World Series Game 3: Carpenter Saws Off Tigers' Bats In 5-0 Victory

Déjà vu is the feeling you've written a sentence you have written before. Déjà vu is the feeling you've written a sentence you have written before. Déjà vu is the feeling you've written a sentence you have written before.

Watching Game 3 of the World Series was like watching Game 1. Actually, that's just hyperbole. There were lots of differences. Such as:

• The game was in St. Louis this time, not Detroit.


• The guest analyst in Fox's pre-game show this time was manager-for-hire Joe Girardi, not Diamondbacks centerfielder and the combless wonder Eric Byrnes.


• That damn John Mellencamp/Chevrolet Silverado commercial didn't blare through my TV every. Single. Inning. (Just every other inning!)

Beyond that, the game was a repeat. Beyond that, the game was a repeat, beyond that the game was a repeat.

In both Games 1 and 3, the St. Louis Cardinals won by five thank to their starting pitcher lasting eight innings. Meanwhile, the Detroit Tigers struggled to reach base, their starter only lasted five innings, and the defense gift-wrapped unearned runs for their opponent.

Same game if ya ask me.

In Tuesday's 5-0 win over the Tigers, Chris Carpenter pitched like the Cy Young Award winner we know him to be and not the home run vendor he was in last week's NLCS. He went eight innings, allowing zero runs, three hits, and no walks.

Everybody in the Cardinals lineup from the strong-like-bull Albert Pujols to the scrappy sidekick David Eckstein contributed hits, runs, and RBIs to vault ahead of the Tigers in the best-of-seven series, two games to one. With the next two games in friendly Busch Stadium, the Cardinals are conveniently perched to win out and nest their first championship since 1982.

As for the Tigers, well—let's see, what mammalian metaphor can I use here?—there's a thorn in their paw, and unfortunately they put it there themselves.

In three games, Detroit is averaging six hits, one walk, and two runs per game. They have also committed five errors that turned into three generous runs for the Cardinals. The latest error came last night when hard-throwing relief pitcher Joel Zumaya threw away a certain double play ball, allowing two runs to score. (It's okay to throw balls by the batters, just not your own third baseman.)

More thorny issues: Tigers pitching gave up eight—eight!—walks to the Cardinals in Game 3 alone. Compare that to Cardinals pitching, which has walked three batters all series.

I could crunch more numbers, but each stat would make me cry over and over.

The Tigers postseason is turning into a microcosm of the regular season—hot first half, cold second half. After a seven-game winning streak earlier in the playoffs, they are now playing like the team that the Kansas City Royals bullied at the end of the year.

Which means I've seen this before, and I didn't like the outcome then.

Article Author: Matthew T. Sussman

Sussman is the sports editor of BC Magazine. He also writes for Deadspin and Toledo Free Press. He and Tuffy can be heard hosting the Treehouse Fort, Sundays at 12 noon ET. Plus, he Twitters. Feed the feedback back to matt.sussman@blogcritics.org.

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