 |
 |
|
2-1, 1.88 |
0-3, 5.63 |
before you mock the cubs as last-place losers, consider this: they have outscored their opponents by 13 runs so far this year; the cardinals have been outscored by 14. in a small sample size that might not mean what it seems to . . . . but then again, it might. the cubs have outhit their opponents by 43 points (.272 to .229) and out-ops'd them by 52 points --- that's not the profile of a last-place team. the cardinals will miss ted lilly this time around and get zambrano instead, which seems like a good break; lilly has been nearly unhittable this year, while zambrano has turned in just 1 quality start in 5 tries in 2007.
the cardinals recalled kelvin jimenez and sent keisler back down to memphis; not a surprise, given how poorly keisler threw the ball yesterday. his next start would have been tuesday, may 1, vs the brewers; if carpenter's bullpen goes well saturday, he could take that assignment. if carp can't go, then who? could be brad thompson, who pitched so well in relief of keisler yesterday and allegedly has corrected a mechanical flaw that had been keeping his sinker from sinking; could be ryan franklin, with thompson flores springer johnson and possibly even jimenez sharing duty as the setup men. maybe it'll be the proverbial bullpen game, with thompson and josh hancock pitching the bulk innings. also, a perhaps not unrelated item: troy cate is getting a surprise start at memphis tonight. he has pitched out of the bullpen so far this spring, but he impressed as a starter all winter in the mexican league and was used as a starting pitcher during minor-league camp in jupiter.
lineups, per miklasz:
| CHI | STL |
|---|---|
| soriano, lf | eckstein, ss |
| theriot, ss | duncan, lf |
| lee, 1b | pujols, 1b |
| ramirez, 3b | rolen, 3b |
| barrett, c | edmonds, cf |
| murton, rf | wilson, rf |
| derosa, 2b | kennedy, 2b |
| pie, cf | molina, c |
| marquis, p | reyes, p |