That beaning excuse cracked me up all of last year. If Edmonds deserved a plunk for showing up Zambrano, what exactly should every pitcher in the league have been doing to Z's teammate named Sammy?

It reminded me of Ron Santo complaining non-stop during a Cubs/Sox game when Timo Perez hit a home run. Santo called him a show-boat, hot dog - you name it. What did he do? He pumped his chest, kissed his fingers, and put them in the air, ala Sammy. Totally hilarious.

These Cardinal-Cub games always seem to have a lot of potential for craziness.

I think that the gamesmanship between Tony and Dusty gets it going a little, and then the insanity/jerk factor of a number of Cubs (Hawkins, Zambrano) pushes it over the top.

I'd love to see Eckstein lead off with a 16-pitch at-bat, then take ball 4 just out of the zone and see Zambrano start spitting nails.

I can't decide which I'd rather see. Edmonds homering off of Zambrano and running around the bases as fast as possible, or Edmonds homering off of Zambrano and putting his hand over his eyes as he stands and watches it sail away. (You know - like a visor to keep the sun out of his eyes?)

I'd like to see Edmonds homer, flip his bat aside while standing frozen in his follow-thorugh at home plate, then, as you suggest, slowly raise his hand to his brow, visor-like, then begin to slowly lope around the bases shaking his head from side to side and whistling. Then he walks the last 30 feet, stomps on home plate, then raises his arms in jubilation and does a 360 to the crowd, blowing kisses, before turning around to Zambrano and bowing.

Then Reggie Sanders had better duck.

How about Edmonds sending a liner back where it came from, plunking Zambrano? (not in the head, of course)

Lineups:

Cubs
Patterson-cf
N. Perez-2b
D, Lee-1b
A. Ramirez-3b
Burnitz-rf
Nomar-ss
Hollandsworth-lf
Barrett-c
Zambrano-p

Birds
Eckstein-ss
Walker-rf
Pujols-1b
Edmonds-cf
Rolen-3b
Mabry-lf
Nunez-2b
Diaz-c
Suppan-p

Interesting...Tony rests the hot bat of Yadier...

Fox just showed a nice montage of Zambrano giving up Edmonds's home run and then hitting him in Edmonds's next at-bat, and then (and I actually forget about this one) hitting him AGAIN in his NEXT at-bat, at which point he he was ejected, fuming and sputtering and gesticulating.

Hey let's play some BALL!!

Geez, not much help from the defense so far in the first. Suppan throwing pretty well; I don't mind the walk to Ramirez in that spot...

Suppan has to be wondering why he always gets the backup catcher.

Shit. Suppan couldn't dodge the dropped soft liner; the botched double-play grounder; and the dropped peg on the stolen-base attempt....

Thank you, Nomar.

The defense cost Suppan 13 pitches in the first; through 9 pitches he had generated three "out balls" but the D only converted one. He finished the inning having thrown 22 pitches...

Larry Walker has got to start hitting the ball. These weak-ass soft grounders remind me a little too much of Fernando Vina.

Maybe in the bottom of the 2nd the middle of the lineup will be able to actually get the ball out of the infield.

The Pirates are playing at Busch tonight.

Jeez, Edmonds did a terrible job right there.... I wish Diaz had held the tipped strike 3...

Jeez, Edmonds did a terrible job right there.... I wish Diaz had held the tipped strike 3...

So far the ball's been hit to five different Cardinals, and each has made a less-than-stellar play...

I miss Wavin' Wendell.

Nice play by Eckstein there.... I wasn't sure he was going to have enough zip on that throw to get Neifi, but he just barely did. Stop crying already Neifi.

Now we get to see Edmonds face off against the Jackal.

Boy. Nomar stinks.

Nice job working it by Nunez there---from 1-2 to a walk.

Nomar is a DP candidate here--he's flaliling at all the low junk Suppan tosses up there...

When Lee was at second Eckstein looked like a little kid super-imposed on the screen.

Uh-oh.. loks like an exploded hammy on Nomar...

Tough night for Nomar: strikeout, error, GIDP, exploded hammy. In just two-and-a-half innings.

Walker has really proven so far this year that he has the weak infield grounder down cold. Time to move on to something new.

If Zambrano's getting that low strike call, then turn out the lights.

After three innings of having it called every time, the Cardinal hitters had better stop being so surprised that the low fastball is being called a strike.

Great play by Pujols turning two after the HORRIBLE decision by Diaz to go to 2nd on the bunt... that could have opened the door to a big inning.

Lots of Cubs on the bases tonight, but that's 3 DP grounders Soup's thrown in 4 innings (only two turned, though).

More slopfest by the Birds... Diaz can't handle a handleable pitch low and Lee scoots to second, then Edmonds again misplays a catchable ball that falls and rolls to the wall.. It's 3-0 and it should be 0-0...

After 5, this has the makings of a complete-game, 1-hit shutout...

Nice small-ball Tony. Nice hit-and-run, Larry.

And nice bomb, Albert. 3-1.

According to the ESPN color guy, Eckstein's being caught stealing fired up the Cardinals and perhaps led to Pujols' homer--so even though he was out it was a good play.

That's two nice running catches by the Birds the last two innings on leadoff hitters---one by Mabry in the 5th, and now one by Walker in the 6th. As shoddy as they've played, especially early, they're still in this thing, and plays like those are keeping them in it..

Christ, it's the 7th inning already. Those runnign catches werin the 6th and 7th, not the 5th and 6th.

Boy, I'm watching Edmonds' back again as he's chasing down a ball to the wall for the third time tonight...

Flores looks outstanding once again: Comes in with 2 on and 1 out, and throws two sweeping breaking balls to Burnitz that he swings at before popping up the third pitch, then gets two quick strikes on hairston beofr finally freezing him on a back-door pitch over the outer corner. Great job.

ugh. Why did La Russa rest Sanders, and give Elinar Diaz a start again? Ah well. Ryan Dempster, I propose you let your career 6.17 ERA and .304 BAA vs. StL do it's work tomorrow.