Interesting article the morning by Joe Strauss about Colby’s slump. It reminded me that I have needed to make a clarification.
The person commenting here who claimed to be Colby’s brother Cory is not really Cory Rasmus. I’m not sure who that person really is, but I had someone help clear that matter up with me that it was definitely NOT Cory. Oddly enough, what the poster said was true according to the article about the Cards trying to get Colby to change his approach, but they shared a good deal of anger towards the Cardinals for Colby’s woes, which I don’t believe the real Cory shares nor according to this article does his father share. Nor does Colby share it for that matter.
I stupidly and flippantly said something in the comments blaming Hal McRae, which was really ignorant when I think about what Hal has done to help players like Chris Duncan and Joe Mather. For that I apologize, it was unfounded and just dumb speculation.
As for what’s going on with Colby, I don’t know what to believe. I do however still believe in the philosophy that “if it’s not broke, don’t fix it”. But we have also noted here in times past that Colby is too pull happy, and trying to get someone to be able to hit to all fields certainly isn’t a crime, it’s actually pretty wise. There is nothing wrong with trying to help a player become a better hitter.
Going forward, I will try and have a more open mind and balanced viewpoint about these sort of coaching decisions, and not just chase after conspiracy theories. I apologize if what was said here either in my posting or the comments caused embarrassment to the Rasmus family, and I am sorry for being spreading unfounded accusation towards the Cardinal org. It’s this kind of stuff that causes some bloggers to get a bad name.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s not like if I have an opinion or disagree with something I’m just going to keep my mouth shut. I’m just going to try and observe some advice my mother gave to me growing up. “Think before you speak”.
FR wasn’t the main site all the hullabaloo was about, the stuff about Colby’s dad happened elsewhere. But I did want to take my share of the blame, too.
Future Redbirds 
I disagree with everything you just said there, erik. We don’t need more level headed, intelligent discussion, we need LESS. I want you spouting out the most insane, ridiculous, accusatory drivel you possibly can! You could be great, if only you would give in to the dark side.
For instance, I happen to believe that the bulk of the Cardinals’ front office is composed primarily of the evil Bat People from the planet Glornex 4. they came here two years ago and infiltrated the Cardinal organisation in order to ruin the team, because Space Cardinals are a huge problem on their home planet. And nothing that you, or anyone else, can say is going to change my mind. And that’s that.
Seriously, though, you shouldn’t be so hard on yourself. This is, by far, one of the most intelligent and reasonable blogs out there. One mistake, and barely a mistake at that, does nothing to change that.
+1
Agree on all counts. I think we as fans, being emotionally invested in the team, don’t always have the most balanced view. Furthermore, we certainly don’t have all the information. We also need to remember that these coaches have been in the game for a long time and do have some idea of what they are doing.
That being said, criticism is sometimes warranted and there is no reason to hold back on well thought and well meaning criticism. Opinions differ and that is what makes following sports fun.
I really think the bottom line here is that Colby is very, very young. He reacted emotionally to being sent down, pressed, tinkered, got lost, got more frustrated, and is trying to find his way back. In the long run, he’ll be fine–and I think you could make a strong argument that going through such a rough, publicized stretch of futility will make him a better ballplayer. If it didn’t happen in the minors, it was bound to happen in the majors…let’s just get this out of everyone’s systems now, shall we?
First time poster, just found the site, and I have really enjoyed it. I totally agree with Mike, all players go through adversity, better that Colby experience it at Memphis. While, he does have a spot light on him, it would probably be greater in the bigs. That aside, I don’t see what wrong with asking kids in the minors to learn ways of hitting or pitching in the minors if it would make them better players in the pros. I know you don’t fix what is not broken, but it might be broken in the pros and better to sort it out earlier than later.