Sixteen of the Best Teams in St. Louis history face off in a sim tournament, with a host of thrills, spills and a few surprises.
Prior articles in this series
With the field of 16 set, the tournament proceeds full steam with a host of thrills, spills and a few surprises. Recaps of the first round of games follow.
#1 1942 Cardinals vs #16 2006 Cardinals
The 1942 St. Louis “Swifties”, generally considered the greatest of all Cardinal teams, made quick work of the 2006 bunch, advancing to the quarter finals with a four-game sweep. The ’42s outscored their latter-day cousins by a 35-13 count in the four games.
Infielder Jimmy Brown was a surprise force on offense for the ‘42s, hitting .400 in the series and driving in six runs. Shortstop Marty Marion hit .375, and stars Enos Slaughter and Stan Musial hit .375 and .353 respectively. Juan Encarnacion and Scott Rolen duplicated Slaughter and Musial’s feat by hitting .375 and .353 to lead the 2006 team.
Mort Cooper, Johnny Beazley, “Gunboat” Gumbert and Max Lanier won their starts for the ’42 squad.
In what turned out to be the closest contest, the ’42 team outlasted the ‘06ers 7-5 in the opener, with Brown driving in four of the runs and Slaughter two. On an off day for him, Chris Carpenter surrendered all seven runs, one unearned, in 5 1/3 innings.
The ‘42s then rolled to convincing 7-2, 8-3, and 13-3 blowout wins to end the series in four games. The Game 4 carnage featured 18 hits from the ‘42s, with hits by each of 14 different players. Four players had two hits each, and 10 others one apiece. Meanwhile, the ’06 club struck out 10 times without walking once, garnering nine hits, eight singles and a double.
The ’42 club will play the winner of the eighth and ninth seeds series, 1967 vs. 1934 Cardinals.
#8 1967 Cardinals vs #9 1934 Cardinals
In a minor upset, the 1934 “Gas House Gang” breezed past the 1967 “El Birdos” in five games. This series was projected to be close and go six or seven games and was tied at a game apiece after the first two contests. Dizzy Dean bested Bob Gibson in the opener by a 5-2 score, with Dick Hughes pitching the ’67s to a 7-2 win in Game 2 as Paul Dean faltered. Games 3 and 4 were all Gas Housers, overwhelming the ’67s 10-0 and 10-6. Game 3 featured a Carlton vs Carleton match-up, with Tex Carleton throwing a five-hit shutout and Rip Collins driving in four runs, with catcher Spud Davis chipping in three RBI. Steve Carlton only lasted three innings, trailing 6-0.
In Game 4, the second 10-run outburst by the ’34s featured 16 hits off Ray Washburn, Nelson Briles and Ron Willis. The ’34s ran out to a 4-0 lead as Wild Bill Hallahan was cruising along, before the El Birdos put a run on the board in the fifth, then had a four-run sixth to take a 5-4 lead. A Lou Brock homer in the top of the eighth made it 6-4, as the ’67s were six outs away and two runs ahead in a bid to even the series. But it was not to be as the Gas Housers put half a dozen on the board in the bottom of the eighth to overwhelm the ’67s. Manager Frankie Frisch got things starting with a leadoff double against the usually reliable Nellie Briles. Ducky Medwick promptly singled home Frisch to pull the ‘34s within a run at 6-5. After Ripper Collins forced Medwick, pinch-hitter Pat Crawford doubled into the right-center field gap, Collins moving to third. Manager Red Schoendienst chose to walk the lefty hitting Ernie Orsatti to get to light hitting and righty batting Leo Durocher. The Lip foiled the strategy, perhaps upset at not getting the Cardinal manager position in 1965, and singled in Collins and Crawford to put the ’34s in front. and grab a commanding 3 games to 1 lead.
Ron Willis was summoned from the bullpen but fared no better. Frisch was pushing all the right buttons as another pinch-hitter, Spud Davis, greeted him with a single to center plating Orsatti. Pepper Martin tripled home Durocher and Davis to complete the scoring.
Down three games to one, the ’67s brought Bob Gibson back to start Game 5 facing lefty Bill Walker. The ’67s opened the scoring in the second with Dal Maxvill doubling home Tim McCarver. Sometimes one run was all Gibby needed, but not this time. The ’34s had yet another six-run outburst in the bottom of the second, highlighted by a three-run Jack Rothrock homer. Gibson settled in after that, retiring 12 straight at one point. Meanwhile his mates chipped away with a run in the third and two in the seventh. The seventh inning runs were scored when Gibson led off and worked a walk, while Lou Brock followed with a homer.
Smelling blood, Frisch replaced a tiring Walker with Dizzy Dean. Mike Shannon was unfazed, leading off the eighth with a home run off Diz to make it a 6-5 game. Brock was at it again in the ninth, starting the inning by resorting to his well-known qualities, singling then stealing second. The potential rally stalled when Brock was gunned down at third on an attempted sacrifice bunt by Julian Javier. Curt Flood reignited it, singling to send Javier to third. Orlando Cepeda then grounded deep short, forcing Flood, but scoring Javier to tie the game at 6. Tim McCarver grounded out to end the inning, but the ‘67s had come all the way back to tie the game into the bottom of the ninth.
The Gas House Gang wasted no time claiming the series, as once again Ron Willis was the victim, and once again Pat Crawford hit a pinch double against him, with Pepper Martin doubling him home to cap the series. Schoendienst twice chose to pitch to the normally light-hitting lefty batter Crawford, rather than bring in lefthander Joe Hoerner and face a more lethal bat in Davis, or possibly Burgess Whitehead. And twice the journeyman infielder burned him.
The Gas Housers move to the quarterfinals to face the top seeded 1942 team.
#4 1946 Cardinals vs #13 1964 Cardinals
In a series that went the full seven games, our first big upset occurred as the 13th seeded 1964 Cardinals topped the #4 1946 squad. While it was not quite the caliber of the 1960 World Series, it had a similar tone with the 1946 team bludgeoning their latter-day comrades in their wins and losing the close ones. They outscored the ’64 club by 11 runs in the series, 35 to 24, winning by scores of 8-0, 10-4, and 11-3. The ’64 team won their four games with scores of 3-0, 5-2, 5-1, and 4-3. The ’46 team was up three games to two and dominating in the blowout wins, but the ’64 club grabbed the final two as the road team to shock the ’46ers.
The Game 1 8-0 rout by the ‘46ers was led by Stan Musial’s three hits and four RBI, while Marty Marion knocked in three. Red Schoendienst scored three runs. Bob Gibson kept the game reasonably close through six, trailing only 3-0. But a five-run seventh that featured a bases clearing three-run double by Marion put the game out of reach.
Curt Simmons pulled the ’64 club even with a nifty four-hitter in Game 2. Simmons’ off-speed stuff and herky-jerky motion had the ’46 hitters in fits. Julian Javier’s sixth inning three-run homer off Harry Brecheen after a walk to Ken Boyer and single by Lou Brock was all the scoring.
The ’46 team then earned their second lopsided win in Game 3, mashing 16 hits, three each by Schoendienst and Musial, with Ray Sadecki on the receiving end of most of the carnage. Musial, Enos Slaughter, and Erv “Four-Sack” Dusak each hit two-run homers, while Murry Dickson went the distance for the ‘46ers.
The back-and-forth series was evened again as Gibson came back and held the ’46 team to six hits and two runs in Game 4. Curt Flood and Dick Groat combined for five hits and scored four of the five runs in the 5-2 victory, with lefty Al Brazle taking the loss for the ’46 nine.
The pattern continued with the ’46 club exploding again in Game 5, hammering seven ’64 pitchers for 11 runs on 11 hits, and drawing nine walks. Howie Pollet was the beneficiary of the support, backed by 19 runs in his two starts. With three more hits, Musial was clubbing the ball at a .579 clip. His buddy Red was at .364. Needing only one win in the final two, the ’46 team looked like they would advance in the tournament.
But the ’64 team was not fazed. The two “Curts” were the story of the Game 6 5-1 win by the ’64s, with Simmons pitching another gem, going the distance, and Flood pounding out three hits including a home run and scoring four of the five runs. Simmons scattered seven hits, with the only run another homer by Dusak.
In a break from the norm for this series, the ’46 team did not generate much offense in Game 7. They took an early lead off Ray Sadecki in the second when Whitey Kurowski doubled and our man “Four Sack” Dusak continued to live up to his nickname, homering yet again for a 2-0 lead. Starter Dickson kept the ‘64s off the board until the fifth when Mike Shannon and Bill White singled, and with two outs and Shannon and White at second and third, Flood singled both home to even the score at 2.
Bob Gibson was summoned from the bullpen after Bob Skinner pinch-hit for Sadecki in the fifth. Gibby kept the ’46 team off the board for four innings, while Tim McCarver and Julian Javier hit solo homers to put the ’64 squad up 4-2 heading to the bottom of the ninth.
Musial started the bottom of the ninth by grounding out Javier-to-White. Enos Slaughter then singled, breaking Gibson’s 11-up-11-down streak, but Gibson struck out Kurowski to put the ‘64s one out from an improbable series victory. Dick Sisler then singled, sending Slaughter to third and putting the potential tying run on base. Marty Marion followed with a shot into the gap in right center that looked like it would tie the game, but Mike Shannon had a terrific jump and cut the ball off, then using his strong arm to keep Sisler at third; Slaughter scored to make it 4-3. With two outs, the tying run was at third and the potential winning run on second.
Manager Johnny Keane, as he was known to do in real life, stuck with Gibson. Keane visited the mound ordering an intentional walk to lefty hitting rookie catcher Joe Garagiola, loading the bases and bringing the pitcher’s spot up. ’46 manager Eddie Dyer called on pinch-hitter Buster Adams, who grounded out Javier-to-White to end the drama, and send the ‘64s into a wild celebration.
The series win moves the 1964 team into the quarterfinals to face the winner of the #5 1943 Cardinals versus #12 2013 Cardinals series.
#5 1943 Cardinals vs #12 2013 Cardinals
In a series featuring two teams that advanced from the Losers Bracket, the 1943 Cardinals improved to 8-0 in the tourney with their second consecutive sweep, this time knocking out the 2013 team. The war-time club proved to have too much pitching, and a balanced attack. Stan Musial homered twice in the series, accumulating nine hits in 16 at-bats and drove in eight.
Game 1 matched right-handers Mort Cooper and Lance Lynn. After the ‘13s left two on without scoring in the top of the first, the ‘43s scored after two batters. Harry Walker greeted Lynn with a triple into the right field corner, and Lou Klein sent him home with a sac-fly. No further scoring occurred in the inning. The modern-era club tied it in the third when Jon Jay singled, and with two outs Carlos Beltran mimicked Walker by tripling. Cooper then got Matt Holliday to ground out, keeping the score 1-1.
The ’43s came right back in the bottom of the third on singles by Walker and Klein, and Musial’s three-run homer. The ‘13s chipped away with single runs in the fourth and fifth, but the ‘43s added two more in the eighth while Cooper finished strongly, retiring the last 11 batters to nail down the win.
Max Lanier and Shelby Miller hooked up in Game 2, a see-saw affair with missed opportunities on both sides. The teams combined for 21 runners stranded, 11 by the ‘43s and 10 by the ‘13s. The 2013 club led 4-3 after six, but it was “That Man” again spoiling the party. Facing Joe Kelly, Klein and Musial hit back-to-back homers to vault the ‘43s in front 5-4.
Lanier was still on the hill for the ‘43s and walked Matt Carpenter to start the ninth. He then struck out Allen Craig, and got Carlos Beltran, 4-for-4 at that point, to fly out to left, sending Johnny Hopp to the warning track. Lanier then walked Matt Holliday, bringing Yadier Molina up with the potential tying and winning runs on base. With Lanier at 150 pitches and tiring, manager Billy Southworth summoned righty “Gunboat” Gumbert in to face Yadi, who grounded to Klein at second for the final out.
The series shifted to the “new” Busch Stadium, Busch III, for Games 3 and 4, with lefty Harry Brecheen going against Adam Wainwright in the third contest. Brecheen was strong early, with only a two-out first inning single by Holliday denting his stats over the first four innings. The ’43 team took an early lead when Walker Cooper led off the second with a home run. They added a second run on a single by Ray Sanders, a wild pitch, and run-scoring single from Marty Marion.
The ’43s made it 3-0 in the fifth when Musial doubled with two-out, none on, and Cooper singled him home. The ’13 club got a run back in the bottom of the fifth, loading the bases with no outs on a walk to David Freese, and singles by Molina and Jon Jay. Pete Kozma hit a run-scoring sacrifice fly. Then, Brecheen bore down, fanning Wainwright and Carpenter to limit the damage. Freese singled home Holliday in the sixth to make it 3-2, but the ‘43s again bounced right back on a double by Brecheen, and two out single by Musial.
Allen Craig homered in the eighth making it 4-3, and that is how the game ended.
The ‘43s wrapped up their eighth consecutive win with a 7-1 win in the series finale. The ‘43s amassed 13 hits off three ’13 hurlers, starter Jake Westbrook and relievers Randy Choate and Edward Mujica. Gumbert started for the ‘43s, with Al Brazle the winner in relief, and Murry Dickson finishing up the final three innings for the save. Sanders had three hits and Musial and Whitey Kurowski homered to pace the ’43 attack.
With another series’ win, the 1943 team moves on to the quarterfinals to face the 1964 club.
#6 1922 St. Louis Browns vs #11 1985 St. Louis Cardinals
This is an interesting series with two teams from different eras, both probably better than their seeds in this tournament. Using run differential, the Browns are the third best team in the tourney and the Cardinals eighth. The Browns’ winning percentage dropped them a couple of slots, and they were penalized one notch due to not winning the pennant. The ’85 Cardinals were knocked down a couple of places due to their World Series defeat. Thank you, Don Denkinger.
The series looked like it would be a cake walk as the Browns took the first three, winning Games 1 and 3 by a run, 5-4 and 3-2, sandwiched around a 16-4 blowout victory in Game 2.
Brownie ace Urban Shocker was staked to a 5-1 lead in the series opener and held on as the Cardinals picked up three runs late but could not get the tying run home. Andy Van Slyke struck out with two on and two out in the ninth to end it. Danny Cox was tagged with the loss.
The Browns had 17 hits in the Game 2 runaway, as Eddie Foster, Ken Williams, Hank Severeid, and Wally Gerber each had three hits. George Sisler had an unusual batting line of 4-3-0-0. He walked once, had no hits, yet scored three runs.
Jack Tobin and Ken Williams got the Browns off to a quick start in Game 3 with a single (Tobin) and home run (Williams) off Joaquin Andujar in the top of the first. Pitcher Dixie Davis held the National Leaguers scoreless through four, then helped himself by leading off the fifth with a double, moved to third on a single by Tobin, then scored on a double play ground out by Foster.
The Cardinals countered in similar fashion when Andujar singled to open the bottom of the fifth, while Vince Coleman and Willie McGee followed suit to load the bases. A Tommy Herr 4-6-3 double play scored Andujar, and Jack Clark struck out. The game remained 3-1 into the ninth, when the Cardinals again made it close, but came up short. With lefty Hub Pruett on the mound, Ozzie Smith doubled with one out and scored on pinch-hitter Cesar Cedeno’s single. But Pruett nailed down the win, getting Coleman to ground out and retiring McGee on strikes.
With their backs to the wall, the ’85 Cardinals did not fold, coming back to win Games 4 and 5 to make it a series. Despite the Browns taking an early 3-0 on John Tudor and the Cardinals in Game 4, the lefty kept the Brownies off the scoreboard the rest of the way, with ninth inning help from Todd Worrell, while the offense generated six runs. Coleman had three hits and scored twice, and Tudor pitched in with a two-run single. Ray Kolp took the loss.
Game 5 was a 2-1 win in 12 innings when Terry Pendleton singled home Cesar Cedeno to walk it off. It was Pendleton’s fourth hit of the game. Cox and relievers Bill Campbell, Ken Dayley, Ricky Horton, Jeff Lahti and Kurt Kepshire held the Browns to eight hits, with Brownie lefty Dave Danforth the loser in relief.
The Browns closed out the series behind Shocker’s three-hitter in the 3-1 finale. Jack Tobin had three hits including a home run and batted .448 for the series. Baby Doll Jacobson also homered for the AL club. For the series, Williams hit .429 with three homers and catcher Hank Severeid .391. The Brownies move to the quarter-final with a date to meet the winner of the 3/14 series 1931 Cardinals/1982 Cardinals.
#3 1931 St. Louis Cardinals vs #14 1982 St. Louis Cardinals
The 1931 team is considered one of the strongest clubs in Cardinal history. A .656 winning percentage and +201 run differential are top four in team history. This club topped off a great season with an upset World Series win over Connie Mack’s powerhouse Philadelphia Athletics, who were looking for their third straight championship. Pepper Martin “ran wild” and the hustling Redbirds won it in seven games. Mack never had another pennant winner, selling off his stars during the depression to keep the lights on.
The ’31 club started off this venture looking like the team that was expected to battle for the tournament crown with a pedestrian 5-2 win in the opener. Wild Bill Hallahan struck out nine ’82 Cardinals, besting Joaquin Andujar.
Despite the 1931 team’s impressive resume and the relatively easy Game 1 win, nobody told Whitey Herzog and his 1982 Cardinals that they need not show up for the remainder of the series. The latter-day club shocked the depression era nine by winning four straight by scores of 3-1, 6-3, 10-6 and 3-0.
The ’82 team got off to a quick start in Game 2 by sending eight men to the plate in the top of the first off Burleigh Grimes and plating two runs. That was all Bob Forsch needed, pitching eight strong innings and holding the ‘31s to a single run before Bruce Sutter secured the win with a scoreless ninth.
Game 3 was tied 2-2 heading to the bottom of the eighth with Steve Mura holding down the depression nine. Paul Derringer was mostly surviving for the ‘31 club, giving up only two runs but walking nine in 6 2/3 innings. He also struck out 10, and with 152 pitches under his belt, manager Gabby Street took out the tiring right-hander for Syl Johnson in the seventh.
Pinch-hitter Gene Tenace started the eighth against Johnson by flying out, but then Lonnie Smith singled, stole second, and scored on Tommy Herr’s single. Keith Hernandez followed with a base hit, and “Silent” George Hendrick tripled both home. Willie McGee tacked on another single to put the ‘82s up 6-2. A single run in the ninth by the ‘31s finished the scoring and put the ‘82s up two games to one.
Game 4 appeared to get the series even. Hallahan and reliever Flint Rhem had a 5-3 lead heading into the bottom of the seventh, when things unraveled. The ‘82s exploded with a four-run inning, then tacked on three more in the eighth to walk away with a 10-6 win. Darrell Porter hammered a three-run homer, while Dane Iorg drove in two and Ken Oberkfell had three hits. Starter John Stuper was gone before the offensive outburst took place, with Doug Bair getting credit for the win.
The ’82s shocked the forecasters by wrapping up the series in Game 5, as Andujar came back to toss 8 1/3 innings of shutout ball on only four hits. Sutter picked up the final two outs for his second save of the series. Hernandez, Porter, and Ozzie Smith each drove in runs, tagging Jesse Haines with the loss.
The 1982 Cardinals move to the quarterfinals to meet up with the heavy-hitting 1922 Browns.
#7 2004 St. Louis Cardinals vs #10 1926 St. Louis Cardinals
The series with the widest gap in years pitted the first Cardinal championship team against the best 21st Century Cardinal club. The 2004 team could have made the case as the best Cardinal team ever if not for their epic collapse in the World Series. 1926 was a study in contrast; the Cardinals seemingly outmanned by their World Series opponent defeated the powerful Yankees in seven games. By the numbers the 1926 group looked over-matched here, but the “experts” said that in ’26 as well.
The Roaring Twenties club started strongly, hitting ’04 starter Chris Carpenter early. With two out, none-on in the top of the first, player-manager Rogers Hornsby showed how it’s done by doubling. Jim Bottomley then single home “The Rajah”. Les Bell and Ray Blades followed with singles, then catcher Bob O’Farrell doubled home Bottomley and Bell to give stater Flint Rhem a 3-0 lead before he took the mound. The ’26 team tacked on a run in the third on another O’Farrell run-scoring double, and Rhem held on for a 4-3 win.
The ’26ers’ momentum continued with a 6-4 Game 2 win behind lefty Bill Sherdel. Blades homered and drove in two and shortstop Tommy Thevenow doubled home two. Matt Morris took the loss for the ‘04s. Moving to Sportsman’s Park for Game 3, the 21st Century club showed their might, exploding for 14 hits and 10 runs to overwhelm Hornsby’s crew, 10-4. Larry Walker, Albert Pujols and Jim Edmonds homered, with Pujols driving in three and Edmonds two. Pete Alexander and four relievers were pushed around by the ‘04s.
Game 4 was one of the highlights of the entire round. After the Game 3 barrage by the 2004 team, Hall of Famer Jesse Haines turned in the highlight pitching performance of the tournament. Haines was nearly perfect, facing only 29 hitters while pitching a no-hitter! A second inning walk to Edmonds and a fourth inning error by Bell were the only marks against him. His mates made it comfortable by putting seven runs on the board with Taylor Douthit, Blades, and Bell each getting two hits, and shortstop Thevenow three. Woody Williams took the loss.
On the verge of elimination, down three games to one, not to mention getting no-hit, the 2004 club looked to be all but dead. Tony La Russa came back with Carpenter in Game 5, while Hornsby went with 20-game winner Rhem. The big latter-day right-hander was sharp, giving up only five hits and no walks through seven innings. The offense recovered from the no-hit game to knock out 13 hits against Flint Rhem, three each by Edmonds and John Mabry, cruising to a 6-2 win.
The sixth contest was a wild one featuring 28 hits and 16 runs. Bill Sherdel came back to start for the Hornsbys, with La Russa calling on Jeff Suppan for his first start of the series. Both clubs struck early. The ‘26ers scored two in the top of first on a walk to Blades, a two-out Jim Bottomley double, and Les Bell single. The ’04 squad came right back to take the lead with three of their own. After Edgar Renteria struck out, So Taguchi singled, Pujols doubled, and Edmonds brought them home with a long home run into the upper deck in right field.
After a scoreless second, the ’26 nine reclaimed the lead in the top of third, sending eight men to the dish and plating three tallies. The inning started quietly with Suppan retiring Douthit and Blades. But Hornsby and Bottomley drew walks, and Les Bell took a page from Edmonds’ book and drove a three-run homer into the bleachers in left.
Again the ’04 club responded, and again with two outs. Pujols started the bottom half with a single, after which Edmonds and Scott Rolen both flew out. Reggie Sanders kept the inning alive with a base hit, and Tony Womack walked loading the sacks. Mike Matheny then cleared the bases with a double to right-center. La Russa called on Roger Cedeno to hit for Suppan, and he drilled a single to plate Matheny. After three innings, it was 7-5 ‘04s.
Things quieted over the fourth and fifth. In the bottom of the sixth, the ‘04s tacked on another run. Syl Johnson was now on the hill for the ’26 club, retiring the first two before Pujols reached him for a base knock. Edmonds then doubled down the first base line with Pujols running on the pitch and Albert legged it home.
The Roaring ‘26ers were not done, coming back to make it 8-7 with two in the seventh. Facing Julian Tavarez, Hornsby tripled leading off, and Bottomley sent him home on a ground out to Pujols. Bell then grounded out 6-3, before Billy Southworth hit the second triple of the inning. Bob O’Farrell knocked in Southworth with a single, sending Tavarez to the showers. Kiko Calero came on to retire Thevenow, ending the inning.
Ray King and Jason Isringhausen held the ’26 club in check in the eighth and ninth, while the ’04 team tacked on a run to make it a 9-7 final, tying the series at three apiece. The stage was set for Game 7 with Pete Alexander facing Matt Morris for the right to move on to the quarter finals.
This time the pitchers were in control with both hurlers sharp. Alex retired the first six ‘04s before yielding two in the third on a lead off single by Renteria and a Matheny double sending him home. Morris bunted Matheny to third, and Tony Womack knocked him in him. An Edmonds homer leading off the fourth made it 3-0.
The ’26 club got two back in the sixth when Bottomley walked to start the frame, and Blades singled an out later. After an O’Farrell ground out, Thevenow singled in Bottomley. With Old Pete due up, Hornsby stuck with him and Pete came through with a run-scoring hit to make it 3-2.
La Russa’s bullpen prevented further scoring though, with Calero and Isringhausen retiring the side in order in the eighth and ninth, giving the 2004 club a comeback series win after being down three games to one. Had they climbed off the deck like this in ’04, maybe we would have had another championship banner. In this event, they will face the winner of the 1944 versus 2011 Cardinals series.
#2 1944 St. Louis Cardinals vs #15 2011 St. Louis Cardinals
The final series in the opening round of 16 featured the third straight Cardinal pennant winner of the early ’40s. The 1944 squad won 105 games (in a 154-game season), and had a run differential of +282. Their opponent is a 2011 team that got hot late and kept that momentum going into the post season. Their regular season was not all that impressive, with a .556 winning percentage and only a +80 run differential; hence the low seed of 15.
Once again, early 21st Century ace Chris Carpenter opened the series for the 2011 ballclub, and World War II era ace Mort Cooper toed the slab for the ’44 club. Neither starter was around for the finish, as it took 11 innings to decide the outcome. “11” is the lucky number as the 2011 bunch prevailed when of all people, Nick Punto, slammed a pinch-hit homer off ’44 reliever Blix Donnelly in the top of the 11th to break a 4-4 tie, and Kyle McClellan preserved the win with a scoreless bottom half. Matt Holliday also homered among his three hits and drove in three.
The heavily favored ’44 group evened the series, taking game two 4-2 behind a complete game from Max Lanier. Lanier scattered eight hits and struck out four without giving a free pass, and Walker Cooper slammed a two-run homer for the ‘44s. Jaime Garcia took the loss for the modern era club.
The ’44 club turned on the jets after that, winning the final three games by scores of 8-2, 16-2, and 6-0. The 16-2 shellacking in Game 6 was headlined by Stan Musial and Ray Sanders each three hits and four RBI. Sanders, Whitey Kurowski and Johnny Hopp each homered, while Musial tripled twice. Musial then went 4-for-4 in Game 5 to put his mark at .600 for the series. Meanwhile his modern era counterpart Albert Pujols hit only .227. The ’44 club will hook horns with the team from 60 years later in what could be an epic series full of fireworks and drama.
What is next
We are down to eight teams with the quarter-final field set to play out as follows:
#1 1942 Cardinals vs #9 1934 Cardinals
Will Me & Paul turn Stan & Enos dizzy?
#5 1943 Cardinals vs #13 1964 Cardinals
Another ‘64 upset bid, or will the ‘43s prevail for Billy the Kid?
#6 1922 Browns vs #14 1982 Cardinals
Brownie brown or Redbird red, who will go for the crown and who will be dead?
#2 1944 Cardinals vs #7 2004 Cardinals
Southworth & La Russa go for a shot at the big Palooza.
Stop by The Cardinal Nation’s free forum and join the special discussion on this tournament or any of the many other active threads about St. Louis Cardinals baseball!
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