Cards Use Bats in Florida

Coming off one of the worst stretches of Cardinal baseball I’ve ever witnessed, the Redbirds came to my town in hopes of getting back on track against the Marlins.  I was in attendance for all three games of the series.

Game one was a nail biter that ended badly with a walk off homer from Jeremy Hermida off of Jason Motte in the ninth.  The Fish won 4-3.  The loss was the fifth straight for St. Louis.  When would it end?

One of the first things I noticed in game two was a kid in a Marlins jersey a few rows in front of me with a sign that read, “Rockies swept the Cardinals.  We Cantu.”  It was obviously a play on Florida infielder Jorge Cantu’s name, but I couldn’t help but think getting swept again could quite possibly be in the Cards.

Thirteen Cardinal runs later, and my worries were over.  A three run blast from rookie Colby Rasmus in the first got the scoring started.  The visiting team scored in six different innings, putting up “crooked numbers” in three frames.

I don’t know if fish have asses, but 13-4, come on.  Florida got theirs beat.  Here’s the box score.

Game three was a day game, and anybody who knows me knows there’s nothing I enjoy more than daytime drinking, especially when there’s a ball game to watch.  Believe me, I had my fill.  I needed it to cope with lame atmosphere that is Landshark Stadium. Seriously, I’ve seen more people at an American Legion game.

Todd Wellemeyer was on the hill for the Cards.  He didn’t have his best stuff, but managed to get through six innings, allowing five runs, including yielding a pair of homers to Ross Gload.

Albert Pujols hit his nineteenth home run in the sixth, but a three run eighth inning put the Cardinals back on top 6-5, and closer Ryan Franklin, and all of his chin hair, sealed the victory and the series for the good guys.  Here are the numbers.

That’s two games in a row now that the Cards have scored six runs or more.  You know what that means!

Seeing the offense come alive in this series was great.  Rick Ankiel alone went 8 for 13.  It would be nice if the team could start firing on all cylinders.  It seems like no one really wants to take the lead in the NL Central.  Surprisingly, the Cards are just a half game behind the division leading Brewers.

Next up, the Redbirds have an interleague series against the Indians in Cleveland.  Joel Pineiro will start game one of the three game set tomorrow night.  Predictions?  I say the Cards take two of three.