Let the rivalry continue.....

Huge game tonight down in St Louis between the Crew & Cards.  The sabers were already being rattled by Tony Larussa for this coming series, last week. 

Let's get our blood flowing already!....

"This is not like those cup-stacking beer bashes that the totally uneventful Cards-Cubs series have disintegrated into.

Cards vs. Brewers is what a genuine baseball rivalry ought to feel like. Provocative, contentious, but most of all competitively significant."
....from THIS story in STLtoday.com.
"I couldn't agree more with this writer is saying.  Gone are the days of the Cubs being the divisional rival for both Milwaukee and St Louis.  It was so 2010 to think that the Reds and Cards are the biggest rivalry.  Now Cincy is sitting back 9 (or so) games out of 1st place.  It's a two team pennant race that starts tonight! 
A year ago, it was a snarling grudge with the Cincinnati Reds that broke out in lots of sniping, trash talk, bad blood and brawling on the infield. This year, it is the Brewers who are the adversaries and are being treated as victims of some grudge that Brewers fans are convinced was conjured up in the vivid and belligerent mind of La Russa.

They are wrong, of course.
La Russa's mind isn't particularly belligerent. It is rooted in Old Testament baseball, where sins against the old-school code are handled in primeval ways. The La Russa way has produced a long line of haters and bitter rivals. But his Cardinals do not seem to mind how long the line. Instead, they wear it like a badge of honor, quite frankly."
Another great piece from that story.  Look, I despise LaRussa because he's a F*CKING Cheat.  Not because he honors the old testament of baseball.  It's because he's calling Milwaukee a bunch of cheats, while he's standing next to Mark McGwire (hitting coach) in the dug out.  Seriously, I understand and love the idea of payback baseball, protecting your players; but LaRussa is a filthy cheat. 

5 things to watch for during this series....

You want a feel-good story about Craig Counsell?  HERE you go.  Let's not forget that he's had 1 hit since the Canucks were still in the NHL playoffs.  Ha!