"Official" 2011 St. Louis Cardinals Thread

[BigRedChief]

This is so unreal. We were dead. No hope. A season over. Somehow, someway we find some team chemistry and squeak into the playoffs on the last day of the season.

Only to find us facing one of the best pitching staffs assembled in years with home field advantage. We somehow, someway find a way to beat the best pitcher in baseball on the road in an elimination game.

We have to go on the road and beat the team with the best home record in baseball. A team who mortgaged their future to make this run .We somehow, someway find a way to beat them on the road and make our 18th World series trip.

We take game 1, we give away game 2 and home field advantage. Albert goes off for probably the best performance in World Series history and we take game 3 easily. Games 4 & 5 our bats fall asleep, Phone gate happens and its not looking too good.

Game 6, one of the best baseball games of all time and it takes place in a season ending go home game. Cardinals are down 2 runs in their final chance on the season, twice. They are down to their final strike of the season, twice. They give up a 2 run homer in extra innings. In the bottom of the inning their final 3 batters are a combined 3-26 in the Playoffs and a pitcher because the bench is empty. Somehow, someway they get some runners on and the comeback player of the year drives in the tying run. Mr. Freese hits the walk off home run. We will see you tommorrow night.

Game 7, With our bulldog on the mound pitching on 3 days rest he is able to give us 6 good innings and get us to within 9 outs of our 11 World series title. Texas meltsdown, probably left over from last nights game and its over.

The underdog, come back team who had no business even being in the playoffs wins a World championship. They make movies about events like this in life. Events that you remember even if your not a fan of the sport or team for the rest of your life.

When it is your team.......Priceless


.

[Demonpenz]

Originally Posted by NJChiefsFan

As an outside observer, I don't think the Cards really lost any momentum. You guys win game 5 and your in a position you guys would have killed for a month ago. Chris Carpenter looks like a man possesed right now. Win tomorrow and guarantee a game 7 at worst and I like your chances.

momentum is as good as your next days starter. I feel you though, I don't think they were crushed or anything by yesterdays lose. Grienke is going to go deep when he bats next game.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by NJChiefsFan

As an outside observer, I don't think the Cards really lost any momentum. You guys win game 5 and your in a position you guys would have killed for a month ago. Chris Carpenter looks like a man possesed right now. Win tomorrow and guarantee a game 7 at worst and I like your chances.

Jaime Garcia is a gutless wonder. He's the spanish Mark Mulder. Or maybe he's the righthanded Kyle Lohse.

****, I don't know, the dude has the intestinal fortitude of a 13 yr old girl...in the middle of her first period.

They absolutely had to win last night to take the pressure off Garcia. And to get your head kicked in by Randy ****ing Wolf is just an embarrassment.

The Cardinals are in trouble.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by 'Hamas' Jenkins

Over/Under Garcia's IP: 3 1/3

However long it takes him to get to a third turn through the order.

Look at the games the Cardinals have played in the playoffs. Almost all the damage, from both the Phillies and the Brewers, has come when they try to get the starters through the order a 3rd time. They're just getting crushed when they try to sneak through there to set up the bullpen. Carpenter's the only guy that's shown any ability to make it through a 3rd time.

The starters are gassed. They blew themselves out trying to run down the Braves and they just don't have the stamina left to make it through 6 or 7 innings. Worse still, they're not even really remaining competitive on that 3rd trip through; just flying apart.

[McWickedson]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

Jaime Garcia is a gutless wonder. He's the spanish Mark Mulder. Or maybe he's the righthanded Kyle Lohse.

****, I don't know, the dude has the intestinal fortitude of a 13 yr old girl...in the middle of her first period.

They absolutely had to win last night to take the pressure off Garcia. And to get your head kicked in by Randy ****ing Wolf is just an embarrassment.

The Cardinals are in trouble.

You gotta believe Tony will have a short leash at the first sign of trouble, right ?










RIGHT ?

['Hamas' Jenkins]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

However long it takes him to get to a third turn through the order.

Look at the games the Cardinals have played in the playoffs. Almost all the damage, from both the Phillies and the Brewers, has come when they try to get the starters through the order a 3rd time. They're just getting crushed when they try to sneak through there to set up the bullpen. Carpenter's the only guy that's shown any ability to make it through a 3rd time.

The starters are gassed. They blew themselves out trying to run down the Braves and they just don't have the stamina left to make it through 6 or 7 innings. Worse still, they're not even really remaining competitive on that 3rd trip through; just flying apart.

The starters aren't gassed, they just aren't that damned good. We're talking about Kyle Lohse and Jaime Garcia. Garcia is the one who you could make a gassed argument for, as he was gassed after 160 innings last year and he doesn't have the build or the guts to hold up.

Jackson doesn't look gassed to me, and has actually been the only starter aside from Carpenter with any real effectiveness. He only threw 199 innings in the regular season.

Garcia threw 428 pitches the last month of the season, which happened to be his lowest total of the year by 30.

Lohse had only four starts in September, and his pitches were, again, a year low.

Jackson's September was an average amount, pitch-wise, and not for a one inning relief appearance in mop up duty, would have been a low month.

[BigRedChief]

Originally Posted by 'Hamas' Jenkins

The starters aren't gassed, they just aren't that damned good. We're talking about Kyle Lohse and Jaime Garcia. Garcia is the one who you could make a gassed argument for, as he was gassed after 160 innings last year and he doesn't have the build or the guts to hold up.

Jackson doesn't look gassed to me, and has actually been the only starter aside from Carpenter with any real effectiveness. He only threw 199 innings in the regular season.

Garcia threw 428 pitches the last month of the season, which happened to be his lowest total of the year by 30.

Lohse had only four starts in September, and his pitches were, again, a year low.

Jackson's September was an average amount, pitch-wise, and not for a one inning relief appearance in mop up duty, would have been a low month.

You think we have issues with pitching. look at the Brewers. They traded their future and are no better off than we are.

Garcia has been better at Bush. Does anyone think Grienke can pull off a top notch performance? Anyone think Marcum is a stud? Anyone think Carp is going to have a 2nd sub par game in a row?

We are not out of this thing.

[BigRedChief]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

Jaime Garcia is a gutless wonder. He's the spanish Mark Mulder. Or maybe he's the righthanded Kyle Lohse.

****, I don't know, the dude has the intestinal fortitude of a 13 yr old girl...in the middle of her first period.

They absolutely had to win last night to take the pressure off Garcia. And to get your head kicked in by Randy ****ing Wolf is just an embarrassment.

The Cardinals are in trouble.

The Cardinals obituary is not ready to be written .

[kcpasco]

Furcal is killing us. He has got to start getting on base

[VAChief]

Originally Posted by BigRedChief

The Cardinals obituary is not ready to be written .

3 keys to watch with Garcia:

1. Location...if he is pitching up consistently like his recent crap starts he will be lucky to survive.

2. Can he get first pitch strikes. When he falls behind (as with most pitchers) the numbers jump dramatically. Combined with failure on point one it is lethal.

3. Movement...this may be the most important key to how his night will go. When he has that tail, combined with down in the zone he is difficult to drive anything hard against. The last start against the Brewers it was the first thing I noticed, combined with everything letter high and it was like hoping major league hitters would get themselves out in batting practice.

So far I see he was able to pitch down and get ahead. If he can relax a little we should see the movement come as well. If he overthrows he will be up, behind in the count with a severe whiplash in his neck.

[Frazod]

Way to hustle there, Holliday.

[Frazod]

That was a nice play. You don't see that too often.

[Marcellus]

Nice pick off. Dumbass Gonzalez.

[whoman69]

Being gassed should not be a factor at this point. Lohse and Garcia had two short stints in the playoffs and should have gained some of their strength back.

['Hamas' Jenkins]

Gomez's movements after that single just encapsulated why I hate this ****ing Brewers team so much. Dekeing, juking, strutting like he's some kind of badass.

Greinke has been lucky so far, because we've made 3/4 outs on atom balls.

['Hamas' Jenkins]

Finally. YADI!!

Now make a productive out, ****-o.