A Tie? Hopefully Not an Omen For a .500 Season

A new year. A fresh start. Even though a win or loss does not necessarily matter in the preseason, the Cards had a chance to show everyone that they have improved from a year ago. Today, the Cardinals began their 2009 much like how they ended 2008. Lots of singles. A few runs. And of course: A blown save.

The Cards and Marlins played to a 5-5 tie, despite the Cards 3-0 lead going into the sixth and their 5-2 lead going into the eighth. The line score is below and here's the full box score.


The most impressive Redbirds were Schumaker, Ankiel, Pujols, Hawksworth...and Rasmus.

Skip Schumaker started at second and batted in his usual leadoff position. He finished the day two for four with two runs scored and a stolen base. Probably his most impressive stat of the game was 0 errors. But maybe I should also tell you that not one ground ball came to second while Skip was out there. "I wanted the first ball to come to me. I wanted to get it out of the way," Schumaker explained. "Whether I was going to kick it, whether I was going to make the play, whatever it was going to be, I wanted a ball to come at me."

To be fair though, he did make two put-outs on the field flawlessly. The first one was right in his comfort zone: a pop up behind second that Skip ranged back to make the catch. He later also made the play on a soft line drive hit in his direction.

Rick Ankiel, Albert Pujols and Colby Rasmus all were effective at the plate as well. Ricky went two for three with a double and two runs driven in. Pujols reached base all three plate appearances with two walks and a single. And Colbster had a pair of hits in five trips, including a double, a walk and a run scored. Maybe he can live up to the hype.

Blake Hawksworth had a notable game of his own. After being given the honor of starting the Cardinals' first preseason game, Blake did not let anyone down. He pitched 2 2/3 scoreless innings Wednesday. He had a rough start in the first inning, but was able to settle down and finish with two strikouts, one walk, and two hits allowed. "That first inning I had some nerves, but I felt like I grinded it out in the first,"explained Hawksworth. "I got a ground ball when I needed it. And then I was able to catch my breath and kind of get in a rhythm after that. It was a lot of fun to get to start." Hawksworth was originally planning on representing Team Canada in the WBC, but changed his plans to stay and work with the team instead to increase his chances of earning a roster spot.

One final honorable mention was Royce Ring. I know I gave the club a lot of grief for picking him up, but he managed to retire all four batters he faced. He struck out two of the four while mowing the heart of the order. Keep it up Royce.

On Thursday the Cards play the Orioles again at 12:05 central. The Cardinals are away and five players won't be making the trip: Schumaker, Pujols, Greene, Ankiel and LaRue. Kyle Lohse is scheduled to make the start.