Won't bow. Don't know how. Reds lose, 4-2.

that’s his go to pitch….

unfortunately, at times it’s laser fucking straight….

And it was two outs. If it was one out, walk him, to set up the double play at any base (except home, of course).

As it was, Pujols has been in a slump. I would have pitched around him- not given him anything to hit, see if he’d swing anyways. If we’d walked him, well, is that any worse than an IBB?

Holliday is not an easy out. I know he has had struggles on occasion with runners on, but the guy is very talented and not getting big bucks because he’s no good. It’s not like we were walking Pujols to get to Aaron Miles.

There’s some logic to the idea that by putting the force on at every base, you increase the number of batted balls that can be turned into outs.

So yeah, if either guy smokes it, run(s) will score. But Holliday’s average goes down, because you can take action to suppress his BABIP for that at-bat (he claims deductively, not empirically).

the Rockies are on fire and have a legitimate opportunity to win their division. They won’t be easy to beat. I think we can beat them, though, it’s just a matter of our guys showing up to play. I was a bit concered about the confident talk after the Cards loss today. They need to focus on a game at a time.

I’ve never gotten anything but interest and respectful discussion or playful trash talk from Cardinal fans in the past. They were just rude and disrespectful this time. It really was not an enjoyable experience at all. Missourians should be better than that.

Homer threw what he thought was his best pitch in the situation; Hanigan thought something else would have been better.

Eh, it happens.

This Rockies series is the most important of the year. As you said, up by 7 after that, and it’s basically over. But a tailspin now (and the Cards winning, of course) could tighten this thing up in a hurry.

I want them to take 3 out of 7 against the Rockies and Padres and go 10-9 against the other teams. That gives them a 92-70 record on the season, and the Cardinals would have to go 21-7 from here on out to tie that.

The Cardinals’ remaining schedule:

3 at Milwaukee (.463)
4 at Atlanta (.577)
3 vs Chicago (.431)
4 vs San Diego (.563)
1 at Florida (.511)
3 at Pittsburgh (.331)
3 at Chicago
3 vs Pittsburgh
4 vs Colorado (.529)

Sure, they have 12 games vs. Pittsburgh and Chicago and 3 vs. Milwaukee, but they also have 13 against teams over .500, with a 4-game series against each of Atlanta, San Diego, and Colorado.

you definitely don’t groove a fastball in that count, whatever you do.

I didn’t realize it was as bad as it is. They’ve lost ten in a row! Four of those to Arizona, three to Philadelphia, and three to Colorado.

No way he hits on her.