Riding the Roller Coaster

It's been an emotional run the last few days.  Let's see if I can capture any of it.

Thursday
Hero: Cesar Izturis, the only player with more than one hit.
Goat: Kyle Lohse, for allowing runs early and not keeping the team in the game.
Emotion: Disappointment.  Tough losing the chance to tie for the wild card lead and losing a half game to the Cubs.

Friday
Hero: Joe Mather.  A home run in a low-scoring game.
Goat: Troy Glaus.  0-5 with 5 men left on.  You could consider Franklin, but he did pitch one scoreless before losing the game in the 11th.
Emotion: Despair.  Losing another game in both standings in a game that the Redbirds should have won.

Saturday
Hero: Troy Glaus.  Two home runs, 5 RBI.  Not much more you can ask for there.
Goat: Ron Villone.  More of a proxy assignment, because what was TLR thinking bringing him in with two outs and a 7 run lead?  Just leave Wellemeyer out there!  And the one guy he's supposed to get, he walks.
Emotion: Hope.  A break or two on Friday and we're looking to get a sweep with Carpenter on the mound.

Sunday
Hero: Joe Mather.  Broke up the shutout and scored a run as well.
Goat: Brad Thompson.  Wasn't able to stop the bleeding, though it may not have mattered anyway.
Emotion: Acceptance.  The season is basically over.

The Cardinals now sit seven games behind the Cubs and three behind the Brewers for the various postseason tickets.  There's hope that Carpenter's early exit last night will not be an extensive problem, but any start he misses is huge.  The Cardinals still think that it's best that Wainwright return as a closer, something I don't agree with.  I think it'd help the team more to get Pineiro out of the rotation and replace him with more regular quality innings.  I know the bullpen needs help too, but with McClellan and Perez closing out games, I think they'd be fine.

And this business with Ankiel is really getting nuts.  If they'd have DLd him when he first got injured, he'd be back this week, having hopefully healed up and, if nothing else, allowed the club to have a usable bat.  But instead they sit him on the bench, maybe get him an AB every once in a while, and he's still not able to play the field.  If this was the AL, fine, they have a DH.  But this is real baseball.

Another aside: does anyone pop up to the infield more than Pujols?  Not that it's a flaw or I'm really deriding him, it just seems like I see him pop up like that more often than anyone else.  Last night's was pretty painful, when he did it with two on and one out.

All in all, though, as much as this team has achieved, as much as it has beaten the odds, I just don't know that they can overcome this kind of gap with only seven weeks left.  As sickening as it is to say, the Cubs look like they are for real, so it really boils down to beating the Brewers.  I'm not sure they don't have another implosion in them, because that team has been known to play a little out of control, but they still probably have the talent edge over the Cardinals.

This week is really big, because you go to Florida for four.  Florida's in both a divisional race and is only two behind the Cardinals in the wild card race.  A series loss down there and you can start playing out the string.  A series win, followed up with a series win against the Reds, and maybe you can get back into the hunt.  That's a lot of ifs, though.

Starting off the Florida series is Joel Piniero vs. Anibal Sanchez.  Pretty much a fresh slate game as the Marlins have all of 7 PAs against Pineiro while Felipe Lopez is the only Cardinal to have faced Sanchez (so THIS is what he was signed for....though that's a little unfair, since he did have a pretty big game this weekend.  But still, outfield?  This is what he was signed for?)  This is only Sanchez's third game back from injury and he's been moderately effective in the first two.  We'll see if the Cardinals can continue their usual success in Florida tonight.  They are 35-23 all time against Florida in their park.

UCBers, our August project is scheduled for the 31st.  If you aren't in the Facebook group, e-mail me and I'll let you know the plan.


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