Actually I just looked at the upcoming schedule and the Giants are off Thursday. So it's Lowry, Cain and then Schmidt on the weekend. The Giants hate the Dodgers and would love nothing more than to take them out the playoffs. Schmidt is definitely pitching Sunday. Book that (if it matters, of course). So I think we need to hope that the game doesn't matter by then, so that the Giants would op for looking at a rookie instead (e.g., Cappellan). Then Schmidt is ready to pitch on Monday. LaRussa would be pissed. I can see it now. I wanna see the Dodgers get the wildcard, so that the Astros would play the Pods in the first series, not the Mets on the road. Although if Beltran can't go, that offense is seriously diminished and not nearly as scary. I think we all know that a healthy Beltran would go crazy on Houston, much like he did in the playoffs 2 years ago.
Biggest division title meltdown for a team with 13 games remaining was a 5 1/2 game lead. The 1964 Phillies lost it to, of all teams, the Cardinals. No team has blown a lead of more than 3 games since then. The Cardinals had an 8 1/2 game lead with 13 games remaining. ESPN showed it as being only a 7 game lead. How the hell do you mess up that stat, it's only 6 days old? It's just too bad Garner went back to Lidge as the closer after pulling him earlier in the season for Wheeler. We can look back a couple of weeks ago at the Pujols 2 out, 2 strike pitch for a 2 run double vs. Lidge in the 9th and a 1 run loss that may still end up being the back breaker for this Astros team. Garner still doesn't get the fact that King Albert will bat 1.000 for the remainder of his career vs. Light em Up Lidge. Just walk the dude, fool. That's a 2 game swing and the Astros would only be a 1/2 game back at this point.
Astros put up a 3 spot in the very first inning against the Pirates.....all this while the Cardinals are taking BP....you know they are looking at that scoreboard.....lovely....hopefully it makes them press at the plate tonite and puts undue pressure on Carpenter, knowing the next 4 Cardinal starters coming up in the next 4 days are horrible.
Carpenter gives up a run in the first inning on a wild pitch....you think he's just a bit nervous or what? The pressure is mounting.....
Go Astros. They will be better in the playoffs than in the regular season. It would be wild (but unlikely) if they made it back to the World Series. QUESTION: Again very unlikely, but does Biggio come back if the Astros win the World Series ?
Padres have the lead over the cardinals now..... Carpenter was left in wayyy too long... sad thing is he was probably our best chance.
Lose-Roosa has absolutely no confidence in that bullpen he has. That's painfully obvious. Carpenter won't be able to pitch in the playoffs at this pace (122 pitches). Carpenter gives up 6 runs in 7 innings....my goodness Padres with the best reliever in baseball on the mound, Cla Meredith, with an ERA under 1.00. He may be asked to pitch 2 innings to set up Hoffman in the 9th since Linebrink has been pitching a lot lately. My goodness....this is it....if the Pods hold on, the Cards are sunk...game over In fact, I will say that this game decides it....if the Cardinals come back and win, then I think that stops the backslide and gets them back on track just enough to hold off the resurgent Stros. If they lose, then there is no stopping this train wreck. Funny, Woody Williams would get the W tonight. And then we get the clinching win from Matt Morris on Monday....just fill in the blanks
Bochy pulls Meredith....I wish they would have let him bunt the runner over and pitch the 8th...the Cards were not gonna score on him. Now they take their chances with whomever they put in. I just saw the replay on the double by Cameron on an 0-2 pitch...fast ball caught way too much of the plate....catcher was lined up about a foot outside and he caught a good deal of the outer half of the plate...nice hitting by Cameron on 0-2.
Wainright is in, he is the Cardinals best option out of the bullpen and the first 2 guys are on base with nobody out....first and third. Wow!
Carpenter may have just lost his Cy Young as well. If Webb kills tonight and gets a W, its over for Carp.....I love that. Oswalt still has a small window of opportunity but must basically pitch a shutout and get a W vs. Pitt in order to have a chance. And then Webb needs to get bombed as well.
