Almost a Sweep

The Cardinals played two today in the nation’s capital.  Nothing like a full day of baseball. However, the two games couldn’t have been more different.

In game one, Cardinal starter Todd Wellemeyer continued to build on his outstanding month of May, throwing six shutout innings, and padding his resume for a possible second straight pitcher of the month honor.  The offense was led by Troy Glaus, who hit his fifth home run of the season.  Five other Cardinal pitchers combined to preserve the lead, and the Birds won 4-1.  Here’s the full recap and box score.

Game two was a circus.  What started out as another pitiful start from Mike Parisi, ended in dramatic fashion in extra innings.  Parisi put the Cardinals in a 7-0 hole which seemed to have the game over before the fourth inning.  Five of the eight runs he allowed were earned, but the eight is a much better indication of how Parisi pitched. Everything was hit hard.  Seriously.  Hard.  I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s flying to Memphis instead of Houston.

Somehow, even with the most makeshift of all Tony La Russa lineups, the Cards fought back, tying the score at eight in the ninth.  Had it not been for a terrible call on a third strike to the pinch hitting Albert Pujols, they might have taken the lead. Instead, a Joe Mather solo home run in the tenth put the Cardinals up by a run, only to see the save blown by Ryan Franklin in the bottom half, courtesy of an Elijah Dukes walk-off.

Other notables included a two run double for Parisi’s first Major League base hit. Later, fellow rookie pitcher Mark Worrell hit a three run homer in his first big league at-bat, putting a rare smile on La Russa’s face.  Troy Glaus hit his sixth home run, giving him one in each of the games of the double header.  10-9 was the final.  Here’s the full box score.

So, what could have been the biggest comeback win of the season turned into a loss, but the Cards still leave Washington with the series victory.  They remain ten games over .500, at 36-26.

Up next, three games against the Astros at the Juice Box.  Tomorrow night, Braden Looper will face Brian Moehler.  Lucky for the Cards, no Roy Oswalt this series. Unlucky for me, no Brandon “Bitch Boy” Backe either.  Hopefully, another series win is in the Cards.

Finally, the draft. The Cardinals had the 13th pick today, and took Brett Wallace, a third baseman from Arizona State.  Jeff Gordon has a nice summary of the first round pick here, but for more in depth coverage of the all the Cardinals’ picks, visit Future Redbirds.  They’re the experts, and have been anticipating this day for quite a while.