The Cards had 13 hits. Miles had 4 with a double. I am a big fan of TLR but he doesn't seem to stick with what work. Every time he has led off with Schu and had Miles or Kennedy hitting 2nd, we win. Why do we keep putting Duncan and Ankiel there. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. The five spots in the lineup that should be set in cement are 1- Schu, 2- Miles or Kennedy, 3- Pujols, 5- Glaus and 8- pitcher. Ludwick and Ankiel can alternate between fourth and sixth according to the opposing pitcher. Yadi- 7th and Izturis or Ryan- 9th. End of story. Actually not quite the end. McCrea (SP?) needs to be replaced by someone who will teach the offense to get quality ABs. Swinging at the 1st pitch with the bases loaded and 1 out is BS. Especially when the opposing pitcher is at 65 pitches in the 3rd inning and can't find the plate with a magnifying glass. My birthday rant is over. The hero, of course, was Ludwick. 2 HRs including the walk-off. Albert had 2 with his 9th HR. Schu had 2 singles. Glaus, Yadi and Ryan contributed a single each.
When the offense is clicking, you can be sure that the pitching will blow up. Wainwright hasn't been right since his 126 pitch outing. He went 5 2/3 innings giving up 4 runs on 12 hits with 1 BBs and 2 Ks. Flores got his 8th hold. He didn't deserve it. He gave up 3 runs on 3 hits in 1/3 of an inning. Springer got his 3rd hold. He went 1 inning giving up 2 hits with 2 Ks. McClellan got his 1st blown save. He went 1 inning giving up 1 run on 1 hit with 2 BBs. Franklin saved the day. He went 2 innings with 2 BBs and 2 Ks. He got the win and he's 2-1.
Tomorrow may be interesting. It will be Lohse vs. Jackson. If the Cards need a closer, it could be Perez after the 2 innings Franklin pitched today. Since it's my anniversary, I expect another win.
See ya later.
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