Rick's Redemption

Forget the fact that his roster spot was created because of Scott Spiezio's admission that he has a substance abuse problem for which he is now seeking help. Rick Ankiel's return to the St. Louis Cardinals has to be one of, if not the most heart-warming and inspirational story of 2007 (perhaps it's a close second to Jon Lester's return to the Sox).

This guy was dubbed the next Steve Carlton about 10 years ago. He was a $2.4 million second-round pick in '97, and he made his big league debut just two years later. In 2000, he was considered a Rookie of the Year favorite thanks to his high-90's heater, and hard, swooping hammer. He finished a distant second to Rafael Furcal in the voting, but he did record 11 wins, and 194 K's in 175 innings. What we didn't know at the time though, was that his career as a pitcher was already over.

During Game 1 of the 2000 NL Divisional Series, Ankiel had a 6-0 lead going into the top of the 3rd when something happened: he couldn't throw a strike. Not only could he not find the zone, he couldn't even find the mitt. He threw 5 wild pitches in the inning, the first time any big leaguer had done that in 110 years. He also issued 4 of his 6 walks in the frame, and was yanked with 2 outs. The Cardinals won the game, but they'd lost Ankiel for good. In his next, and only other postseason start, (Game 2 of the NLCS against the Mets), he threw 2 more wild pitches, issued 3 more walks, and retired just 2 batters.

In the 2001 season, he was a shadow of his former self. After just 6 starts, which included 5 more wild pitches and 25 walks in 24 innings, the Cardinals sent him all the way down to Rookie Ball to clear his head and start fresh. It was during that time that Ankiel, who could always swing the bat (he hit .250 with 2 homers and 9 RBI in 68 AB's in 2000), dabbled as a DH in-between appearances.

After missing all of 2002 with arm problems, Ankiel spent all of '03 and most of '04 trying to mount a comeback. And he was called up late in the season, but in a relief role. In 5 September appearances he struck out 9 in 10 innings, and appeared to have overcome his wildness, but he just wasn't the same guy. That's when his pro pitching career officially came to a close, and he decided to try his hand at another comeback, as a full-time position player. He made it to triple-A in 2005, only to lose his entire 2006 to a knee injury, but even then he didn't give up.

Fast forward to August of 2007 when Ankiel, who was sitting on 32 homeruns in the Pacific Coast league, finally got the call...he was going back to the big leagues.

So last night, at home, in front of 42,000 fans, Ankiel belted a 3-run homerun off of Padres' reliever Doug Brocial to turn a 2-0 nail-biter into a 5-0 blowout.

Cardinals Manager Tony LaRussa said aside from winning the World Series, it's the happiest he's ever been in uniform. I bet Ankiel might have been even happier.