It’s games like this that remind my why I love being a Cardinals fan.
For starters, Albert Pujols and I established our “thing.” Yep, Albert and I have a thing — when I cover games for Aaron Miles Fastball, he starts at third base. We’re 2-for-2 so far!
The defense as a whole still  had some sketchy moments in this one — Skip missed a crucial tag at second on a bullet from Yadi, and Colby whiffed twice on balls hit at him in center. The team, though, was error-free, and even had a few web gem worthy moments!
The "Schumaker Slide" head-first into 1B is usually eye-roll inducing. This time, it was game winning!
Skip made up for his miss at second with a diving stop, then spin-around throw to Berkman for the out at first in the 7th. Then he delivered the final dagger in the Giants’ bullpen collapse — an RBI single in the bottom of the 8th that gave the Cardinals the lead.
Ryan Theriot extended his hitting streak to 14 games. Meanwhile, Pujols went 2-for-3 on the night with an RBI and a run scored. He’s looking more comfortable at the plate all the time. This is a very good thing!
It wasn’t all pretty, though. The Giants struck first, getting a run on a single from Vogelsong. After Jon Jay scored Carpenter to tie it up, CC gave up two more, and it looked like he was bound for another unfair loss. He notched 8 strike outs — a season high — but threw 100+ pitches in just five innings, leading to an early exit.
My heart races like a thoroughbred at the Kentucky Derby when the bullpen controls more than two innings! Especially when TLR decides on a Motte/Miller/Franklin combination. Let’s just say I was less than confident.
Shame on me.
While Motte’s “throw-it-as-hard-as-possible-and-hope-no-one-makes-contact” philosophy is terrifying, it worked. Miller made things interesting, hitting Brandon Belt and allowing one run on a Cody Ross single. Franklin came in for the 9th and struck out the side, setting up some late-game heroics.
The St. Louis squad that couldn’t stumble over an extra-base hit early in the season got three doubles in a row from Jay, Pujols, and Craig.
Tie game.
The Redbirds took the one-run lead on Skip’s RBI single that showed off the trademark Schumaker Slide into first. An awkward relay from second baseman Sanchez to the pitcher was just off enough for Skip to dive in safely. (And take CC off the hook!)
Skip’s head-first dive has been the subject of more than one clubhouse conversation. Despite Tony La Russa’s arguments, Skip told MLB.com’s Steve Overbey he’s not buying it.
Schumaker swears that he can get to first base faster by diving for the bag at the conclusion of his sprint down the line.
“Nobody agrees with me,” he said. “But I still believe it’s faster — that’s why I do it.”
The quotes of the night, though, came from ESPN’s Chris Berman. Now, he’s thrown out a few hundred nicknames, but he was on a roll tonight, starting with Albert.
"Tossed" Salas? Hungry much, Berman?
Albert “Winnie the Pujols,” that is.
And in an attempt to top that, he went with Fernando “Tossed” Salas as the rookie came in for the save.
I’m still debating whether the points for originality are enough to cancel out the points taken away for ridiculousness!
Regardless, Salas stepped in and stepped up, getting Emmanuel Burriss to strike out swinging, and to seal the come-from-behind win (credited to Franklin!).
While Berman may have won quote of the night, moment of the night goes to the bench reaction to Skip’s infield single.
They were as excited as a bunch of school boys when he was called safe. This energy and chemistry just might be what makes these guys special.
The manager himself summed it up quite simply for STLtoday.com columnist Bryan Burwell.
“Our asset is we have a great heart.”
Tuesday’s left fielder Allen Craig followed that up with a bit more:
“We got tested early with that when we found out Waino went down in spring training,” Craig said. “We came out then with the right attitude that nothing was going to get us down and that we had a good team. That is the personality of this team now. We’re going to keep fighting no matter what. We’re going to keep fighting no matter who goes down.”
Their fight and TLR’s craftiness make this one a winner!
The Redbirds remain 2.5 games in first.
Two more to play against the World Champs. Let’s keep this momentum going!
Tara Wellman is a St. Louis Cardinals contributor for Aaron Miles’ Fastball. Follow her on Twitter, @tarawellman
Great game last night — just so exciting to see the heart (thanks, Tony) and that never-give-up spirit.
I read the article with that quote from Skip. And, yes, Skip, nobody agrees with you because it usually doesn’t get you there faster! Luckily, though, it worked when it needed to!
Also, because we are the official home of the Ryan Theriot Fan Club (and I didn’t jinx him yet), RYAN THERIOT HAS A 14-GAME HITTING STREAK!
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
[...] Colorado (i70baseball.com)Chris Carpenter: Too few outs for too many pitches (pitchershiteighth.com)Giants "Tossed" By Salas And Company's Late Game Gems (aeryssports.com)Game 56 Post Game Thread: FranKKKlin (vivaelbirdos.com)Cards Drop 10 on Purples [...]
Like or Dislike:
0 
0