The Mickey Mouse Lineup

You got to hand it to Baker. He sure knows how to screw up things handed to him. We arent talking football where you are running and pushing on every play. Or basketball where an average player runs 5 miles during a game. We are talking baseball where you spend half the time standing at your position and the other half sitting on the bench.

I am sorry but in the biggest series of the year you dont make out a lineup in game #1 with Goodwin in center, O'Leary in LF, Womack at 2nd, and A-gonz at SS. And you certainly dont make out a lineup in game #2 with O'Leary in RF and Martinez at 3b, leaving out Sosa and Ramirez.

Less than 30 games left, middle of a pennant race and its rest time? They can rest when the season is over! The Cardinals started all of their big guns for each game. What are you telling me they are fresher after 130+ games than we are? It is no time to be playing musical chairs and everyone gets playing time. Your best players should be out there in September. After all this is why they get paid the big bucks!

If nothing else winning with a crappy lineup only encourages Baker to continue with this old one trick pony. He got away with it in the 1st game, even if it did take 15 innings. And he thought he could do it again in the night cap in a very important game and they cant score any runs.

Think about this for a second we scored 2 runs off of Simontacci and the worst bullpen in the NL before Sosa strode to the plate in the 15th. Thats not exactly lighting the world on fire. And then in the next game we expect with an even weaker lineup to score 2-3 runs to beat Matt Morris? Come on now, better pitcher, you need your best hitters. Otherwise your gonna get shutout. And thats exactly what happened. I dont want to say Baker was out managed, but Tony Larussa just used common sense, Baker didnt.

As for Wood he will just file this game and his last start under reasons not to sign a long term contract in Chicago. He has literally left his heart out there on the mound his last 2 starts after struggling in the 6 before that, and has nothing to show for it. Wood had a 11.00+ ERA against the Cardinals before his last 2 starts. He has stepped up big time by keeping that very good lineup down in the stretch drive. But hey if it isnt the bullpen blowing his leads its the offense not scoring runs to help him out. What man wants to go thru that for the rest of his career? He has seen it his last 5 years.

Walk away Wood, salvage your career! Dont end up like Grace, Sandberg, Dawson, and soon to be Sosa. I wouldnt blame you if you left Chicago. But i would still love it if you stayed Wood!