Player News 
| Date | News |
| 9/05/10 | Colby Rasmus did not confirm or deny a Sunday report that he requested a trade earlier this year, but the second-year outfielder acknowledged prior to the Cardinals' series finale against the Reds that he finds himself in a complicated situation.
Rasmus declined even to say whether he's happy playing in St. Louis or whether he hopes to be back with the Cardinals for 2011, though he also emphasized that he wasn't asking out.
"I'm not going to say either way," Rasmus said when he was asked about his desire to be back next year. "I'm just going to come in and play hard every day."
| | 8/31/10 | Colby Rasmus was in the Cardinals' starting lineup on Monday at Houston after not starting the past 12 games as he dealt with a strained calf.
Rasmus, who entered Monday third on the team with 44 walks and second with 10 stolen bases, walked in his first plate appearance on Monday. Rasmus batted seventh and played in center. | | 8/29/10 | According to Cards manager Tony La Russa, Colby Rasmus' approach at the plate will determine how frequently Rasmus is in the lineup over the season's final five weeks.
A Cardinals team in need of a boost could certainly use Rasmus' combination of power and on-base ability in the lineup every day or close to it. However, La Russa still feels that there is too much inconsistency in Rasmus' at-bats. The more the second-year center fielder erases that tendency, the more he'll play.
Rasmus was initially slated to return to the Cardinals' lineup for Sunday's series finale against the Nationals after not starting for two weeks due to a right calf injury but was a late scratch.
"He's had all the work," La Russa said. "He's never backed off the work, taking batting practice. I think it all has to do with what his concentration is, and what his focus is. I do believe that, you just watch his swings in batting practice and in the game, I think he is convinced that he helps us more if he just yanks the ball out of the park. That normally is not the case, because you're limiting yourself to a side of the park and you're vulnerable to too many pitches. We really push, 'Just play the game.' That's what Jon [Jay] does. He plays the game. take a single, take a walk, let the home runs come."
Rasmus entered Sunday's game batting .269 with a .353 on-base percentage and a .503 slugging percentage. He's slumped since the All-Star break, but it's no secret that he can be prone to both slumps and extreme hot streaks.
| | 8/26/10 | Colby Rasmus said on Wednesday that he's made significant progress in his recuperation from a right calf injury.
"It's feeling much better," said Rasmus, who hasn't started a game since Aug. 15. "Yesterday was probably the biggest step so far. It's healing up. It's still kind of sore because it's tired."
Rasmus did some running on the field prior to Wednesday night's Cardinals-Pirates game. However, he has not advanced to the sort of more intense running, such as making turns on the bases, that usually precludes a player's return from a leg injury.
Jon Jay started in center field for Rasmus once again on Wednesday, with Randy Winn taking Jay's spot in right.
| | 8/24/10 | Outfielder Colby Rasmus -- dealing with a strained right calf -- ran in the outfield during pregame workouts and could soon be back in the lineup. | | 8/23/10 | Colby Rasmus will miss at least a few more games as the young center fielder recovers from a right calf strain. But Rasmus says he does not think a trip to the disabled list will be necessary, which is excellent news for a club starving for offense at the moment.
The Cardinals have averaged just 3.2 runs per game over their current five-game losing streak. Rasmus is hitting .269/.353/.504 this season with 19 home runs -- third-highest on the team.
Rasmus says he took part in some light lifting Saturday and did some jogging on the treadmill.
"There is not really a certain time frame as far as to the date. [I'm] just going until it feels better," Rasmus said.
"I am hoping it will be early next week." | | 8/19/10 | After being pulled from Sunday's game with cramping in his right leg, Cardinals center fielder Colby Rasmus will be out of the starting lineup for the two-game series with the Brewers as a precautionary measure.
Combined with an off-day Thursday, Rasmus will be given three days to rest his left calf before testing it again in the weekend set with the Giants. He came off the bench in the ninth inning of Tuesday's 3-2 loss, flying out in a pinch-hit appearance.
Rasmus said he had a similar injury earlier in the season with his left calf. Although Rasmus hopes he will be back Friday, he couldn't make any guarantees.
"I am hoping by the weekend. We'll see," Rasmus said. "I am not going to push it."
A streaky hitter, Rasmus has been slumping at the plate of late. He is hitting .167 over his past nine games with 13 strikeouts.
| | 7/12/10 | La Russa said after the game that there is “no doubt” Rasmus will return to the starting lineup after the All-Star break. | | 7/11/10 | Colby Rasmus was held out of St. Louis' starting lineup on Saturday after leaving Friday's game in the eighth inning because of tightness in the right hamstring. | | 7/10/10 | Rasmus left the game in the middle of the eighth inning with tightness in his right hamstring. La Russa said he wasn’t sure if Rasmus would be available on Saturday | | 6/11/10 | Rasmus, who was out of the lineup for the third straight game with a sore left calf on Wednesday, fielded fly balls before the game.
"It's better now," Rasmus said of his sore calf that forced him to leave Sunday's game in the sixth inning. "I could've played today, but we wanted to give it another day to make sure."
Rasmus, who is available to pinch-hit against the Dodgers, was on a hot streak before his injury as he batted .500 with three homers and nine RBIs last week to earn National League Player of the Week honors and said he's confident that he'll return to that form once he rejoins the Cardinals lineup.
"No doubt about it," Rasmus said. "I don't think it should be any different."
| | 6/09/10 | Cardinals center fielder Colby Rasmus and third baseman David Freese were out of the starting lineup yet again on Tuesday and aren't expected back until Friday against the D-backs in Phoenix.
Rasmus, who also missed Monday's game with tightness in his left calf that caused him to leave Sunday's game against the Brewers in the sixth inning, received treatment on his injured calf but has yet to participate in running drills.
"He's better but I don't think he's 100 percent," Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said. "I don't think he'll play tomorrow. I doubt it."
Freese hasn't started since Saturday because of a sprained right ankle but served as a pinch-hitter on Sunday and Monday and will still be available in that role.
| | 6/07/10 | Colby Rasmus was removed from the Cardinals' game against the Brewers on Sunday night as a result of tightness in his left calf. He began feeling discomfort in the area before the game even started, and when it intensified in the sixth, he was pulled.
Rasmus drew a two-out walk in the bottom of the sixth, then was forced at second base on David Freese's grounder to short. When the seventh inning began, new acquisition Randy Winn took his place in center field and the No. 7 spot in the Cardinals' batting order. It was the first appearance in the field for Winn since he signed with St. Louis on Saturday.
Rasmus said he believes the discomfort stems from a slide into home plate in the third inning on Friday, when he scored on a ground ball hit by Felipe Lopez.
"The other day, I ran into that catcher on that play at home plate, when I was safe, with my shin," he said. "And my ankle kind of started hurting a little bit. So I think that shifted my legs around a little bit to where it started putting pressure on my calf that wasn't there before. But I think it's day-to-day."
Rasmus' status for Monday's game in Los Angeles remains uncertain.
"We'll see, come in tomorrow and see where I'm at," he said. "If [I'm] not [ready], give it another day."
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Colby Rasmus