Remembering Game 6 & 7

Over the winter, I have re-watched all seven games of last year's World Series.  This is because: a) spring training is here, in all its glory; b) we've had an inordinate amount of snow in the Denver area this winter; c) snow sucks, and; d) I'm a huge Cardinals fan. 

As much fun as the 2006 championship was, I always viewed that as karmic payback from the Gods of Baseball for the Great Abomination of 2004.  2011 was different.  It took a minor miracle for the  Cards to even make the playoffs, so my expectations were pretty low.  Then they just kept winning.  And winning.  It was nothing short of glorious. 

Then David Freese hit that triple, and Game 6 turned into the most thrilling baseball game I've ever watched in my life.  It will be my Exhibit A to other people who claim baseball is boring.  Sure, it can be at times, but no other sport offers such moments of crazy intensity.  I vividly remember jumping up and down in my living room like I was 12.  By comparison, Game 7 was almost anti-climactic, and Nelson Cruz admitted afterward that the Rangers really lost the Series in Game 6.  For me, though, this unexpected championship was so much sweeter.  I'm still enjoying it, in fact. 

Incidentally, Joe Buck's tribute to his father on Freese's HR was awesome. Still get goose bumps thinking about it. 

A few days ago, Bob Nightengale wrote a terrific article in USA Today about the Rangers and how difficult it was to the players and coaches to handle the loss.  I hadn't given much thought to the Rangers' perspective at the time because, hey, my team won!  The only way it could have been better was if it had been the Yankees or Red Sox getting their hearts ripped out. Because fuck those guys, and especially their fans.  But I digress. 

Nightengale's story inspired me to watch Games 6 and 7 again, and I was struck by how many times Texas just could not slam the door on the Cardiac Cardinals.  From the 9th inning of Game 6 all the way through Game 7, check out all these instances where the Cards got a critical hit with two strikes:

Game 6

• Freese's game-tying triple in 9th
• Descalso's leadoff single in 10th
• Berkman's tying single in 10th
• Freese game-winning homer in 11th

Game 7

• Craig's tie-breaking homer in 3rd
• Molina hit-by-pitch on 3-2 count with bases loaded, making the score 4-2

Yikes.  A friend of mine is still angry at Nelson Cruz for not catching Freese's triple, but that was far from the only incident that doomed the Rangers.  Poor managing, poor pitching, poor fielding...take your pick.  They jumped to a 2-0 on Carpenter in Game 7 and couldn't hold the lead for a single inning.  They went out without much of a fight. 

One other aside: did you notice who wasn't around when the Cardinals rallied in Game 6 and won Game 7?  Matt Effing Holliday.  Admittedly, I've been pissed at the guy ever since the dropped fly ball against the Dodgers in 2009, but good ol' "Skates" took his game even lower by botching another fly ball in Game 6 and getting picked off third base.  Once he left Game 6 and Allen Craig took over, things improved noticeably.  All Craig did was slug two clutch home runs and rob Cruz of a home run in Game 7.  If Holliday had stayed in the game, none of those things happen and the Rangers would have been celebrating at Busch Stadium.  Oh, and it turned out Craig was playing with a fractured kneecap.  Holliday had an injured FINGER.  So, to recap: Allen Craig kicks ass, Matt Holliday eats a bag of ass.

No clue what to expect this year.  No LaRussa, no Duncan, no Pujols.  It will be fascinating to watch, though.  I can only hope it's as enjoyable as October 27-28 last year.