That's 1!

Thanks for the birthday gift guys.

We saw a great game last night. Jeff Weaver tried to pull a Kenny Rogers on the Mets, pitching quite well until the 6th. Two quick outs were followed by PLD singling, bringing up Carlos Uno. A few nice pitches by Weaver, Beltran hanging in. Then, Molina sets up outside, and Weaver decides now is the time to slip back to a few years back, the last time he pitched in NY, and stays inside. Carlos said "Thanks for that" and hit an absolute BOMB off the scoreboard. It was one of those no-doubters, as soon as he hit it, you knew it was gone. The bench went nuts, as you could see Wright jump up as soon as Carlos made contact. It may have been the only highlight of the evening for the offense, but it was all that was needed, thanks to some excellent defense, and one Tom Glavine.

As bad as I feel for Uncle Cliffy, there is no chance he get to the ball in the fifth. Endy is something special to see in the field, and can do some nice things at the plate as well. To think that at the start of the season, many fans wondered why he was here over Tike Redmon, or even Victor Diaz. David Wright made a couple of nice plays as well. Then there is Beltran. Now, we all know Carlos plays deep, and some worry about that. Last night, a fly to shallow center, and Carlos gets on his horse (that quad is apparently healed, thankfully) and makes a nice grab. Pujols was running, and Carlos was able to double him off. All were key plays to help the team. Great defense helps in tight games, and last night was a nailbiter.

I cannot say enough about the job Tom Glavine has done in the postseason so far. In the NLDS, he pitched Game 2, going 6 innings of 4 hit ball, as the Mets overcame the great Kuo (dripping sarcasm). Last night, Game 1, with the team knowing they face probable Cy-Young Winner Chris Carpenter tonight, and Tommy gets it done again, 7 innings, 4 hits, 2 walks, and no damage by Pujols. He kept the Cards off balance all night, including a big strikeout of Pujols in the 1st inning, setting a good tone for the crowd. Going seven allowed Willie to conserve the pen. Mota pitched and uneventful 8th, and Wagner a similar 9th. All seemed to be on, which is key at this point. End result, a 2-0 win, a Mets lead in the series, and happiness amongst the fan base.

Tonight, another 8:19 start. John Maine looks to build on his last outing against Chris Carpenter. Carpenter is good, no doubt, but as Jessica pointed out the other day, he is not exactly dominant against the good teams, and did not face the Mets this season. We shall see. Hopefully the bats will awaken tonight. It is possible, nee, probable that more than 2 runs will be needed tonight. Johnny, you are on the spot again tonight. Let's go up 2-0 as we head to St. Louis.

Oh, and Mookie, despite your switching of allegiance to the Cards due to your son playing for them, I still love ya.