THE WORLD CHAMPION 2006 ST. LOUIS CARDINALS SOUNDS SOOOO GOOD!

On June 29, 2001, I made a hole-in-one. That same day when I came to another par three, I wanted another one. Same with the Cardinals. Can the Cardinals do it again next season? Why not?

What a great night to be a Cardinal fan. To appreciate Yadier Molina. Are we seeing a rising superstar or what? To appreciate seeing the other Eck play the way he used to play. Series MVP? Ok, I'd would have voted for Yadi, but the other Eck ignited and got key hits in the final two games. To see Cardinal pitching dominate. Or as the announcers put it, "the Met hitters and Tiger hitters just quit hitting." You got that right, but you forgot to add "because of great Cardinal pitching."

To see Preston Wilson play well again. To see Scott Rolen his old self. To see So starting in the outfield. To see the Cardinal fans in their arrays of reds. To see Cardinal fans, the best ever in any sport, support a clueless Dunc in right. He'll be fine, and he's gonna be great, too. To see Jim Edmonds one final time in a Cardinal uni. I thought he would do something on the big stage, but he fouled off a couple he should have stung.

To see the Cardinal pitching. Is it too much to ask for Carp, Soup, and the Dream Weav to be in the rotation along with Reyes and leave Wainwright as the closer? I'd love to see it.

And if I forgot to mention TLR and Big Dunc and Walt--man, thanks. What a year! World Champions! What a ring to it!

I CAN'T WAIT TO WRITE THIS BLOG

about the Cardinal victory in Game Four. How "Soup" once again shined in the post-season. How the expected happened and Pujols was the star. Or how a little guy, a non de plume came through again. How TLR outperformed his buddy and great manager Jim Leyland.

How great defense and timely hitting carried the Cardinals to within one game of their first world championship in 24 long, long years. How the three losses in Series' history in '85, '87, and '04 are lessened somewhat. How the loss in the NLCS to the hated Braves after leading 3 games to one was softened somewhat.

How Denkinger can sleep just a little bit better, how even the most apathetic baseball fan from St. Louis can feel better about the new stadium. How another generation of Cardinal fans can begin to feel a part of Cardinal Nation. And how the Good Guys win. And how the country wins when its good guys win. How it feels good to see guys like Eckstein call opposing players older than he Mister. How Pujols deflects any glory brought to him and gives it squarely where it belongs--to God. How Wilson, et.al., after so many non-post seasons, not only get in one, but win one.

See why I couldn't wait to write it. GO CARDINALS!

OCTOBER IN THE MIDWEST--THE BEST TIME OF THE YEAR

OR WHO SCREWED UP THE WEATHER THIS TIME AROUND--GAME FOUR: POSTPONED

It used to be easy to tell non-Midwesterners when the best time to visit was. September still carried with it much humidity and stickiness as it refused to give up its hold on Summer. May, for some reason, is usually too cold and wet. A dreary month because of anticipation. Ditto April except for the anticipation. March still thought it was a Winter month much like its opposite, November. And Summer--well, forget it unless you love to sweat.

So what the heck happened? The year that baseball gives us two great Mid-American teams and we can't show off the weather. Not that anyone cares according to the tv ratings. Maybe more should follow the Tommy LaSorda commercials about the love of the game. It's one of the very few commercials that are any good at all during this World Series. If I see anymore Star Trek commercials, or tv plugs for House and Prison Break, it's only because I can't reach the remote. And just maybe that's why the rating are so low.

Described as "The World Series Nobody Wanted to See" by a New York writer, this one is a dandy. From featuring cast-offs, to rookies, to fading stars, to the game's best, to Mensa-type managers, to great fans, to dyed-red imperial or "Spiezer," to controversy, to great bullpens, to great ballparks, all that is lacking is the weather and good broadcasters.

Maybe they can play tonight. Or Friday night. Or certainly Saturday. While the colors of Fall may not be what they were in the past, I sure hope the main color is Cardinal red in 2006.

Go Cardinals!

GAME THREE: CARPENTER HAS ALL THE TOOLS

Marty Prather, the Sign Man, is a friend of mine. He displays signs at all the Cardinal games. Most have clever sayings on them as the one to the left. One of his more mundane signs is "Carpenter has all the Tools". And he's 100% right.

If anyone could bottle what Carpenter brings to the table day after day, they could make a fortune. First, his demeanor. His expression never changes. He never shows emotion on the hill. He never questions an umpire with words or body language. He just performs. Secondly, his approach. Mix 'em up. It seems so simple --up and away and down and in, but not a lot of guys practice that. Chris does. Third, his intelligence. If Polanco can't handle the inside pitch because of an injury, then pound him there. When you go outside, be sure it's out of the strike zone. Fourth, his economy. Don't try to strike out everybody. Leave that to Zambrano. Carpenter threw 82 pitches last night and completed 8 innings. Robertson threw 90+ pitchers through 5 innings. Fifth, his batting. Not a great hitter at all, he can still bunt and generally put the bat on the ball. If a pitcher can't do that, he's simply not trying very hard.

Game Three of the 2006 World Series was a classic. A classic example of why Chris Carpenter and the St. Louis Cardinals will be the world champions after two or three more games.

Go Cardinals!

ON THE QT CELEBRATES ITS FIRST BIRTHDAY OR "IT DOESN'T MATTER TILL IT DOES"

How flies time! Isn't it amazing how they know just when to become pests and annoy, bug, or even embarrass us?

Anyway(s), one year of blogging has taught me three things. One, it's an effort but never a chore. Two, it's fun to write to loyal readers and possibly new ones who are unknown. Three, it's difficult not to repeat myself.

Three more things. One, I do write about the past a lot. It's not that I want to return, at least to stay there, but a brief visit would be nice. Two, I write about sports a lot (surprise). And three, I write a lot about spiritual things (again, surprise).

Three more things. One, I like to scour through pictures to give me a topic idea. Two, most days I have no clue where my blog will take me. Three, one time in Church League basketball, we were getting creamed when a friend of mine (who later became very, very wealthy) invited me to drive on him and put up a shot that he wouldn't defend. I did, and canned it. He got the ball and expected the same from me. I let him drive around me, but as he stopped to shoot, I easily blocked the ball from the side. It made me look good, because he was six inches taller, and it made him look bad. I can still see his reaction. It was Caesarian. That is, it must have been similar to the look old Julius gave his buddy Brutus when he stabbed Mr. Caesar.

Ok, I didn't learn that last one blogging. And the sad part is that if you asked the former Central Church of Christ player if he remembered the incident, he'd say no. But I remember it at Summersville Grade School, the south basket.

Oh well, enough reflecting. It's time for some cake to celebrate. And to get some more ideas about my second season.

WORLD SERIES EVEN AT ONE GAME EACH
DID HE DOCTOR? YOUR VOTE

Pitcher Cussin' Kenny Rogers (hey, big guy, the game is on tv; you may want to watch that dirty mouth) was caught with a light brown/dark brown substance on his pitching hand in the first inning of last night's game. Mud was the official answer. And he didn't know it was there.

Now let's say I'm a pitcher. I have a ball in my hand for warm ups and twenty or so pitches and I don't notice that I have a two inch by two inch mud smear on the hand I grip the ball with? I vote no. I'd know it was there.

Would mud be beneficial to alter the capabilities that I might have as a pitcher? Well, for me, no, but for a professional baseball pitcher, I'd say yes. Almost anything one can do to a baseball can result in desired effects. Remember Bob Forsch pulling up the seams of the baseball? I never knew how he got a way with that. Spitball pitchers have long used dampness to change the course of the ball. Pine tar (remember Julian Taveras?) and emory boards (Niekro, et. al.) Should Rogers have been ejected? I vote yes. Suspended like Taveras? Why not? Again, I vote yes.

Is this whole blog sour grapes? I vote no. I'm very happy going back to St. Louis with a 1-1 record. Any yelling I directed at the tv last night was at the line up. Where the heck was Taguchi? And how much longer are we going to have to watch Juan in the middle of the line up? Hey, Tony, he's struggling at the plate and in the field. And where was Dunc when Wilson batted against Jones in the ninth?

Additional mild yelling was again directed at the announcers--it seems that only the Cardinals hit "little flairs". But as my wife tells me, I'm over-critical of them.

So thankfully the Cardinals have a day off. Before facing another left hander. I don't know much about Roberson, but I hope the doesn't doctor, hope he doesn't act like Rogers who acts like Zambrano who acts like Lima, hope he doesn't cuss, and hope he doesn't pitch very well. The Cardianls are still close, and I want them to win.

Go Cardinals.

WORLD SERIES GAME TWO

Can these guys do it? I mean seriously? Can the St. Louis Cardinals win the 2006 World Series title? I think so.

I've long thought that Game Two was the single most important game, well, until the clincher. With a 2-0 lead, the Cardinals can start getting a ring measurement. With a 1-1 tie, worst case scenario, the Cardinals will have home field advantage.

The Tigers are tough, and I expect a battle against Rogers tonight. If the two Met lefties can pitch the Cardinals tough, the Tigers have two legitimate threats. But I also have come to expect Jeff Weaver to show up. He has a little revenge factor in being a former Tiger. Plus the press fodder from the immortal closer Todd Jones. So I think JW will be ready.

What's in store for the Motowners after tonight? MVP Carpenter and Jeff "Maddog" Suppan. Plus, if the series goes another game, they get Anthony "Cojonies" Reyes. Again.

The Tigers are tough. The Cardinals are tougher.

Go Cardinals!