Cardinals Beat Clemens, Astros to Win National League Pennant

ST. LOUIS – The best team in baseball now gets a chance to prove it in the World Series.Albert Pujols hit a tying double in the sixth, Scott Rolen followed with a home run, and the St. Louis Cardinals suddenly erupted against Roger Clemens, startling the Houston Astros 5-2 last night to take Game 7 of the NL championship series.In a matchup where the home team won each time, the Cardinals broke through with two outs in the sixth inning. It came in a span of only two pitches, and Busch Stadium became a roiling sea of red.Jeff Suppan overcame a leadoff home run by Craig Biggio to win an apparent mismatch against Clemens. The bullpen combined for three scoreless innings, shutting down Carlos Beltran and Co., with Jason Isringhausen working the ninth for his third save.After posting 105 wins and running away with the NL Central, the Cardinals advanced to their first World Series under manager Tony La Russa, and first overall since 1987.Next up, the Boston Red Sox in Game 1 on Saturday night at Fenway Park. By all accounts it should be a classic – they also met in the 1946 and 1967 Series, and St. Louis won both, each time going the full seven games. This year’s Cardinals are the first NL Central team to play in the fall classic. It had been the only division without an appearance.Pujols led the way, hitting .500 with four homers and nine RBIs. Overall, the teams combined for 25 home runs, the most in any postseason series.Larry Walker singled home an insurance run in the eighth, and the club sporting the famed birds-on-the-bat logo captured its 16th pennant.For the Astros, it was total disappointment. They have never reached the World Series since their expansion season of 1962, the same year Clemens was born. But the Rocket could not hold an early 2-0 lead in his record fourth start in a Game 7.While Rolen and Pujols did the major damage in the sixth, Roger Cedeno surely deserved some credit for rattling the Rocket.Cedeno opened the sixth with a pinch-hit single, his 11th hit in 25 lifetime at-bats against Clemens, and immediately began dancing off first base. Clemens made three pickoff throws and stepped off the rubber three times trying to hold Cedeno close.Cedeno moved up on a bunt, and again his leads attracted Clemens’s attention before the speedster took third on Walker’s groundout. That brought up Pujols, and brought Astros manager Phil Garner to the mound.With the count at 1-2, catcher Brad Ausmus again went to visit Clemens. Pujols lined the next pitch into the leftfield corner, cocking his arm as he eased into second base with a tying double.The crowd was going crazy by then, and Rolen seized the opportunity. Clemens tried to throw a first-pitch fastball by Rolen, and instead the All-Star slugger rocketed it just inside the left-field foul pole.While Rolen ran hard around the bases and several Cardinals spilled out of the dugout to meet him, Clemens could only stare ahead.Jim Edmonds of St. Louis prevented a big inning with the type of catch that’s made him a six-time Gold Glove winner. Shaded toward right-center, he raced back into the left-center alley and made a headlong dive to rob Ausmus with two runners on. Clods of grass kicked up as Edmonds’ knees hit the ground, and he slid several feet on his stomach.After taking away a couple of runs, Edmonds was charged with an error that gave back a run in the third. Beltran walked with one out, stole second and tagged up on Jeff Bagwell’s fly ball. Edmonds’s strong throw and Beltran arrived at third base simultaneously, and the ball skipped into the dugout.Edmonds was charged with the error that let Beltran trot home. It was a tough error, and ended St. Louis’ record streak of 12 straight postseason games without a miscue, dating to 2002.Suppan put down a perfect suicide squeeze bunt that pulled the Cardinals to 2-1 in the third. Womack hustled for a leadoff double, running at will on Biggio’s weak arm in left, and moved up on a grounder.On the first pitch, Suppan bunted to the right side and the Astros’ only play was at first base. Normally a good hitter, Suppan was awful at the plate this year, going 4-for-57.After the final out, St. Louis players ran out of the dugout to meet near the mound for hugs and high-fives while gold and white confetti rained down on the fans. Many of the Astros watched the celebration from the top step of their dugout, staring stone-faced at the celebration.The Astros remain one of only seven teams to never advance to the World Series. That undistinguished list of franchises includes Texas, Seattle, Colorado, Tampa Bay, and the team formerly known as the Montreal Expos.For Clemens, the future seems unclear. After signing a one-year contract with Houston at the beginning of the year, the 42 year-old legend may decide to retire for the second time in two seasons.

Cardinals Beat Clemens, Astros to Win National League Pennant

Cardinals Beat Clemens, Astros to Win National League Pennant

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