The St. Louis Cardinals are one win away from clinching their 10th World Series.
David Eckstein's run-scoring double in the bottom of the eighth inning lifted the Cardinals to a 5-4 victory over the Detroit Tigers in Game 4 of the World Series at Busch Stadium on Thursday.
David Eckstein's double bounces off the glove of a diving Craig Monroe.
(Elise Amendola/Associated Press)
Facing rookie fireballer Joel Zumaya with Aaron Miles aboard on a fielder's choice, Eckstein doubled in the decisive run with a double off the outstretched glove of a diving Craig Monroe in left field.
"Facing Zumaya, you want to make sure you do not try to overswing," Eckstein explained. "I got a fastball and was able to get on top just enough, just barely out of the reach of Craig Monroe, who almost made one heck of a catch."
It was Eckstein's fourth hit on the night and put the Cardinals ahead 3-1 in the best-of-seven series.
"We are just trying to keep our focus," said Eckstein, whose four hits matched a World Series record for shortstops shared by Kiko Garcia, Maury Wills and Robin Yount.
Game 5 goes Friday at St. Louis (8 p.m. ET) with pitcher Jeff Weaver trying to nail down that city's first World Series title in 24 years.
Rookie Justin Verlander will take the mound for Detroit.
"I know the history," Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said. "I don't even want to talk about it, to be honest.
"What is the point of bringing that up? We need to win a game and nobody is overconfident."
"We have done a few things during the series to either, maybe, give them a run or give them some extra chances," noted Tigers manager Jim Leyland. "And obviously, they're a good enough team to take advantage of those.
"Basically, right now, they've played good enough to be 3-1. And we've played good enough to be 1-3."
Thursday's contest began in a light mist, which got heavier as the temperature dropped, but the late showers predicted in the forecast never materialized.
It was originally scheduled to be played Wednesday, but steady rain resulted in the first postponement since the opening game of the 1996 World Series between the Atlanta Braves and New York Yankees.
Rookie closer Adam Wainwright earned the win in relief of starter Jeff Suppan, who permitted three runs and eight hits in six innings pitched.
"All this is new to me and I'm just trying to act like I have been here before," Wainwright said. "No doubt, this is the most
fun I've ever had."
Suppan, voted the most valuable player in the National League Championship Series — won in seven games over the New York Mets — struck out four batters and walked two.
Detroit starter Jeremy Bonderman lasted 5 1/3 innings, surrendering two runs on six hits and four walks with four strikeouts.
Yadier Molina and Preston Wilson each provided one run batted in for the victorious Cardinals.
Casey at the bat
Sean Casey homered and drove in two runs for the Tigers, while Ivan (Pudge) Rodriguez and Brandon Inge had the other RBIs.
Casey staked the Tigers to a 1-0 lead in the top of the second inning with a solo home run to right field on a 1-0 pitch from Suppan.
One inning later, he came to the plate with Curtis Granderson and Carlos Guillen aboard on a double and a walk, respectively, and lined Suppan's first offering for an RBI single.
Rodriguez then singled in Guillen to make it 3-0, but the Cardinals responded with a run in the bottom of the inning as Miles singled and later scored on Eckstein's RBI double.
St. Louis sliced it to 3-2 in the fourth on doubles by Rolen and Molina, but stranded both players in the sixth when Fernando Rodney replaced Bonderman and struck out Miles and pinch-hitter John Rodriguez to end the threat.
The Cardinals finally pulled even in the seventh, thanks in part to the wet conditions and some sloppy fielding from Rodney.
Eckstein lined a fly ball that fell for a double when Granderson slipped on the slick turf as he backtracked in centre field.
"If I had stayed up, I catch it easily," Granderson said. "It wasn't too much of a cut.
"As soon as I planted, it went underneath me. It wasn't just wet, it was wet and soft."
Pinch-hitter So Taguchi then laid down a sacrifice bunt, but Rodney overthrew first base and Eckstein scampered home with the tying run.
"I am quite furious with myself," Rodney said. "That was an easy out.
"It is the same old story. You make mistakes and you pay for them."
Rodney's error was the fourth in four games by a Tigers hurler, setting a World Series record for a single pitching staff.
"It was a little bit of a freak inning," Leyland said. "It wasn't our best fielding in the world, but that's baseball."
Rodney quickly tried to regain his composure, fanning both Jim Edmonds and Rolen on 3-2 pitches, but Wilson delivered Taguchi with an RBI single to put St. Louis ahead 4-3.
The Tigers refused to fold, however, and tied it in the eighth as Rodriguez greeted reliever Brandon Looper with a double and later scored on Inge's RBI single off Wainwright.
With files from the Associated Press
