Can you beleive that double play? Incredible! I’m so stoked…
I’m not sure why the runner broke for home, but that was heads-up play by Walker to take third. All the batter had to do was get it deep in the outfield and that game would still be on. Even so, that was a brilliant double play to end the game.
That’s the second game in a row with a down-to-the-wire, could-have-gone-either-way finish. Wow.
Don’t count the Cardinals out yet. Houston looks very good; but Carpenter’s pitching tomorrow, and he’s the closest thing to an unbeatable pitcher in MLB. And if (when?) the Cardinals win tomorrow, they’ll be in the same position they were in last year: down by a game but with the home field advantage.
How close did the runner on third get to home?
I’m not a big Baseball fan so I’m not sure how a normal double play like that looks if you can see the entire field but as close as the runner was to making it at first I wondered how close the third base runner got, but the cameras cut away.
WOO-HOO! There was more energy in that place tonight than there was after the 18 Inning NLDS clincher (possibly because we were all exhausted).
Big play on Tal’s Hill by Willie T. A great switch by Garner.
I can’t wait until tomorrow!
It is no cake walk. The most dangerous pitcher in the NL is on the mound. But we’re running out Pettit so we aren’t exactly shooting blanks.
I think the 'Stros are going the series!
It doesn’t matter. The out at first was a force out, so even if Walker got into home before the out at first was made the run still wouldn’t count.
As a Braves fan, I am unable to root for the Astros due to the presence of Clemens and Pettitte on your roster. Oswalt is the only current Astro that I like.
Good luck, but I hope the Cards wake up.
Mundane pointless question I must ask: Are the Cardinals and the Astros the only major league teams to have pictures of what the team is named after prominently displayed on their uniforms?
See post #14.
I don’t think the Astros have a star on their uniform anymore.
The Marlins road uniforms had a really cool marlin wrapped around the “F” of Florida, with the tail fin as the center horizontal line of the “F”. My favorite uniform design of all time. I miss that.
Currently, the Devil Rays have a ray (presumably the devil variety) sailing across a line underneath the word “Rays” on their home uniforms, and the Blue Jays have the head of a bird poking out from the letter “J” in “Jays”. And the Reds’ uniform has lettering that’s red, does that count?
Astros fan here. This NLCS has been just as gratifying as last year’s in large part because of the enormous respect we have for the Cards who are, when they’re healthy, I thing the best team in baseball. I hate to say it but with a healthy Walker, Sanders and Nunez this would very likely have gone the same way as last’s years race.
But, for whatever reason, not the least of which has been some good play and a little luck when it was needed, we’re in better shape than the Cards and with Pettitte and Oswalt and Clemens due up it’s quite possible that’ll continue.
I’m going to mention a couple of incidents in the hope we can gain some perspective on how others might feel about them…
When Lane slid into 3rd in Game 3 and collided with Nunez, I understand a StL player or two might have “commented” on how clean they thought that was. From what I observed, it wasn’t until the very last second that Nunez came out toward the ball and Lane’s movements were reactionary, not predetermined, especially since the ball was behind him and he had no idea as to where it was coming in. You can’t interfere with the path of a runner, can you? These things, combined with the fact the ball was thrown by the Cards themselves and that Lane could just as easily been hurt in the collision makes me ill prepared to judge that there was any dirtyness on Lane’s part during the play.
Also, I saw in another thread someone mention the pick-off of Burke at first by Pujols on a throw from the catcher. Yes, I agree after super slo-mo that he was out. The inning also ended without him or anyone else scoring and thus made it a non issue.
Yesterday, in Game 4, the pitch Edmonds questioned and was subsequently thrown out for arguing did look like a ball to me, high and inside. Still, your Manager’s just been thrown out for arguing a call and to cuss at the ref over it and invite a repeat performance just seemed dumb. Plus, it almost cost the Astro instead when Edmind’s replacement jacked one all the way out to the wall and quite possibly was only caught because of center field rookie Willy Taverez’s speed.
One last thing… why did LaRussa leave Marquis in after his bungled bunt fielding and four pitch walk of Berkman? I though for sure Julian Tavarez would come in but it never happened.
Kudos to Walker for his heads up move to 3rd in the 9th to replace a threatening first & third with a… damn… first & third. I was thinking “throw home” after the subsequent hit but the double play was an absolute thing of beauty!
It’ll be interesting to see what mindset the Cards come onto the field with tonite. I imagine it’ll include a fair bit of resolve. Astros better quit leaving men on base if they don’t want this one, like last year, to go back to St Louis and, possibly, even 7.
sending a little love the Astros way for tonite’s game
Winning the NLCS will be a great feather-in-the-cap for the Astros.
It will almost make their inevitable loss to the White Sox in the World Series palatable.
Reporting in from the game on my treo. Down 2-1 in the 5th.
Rally caps on!
Pujols…
Pujols indeed!
That was along home run. Indeed.
I’m cheering for the Astros in this series, but you can’t help be amazed by how great Pujols is. He absolutely crushed that one.
Did you see the look on the faces of the Houston fans? It was like someone had let all the air out of the stadium. Two minutes before, they had been screaming and cheering in expectation of the final out, then suddenly, one swing and they’re down 5-4.
It’s a cruel game.
Yeah, that was pretty painful, even for a Braves fan such as myself.