Royalties & Cardinalate

The ultimate experience

Game 2 is tonight. I will be there. It is possibly my final playoff game at Busch Stadium. Oh man, it is going to be a scintillating atmosphere. Nothing against day games, but they just cannot compare to the surreal build-up of a night playoff game. Plus, when you wake up typically at noon it is hard to get too fired up for a day game. Not great seats, but it will be a nice break from Joe Morgan’s ramblings.

We have Kansas City to thank for not only overlooking Albert Pujols in their own backyard, but the Royals let Kiko Calero walk as a minor league free agent two years ago (says MLB.com) . Calero went 3-1 with a 2.78 ERA and had 47 strikeouts and only 10 walks in 45 1/3 innings this season. Calero was also brilliant in Game 1 with a scoreless frame with two Ks. Thanks, KC.

Yankee Stadium plays the Allman Brothers during coaching visits to the mound. Very cool. Perhaps I’ll bust out a 38-minute version of Mountain Jam tomorrow in case I get stuck in traffic on the way to Busch.

Also from MLB: Adam Wainwright made his first game appearance in nearly four months on Tuesday, starting for the Mesa Solar Sox of the Arizona Fall League. This guy will be worth following this offseason.

Edmonds needs to step up

The playoffs will be the first thing on my mind upon rising later today. It will be very intense; a huge contrast to the past couple of weeks, which have been extremely casual for players and fans in St. Louis. We can only expect the Redbirds juggernaut to suddenly kick it back into high gear now that their immediate destiny is officially on the line. Can't expect less from a 105-win team. Besides the many poor starts these past few weeks, I am concerned with Jim Edmonds. Dude is 1-for-28 since September 22, though it has not been mentioned much. This is, potentially, a real problem. A noon playoff game on a week day always has interesting ramifications, but my plan it to use TiVo and kick back around 3 p.m. after some necessary productivity. Mildly risky (no answering phones, avoiding media etc.), but it will be much smoother – and enjoyable - this way. No distractions once I get locked in. I’m damn anxious.