Jay Jay Leads Cardinals over Red Sox, 4-2, Sends Series to St. Louis

Players of the Day for Thursday, October 24, 2013

World Series Game Two

After an embarrassing game one loss, St. Louis regrouped, topping the Red Sox, 4-2, to tie the series at a game apiece.

Matt Holliday scored he game's first run in the fourth inning, as Cardinal rookie phenom, Michael Wacha, and Boston's John Lackey locked into a pitching duel. Holliday tripled to deep center leading off the inning and scored when Yadier Molina grounded out to second.

The Red Sox responded in the sixth, finally getting to Wacha when Dustin Pedroia worked a one out walk and David Ortiz followed with a home run over the Green Monster in left field, giving the Sox a 2-1 lead.

Jon Jay

The crucial plays came in the seventh inning as St. Louis responded. David Freese walked with one out and advanced to second on Jon Jay's single to right. That was all for Lackey, replaced on the mound by reliever Craig Breslow. Pete Kozma came on to run for Freese. The Cardinals pulled off a double steal, Kozma advancing to third, Jay to second, as Boston catcher, Jerrod Saltalamacchia, could not get the ball out of his glove and did not produce a throw.

David Descalso worked a walk to load the bases, bringing leadoff hitter, Matt Carpenter, to the plate. Carpenter lofted a ball to shallow left field, Kozma tagged and beat the throw by Shane Victorino, which was off line, toward the first base side. The ball glanced off Saltalamacchia's glove, but Breslow was in position to back up the play.

Jay made a bee-line for third base, and Breslow's throw sailed over the head of Boston third baseman, Xander Bogaerts, and into the stands. Jay scored, Descalso advancing to third, giving the Cardinals the lead again, at 3-2. The next batter, Carlos Beltran, added an insurance run, stroking a single to right, bringing Descalso home.

Given the two-run lead, Cardinal relievers Carlos Martinez and Trevor Rosenthal were magnificent. Martinez worked the seventh and eighth, allowing one hit while striking out three. Rosenthal was all business in the ninth, striking out the side on eleven pitches to end the game and send the series back to St. Louis for games three, four and five, on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Jay's single, stolen base and alert base-running in the seventh were the keys to the St. Louis win, putting pressure back on Boston, as they must make lineup changes in St. Louis, where the DL rule will not be in effect. If Boston wants to keep Ortiz and Mike Napoli in the lineup, they'll be at unfamiliar positions. Ortiz, Boston's regular DH, will be at first, while Napoli, who spent years with the Angels and Rangers primarily as a catcher, has played first base all season and has not been behind the plate since last season.

Today's Trivia: Who holds the record for total bases in a single post-season? (answer tomorrow)

Yesterday's Answer: Bernie Williams of the New York Yankees is the all-time career leader in post-season RBI with 80.

Max Scherzer, Jhonny Peralta Complete Tigers' Sweep of Yankees, Advance to World Series;

Players of the Day for Thursday, October 18, 2012

American League

ALCS: Detroit 8 NY Yankees 1 - Detroit completed the four-game sweep of the collapsing Yankees to advance to the World Series with a lopsided win over New York's ace, C.C. Sabathia.

Jhonny Peralta

The Tigers hammered Sabathia for 11 hits and five earned runs (six total), chasing the starter after just 3 2/3 innings, the final blow being Jhonny Peralta's two-run homer in the fourth, which put the Tigers up, 6-0. Miguel Cabrera earlier tagged Sabathia for his own two-run shot as the Tigers plated four in the frame.

Max Scherzer

Peralta socked another home run of the solo variety in the eighth, leading the Tigers to victory with three RBI and two runs.

While his teammates were bashing New York hurlers, Max Scherzer was setting down the suddenly-impotent Yankees with alacrity, taking a no-hit bid into the sixth inning, fanning ten while allowing just two hits, two walks and one earned run over a 5 2/3 inning stint. A trio of Detroit relievers mopped up, holding the Yanks hitless over the final 3 1/3 innings, an embarrassing end for the proud franchise, and an exhilarating triumph in Tiger-town.

Detroit advances to the World Series, awaiting the National League entry. The series will begin at a National League site - since the NL won the all star game - on Wednesday, October 24.

National League

Jon Jay

NLCS: St. Louis 8 San Francisco 3 - Leadoff hitter Jon Jay went 2-for-5 with a double and two RBI to lead a 12-hit Cardinal attack and starter Adam Wainwright stymied the Giants on four hits over seven innings to lead St. Louis to a commanding, 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven series.

Adam Wainwright

The Cardinals roughed up Giants' starter, Tim Lincecum, tagging him for four runs off six hits and three bases on balls over 4 2/3 innings.

Jay opened the scoring in the first, scoring on Matt Holliday's single up the middle after leading off the game with a scratch single, followed by a walk to the Cards' #2 hitter, Matt Carpenter, who came home on Allen Craig's sac fly.

The Giants cut the lead to 2-1 in the second inning on a solo homer by Hunter Pence, but Wainwright held the lead until the Cardinals let loose with two runs in each of the fifth, sixth and seventh innings, putting the game out of reach. After Pence's homer, Wainwright set down 10 of the next 11 hitters and was in full control, striking out five without allowing any walks, throwing 70 of 96 pitches for strikes.

Jay doubled home a pair of runs in the sixth, Wainwright worked through the seventh, giving up the ball to Fernando Salas, who allowed the Giants two meaningless ninth inning runs on a Pablo Sandoval two-run homer.

Game five is Friday, at 8:07 pm EDT in St. Louis. The Cardinals can wrap up the NL championship with a win and earn some time off prior to Wednesday's start of the World Series. Barry Zito goes for the Giants, against St. Louis starter, Lance Lynn.

Wei-Yin Chen Stymies Yanks, O's Tie Series; Cards Tie Nationals as Jon Jay, Carlos Beltran Deliver

Players of the Day for Monday, October 8, 2012

American League

ALDS: Baltimore 3 NY Yankees 2 - The Orioles evened their series with the Yankees at a game apiece with a tight victory Monday night at Camden Yards.

Wei-Lin Chen

Rookie starter Wei-Yin Chen pitched like a weathered veteran, allowing one earned run over 6 1/3 innings to earn the win. Chris Davis drove in a pair of runs with a single in the third inning; Mark Reynolds drove in Matt Wieters with what proved to be the deciding run with a sixth-inning single.

The Yankees could only must single runs in the first and seventh innings, the first run unearned, coming after a Mark Reynolds throwing error that allowed Ichiro Suzuki to reach and later score.

Chen allowed a run and got one out in the seventh, before being replaced by reliever Darren O'Day, who struck out Alex Rodriguez with Robbie Cano standing at second. Brian Matusz closed out the inning and held the Yankees scoreless in the eighth. Closer Jim Johnson got three outs in order in the ninth to pick up the save. Chen scattered eight hits and struck out three.

The series heads to Yankee Stadium on Wednesday. Game time is set for 7:37 pm EDT.


National League

Jon Jay

Carlos Beltran

NLDS: St. Louis 12 Washington 4 - Jon Jay and Carlos Beltran led a 13-hit Cardinal attack, leading St. Louis to a 1-1 tie in their best-of-five divisional series with Washington.

Beltran homered twice in four at-bats, driving in three runs. Jay went 2-for-5, singling home a run in the second innings, as the Cards plated four, and tripling home another run in the eighth. Jay also reached on an error in the fourth, allowing Pete Kozma to score from third and stole second in the same inning, but did not score. Jay finished with three RBI.

With the series tied, the scene shifts to Washington for games three and four (and five, if necessary) beginning Wednesday at 1:07 pm EDT.