On Tuesday night the American League defeated the National League yet again in the mid-summer classic by a count of 5-4, extending their streak of victories over the NL to 10.
St. Louis Cardinals Manager Tony La Russa has been the subject of criticism for not pinch-hitting with Albert Pujols in the bottom of the ninth inning and the bases loaded with two outs. La Russa's plan was to use Pujols in case the game went to extra innings, and while I disagree with that strategy (I say save someone other than Pujols for extra innings off the bench), I can understand it as well.
Pujols is the phony in this scenario, though. For him to say he was "disappointed," that his Manager failed to get him in the game is as much his fault as La Russa's. He knows La Russa and could've easily gone up to at some point during or prior to the final inning and voiced his opinion that he wanted to be in there to him. But where is Pujols in the bottom of the ninth with the bases full, two outs and Aaron Roward up to bat? In the training room getting treatment and checked out... come on! Don't lay your Manager out to dry when you are no where to be found in the dugout.
Personally, my feeling is Pujols is only looking out for himself in this situation. The Cardinals aren't going back to the World Series and longshot to return to the playoffs. So in other words, it doesn't concern him all that much that the Mets, Padres or some other contending NL team was hurt by this since they will have to go on the road for the first two games of the Fall Classic. The AL can have the homefield because his Cards won't be there.
So if you're a fan of an NL team and they end up playing Gm. 7 of the World Series on the road - thank Pujols.
Baseball Midway Picks:
Before making my adjusted picks for the second half, let's review my preseason predictions in Major League Baseball...
Preseason NL East:
1. Philadelphia
2. NY Mets
3. Atlanta
4. Florida
5. Washington
Preseason NL Central:
1. Chicago Cubs
2. St. Louis
3. Pittsburgh
4. Milwaukee
5. Houston
6. Cincinnati
Preseason NL West:
1. San Francisco
2. Los Angeles
3. Arizona
4. San Diego
5. Colorado
Preseason AL East:
1. Boston
2. NY Yankees
3. Toronto
4. Baltimore
5. Tampa Bay
Preseason AL Central:
1. Minnesota
2. Cleveland
3. Detroit
4. Chicago White Sox
5. Kansas City
Preseason AL West:
1. LA Angels of Anaheim
2. Seattle
3. Oakland
4. Texas
NL Wild Card: NY Mets
AL Wild Card: NY Yankees
World Series: Angels def. Mets in 6
Adjusted 2nd Half Predictions:
NL East:
1. NY Mets
2. Philadelphia
3. Atlanta
4. Florida
5. Washington
NL Central:
1. Chicago Cubs
2. Milwaukee
3. St. Louis
4. Pittsburgh
5. Houston
6. Cincinnati
NL West:
1. San Diego
2. Los Angeles
3. Arizona
4. San Francisco
5. Colorado
AL East:
1. Boston
2. NY Yankees
3. Toronto
4. Tampa Bay
5. Baltimore
AL Central:
1. Cleveland
2. Detroit
3. Minnesota
4. Chicago White Sox
5. Kansas City
AL West:
1. LA Angels of Anaheim
2. Seattle
3. Oakland
4. Texas
NL Wild Card: Philadelphia
AL Wild Card: Detroit
World Series: LA Angels of Anaheim def. NY Mets in 6
