Talkin' Baseball

National League Championship Series - Major League Baseball
St. Louis Cardinals versus the Houston Astros

These two teams have played some incredibly close games over the past week.
There has always been that feeling that with one hit a game might get blown wide open, but those hits have not yet materialized. Pitchers have stood their ground and somehow extricated themselves from jams. Batters have choked in the clutch in a way that is maddening. Defensive plays have saved games and ruined them.

And that is why baseball is so loved by so many.
It's a simple game with complex intricacies.
It's more than two teams battling for runs to win a game.
It's a pitcher fighting for one more unhittable strike.
It's the batter doing whatever it takes to reach base safely.
It's the manager bringing in a different pitcher.
It's the questionable call by the umpire.
It's the crowd who cheers and jeers every movement on the field.

Last night was the epitomy of what this current series has become: incredibly close games with the potential to go either way with one swing, one error or one call. The Cardinals and Astros have met in the NLCS for the second time in as many years, and they are quietly proving why their rivalry might be the best rivalry in baseball. Forget about the Red Sox and Yankees. While they may play in larger cities that are closer to one another, I believe that their rivalry is more generated by the media than by the players themselves.

Historically, the St. Louis Cardinals / chicago cubs rivalry has been of epic proportions, but in the past years this appears to be dimming in scale. Don't get me wrong, the cubs still suck big-time and I enjoy watching the Cards pound them into the ground, but the intensity is beginning to fall short of where it once was between these two teams. One of the main reasons for that is because the cubs truly do suck, particularly in the postseason. It's hard to maintain a spirited rivalry when one of the teams rarely makes it into the postseason, or even has a chance at possibly making it there with a month left in the season. You have to fuel that fire in October and the cubs make that almost impossible on a yearly basis.

However, over the past several years, the Houston Astros have become the nemesis that Cardinals Nation can truly keep an eye on with interest. The Astros have a lineup that is powerful, quick and seasoned. Most of their roster has seen the postseason several times and a handful of the guys have been to the World Series. This makes them more than just a passing threat. Last year, the series between the Cardinals and Astros went the full seven games because these two teams are so evenly matched.

And that makes for a great rivalry.
Two teams with the ability to win a game several different ways.
Pitchers that can shut down an offense.
Offenses that can destroy pitchers.
Defenses that can make the incredible plays.

Perhaps the rest of the baseball world is beginning to understand that the best baseball isn’t necessarily getting played where the most money is being spent. (Have a nice time watching the series on TV Jason Giambi…) Perhaps…

But if they aren’t learning that fact, I am okay with it. I will selfishly horde my opportunities to watch quality baseball being played between two great teams.

Last night’s game was epic. It was close all night long. The Cards had the lead and then Lance Berkman decided he would play the hero in the seventh inning. He dropped a ball worth three runs into the short left field stands to give Houston the lead by two. And that’s exactly where the 43,470 fans inside Minute Maid Park wanted to see the game end. So we headed to the ninth…

John Rodriguez and John Mabry both struck out to start the inning. In stepped David Eckstein. If you can find me a player that hustles more, plays harder and seems to enjoy every minute of it more than Eckstein, I will give you $100. Closer Brad Lidge throws two pitches past the batter for two strikes. With their hopes resonating throughout the park, the fans could barely contain their excitement: they were on the verge of going to the World Series for the first time in franchise history. But Eckstein lined the ball through a hole and reached first base safely. Next up, Jim Edmonds. The faithful fans maintained their anticipation while they watched Lidge walk Jim Edmonds. First and second, two outs in the top of the ninth.

Into the batters box walks Albert Pujols. Everyone who has listened to or watched a major league baseball game in the last 5 years knew what this at-bat meant. It was an epic battle preparing to ensue. One of the best closing pitchers in the game pitted against one of the best hitters in the game. Albert was having a rough night, going 0-4, but Lidge was struggling to find the plate for the final out. The first pitch was a strike from Lidge. Immediately, my mind raced through the quintessential baseball poem “Casey at the Bat”. Would Albert be like Casey and strike out with a mighty swing or would he get a hit? Would Reggie Sanders get an opportunity to be the man the hopes of Cardinal Nation rested upon. It would seem unlikely.

Let the season rest on the shoulders of the man who is most fit to carry them. The shoulders of Albert Pujols are exactly where the millions of Cardinal fans want them to rest. If Albert cannot make something happen to change the course of the game and season, then so be it. Pujols versus Lidge is exactly what the Cardinal fans deserve. Anything less would have seemed criminal at this point in the season.

And so the pitch came in from the mound…
And in one amazing second Albert Pujols was able to bring millions of fans around the country to their feet screaming in joy at their televisions. Thousands of fans were screaming in exaltation at their radios. Neighbors were high-fiving and strangers were hugging in front of the bar.
As Brad Lidge saw the ball leave the bat of Albert Pujols he could only turn and watch.
As the ball soared high into the depths of the park, 43,470 fans fell eerily silent.
In wonder and amazement, the Houston Astros watched what would have been a fairy tale ending to an amazing season get erased by one swing of the bat.
In jubilation, the Cardinals bounced in and out of their dugout with the exuberance of a child who just got the puppy he always wanted.

Thankfully, Jason Isringhausen was able to close down the Asros in the bottom of the inning to get the win. I told my wife that if Izzy lost the game for us or allowed it to be tied, the Cardinal fans would have to tie him up to a stake in the center of Busch Stadium and allow his teammates to drop the plunger on him. I think he gives opponents too many chances to score and I think he is incredibly overrated.

In a series that has been so close, one swing seemed to have clinched it for Houston.
Then, when all the odds were stacked against him, Albert Pujols gave us Cardinal fans one swing to bring baseball back to Busch stadium one more time. This has been a great series and should continue in the same manner tomorrow night. Either way, let baseball fans around the world begin to realize that St. Louis and Houston also have amazing teams.