Just when you thought it was going to be "dead" time from the end of the NBA season to the beginning of NFL and College training camps, along come the Astros to make the stretch run very interesting.
Last night at Minute Maid Park in Houston, the Astros found a way to win. With the Astros down a run, 3-2 in the bottom of the ninth, with 2 outs versus the division NL Central division leading St. Louis Cardinals, Miguel Tejada delivered a game-winning RBI single to help the Astros win in dramatic fashion and sweep the series.
Catcher Ivan Rodriguez would lead off with an RBI single to score Chris Coste and tie the score at 3. Tejada would single in Jeff Keppinger for the game winner.
Tejada's hit solidified a two-run rally against Cardinal's closer Ryan Franklin. Cardinals starter Chris Carpenter handed the ball to Franklin with a one-run lead. Carpenter outlasted Roy Oswalt and the Astros for eight innings before watching his ninth win go up in smoke.
Speaking of smoke, there's no more smoke surrounding second year Astros skipper, Cecil Cooper. There had been some talk of him losing his job early on because his Astros weren't playing like contenders...because most of the season they were playing sub-500 baseball and worst of all, nobody really cared except the season ticket holders and your die-hard baseball fans. Remember, Houston is a football city and for the Astros to get and keep attention, winning is critical.
Not the case anymore! The Astros have regained the attention of the city and are relevant in the NL Central after sweeping the Tony LaRussa managed St. Louis Cardinals for the second time this season. And believe it or not, the Astros sit a game back of the central division leading Cardinals and tied for second place with the Chicago Cubs. In addition, the Astros are now 3 games OVER 500 at 49-46. The Cardinals are 51-46.
Astros 4, Cardinals 3
| W: | J. Valverde (1-2) |
| L: | R. Franklin (2-1) |
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