Well, that's a winner. The Cards take care of the Pads in nifty fashion and move ahead to face the only real baseball team in NYC. What we lack on paper we've managed to make up for with swagger and grit. This is probably the least talented team we've put in the playoffs in the last several years, but I can't help feel some hope against the Mets this series.

Of course, it all starts with our super stars Pujols and Carpenter, who should by any reasonable account go back-to-back with MVP and Cy Young awards. Not sure how many times that's been done before, not only two guys going back-to-back on them, but those two guys being on the same team. I am finally pacified now that most announcers no longer stutter when proclaiming Pujols the best overall baseball player on the planet. I was slightly sideways, however, at the underwhelming reserve used by announcers to conclude that Carpenter is clearly a number 1 pitcher. Carpenter is more than an ace, he is the best starting pitcher left in the playoffs, the best starting pitcher in the national league over the regular season and remains a perennial combination of innings workhorse and big-gamer. There are only a few pitchers in MLB who can match up against him, and at this point in October, Carpenter stands alone. He deserves more credit; there should be more gushing.

After the way the games this series have unfolded, there should be a lot of hope in Budweiser country right now.

First of all, our corner OF platoon of Encarnacion, Wilson and Duncan is superior over our corner OFers from last year. I mean, these guys aren't superstars or anything, but they have the ability to strike at any time, get streaky and punish mistakes. Last year, I had a hard time justifying keeping Taguchi on the bench with the sad performances of Walker and Sanders, but this year, Taguchi is a defensive roll player or a last resort, and I like it that way. Many on this blog lamented the loss of Sanders, and some of my friends have tried to stall my current favor by reminding me of his performance last year against SD. My simple response is that Larry Walker is now retired, Reggie Sanders is barely playing ball in KC and aside from that grand slam Reggie bombed, I mostly remember the pleasant and steady breeze created by Sanders and Walker trying to catch up to strike after strike thrown by Houston's pitchers. That situation has changed.

Rolen and Edmonds. These guys continue to be the support structure for Pujols and a Jekyll and Hyde to each other. Both players are on the down swing of their talents, and both already have supporters for Cooperstown mention. Critics of Edmonds abound, often accusing him of being wimpy and offensively nonexistent during the playoffs. But now we see the dramatic California boy playing through pain and demonstrating some veteran grit. Rolen, on the other hand, having a reputation of playing the game "the right way," may have gotten benched for trying to be a little too tough. And in reality, it has been every bit as much of Rolen who has had a career of season and post-season injuries that have hurt the teams he has played for. We will see if Rolen will be healthy enough to contribute this October, otherwise, I'm happy with the way Edmonds is playing.

Our roll players and above average guys. Eckstein is the main roll player on our team, and you can never count him out. He appears constantly caffeinated, and what he lacks in natural athleticism he makes up for with consistency and fiestiness. Ron "Belly" Belliard has seriously grown on me. Not since Tommy Herr have I been this happy with our second baseman. He shows nice range, soft hands, and an all around quick bat at the plate. Spiezio is a great backup for Rolen, has plenty of playoff experience and is a sneaky dangerous bat in our lineup. Still not sure how I feel about the red soul patch, but I like the guy. (The announcers tonight tried to call it an "Imperial." Weak...)

Adam Wainwright and the setup boyz. I am personally very happy with the poise Wainright is showing as our ad hoc closer. Johnson just humiliates opposing lefties, and Kinney keeps keeping the other guys confused. They may not stand up in comparison to the Mets superior pen, but they are getting the job done so far and are showing some pluck.

Having Yady in the lineup is like batting two pitchers sometimes, but whatever he lacks in his ability to wave the bat, he more than makes up for behind the plate. This kid is the best defensive catcher I have ever seen play baseball.

Tony LaRussa. I have never been a huge fan of TLR, but I do credit him with being possibly the game's best tactician manager. He proved himself right by benching Carpenter to close the season down leaving him available for 2 compact, early wins against SD. He has shown both touch and smarts in his handling of games too. I think he knows we are under-dogs now and is taking less for granted than he may have in previous years. I like starting Spiezio tonight, whether it was a no-brainer or a message sent. Unlike Joe Torre 2006, TLR is showing that he is very in tune with his club and is using his guys and his many, many stats in the right way.

We just had to know we would eventually hurt Woody Williams tonight. All our hitters were showing patience through the first three innings. We were taking breaking ball after breaking ball, getting our timing down and getting WW's pitch count up. Then the 4th happened. Three pitches, three outs. What the...? 5th inning, and the only one who looked like he had a clue at the plate was Carpenter. Again, what the...? We have Woody up against the ropes and give him 6 outs on 9 pitches? Clearly, this was a strategy. Someone in the Card's dugout had flipped a switch. And what we gave up in the 4th and 5th innings by aggressiveness, we made up for in the 6th. My brother had told me early that he thought we'd knock Woody out in the 5th, and he wasn't far off. That appeared to be our strategy against the well-known, well-scouted Woody Williams. Spar with him the first couple times through the lineup then start trying to rip the cover off. It ended up working.

Cardinal Magic? Something maybe we've been lacking for a few years is good luck. Yes, of course, I'm not discounting the incredible win last year when Pujols shoved 50,000 socks in the gaping yams of Houston's fans with a forget-me-not off of Lidge. But I'm talking more about the middle-of-the-game punches every successful team needs to get away with to make a difference in a series. That throw pulling Bard off of home plate when all they had to do was throw-catch, followed by the perfectly called and executed squeeze play made me think we might have a little mojo going in our locker room.

Let's hope we can keep this going against the Mets, a team I grew up absolutely hating; and a team we will need more than talent on paper to beat.