Sunday was not kind to a pair of relief pitchers.
Ironically, arms were not their demise. It was the leather.
Fielding errors by the Cardinals' Jason Marquis and the Angels' Kelvim Escobar each allowed go-ahead runs that proved the difference as St. Louis fell to the Astros, 2-1, and Los Angeles was eliminated by the Chicago White Sox, 6-3.
In Houston, as a Game 5 pitchers' duel developed, the likelihood that the next run may well be the game-winner magnified with each inning as the Cardinals and Astros moved to the seventh in a 1-1 deadlock.
After Astros reliever Chad Qualls (1-0) worked a one-two-three top half of the seventh, Orlando Palmeiro, pinch-hitting for Qualls, drew a leadoff walk off loser Jason Marquis (0-1) to open the Astros' seventh.
Second baseman Craig Biggio then laid down a sacrifice to the first base side of the mound. Marquis angled for the ball and appeared to attempt a running scoop-and-tag as Biggio raced down the line. The ball squirted under Marquis' glove and his forward momentum carried him out of position to recover. Everyone was safe.
With two base runners ad no outs, Astros Manager Phil Garner called on Chris Burke to bunt, then inexplicably waived it off. Burke, who led his team with nine sacrifices this season, flied harmlessly to left and Marquis was redeemed.
That is, until first basemen Lance Berkman walked on four pitches, loading the bases for Morgan Ensberg. Ensberg lifted a fly to center that would have ended the inning were it not for Marquis's error. With only one out, this fly proved deep enough to plate Willy Tavares — who had just taken Palmeiro's spot on third base — with the go-ahead run.
Four hours later and 1,500 miles to the west, the Angels' Kelvim Escobar found himself a similar fate.
Escobar was trying to work out of the top of the eighth inning in a 3-3 contest in Anaheim. He had been tagged for a game-tying homer by Joe Crede the inning before, but set down the first two White Sox of the eighth before walking Aaron Rowland.
Escobar bore down on A.J. Pierzynski, but the White Sox catcher managed to hit a sharp comebacker that glanced off Escobar and rolled toward first base. Escobar made after the ball and, unlike Marquis in Houston, picked it up cleanly. Nor was there any indecision on Escobar's part. His only thought was to apply the tag to the runner, which he did with his glove. Unfortunately, the ball was still in his hand.
First base umpire Randy Marsh initially called Pierzynski out, ending the inning. The Angels cleared the field, but home plate umpire Ed Rapuano conferred with Marsh and the call was reversed. Pierzynski was awarded first base. The Angels had to retake the field.
One batter later, Joe Crede drove Rowland home with an infield single, his third RBI of the night. Chicago led, 4-3.
Although the Astros and White Sox got their go-ahead runs with similar assistance, each team held on in its distinct way.
With a 2-1 lead, Astros right-hander Dan Wheeler worked a scoreless eighth after giving up a leadoff hit. For the ninth, he turned the ball over to Brad Lidge.
As 43,010 fans rose to their feet in the Astrodome, the Houston closer promptly surrendered back-to-back singles to Albert Pujols and Larry Walker, putting Cardinals at the corners with no outs.
Lidge then faced Reggie Sanders, who he had struck out five times in six previous meetings this year. He quickly got ahead 0-2 before Sanders dribbled a grounder down the third-base line. Ensberg charged and made a nice throw to the plate to cut down Pujols.
However, the play didn't stop with the tag, even though the Astros did. Larry Walker, realizing time was never called, rounded second base and seized third amidst the Astros' confusion. Once again, the tying run was only 90 feet away.
And once again, Lidge rose to the challenge, getting rightfielder John Mabry in an 0-2 hole. With the Astros infield at double-play depth, Mabry grounded the third pitch to second. There was no play at the plate as Walker trotted home. The ball did not appear to be hit sharply enough to double up Mabry.
Nevertheless, second baseman Eric Bruntlett threw to shortstop Adam Everett for the force-out at second. As Reggie Sanders barreled toward the base, Everett pivoted and fired a return throw to first.
As soon as he released the ball, Everett knew he had his man. His throw beat Mabry by the closest of margins, but it gave his team a commanding 3-1 margin in the best-of-seven NLDS.
There was no such suspense in Anaheim.
Given a 4-3 lead, Jose Contreras set down the Angels in order in both the eighth and ninth innings. In an era marked by left-handed specialists, setup men, and closers, the pitching machine that is the Chicago White Sox recorded their fourth consecutive complete game victory.
Now, for the first time in 46 years, the Fall Classic will feature a team from Chicago.
As for their opponent, Houston will send Andy Pettitte (1-1) to the mound tonight. The Cardinals will counter with Chris Carpenter (2-0) in a Game 1 rematch.
By night's end, the community of Houston, whose team started this season at 15-30, may be basking in the celebration of its first-ever pennant.
The Chicago White Sox against the Houston Astros for all the marbles? Not my first choices back in April.
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