins have reached the State semi’s in Class 5 with two one-run victories…Vianney beat Marquette 3-2 in 8 innings in the sectional round. Then they shut out Poplar Bluff 1-0 in the Quarterfinals. State semis & championships are being held at Card Shield Field (formerly TR Hughes) in St. Charles all week long.
…a final thought while we enjoy the 3 day weekend that traditionally kicks off the summer…let’s remember …at least for a brief moment…all the men/women who gave the ultimate sacrifice in defense of our country to provide us with the great life we have today in the USA

The final Jeopardy question is ….how did you get it this far down in the article? My answer is THANKS and I’d love to read YOUR thoughts on any part of the article…put in directly on the prepcasts site or if you received it via facebook…put it there! Enjoy the weekend!