Musings from an Optimistic Redbird Fan:9-2012

Losing Streak Ends – the St. Louis Cardinals ended their three game losing streak but, if you watched or listened to the game Thursday night against the Los Angeles Dodgers, you probably saw a familiar start by St. Louis starter Lance Lynn. After all, he has a team leading ERA of 8.31 in the first inning and has given up a team leading twenty four runs; 7 via the long ball. But this game would be different in many ways. After Lynn gave up one run in the first inning, he settled down after that troublesome inning. In fact, he was dominating as he went 6 innings, giving up one run and five hits while striking out 7 and only walking two. The bullpen went the rest of the way with Jason Motte getting his 34^th save. The win gave the Cardinals a two game edge over the Dodgers for the second wild card spot.

Lohse Reaction – Kyle Lohse was pretty upset with the Cardinals recent loss to San Diego. The Cardinals 3-2 loss Wednesday against the San Diego Padres was more than the 14-3 starter could bear and he took that frustration out on some of the inanimate objects in the dugout. Lohse has been stuck on 14 since mid-June and could have easily been closer to twenty wins if not for lousy run support and shoddy defense. With an era of 2.81, he has been one of the more consistent Cardinal pitchers this season so, his frustration is understandable.

Carp’s Back! – Chris Carpenter should make his first start since his surgery next week. And although he wasn’t projected to return until next season, apparently the ace pitcher knew better. He was planning on and had every intention of pitching this year. That should provide a much needed spark to this Cardinal team. Not only will it fortify the starting rotation but, the pitching staff in general. Carpenter has the best winning percentage as a starter since 2004 and leads the Cardinal franchise with the most postseason wins with nine. Welcome back Carp! Let’s hope the rest of the Redbirds display the same fire and determination that Carpenter has shown in coming back this season.

Card’s recent woes – In my opinion, the single biggest reason for the Cardinal’s recent woes can be blamed of their lack of offense. They have displayed a recent and constant lack of clutch hitting. The team constantly has runners in scoring positions and constantly strands them. Even with the victory Thursday night against the Dodgers, they blew several chances to blow the game open but ended up leaving runners on base. Don’t get me wrong; I’m of the opinion that good pitching generally beats good hitting but, the Cardinals have such a potent offense. It’s maddening when they get shut out or only score 2-3 runs. I think the game last night was a “turnaround” game and if that doesn’t change the teams’ fortunes, I think Carp’s first start will change the team’s fortunes for good and get us back to the postseason on a winning note.

Thanks for reading. Go Cards!