Marvin Harrison Jr.'s only goal in 2025 is to "win more games"
Larry Fitzgerald expects Marvin Harrison Jr. to be a better receiver in his second season, and Harrison expects the same.
He caught 62 passes for 855 yards and a team-leading eight touchdowns.
His father, Hall of Famer Marvin Harrison, made 64 catches for 836 yards and eight touchdowns as a rookie in 1996.
'A little too similar in my opinion,' Harrison Jr. said, laughing, via video from Bo Brack of PHNX Cardinals. 'But nah, it works out in mysterious ways, and it all worked out.'
Harrison Jr., whose father caught 73 passes for 866 yards and six touchdowns in his second season, has only one thing that will constitute improvement in Year 2.
'Improvement for me is winning more games,' Harrison Jr. said. 'I want to get a home playoff game for Arizona. I actually went to the [Rams-Vikings playoff] game, and it was like, 'There is a team playing the playoffs in our building.' It just didn't feel right.'
The Cardinals went 8-9 last season, missing the playoffs for the third consecutive season and for the eighth time in the past nine seasons. They have not won a playoff game since 2015 when Bruce Arians was the coach, Carson Palmer was the quarterback and Fitzgerald was the top wide receiver.
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New York Times
2 hours ago
- New York Times
Cardinals cash in on small-ball approach once again in walk-off win over Dodgers
ST. LOUIS — With the St. Louis Cardinals and Los Angeles Dodgers tied at 1 and heading to the bottom of the ninth inning, Cardinals manager Oli Marmol retreated down the home dugout tunnel to find his third baseman. Nolan Arenado, who was originally scheduled for a rest day Saturday and was not in the starting lineup, was in the batting cages, preparing to take a pinch hit at-bat if needed. Marmol approached him with a pressing question. Advertisement 'Do you want to end the game?' the skipper asked. 'Yes,' Arenado replied. And so he did. With runners on the corners and nobody out, the Cardinals pinch hit Arenado for Victor Scott II. The Dodgers responded by pulling in left-fielder Kiké Hernández, opting to use a five-man infield to protect against a groundball pull-side. Arenado's solution? He lofted Ben Casparius' 1-1 sweeper high to an empty left field for a walk-off ground-rule double. The Cardinals beat the Dodgers 2-1. NADO CALLED GAME!! — St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) June 7, 2025 'That was a really good game,' Marmol beamed. 'It's just a combination of talent and grit. Man, this group gets after it. They love competition.' Saturday's victory indeed served as the latest example of how the Cardinals generate their scrappy style of baseball into wins. Arenado's at-bat ultimately decided the game, but St. Louis had multiple key plate appearances that embodied the relentless, gritty approach that has propelled it to a 36-28 record. Let's break down three key plays that led to another thriller at Busch Stadium. The Cardinals had zero answers for Dodgers starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who stymied them for six scoreless innings, allowing four hits and striking out nine. Erick Fedde held his own as well, posting 5 1/3 scoreless innings before giving way to Steven Matz, who mowed down the three-headed monster of Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman during his 1 2/3 innings. Deadlocked in a scoreless tie after 7 1/2 innings, the Cardinals finally broke through in the bottom of the eighth thanks to Masyn Winn. Winn laced a one-out single to right off Casparius and advanced to second on Brendan Donovan's base hit. Willson Contreras flied out for the second out, which left the Cardinals' most promising scoring opportunity in the hands of Alec Burleson. Advertisement Burleson delivered, drilling a comebacker that ricocheted off Casparius. With two outs, Winn and Donovan were running on contact. Casparius was able to knock the ball down and throw to first, but his throw sailed up the line. Winn, with the help of third-base coach Pop Warner, read the play all the way and raced for home when he saw Casparius' throw go wide — and just beat Freeman's throw to the plate. THAT'S WHAT SPEED DO 🔥 — St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) June 7, 2025 'I was really just reading the throw,' Winn said. 'Honestly, when (Casparius) first threw it, I saw it going left. I thought it was going to end up in right field. I didn't expect (Freeman) to get it, but at that point, I was too far off the base, so I had to keep going. 'I definitely always try to think about scoring when I'm on second like that. Bad throw, bad pick or something like that, I can get in there. … When I saw that throw, I felt it was a good chance to get in there.' The play was the latest example of the Cardinals' budding shortstop learning to trust his skill set. 'Pure athleticism and zero fear,' Marmol said. 'That's what you want out of a young guy. If they're going to make mistakes, I'd rather it be on the aggressive side. But (Winn) is an incredible athlete, and he does not scare, and that's every bit of that play.' Winn's mad dash for home gave the Cardinals the lead and the momentum heading into the top of the ninth, and St. Louis felt confident about wrapping up the win with closer Ryan Helsley on the mound. But there's a reason the Dodgers are, well, the Dodgers. A couple of bad breaks spurned Helsley. After striking out Hyeseong Kim for the first out, Ohtani connected on a soft groundball up the middle, which clanged off second base for a hit. Ohtani came around to tie the score on a strikeout of Freeman. Helsley's strike-three slider bounced in the dirt, and though it was ruled a wild pitch, the usually sturdy Pedro Pagés was clearly perturbed he didn't block the ball. Helsley finished the frame by striking out Will Smith for his third punchout of the inning, but the damage was done. Advertisement It took one pitch for the Cardinals to respond. Nolan Gorman ambushed Casparius' first-pitch challenge fastball and roped it to right field for a ground-rule double. The ball left Gorman's bat with an exit velocity of 111.6 mph, his hardest-hit ball of the season. 'Just tried to jump on the first pitch,' Gorman said. 'They had been throwing me heaters throughout the game, not many curveballs. I was ready to jump on it.' 'It's nice to just put the ball on the barrel and get results,' he added. 'It's definitely something to build some confidence off of and continue to go.' Gorman's playing time (or lack thereof) has been a hot topic over the past month, but with Jordan Walker on the injured list and the Cardinals in a stretch of 28 games in 29 days, Marmol believes there will be a way to work Gorman into the starting lineup more consistently. Gorman has been working on some mechanical changes — namely, cutting down his front stride and staying in a more balanced landing position. He's hopeful it will lead to better production, and he is 6-for-14 in his last six games. His clutch hit Saturday was a strong step in the right direction. After leading off the ninth with his double, Gorman was lifted for pinch runner Jose Barrero. Knowing Arenado was going to take the following at-bat, the goal was to advance Barrero to third. Enter Pagés, who at the end of the top of the ninth was still noticeably frustrated about the muffed strikeout pitch. 'I take a lot of pride in my defense, so when that happened, I was obviously mad, and I think I showed it on the bench a little bit,' Pagés said. 'But at the end of the day, I needed to go out there, put my helmet on and do whatever I can in the situation.' Pagés picked up the bunt sign and cleared his head. He took a first-pitch sweeper for ball one, then took another sweeper for strike two. He fouled off his first bunt attempt and found himself in an unfavorable 1-2 count. But he knew he had to get the bunt down, and that's what he did on a high sweeper just off the plate. Pagés tapped a slow roller back to Casparius, who rushed the throw and pulled Freeman off the bag. Barrero was safe at third, and Pagés was safe at first, setting the table for Arenado's heroics. Advertisement 'When I got to two strikes, I was like, 'Uh oh,'' Pagés said, laughing. 'But I was able to still get the job done, thankfully.' Though the bunt play was important, Marmol was more impressed by how Pagés was able to shake off the half-inning prior. 'It's easy to come into the dugout and be in your own head and not focus on what's next,' Marmol said. 'But for him to go back out there, two strikes and get the bunt down, that's the game.' The Cardinals have capitalized on the small things all season. They've prided themselves on their relentless approach and ability to score in a multitude of ways. Saturday's performance, which locked up a series victory over the reigning World Series champions, was just the latest example of that, and it led to one of their most impressive wins yet. (Photo of Masyn Winn: Dilip Vishwanat / Getty Images)
Chicago Tribune
2 hours ago
- Chicago Tribune
Notre Dame commit Caden Crowell wanted this for Valparaiso. Well, he earned it. ‘It's a dream I've had.'
Valparaiso senior left-hander Caden Crowell had been waiting for this day for more than a year. Ever since Crown Point ended the Vikings' 2024 season in the first round of sectionals, the Notre Dame commit wanted another shot. 'I've had a countdown for this game since they bounced us out last year,' Crowell said. 'This one has been circled on my calendar for sure.' Crowell made the most of his opportunity on Saturday, delivering a dominant two-way performance to lead Valparaiso to a 5-0 win over Crown Point in the Class 4A Griffith Regional championship game at the Steel Yard in Gary. The Vikings' win secured their first regional title, and the history of the moment was not lost on Crowell. 'It's a dream I've had forever to win a regional and leave a legacy here,' he said. 'This was a huge win for us, but we've still got a couple more games to win.' Crowell (5-0) went the distance for the Vikings (23-5), who were ranked No. 8 in the final 4A coaches poll and will play Fort Wayne Snider (24-6) in the semistate semifinals. He allowed just four hits and two walks and struck out 10 as he lowered his ERA to 0.34. Crowell also helped his cause against the No. 3 Bulldogs (27-5) by going 3-for-4 with two doubles and an RBI. 'He came in with the idea to dominate, and that's exactly what he did, either with a bat in his hand or the ball in his hand,' Valparaiso coach Todd Evans said. Crowell's ERA is indicative of his season-long success on the mound, but he wasn't having as much luck at the plate through the first five games. He had one hit in his first 18 at-bats. The distance between his .056 average at that point and his .449 average last season weighed on his mind. 'Early in the year, I was putting too much pressure on myself because I hit a lot better last year,' Crowell said. 'But now I'm just kind of going out there, swinging the bat and having fun.' Crowell raised his average to .350 with his three hits against Crown Point. That trio included a first-inning double to the wall in left. For Crowell, hitting to the opposite field was a specific point of emphasis in the offseason. 'I was working on getting more bat speed and hitting breaking balls the other way,' he said. 'He left me a change-up in the middle of the plate, and I hit it over the left fielder's head.' Crowell's extra-base hit helped Valparaiso take a 2-0 lead in the top of the first, continuing a trend of early run production. 'Right now, that just seems to be what we're doing,' Evans said. 'We're hitting the ball well early on in the game, and then our pitching staff and defense can shore it up.' Crowell also doubled and scored in the third, providing more than enough cushion for him, according to Valparaiso senior catcher Max Reaume. 'Straight gas,' Reaume said of Crowell's pitching. 'He had a great day on the mound. His breaking stuff was in the zone, and he made them swing the bats. You can't ask for anything more as a catcher. He makes my life easy.' Crowell's performance also makes life easier for Evans, who would like to see Crowell pitch a few more times before he goes to South Bend. 'Caden's going to be playing at the next level, and right now he's just trying to win every game possible before he has to do that,' Evans said. 'Hopefully, that's about three more games.'
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Dodgers Make Unexpected Teoscar Hernández Decision Before Cardinals Game
Dodgers Make Unexpected Teoscar Hernández Decision Before Cardinals Game originally appeared on Athlon Sports. It's not often you turn on a Los Angeles Dodgers game and don't see two-time All-Star Teoscar Hernández manning right field. Advertisement Consider Saturday's game against the St. Louis Cardinals an exception, then. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts sat the struggling Hernández and instead gave second-year outfielder Andy Pages the start in right field. The surging Hyeseong Kim, who tallied a .404 average and .994 OPS in his first 52 at-bats, replaced Pages in center and hit ninth. Hernández has been a mainstay in the lineup, starting 48 of the Dodgers' 54 games. Don't worry, Dodgers fans: Hernández is healthy; he's just enjoying a much-needed rest day. Hernández only has two hits in his last 27 at-bats, striking out 11 times in that span. Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Teoscar HernándezJonathan Hui-Imagn Images Funnily enough, the official X/Twitter account used Hernández to promote Saturday's Dodgers-Cardinals game. Oops. Advertisement It's been a solid season for the 32-year-old, who entered Saturday hitting .272 with 10 home runs, 43 RBI, 15 doubles, and a .802 OPS in 205 plate appearances. However, Hernández's power numbers are down from last year's 10 homers and 32 doubles. We'll see if the off day allows him to reset and resume crushing homers for the defending champions. The inconsistent Dodgers are 38-26 and hold a one-game lead over the San Diego Padres in the NL West. Related: Dodgers' Mookie Betts Sends Clear Message About Latest Position Change Related: Dodgers Predicted to Make Bold Shohei Ohtani Lineup Change After Potential Trade This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 7, 2025, where it first appeared.
