Hurricane Albert Devastates Houston

Did you guys see that homer last night? Incredible!

 

I think that ball hit the railroad tracks before the sound of the bat hit the fans' ears! They said it flew 412 feet, but that was into left field, so it was at least 50 feet beyond the fence! It was pure, too.

By the way, if you're Houston, how do you let this guy beat you with a homer? He never should have seen a pitch in the strike zone, and certainly not that crummy spinner (a slider that hangs). Sure, he was the go-ahead run, but there was a base open, and an "unintentional" intentional walk wouldn't have been the worst thing. Hindsight, of course, but that guy is the most dangerous hitter in the league, possibly in all of baseball (with apologies to Alex Rodriguez and Vlad Guerrero).

Nothing but curves, low and away.

Q: What do you do with an elephant with three balls?
A: Walk him and pitch to the rhino!

 

As a Cardinal fan....

I'll hold the applause until they figure out how to stop abandoning runners on base with no outs. They are still down a game.....

 

Re: As a Cardinal fan....

Ditto!

Houston's gonna have a hard time scoring in Busch though. No more "chip-shot" homers to left. Like you said though, I hope the Cards figure it out.

 

Re: Re: Hurricane Albert Devastates Houston

It may have flown 412', but I think it was still going up when it hit the back of the stadium. That thing was a monster.

I doubt that Lidge was trying to throw that ball in the strike zone. He just made a mistake...a BIG mistake!

 

I think the Astros are ok. This may have shaken them a bit, but they have handled adversity all season long, the Cardinals haven't. The Astros have the better starting and relief pitching. Jeff Bagwell and Craig Biggio haven't been to the Fall Classic. There is too much for the Astros not to want it. I wouldnt worry about it.

 

I agree with everything but the adversity part. The Cards had their share this year. They played most of the season without Rolen, Walker has been part-time all year, and Sanders and Molina each missed a chunk of time with injuries.

 

...and don't forget about David Eckstein. After Lidge mowed down the first two batters like they were Little Leaguers, Eckstein, with two strikes, went down and got a nasty slider and rolled it through the hole to extend the inning.

 

Astro Pitching

Actually, the Cardinal's pitching staff has the best ERA in the playoff's and they were 11-5 against the Astro's in the regular season. Bad pitching was last years Cardinal's. Almost every game has been decided by one point so it hasn't been Cardinal's pitching hurting them but uncharacteristically quiet bats. I am amazed at how many runners they have stranded in the LCS.

They go back to St. Louis exactly like they did last year, down one game.....

 

This is the playoffs. That was the regular season. The Cardinals dominated the Astros last year too...regular season. EVERYTHING changes in the playoffs. Like former GM of the Astros Gerry Huntsicker stated on Charlie Pallilo's show on KBME 790 AM, "Everything gets thrown out the window in the playoffs". Were not the Los Angeles Dodgers huge underdogs to the Oakland Athletics in the 1988 World Series? Were not the North Carolina State University Wolfpack huge underdogs to the University of Houston Cougars in the 1983 NCAA basketball championship game? Just my 16 and half cents.

 

One last thing on the subject:


ST. LOUIS -- Look all you want for that thousand-yard stare or deer-in-the-headlights expression, but you won't find either in the faces of the Houston Astros.
They endured a crushing defeat in Game 5 of the National League Championship Series, and for the second year in a row they find themselves back at Busch Stadium with a 3-2 lead and needing only one victory. For the Astros, that's about the only similarity between 2004 and 2005.

A year ago, the Astros returned to the River City following a huge walk-off win in Game 5, courtesy of a Jeff Kent home run. This time they endured the other end of the spectrum in the form of a three-run homer by Albert Pujols with two outs in the ninth after the Astros were one strike away from reaching the World Series.

"Last year is history; this is a completely different situation," said Astros right-hander Roy Oswalt, who will start Game 6 against Cardinals left-hander Mark Mulder. "We just need one win, and we proved we could win [at Busch Stadium] already in this series. We just need to buckle down, play hard and get it done."

The jubilation the team felt when Kent won Game 5 last year didn't mean anything when the Astros went north and lost two in St. Louis. The pressure is still on the Cardinals, who must win out or their season is over.

"The bottom line is, we're still ahead," third baseman Morgan Ensberg said. "We haven't been eliminated. This [Game 5] was a tough loss, but it's not the end."

Arguably the only thing that has changed in this series since the start of the previous game is the perception. Because of the manner in which the Astros lost -- or the Cardinals won, depending on your point of view -- the theory that the momentum has swung to St. Louis because of the dramatic Game 5 win and because the series returns to St. Louis is a logical assumption.

The facts, however, haven't changed much. The Astros still need just one more win and have Oswalt and Roger Clemens lined up should the series go the distance.

Astros manager Phil Garner made a wise move in not having a mandatory workout on the off-day. A clean break from Monday's meltdown can only help the Astros put it behind them more easily and come out fresh and ready to go on Wednesday.

With the way Game 5 ended, it is also easy to overlook what has gone right for the Astros in the first five games and how that might impact the remainder of the series.

Garner has used seven different relievers for a combined 13 innings in the first five games. Of the seven, six have not allowed a run. The only Houston reliever the Cardinals have scored against in the NLCS is closer Brad Lidge (four earned runs in five innings).

The Astros built a 3-1 lead in the series despite a single RBI between Ensberg and Lance Berkman. Those two have since started to heat up. Berkman came through with a big three-run homer in Game 5 and is hitting .353 in the series. Ensberg snapped an 0-for-8 string by going 3-for-7 with a sacrifice fly in his past two games.



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The Houston staff has done an outstanding job against the bulk of the Cardinals' lineup. Not counting Pujols, the first six batters in the Cardinals' lineup are hitting .207 (17-for-82). The Cardinals' team batting average for the series is .223 and the on-base percentage is just .290.

St. Louis has scored a total of 15 runs in the series, compared with 17 for the Astros.

"The pitching has been great on both sides," Berkman said. "It's what you expect in the playoffs. When you have a close series like this, it usually comes down to who gets the clutch hits."

To lose the series, the Astros would have to drop three in a row in games started by Andy Pettitte, Oswalt and Clemens. That has happened only twice in the past two seasons.

The most recent was in mid-August, when Pettitte was beaten by Greg Maddux of the Cubs, Oswalt lost a 4-2 decision to Carlos Zambrano and Clemens was defeated, 4-2, by Tomo Ohka and Milwaukee.

The other time was at Busch Stadium following the All-Star break. The Astros lost 4-3 in 13 innings on July 15, though Pettitte was not involved in the decision. Jason Marquis beat Oswalt, 4-2, on July 16, and Chris Carpenter went the distance in a 3-0 win over Clemens and the Astros on July 17.

At least this time the Astros won't have to face Carpenter.

"He's not the only great pitcher on that staff," Berkman said. "But we've got great pitching, too. We've got Roy ready to go, and he's been outstanding all year long. It's still up to us to get this done."

Just as it was last year. Maybe this time will be different.

 

One more last last comment on why I think the Astros will be ok.


Mike Lamb alluded to the theme of the entire season, and said he wasn't surprised getting to the World Series wasn't going to be any different.

"It's never been easy," he said. "It's never going to be easy. It came down to the last day for the Wild Card, then the marathon against the Braves and now against the Cardinals. It's like we refuse to make it easy. That's just the way it's going to be."

 

The next two games should be very exciting (notice I said two games)

Good luck to your Astros, Tireman. Just not too good.

 

That was a tough loss, but it only counts as one loss. 'Stros are still leading the series 3-2 and St. Louis is facing another elimination game. The pressure is on the Cards.

I like what I'm hearing from Astros players: they have put Game 5 behind them and are ready to play ball tonight. I hope Oswalt puts the series away this evening.

 

It's about 5 hours before game time. I have a class to teach tonight, so I'm going to miss some of it. I like the Astro's chances.

In a Series, good pitching tends to win out. Because of off-days, you can pitch your best starters more frequently, changing the balance between hitting and pitching; hitters don't get to fatten up on the 4th and 5th starter like they do in the regular season. And if you hit a slump, like Vlad did, you can blow the whole Series. Just ask the expert: Barry Bonds. (But don't stand too close when you do; 'roid rage and all that. Of course, he was surely when he had a normal body, too.)

 

I agree with you Rich. Great pitching overcomes great hitting. Last year the Astros mashed everything they saw and look what happened. I, like you, have to teach tonight. I am showing and narrating a documentary over the War of 1812. I chose this item in American history because it is the forgotten war. I figure I can make a statement in that arena. I am also showing a documentary over April 1865. It is in my estimation and many other historians, that this month is the most important in the history of this country. Most important month, that is. You had the surrender at Appomattox Court House, the assassination of President Lincoln and the beginning of the term of Andrew Johnson.

 

Send'em home early tonight...you're the boss.

 

Good pitching will win out....

Last year the Astro's pitching was light years better than the Cardinal's. They still lost. This year the Cardinal's pitching has a better ERA than the Astro's so I hope you are right about good pitching winning.

Fact is, the Cardinal's are in this position precisely because their hitting has gone flat when they need it. All but one game with the Astro's has been decided by one run or less and the Cardinal's have stranded a lot of players on base in both post season series. Their flat hitting goes back into the regular season. Against the Padres it was Sanders who was hitting for hthem with the other big hitters flat. They need to pull out of this and get on with it.

Can the Cardinal's still lose? Yes, the Astro's are a much better team than the Padres but their problems are not being caused by the Astro's. They are being caused by the Cardinal's themselves.....

 

No offense DTechBA,

But Pete Monro....ummm I dont think so. There was no Andy Pettite. Roger Clemens and Roy Oswalt were dead tired. Look at the stats. Umm Dan Macilli....the "Missile"....St Louis lit him up in Game 6 and Game 7. Nope not a chance. You guys had a better ERA this year and last. Nice try.

 

The Cards really haven't played very well overall. They had a passed ball and a wild pitch in game two that both led to runs. And the Sanders "incident" in left that should've been an out. Luna has made two errors at third that led to runs. Marquis single handedly lost game 4 with his error and inability to get a bunt down. I won't mention the umpiring...wait, I just did.

If the Cards lose the series they have only themselves to blame. I almost long for the days of J-Rod and Taguchi in the outfield with Sanders and Walker on the DL.