Pirates Series Win Over Cardinals Sign of Things to Come?

"Cutch" Had 2 Hits and 3 RBI Sun. vs the Cards

So I took the weekend off from writing Pirates articles.  Sometimes they are too hard to watch/listen to, and basically I needed the time to re-boot the hard drive that is my brain before I go back to work (if you haven't pieced the puzzle together yet I am a school teacher).  I figured that I would sit down and write up something about the Buccos after the Cardinals series to really see where this team is at that point. 

I don't think I can stress enough just how big a series win this is for the Pirates.  The fact that they were able to go to St. Louis (a place they haven't had much luck the past few years) and take 2 out of 3 is a phenomenal feat.  The way they capped it off with the 19-inning, 6+ hour, 13 men left on base marathon could certainly have Mr. Momentum changing his address to the Pittsburgh, PA district.  Personally, as I listened to the entire 19-inning game on the radio I couldn't help but connect the dots to last year's 19-inning loss to the Braves in Atlanta that some still say derailed a promising season.  There are plenty of differences (the fact that it was earlier in the season), but too many similarities to ignore.  The game was on the road, they played 19-innings, there were plenty of close plays (Neil Walker not beating out a double play ball to score the go-ahead run in extra innings), and to top things off...Jerry Meals was behind the plate (the same umpire that made the dreadful call against the Pirates at Atlanta last year in that season's 19-inning drama-fest).  Regardless, with some questionable balls/strikes and plays being called it didn't take away plenty to be impressed about.  Jeff Karstens is the forgotten man that 2-hit the Cardinals and left after pitching 7 quality innings.  Then the Pirates exhausted their bull-pen...literally.  Jared Hughes, Juan Cruz, Kevin Correia (who the St. Louis radio announcers kept calling "Korea"), Joel Hanrahan, and even tapping into their starting rotation to have Wandy Rodriguez pitch the final 3 innings and actually giving him his first win as a Pirate.  I could certainly write about how the Pirates blew 2 opportunities to take the lead earlier in extra innings: 1 out triple and a No-out Double, but instead I've decided to stay positive and just enjoy the win.

All the drama of the day, afternoon, and evening doesn't put into perpsective the SERIES.  The Pirates had only won 3 of their last 7 and everyone had already written their obituary, but the Pirates stood tall and made the plays necessary to pull out a HUGE series win.  The win puts them 2 games above the Cardinals in the Wild Card standing as well as in the division race.  The Reds continue to win and have a 6.5 game lead over the Battlin' Buccos in the NL Central.  I find it hard to believe, but it just happens to be that the Cardinals were 6.5 games back at this time last year and ended up winning the World Series.  Am I saying the Pirates are going to win the Series?  Lets not get ahead of ourselves here...but who is to say they can't get hot again at the right time?! 

Let me put it this way, the Pirates are preparing now for a 3 game set with the Padres in San Diego before they come back to PNC Park with 2 BIG series vs. the Brewers and the Cardinals.  If they could sweep ONE of those 3 series and win the other 2, then I think they will be in good shape in the Wild Card standings, and hopefully gain some ground on the Reds at the same time.  Just remember how the 19-inning LOSS last year derailed the season, it could do the opposite after winning this wild game.  On a complete side note, I called home at the end of the 9th inning to talk with my parents, and during the conversation with my father I jokingly (note...JOKINGLY) said to him, "Watch this baseball game run into the Steelers Game!"  He said I was crazy, and I never thought it would, but the game ended as the Steeler game was kicking off.  An incredible day for the Pirates, a big series win, and where this will lead them...who knows, but enjoy the ride!