The contract, worth a reported $4 million plus another potential $3.5 million in performance bonuses, is believed to be the largest ever given by a Japanese team to an American pitcher on his first NPB contract. 

It's been a bit of a rocky road for Penny since hitting a grand slam for the Cardinals back on the 21st of May in 2010. Through that point in the season he had been a revelation, posting an ERA below 2.00 through his first seven starts; unfortunately, that grand slam proved to be his final plate appearance wearing a Cardinal uniform. He left the game shortly thereafter with a pulled muscle in his back and was never seen in Cardinaltown again. He pitched last year for the Detroit Tigers, throwing a full season's slate of 31 games, but struggling to the tune of a 5.30 ERA. He broke off his engagement to Karina Smirnoff in December. And now he's headed across the Pacific to pitch in Japan. Funny how quickly life can throw you a curve, isn't it? 

Perron scored twice last night, helping the Blues to a 3-1 victory over the Ottawa Senators, who have suddenly gone from playoff contender to Tom Petty. (As in they're free falling.) Brian Elliott got the win in goal, playing a near-perfect game in his return to Ottawa. He wasn't quite Jaroslav Halak in Montreal good, but he was close. And really, the rest of the team didn't play nearly as well in front of him as they did for Halak against the Habs. 

The win was a big one for the Blues, who haven't played particularly well since the All-Star break, and haven't played very well on the road all season. It also put them in a tie for second place in the Central Division with the suddenly unbeatable Nashville Predators (Pekka Rinne, how I curse your name!), and just three points behind the Red Wings at the top. The better news there is the Blues have played two fewer games than both. 

Even so, beating a Kansas team sitting atop the Big XII rankings and ranked in the top ten nationally is pretty damned big. Marcus Denmon going Super Saiyan at the end to put the Tigers ahead? Big. Michael Dixon hitting two free throws in a row following an offensive foul to extend the lead to three? Big. Holding serve in Columbia ahead of a rematch in Lawrence three weeks from Saturday? Bigger than big. 

So yeah, it was a big, big game. Tough to say it was bigger than the Tigers travelling to Waco, Texas and taking down then-number three ranked Baylor, but it probably was. 

The problem is that, following a game that big, it's easy to look at anything less as small and not nearly so important. How Frank Haith keeps his team from falling into that trap will be his next big challenge as the coach of this Mizzou team. 

The Super Bowl was played yesterday -- you may have heard something about it -- and it turned out to not only be a rematch of the 2008 game between the Patriots of New England and the New York Giants, it actually turned out to basically be the same game. Much like The Hangover II tried way, way too hard to replicate the exact formula which made the first one so successful, this Super Bowl pretty much followed the script of the last one to a T. 

You had the late comeback by the Giants, including the David Tyree moment courtesy of Mario Manningham this year, the failed final attempt by the Patriots, the surprisingly low point total, all of it. The same damned game. 

Okay, so it was the same damned absolute classic of a game, but still. I saw this movie already. And really, I only watch for the commercials anyway. Though I guess getting to see MIA flip off the camera while fancying herself a real rebel was alright. (Terrible halftime show, by the way; the dude in a toga bouncing on a piece of tape was okay, but beyond that I mostly just felt bad for Cee-Lo Green, who really deserved better.) Still, it was yet another thin year for the commercials, even after I threatened last year to just stop caring about them altogether. 

Alabama, somewhat unsurprisingly, came away with what most analysts believe to be the best recruiting class overall. Most of the other schools at the top of the rankings were big-name schools as well; Ohio State, Florida, and Florida State all did well. Notre Dame came away with Gunner Kiel, the top-ranked quarterback in the nation. The rich get richer, world without end, amen. 

When the dust had settled, though, there was another school which did remarkably well for itself. In fact, this school, despite not being one of the biggest names in the nation, came away with the number one overall recruit in the country, a talent the likes of which doesn't come along very often. 

The player was Dorial Green-Beckham, and the school was Missouri. 

The highlight of the proposed development was supposed to be a brand new, state of the art Hall of Fame and museum dedicated to the St. Louis Cardinals. A restaurant was planned as part of the museum, along with rooftop seating that looked directly into the park itself. The rest of Ballpark Village was supposed to have plenty of commercial space, and the potential revenue windfall for the city would have been substantial. Ballpark Village was going to be something really great, and the Cardinal museum was going to be the central jewel in the crown of a revitalized downtown. 

It's been a decade since those grand plans began to circulate around. The Cardinals have finally opened up their Hall of Fame museum. Online. 

No, my problem has always been the simple logistics of the deal. The Cards just don't really have room for Oswalt -- or any other starter, for the matter -- with the way their roster is currently put together. Too many pitchers already under contract, and way too many no trade clauses in way too many contracts. (Speaking of, if there's one issue I really do have with John Mozeliak, it's the way he hands out NTCs like they were Fun Size Milky Ways on Halloween.) I've always felt like the Oswalt/Cards flirtation was one doomed to never be consummated, the victim of poor timing and a roster with no real room for the talented veteran. 

Yet here we are, waiting with bated breath for the next tidbit of Roy Oswalt news to be tweeted. Well, maybe yours isn't bated. Mine definitely is, though. 

All in all, a pretty good weekend. 

Against that backdrop, perhaps it was inevitable. After all, if ever there is a time ripe for a trap game it's the game after you beat a top five team on their court to take a huge leap forward in the standings. 

The Tigers' reign as the number two team in all the land lasted approximately two days. The rankings came out Monday, and by the time the game clock hit all zeroes Wednesday night in Stillwater Mizzou had lost just their second game of the year to an unranked and struggling Oklahoma State team. 

All in all, not a great Wednesday. 

It doesn't matter what the game is, either. The odds are always against you whatever you like to play. Whether you like to play the slots, watch the roulette wheel spin away this month's rent check, or chase that elusive 21, the result is pretty much always the same. The house is very, very good at winning. It's had plenty of practice, after all. 

So, reading too much into the strict order of things, the Cardinals check in at number five overall, behind the Blue Jays, Padres, Rangers, and Mariners. Considering the Cards just lost a big number five this offseason, I'll take any other fives I can get. 

God, what an awful joke. I apologize, folks. That was just terrible. I wish there was some way I could make it up to you, like maybe offer a better joke as some sort of palate cleanser. Comedy sorbet, if you will. Sadly, I have no such cleanser to offer. 

Anyway, John Sickels has been ranking prospects and analyzing systems for a long time, and he knows what he's doing. So what did he have to say about the Cardinals' system?