Sure, Three More Days Of Hell Sounds GREAT

Well, all right then.

Of all the St. Louis Cardinals losses of the last two weeks — and heavens knows there have been a ton of them — none probably hurt more than last night's debacle. Not only did they fall behind 8-0 in the third inning, but, in the Happy World atmosphere that is St. Louis baseball, even the fans have now turned. Busch Stadium was half-empty by the fifth inning, and those who stayed around were doing that sarcastic applause thing of which vintage we wouldn't imagined our hometown brethren capable. We are very sad to have been right about this; why does the only prediction we've ever made that comes true have to be such a painful one?

Whole world's comin' to an end, Mal, and this weekend seems less like a last chance to stave off a disaster and more like a coronation: Anyone who has watched the Cardinals all season has known they were capable of this, and if someone was going to suffer such a horrific collapse, it probably should be the 2006 Cardinals. And we know everyone's probably rooting for this to happen. And we kind of understand that too.

So yeah. Cardinals baseball. It's three nights in September, Tony. (Or two nights in September and one in October.) Thanks for this, man. What a run.

Few Believers Left In Cardinal Nation [St. Louis Post-Dispatch] lonely little game [Viva El Birdos] Offseason Of Discontent [Baseball Prospectus]