It makes me wonder what could have the Reds done?
It's not officially over yet, but it looks like the Cardinals got hot at the right time...that's really all it takes in all honesty.
I tip my hat, painfully
School's out. What did you expect?
It'll be interesting to see if the Cardinals can put this one away. The World Series history between these two franchises is the first one to three wins loses the Series.
The Tigers surely felt invincible in 1934 heading home with a 3-2 lead and Schoolboy Rowe set to take the mound. The '68 Cardinals had a commanding 3-1 lead, rings from '64 and '68 on their fingers, two homes games yet to play and Bob Gibson -- who'd won two Game Sevens in previous years and who posted a 1.12 ERA that season -- scheduled to take the mound for a Game Seven if it was needed.
I'm not a system player. I am a system.
IMO, the Cardinals are putting steady pressure on the Tigers and that's causing the cracking. It's what most folks expected the Yankees to do the Tigers, but the Yankess got complacent.
FCB's got a knack for postseason zeitgeist. During that Mets series the Cardinals showed some serious mettle. They beat a far superior team. I mentioned after the NLCS that the Birds have a "Wild Bunch" feel to them (much like the 2001 D-Backs). Though I also think history may look back on this Series and deem the seasonal W-L records a mirage. The Cardinals have been on an extended run and there's little doubt in my mind that we'll look back in 10-20 years and see that St. Louis had a lot more star power (career-wise) than Detroit.
That said, if St. Louis gets complacent now Detroit could climb right back into this thing. The Cardinals need to continue to play every moment like they're about to be eliminated.
I'm not a system player. I am a system.
I don't see how the Mets were ever considered vastly superior to the Cardinals. They ran out Trachsel, Perez, and and John Maine for 4 starts. That is painful. They also had bullpen problems and the Cliff Floyd injury.
Give the Redbirds credit though, they keep winning. I just would have liked to see one series where both teams played even remotely up to their potential.
This is the time. The real Reds organization is back.
“And when finally they sense that some position cannot be sustained, they do not re-examine their ideas. Instead, they simply change the subject.” Jamie Galbraith
The Mets had starting pitching issues thanks to the Pedro and El Duque injuries, but Maine had a pretty good season and Oliver Perez doesn't lack talent (and to his credit he stepped up when his team needed him). They still had a very good bullpen and some dynamite players in the field.
I actually think the Mets played pretty well against St. Louis. That was a heck of a series. I also don't think Detroit's playing all that poorly right now. Yes, they are making some mistakes, but that's part of baseball. No one plays error-free, highlight reel baseball all the time. Yet the Cardinals are putting the Tigers into a position where the normal errors and non-plays of the sport are costing them games. Essentially St. Louis has managed to whittle the Tigers' margin for error down to nearly zero. Getting consistently on base against all the Tiger's main pitchers outside of Kenny Rogers (the Cardinals have had baserunners in 18 of the 24 innings -- some only partial innings -- pitched by Velander, Robertson, Bonderman, Rodney, Zumaya and Jones) has really put Detroit back on its heels.
The pitcher errors are kind of freaky, but St. Louis is forcing flamethrowers like Verlander, Zumaya and Rodney to make plays against them (with runners already on base to boot). Nolan Ryan used to buzz the next few hitters if a team bunted on him. Roger Clemens practically injures himself every time he makes a play in the field. Having to throw the ball to first base is way outside the comfort zone of most power pitchers.
I'm not a system player. I am a system.
School's out. What did you expect?
I heard the Cardinals will be popping needles into each other tonight (if they win, of course) instead of popping champagne.
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