MLB.com columnist Phil Rogers joined The Hollywood Casino Press Box to discuss some topics ahead of the Cardinals’ three-game set against the Cubs in Chicago. Read some excerpts and listen to the complete interview below: How highly regarded is the Cubs’ newest catcher, Wilson Contreras, who hit a home run in his first at-bat Sunday night? “He has come out of nowhere really the last two seasons. He’s a holdover gift…to the Theo Epstein regime. He established himself last year as one of their top prospects. He’s very highly regarded. He was hitting .350 in Triple A with good power numbers. He has a strong arm…the strongest in their corp of catchers. There are some questions about him handling the veteran Cubs’ staff. But he’s a good athlete with a ton of upside. They’re very, very high on him.” Rick Hummel Talks Cardinals Topics Ahead of Cubs Series “I think Contreras has a real chance (to take the reins from M. Montero as the everyday catcher). Montero…is 2 of 32 throwing out runners. He’s allowed a lot of wild pitches. He kind of moves like an old guy out there. They’re worried about Montero.” On John Lackey continuing to pitch at a high level despite his advanced age: “He’s very much like the guy who was very, very good in St. Louis…He’s better in his 30s than his 20s. He said something last winter…I thought was refreshing to hear a pitcher actually say. He was asked about the success he had with the Cardinals (and if he learned something that’s led to his recent success) and he looked at the guy and smiled and said, ‘It’s my first crack at the National League.’ And there’s no question that’s true but you seldom hear pitches (say some of their success may be the fact they’re pitching in the National League instead of the American League).” How is Jason Heyward perceived right now in Chicago with his hitting numbers being so low? “(Because of the season the Cubs are having, no one is picking a part his lack of production at the plate). And the other thing is, he’s a complete player. He contributes with his fielding, he runs the bases very well. He does all the things. He had started to hit a few home runs…With the Cubs, he just has to be part of the success that they’ve had. (With other teams, he would have had to carry the pressure of being a highly paid player). But if they win a World Series with him in uniform, nothing else matters.” How does Chicago view the Cardinals? “I would say your normal fan is jealous of the success they’ve had…and puzzled that (Cardinals) teams that didn’t look like they were going to win the World Series, played better in October than they did in the regular season. But as of 2016, that series at the end of last year at Wrigley Field…and then they carried that over to October to eliminate the Cardinals…I think that leads to feeling like the Cardinals are an after thought on the 2016 baseball landscape. There’s more buzz with the Nationals, the Mets, the Giants and the Dodgers. I think the feeling (that the best teams in the NL are in the NL Central) has kind of faded away.”
No transcript available.
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