The Cardinals didn't look like the best team in baseball over the course of the regular season, but they more than earned their stripes from September onward. Even though the team came on, almost out of nowhere in the final month, it wasn't built overnight. Any champion is built on the foundation of several sage moves over several years. Here, in chronological order, is how St. Louis acquired every player on their postseason roster:
Final Game of 2011
First of all, wow, game six was a game for the ages. 'Nuff said. The momentum swings, comebacks, and puzzling/dubious decisions made in the late innings (particularly by the Rangers) made for incredible theater. That would have been one of the most amazing games of the regular season, and for such a gem to take place on such a pressure-packed stage is a treasure to celebrate (except for Rangers fans, of course).
Now, I have to admit, I come in with a significant bias to this post. I have to work through the entirety of game seven, including at least the first 6 or 7 innings of extra innings if it were to go that long. I'm missing the whole game, and that's a tough pill to swallow. So, on some level it is therapeutic to say, quite simply, tonight's game between the Rangers and Cardinals will likely be a letdown.
2011 Stan Musial Award Winners
The MVP award-winners of the Baseball Bloggers Alliance, the Stan Musial Award recipients, were announced this morning. The results surprised me a bit, though not in a disappointing way. It will be interesting to see if they are a harbinger of things to come from the BBWAA, and their voting for the MVP awards.
In the National League, Matt Kemp took away the honors in dominating fashion. He was a unanimous selection. I wouldn't be surprised if Kemp takes home the NL MVP, but I would be surprised if his selection is so convincing.
In the American League, Jose Bautista just outpaced Jacoby Ellsbury, 225-200. At the All-Star Break, Bautista seemed to be a lock for the award, but a relatively sluggish second half, combined with other dramatic story lines (the Rays surge/Red Sox collapse) shoved him completely out of the spotlight. Overall, Bautista is certainly a worthy award-winner, but he is one that requires a good memory from voters.
Click "continue reading" if you want to see the full press release, and breakdown of the voting: