Cards Ride Early Fireworks, Late Relief To 4-3 Win In Game 3

Thanks to a brilliant bullpen and a first-inning offensive outburst by the Cardinals, though, Carpenter recorded his seventh postseason win, tying Bob Gibson’s franchise record. Following the game, the praise went straight to the St. Louis bullpen, which closed out the last four innings of the game without allowing a base-runner.

Carpenter slogged through his five innings of work, but did just enough to keep the Cardinals alive and in front before turning it over to a bullpen that looked other-worldly on Wednesday night. And with those four perfect innings of relief, St. Louis took a 2-1 advantage in the NLCS, seizing control of the series, if only momentarily.

So what happened to the Brewers’ ace in the first? Manager Ron Roenicke opined on the matter after the game. In response to a question about whether Gallardo was rattled, Roenicke had the following to say:

No matter the cause, something was off, and that something was all the Cardinals needed. Though Carpenter wasn’t perfect -- the Cardinals’ ace gave up three runs in five innings of work -- the St. Louis bullpen was. As Jeff Sullivan noted, the bullpen saw 12 batters, and sat all 12 down while clinging to a one-run lead.

But I can’t bring myself to do it. Kotsay wasn’t the big story Wednesday night. If there was a big story Wednesday night, it was probably the stellar performance of the St. Louis bullpen.

But neither Gallardo nor Carpenter were particularly effective. Carpenter pitched out of a jam in the top of the first inning, getting a break when Kotsay strayed too far from second base on a fly out to center.

Six weeks ago, who knew it would come to this?

Before Game 3 of the NLCS Tuesday night, he’d pitched in four postseason games and given up one hit, a measly single. Motte saved Game 2 of the Division Series by recording four outs, and it looks an awful lot like La Russa’s going to ask for a repeat performance tonight.

In a close game, this probably isn’t how you want your reliever to start an inning:

Pow! Right in the butt! Take that, Fat Elvis!

5 innings

6 hits

3 runs

3 walks

3 strikeouts

89 pitches (48 strikes)

In the first inning, there were runs. In the second inning, there were runs. In the third inning, there was a run. But in the fourth inning? Nothing! For the first time tonight, nothing!

I guess I had that coming.

Well, nuts to me! Because Mark Kotsay led off the top of the third inning with a home run.

Of course, seven of those at bats came in 1999 and 2000, and Kotsay is a 35-year-old who isn’t very good anymore. So while the expected difference between Kotsay and Morgan in one game isn’t very big, you could argue that Ron Roenicke deserved this first inning.

Via Kevin Dame, he’s a graphical look at the pitches Chris Carpenter threw this season, and how well he threw them:

Carpenter throws a lot of fastballs -- as most pitchers do -- but it’s not a particularly effective pitch for him, or at least it hasn’t been this season. He mixes in some curveballs -- which essentially serves as his change-up, since he throws so few of those that they don’t show up here -- but those haven’t been that good this season, either.

Cardinals manager Tony La Russa has posted his Game 3 lineup, and it’s a beaut!

Thus, Nick Punto in Game 3.

You read that right! Hit it, Ron Roenicke!

This entire lineup is boring and predictable, except for one part: the Mark Kotsay part. And the Mark Kotsay part happened only after considerable internal dialogue. From Adam McCalvy:

Here’s a visual called Paintomatic. It shows a pitcher’s repertoire of pitches, with circle size indicating how often he throws the pitch and color indicating how effective the pitch is. Click on the image for a closer look!

Carpenter complements an average fastball with a similarly average curve ball and a filthy slider (which he uses quite often).

“It’s our guy against their guy,” Brewers right fielder Corey Hart said. “Both our best guys.”

Gallardo has an 0.86 career ERA in the postseason, albeit in just four appearances. He’s traditionally struggled against the Cardinals, though, losing seven of eight decisions with a 5.66 ERA over his career, including two starts this September.