Cardinals Rally To Edge Braves 4-3
The St. Louis Cardinals rallied from an early 3-0 deficit to beat the Braves 4-3 in the opening game of a four-game series at Busch Stadium in St. Louis on Monday night.
The Braves scored twice in the third inning and once in the fourth to open the 3-0 lead, scoring the runs on an rbi sacrifice fly by Brian McCann, an rbi-single by Troy Glaus, and an rbi-double by Nate McLouth, but Atlanta couldn’t hold the lead as St. Louis rallied to score once in the sixth, twice in the seventh, and once in the eighth to turn the 3-0 Braves lead into a 4-3 Cardinals lead and eventual win.
St. Louis scored on an rbi-groundout by Albert Pujols in the sixth, a solo shot by Colby Rasmus and an rbi-double by Bryan Anderson in the seventh, and what proved to be a game-winning rbi-double by Yadier Molina in the eighth.
Pujols and Rasmus combined for five hits in seven at-bats in the game, with Pujols going 3-for-4 and Rasmus going 2-for-3 as they raised their batting averages to .325 and .315, respectively.
Dennys Reyes pitched a scoreless eighth inning to pick up the win for the Cardinals and St. Louis closer Ryan Franklin pitched a scoreless ninth to notch his seventh save of the season, while Braves’ reliever Takashi Saito gave up the game-winning double to Molina in the eighth inning and took the loss for Atlanta.
The high-flying Cardinals improved their season record to 12-7 with the win, while the loss was the sixth straight for the slumping Braves, who dropped to 8-11 on the year.
Q and A: RedbirdRants’ Ryne Gery
Tomahawk Talk recently had the opportunity to run a series of Cardinals, Braves, and MLB-related questions by Ryne Gery of RedbirdRants.com (a GREAT St. Louis Cardinals blog/fansite!), and with the Braves all set to play the Cardinals in a four-game series, the timing couldn’t be better!
Here’s a look at what Ryne had to say in response to our questions:
Tomahawk Talk: The Cardinals had a good year in 2009 and most experts are expecting another good season from the Redbirds in 2010. How do you think the Cardinals will do this year?
Ryne Gery: I think the preseason buzz is warranted. I expect the Cardinals to win the division and to be a major threat come October. With the additions to the lineup and the development of their young players, the Cards should challenge the Phillies for National League supremacy. This is the most complete lineup St. Louis has had in some time.
Tomahawk Talk: What do you like best about the 2010 edition of the Cardinals?
Ryne Gery: I just like how complete the team is. The lineup is solid. The pitching staff is solid. With Rasmus ready to take off, David Freese joining the big league club, and the emergence of the bench players, the lineup is versatile. The starting rotation is set with Carpenter and Wainwright at the top. Brad Penny has also done a nice job and I really like the veteran presence he brings to the club. Outside of that, this club just has a fun feel to it. After the 20-inning loss, they were still in good spirits and they seem to have that chemistry that is needed to take that next step in the fall.
Tomahawk Talk: What is your primary concern about this year’s Cardinals team?
Ryne Gery: The bullpen. Coming into the year, the ‘pen was the lone cause for concern. And so far, it has shown why everyone was concerned. They have been inconsistent in the opening month. Ryan Franklin is getting older and only has one good year to his name. His situation and the rest of the bullpen are worth keeping an eye on as the season progresses.
Tomahawk Talk: Do you think the Cardinals will make any major player moves at (or before) the trade deadline?
Ryne Gery: I highly doubt it. The Cardinals made their major moves last year and during the offseason. They got Holliday and re-signed him to a huge deal. With the remaining money, they went out and got Felipe Lopez. He brings great versatility to the club and fills many holes for St. Louis. It was a great pickup. Now they have to run with the horses they have. As I said earlier, the lineup and rotation are set. The bullpen will have to come together on its own.
Tomahawk Talk: What has to go right for the Cardinals for them to win the NL Central and perhaps the National League pennant and World Series?
Ryne Gery: Right now, it looks like the Cardinals will run away with the NL Central. The Cubs, Reds, Brewers, Pirates, and Astros are all mediocre teams and I have a hard time seeing them emerging as threats in the division. St. Louis is clearly the best team and has done a nice job early of handling the pressure of being the favorite. Winning the National League pennant and World Series will obviously be tougher, but I think they could do it. If the bullpen firms up and they stay healthy, the Cardinals have as good a chance as any team of taking home the ultimate prize. Good pitching can carry a team in October and the Yankees won the world championship last year using three starting pitchers in the playoffs and World Series. With Carpenter and Wainwright, the Cardinals could be well-suited to follow that model, so the World Series is definitely within reach.
Tomahawk Talk: What are your initial thoughts/impressions of this year’s Braves team?
Ryne Gery: I really like the team. After a few down years by Braves’ standards, it’s nice to see them back in the news again. Heyward is a big part of the excitement and I have been very impressed with him. Atlanta has a foundation to build a new era on. Tommy Hanson was awesome last year and I expect an even better year this year. With those young guys breathing life into the franchise, the Braves should contend in the NL East this year.
Tomahawk Talk: What do you like best about the Braves as a team?
Ryne Gery: I like the balance of youth and veteran leadership that the Braves have. Heyward and Hanson are stars in the making, but they’ll have their growing pains along the way. With Chipper Jones and Brian McCann leading the way though, the young players should be able to weather the storms. Not to mention the fact that they have Bobby Cox on the bench. And as Chipper’s career winds down, I would like to say that it has been a privilege to watch him play. He has been my favorite player of the current era since watching him as a young fan in the 1996 World Series. Something about Chipper really drew me in and as I got older and understood the game more, I appreciated him that much more. I really think he deserves more love as one of the faces of baseball during the current era along with Derek Jeter. He steered clear of steroids and all of that stuff and still became one of the top switch-hitters of all-time. A surefire Hall of Famer, he has really been fun to watch. While I think he has plenty left to give, if this is his last hurrah, it’s been special.
Tomahawk Talk: It’s not the Cardinals’ division, of course, but how do you see the NL East playing out? What’s your projected order-of-finish for the NL East?
Ryne Gery: I can’t pick against the Phillies in the NL East. I’m from Reading, PA, so I’ve watched the team a lot over the past few years and I love’em. It’s just a fun team to watch. Rollins is the best shortstop in the game when it comes to glove work. Utley may be the most complete player in the game. Howard and Werth are great in the middle of the lineup. And the team just has that quiet confidence and will to win that is apparent in many of their players. The chemistry they have is off the charts and it starts with their desire to win. It’s hard to explain, but you pick up on it when you watch them play on a daily basis. Oh yeah, and they have Halladay now. I see the Braves and Marlins fighting for second place with the Braves edging the Fish. The Mets and Nationals still have a long way to go and should be out of it by mid-July.
Tomahawk Talk: Returning to the Cardinals and their division, how do you see the NL Central shaping up? What’s your projected order-of-finish for the NL Central?
Ryne Gery: The Cards should cruise to the division title by August. After that, it’s a jumble of mediocre teams. I’ll go with the Cubs to finish second because they have the talent to do so. But Chicago is also somewhat of a mess. Cincinnati should hang around with their young talent and Milwaukee and Pittsburgh should be competitive. The Astros are already planning for 2011.
Tomahawk Talk: And what about the NL and AL pennants and the World Series? What teams do you see winning those this year?
Ryne Gery: Well, let’s just say I like the odds of a repeat matchup in the World Series. The Yankees and Phillies are the best teams again this year and over time that will begin to show. It could be a fun new rivalry between those two east coast hubs. This time, I’ll give it to the Phillies riding Doc Halladay to their second World Series win in three years.
Tomahawk Talk: Great stuff, Ryne. Thanks for doing the Q and A!
Braves Set To Take On Cardinals
The Braves are all set to take on the St. Louis Cardinals in a four-game series that gets underway tonight at Busch Stadium in St. Louis.
The Braves bring an 8-10 record into the series, while the high-flying Cardinals are already perched atop the NL Central standings with an impressive 11-7 record.
Tim Hudson will start for the Braves in tonight’s series opener, while the Cardinals will counter with Kyle Lohse, and it’s a matchup of Opening Day starters in Tuesday night’s second game, with Derek Lowe pitching for the Braves and Chris Carpenter going for the Cardinals.
Kenshin Kawakami will start the third game of the series for the Braves on Wednesday and will be opposed by Jaime Garcia, who has pitched well for the Cardinals, and Jair Jurrjens will pitch Thursday afternoon’s series finale for the Braves, while Adam Wainwright will start the finale for the Cardinals.
Those are some great pitching matchups, and it should all make for a great series!
Rant Sports Adds New MLB Team Sites!
There’s some exciting news on the Rant Sports Network front today, MLB fans.
Rant Sports has just launched several great new team sites and included among them are a pair of new MLB sites for fans of the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees, two of MLB’s most popular teams.
Fenway Faithful Report will cover all things Red Sox, while Bronx Bombers Report will be covering the defending world champion New York Yankees. The two new additions will be joining Bringing Heat, Tomahawk Talk, Dodgers Central, and Rays Central in the power-packed Rant Sports lineup of great MLB blogs/fansites.
Be sure to check out all of the MLB team sites and the other Rant Sports sites as well.
They’re GREAT sites!
Mets Edge Braves In Five-Inning Game
The Braves lost their fifth straight game tonight, losing 1-0 to the New York Mets in a rain-shortened, five-inning game at Citi Field in New York.
Braves’ starter Tommy Hanson pitched five strong innings for Atlanta, allowing just five hits and one run (no earned runs), while striking out eight, but got no support from a slumping Braves’ offense and took the loss.
Mets’ starter Mike Pelfrey had control problems, but pitched well when he needed to, tossing five shutout innings of five-hit ball to get his fourth win of the season.
Both teams had multiple opportunities to score runs but couldn’t deliver any timely hits as the Braves left eight men on base and went 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position, while the Mets left six on base and were just 1-for-5 with runners in scoring position.
The Mets’ win gave them a sweep of the three-game series between the two NL East rivals and improved New York’s season record to 10-9, while the Braves dropped to 8-10 and have now lost five straight games.
