The good: Did you see that catch Skip made in left-center? Awesome. (I rarely use that word, and when I do it's never lightly.)
The dips on Sportscenter referred to him as "Jim Edmonds' replacement in center field," and while he is definitely an everyday outfielder (at least in my heart), we know who the true centerfielder on this team is don't we, folks? And apparently he's healthy enough to drive one over the wall, even if it's just bonus runs to get us up into the double-digits for the first time this season.
Skip had a pretty good game too, don't get me wrong. (smile) He went four out of five with a walk, and played some mighty-fine defense. Actually, pretty much everyone contributed last night. Duncan had an RBI double, Glaus had a couple of hits and three RBI, Ludwick drove in three, and Molina had a 2RBI single. Villone, Parisi, and Franklin each pitched a shut-out inning, and Looper went five and became the first Cardinals starter with 6 wins.
The bad: The Padres. I know, I know--cheap shot. But I didn't say it first, and I'm certainly not the only one thinking it. They are now 17-31, the team with the worst record in baseball. It makes me feel for them a little. Especially now that two of their starters are incapacitated. (segue into....)
The ugly: Okay, there was the thing that happened in the third. Albert hit a line drive up the middle that made pretty brutal contact with the pitcher Chris Young's face (so hard it knocked him on his butt). He did get up under his own power and make it off the field, but he's got a broken nose and a cut on his forehead and was kept overnight at the hospital for observation.
Then later in the same half-inning, as Albert was coming around to score on Glaus' base hit, the catcher, Josh Bard, planted his foot for a play at the plate and got his ankle sprained as Albert slid in. He had to be helped off the field. Both men are now on the 15-day DL.
You know Albert feels terrible, as we all do. You never want to see anyone get hurt, and the situation reminded me of the Juan Encarnacion incident. It sounds like Young and Bard are going to recover without any permanent damage, though, and I wish them all the best.
Anyway, because of the injuries, the Padres had to get into their bullpen early, and the Cards took advantage.
We are now tied with the Cubs in the Win column and one game back overall. (Not that I'm keeping track.)
