The wheels didn’t come off… they were obliterated.
And then bandwagon hopped the median.
And careened off the road and tumbled downa steep cliff.
The Cardinals lost the NLDS opening tilt 11-6 Saturday afternoon. And if you didn’t watch a second of this game you’d probably be confused.
+ Halladay started? And the Cards scored 6? And they still got whipped?
+ Lohse out-pitched Halladay for 5 innings?
+ Over half the game, the Cardinals looked to be in the drivers seat?
It’s true. The Cardinals got demolished in Game 1, but they didn’t really demolished. They looked liked they belonged… until they looked like the worst team in baseball.
Hell, this was pretty much the entire 2011 season in a microcosm – A really good team that’s also capable of getting run off the field at any given moment. And frankly, this wasn’t a surprise. We all hoped for a split and pretty much assumed that Game 1 was a lost cause with Halladay on the mound.
But the Cardinals somehow managed to get a very rare 3 run HR off the Phillies ace (first one surrendered since 2008) and tack on 3 more runs late and not come close to winning.
Now the pressure is on for Game 2. Win and the momentum is still WAY in favor of the Cardinals coming home. Lose and the Birds are in deep, deep trouble already blowing their ace on short rest.
Let’s get to the STUD/DUD/BOTTOM LINE for NLDS Game 1
STUD: Lance Berkman (3 run HR off Halladay)
DUD: Tony LaRussa (Left in Loshe after Howard’s 3 run HR and was rewarded with another 2 run shot by Raul Ibanez)
BOTTOM LINE: The Cardinals were expected to lose this game. But not like this. No, this was much more painful.
More Reaction:
- From the locker room: LINK HERE
- From ESPN: LINK HERE
- From SI: LINK HERE
- From NY Times: LINK HERE
- From Comcast Philly: LINK HERE
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