The Cardinals' season is done. That is sad. But it is in times like these where it is nice to reflect on when there was baseball and when El Birdos were playing it.
What better time than this date four years ago when the Cardinals moved past the Brewers to go on to the World Series?
The Cardinals struck first against Brewer pitcher Shaun Marcum, plating one on an RBI single from Lance Berkman. With two outs, David Freese (*makes DX sign with arms*), recently moved up to sixth in order, sent the first pitch he saw deep into the left field bleachers. The Cardinals took a 4-0 lead that they would not give up.
Though Cardinal starter Edwin Jackson might have, had skipper Tony La Russa not employed his aggressive bullpen strategy. Jackson lasted two innings, giving up four runs on three home runs, allowing the lead to crumble to 5-4.
Marcum's night was through after only one inning, and he was replaced by Chris Narveson, who let the game get completely out of reach. The Cardinals would hit two home runs off of Narveson, one of the two-out variety in the second off the bat of Rafeal Furcal, acquired at the trade deadline from the Dodgers, and the second one came in the third inning, a leadoff shot by Albert Pujols. Narveson allowed a single by Matt Holliday, a double by David BAMFn' Freese, and a sacrifice fly from Nick Punto before being pulled in favor of Latroy Hawkins. Hawkins came in to face the Cardinals' utility weapon, hittin' machine Allen Craig. Craig promptly hit an RBI single.
Fernando Salas pitched a perfect third in relief and the Cardinals took a 9-4 lead into the fourth where they were finally set down in order. Salas gave up a run in the bottom of the fourth, but the Cardinals answered back with two runs (one a sacrifice fly from World Series Champion Adron Chambers!) in the top of the fifth. The Brewers scored their final run of the game in the bottom of the fifth as the Cardinals kept them off the board for the remainder of the game, scoring another run in the top of the eighth for good measure. The Cardinals won the game 12-6 and took the series four games to two, advancing to the World Series to face the Rangers.
what else is going on in baseball...
- Clayton Kershaw delivered when he absolutely had to. | Sports on Earth
- A Primer for the Arizona Fall League | Talking Chop
- The Inning That Was Everything Baseball | FanGraphs Baseball
- The Bizarre (Legal) Play That Almost Started a Riot | FanGraphs Baseball
- Will Bautista join legion of iconic playoff celebrations? | Sports on Earth
- Don't get on your high horse, either way, about bat flips. | Sports on Earth
- On the Line Between Emotion and Sportsmanship | FanGraphs Baseball
- How can you pick against the Blue Jays right now? | Sports on Earth
- Blue Jays-Royals position breakdown for ALCS | royals.com
- Mets defeat Dodgers in Game 5, advance to NLCS | MLB.com
- Mets-Dodgers NLDS Game 5 was dominated by great haircuts | MLB.com
- Here are some of the best reactions to the Mets' NLDS clinch | MLB.com
what the cardinals are up to...
- Sign Jason Heyward | Viva El Birdos
- Carlos Martinez's preliminary 2016 ZiPS projection | Viva El Birdos
- Surgery for Molina, rest for others : Sports | STL Today
- Hochman: Cardinals should re-sign Heyward : Sports | STL Today
KNOW THINE ENEMY...
the nl central
- Cubs Rizzo, Schwarber homer in Game 4 win | cubs.com
- Relive the madness after Cubs' first-ever postseason clincher at Wrigley Field | MLB.com
- This Cardinals fan admits: The Cubs were just better. | Sports on Earth
- 5 cool stats about your new favorite Cub. | Sports on Earth
- Chicago Cubs draft Kyle Schwarber | cubs.com
- Watch Anthony Rizzo's incredible impression of Jose Bautista's epic Game 5 bat flip | MLB.com
- Jake Arrieta: NL Contact Manager Of The Year | FanGraphs Baseball
- Addison Russell Out For The National League Championship Series | Bleed Cubbie Blue
viva el stuff...
- St. Louis Cardinals podcast: NLDS Games 1 and 2 review and a preview of Games 3 and 4 | Viva El Birdos
- VEB Winter Meetup 2015 | Viva El Birdos
- Birds on the Batflips--What causes the Cardinals' old-school perception? | Viva El Birdos
- Exploring the concept of a 6 man rotation for the Cardinals in 2016 | Viva El Birdos
- When Will the Cardinals Stop Being Good? | Viva El Birdos
- Exhaustion Turns to Hope as the Postseason Becomes the Offseason | Viva El Birdos
- Praying to the Stats Gods | Viva El Birdos
- Jake Woodford: My Savior of the Draft | Viva El Birdos
other things...
- Blues Vs. Oilers Game Recap: Oil Spilled Part Deux | St. Louis Game Time
- Six Flags St. Louis renames ride 'Cubs Thunder' to pay off bet with Chicago's Six Flags | SBNation.com
weekly scoreboard:
Monday, October 12 | Cardinals | 6 | Cubs | 8 | VEB Recap | BCB Recap |
Tuesday, October 13 | Cardinals | 4 | Cubs | 6 | VEB Recap | BCB Recap |
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