hell of a way to start the 2d half. one hr can redeem a multitude of sins.
which i will not dwell upon now -- better to start off the half in a positive frame of mind. mulder's line looked good, save for the usual strikeout anemia. i have not had a chance to watch the game -- anybody else? was he changing speeds? pitching inside? he got seven swinging strikes, which is an improvement . . . . i also find it noteworthy that la russa left him out there in the 8th inning after mulder went 3-0 on biggio and then walked berkman and ensberg; i would have been screaming for the hook. but tony showed the kind of confidence in him that a good pitcher merits, and mulder redeemed it. encouraging.
albert's homer calls to mind the finale of this game, which i wrote about at curveblog way back in april. as for last night's sins, there's a catalog in the post's game summary. in my opinion the cards haven't really looked sharp since the yanks-sox homestand -- yet they're 17-10 since then and have widened their division lead to double-digits. i'll take it, and i ain't gonna think too much about it.
