PART 3: Texas Rangers vs. St. Louis Cardinals
Game 2:
The Texas Rangers had to wrest control of the series if it had to stay afloat. They, after all, had lost the last World Series title to the San Francisco Giants, something that must have stayed fresh in the minds of the players. Nonetheless, to avenge the
loss in the first game against the Cardinals of the World Series 2011, they had to intensify efforts, put more energy to prevail in the end.
Coming into Game 2, the St. Louis Cardinals put up stunning defence to secure the little gain the team offence had made. With the success in their strategy until the 9th inning, the Cardinals were fairly in the charge of the game with a 1-0 lead.
However, Josh Hamilton and Michael Young reversed the tide for the Cardinals in the 9th against the otherwise invincible, Jason Motte.
As Allen Craig had secured a lead for the St. Louis Cardinals in the 7th inning against Colby Lewis, Jaime Garcia was doing his bit with a wonderful spell of pitching, barely allowing any run. Garcia hurled 7 innings, giving up no run compared
to Lewis’ 6.2 innings whereby the latter gave up a run and 4 hits.
However, much as Motte was the real asset of the St. Louis Cardinals in the treasured line of relievers and closers, the closer could not secure the lead the team had made. Motte, allowed 2 extremely costly hits, allowing 2 runs to Hamilton and Young. That
was a bitter pill to swallow for the Cardinals; something hardly anticipated.
For Motte – the Cardinals closer, who gave up two expensive runs, something he might never have imagined would come his way, it was something that stank. While he said he should have made a better throw, in the end, it was something he would not probably
be able to avoid given the strong offence that the Texas Rangers have always been known for in baseball circles.
“It stinks. It's one of those things,” Motte said. “I went out there and made a good pitch to Kinsler, and he did a good piece of hitting and got enough on it to get it out of the reach of Furcal. The next one, I threw another cutter, and it just wasn't
a good pitch. It moved, came back, just stayed middle and spun up there.”
For the former Cardinals manager, Tony La Russa, it was a great story, but one that would not be narrated as a memorable one. He said, “It was almost a great story for us. Turned out to be a greater one for them.”
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