I can’t believe it. This is so surreal. My favorite player a CUB!! All of the Cub faithful have come out of the woodwork in the last 2 days to torment me with this. And there is no way I am going to be a CUB fan for anything. Jim Edmonds in pinstripes, yuck. That guy looks better in Cardinal red. So to all of you Cub fans, have your laughs, after all you think that 100 years is long enough to wait for the ring and surely he is part of the puzzle. But then, every conquest is a so-called part of the World Series puzzle, right?

Anyway, so much for all that. Looking forward to getting to San Diego and enjoying my vacation. I think it will be a blast to be out among the Cardinal faithful–there is always a bunch of red shirts out there in the stands. Hope those guys get their heads up and play like they have some sense.

The last few days there has been little good to say about the men in red. Yet, as I write this the game is on in the background and Ankiel snagged one that was over the fence. Shades of Jim Edmonds?! Actually, I will be the first to give Ankiel his props. The guy has really turned his baseball career around. Who would have thought that the young kid who lost it all in a few days would come back to play center field like a veteran. And pity the fool who tests his arm on the bases–he throws that ball like a rocket. It gives me chills to see him hit the cutoff guy.

It started out as a beautiful morning–blue skies and sunshine for the first time in days here in the Midwest. That seemed to be magnified when I turned on Sportcenter and noticed a tag that the next story was to be about Edmonds. I thought he must have made another of his magnificent catches. I could never have been more shocked–I knew those Padres wouldn’t know a class player when they had one. The story was that “my boy Jim Edmonds” was released the night before!!! I was blown away and ticked off. I was leaving in a mere week to see him play against the Cardinals. So now, I’m still going and I intend to really yell for the Cardinals–with no Padre diversions. So, Jim, wherever you are, your fans are still out here hoping that someone picks you up.

In the meantime, the Cardinal Nation has been yelling about Izzy’s third blown save in eight days. I always look at it not only as a blown save, but usually as a loss for the starting pitcher, namely Wainwright and Pinero. In yesterday’s game, Duncan, who has been riding the pine due to his hitting slump, broke out with a homer in the 4th inning. Things seemed to be rolling along well for Pinero, until the 7th, when he was relieved by McClellan, who gave up 2 walks. The Brew Crew scored 2 and Prince Fielder cranked one out on Villone in the 8th to tie it at 3. Looked like “the bullpen by committee” was leaving alot to be desired. Ludwick, who hit 2 bombs the other day in a losing cause against the Rockies, came through with 2 out in the ninth. His hit scored Pujols, who was intentionally walked by Gagne. Eric Gagne, once a game saving phenom with the Dodgers, has fallen on the same tough times as Izzy. So, what started out as a beautiful morning, ended on a good note–one in the “W” column.

Ever since that first game at the old Busch stadium in 1966, I have been a Cardinal fan. Over the years I have become a bigger and bigger fan, taking in as many games as my bank account will allow. I will say that as I ‘ve grown older I have become more discriminating about what the ballpark experience means to me. I’m not content to merely be in the ballpark–no more nosebleed or bleacher seats if I can snag better seats. Through the years I’ve had many favorite players–namely Jack Clark and Jim Edmonds–both of whom I have been able to meet. I’ve been lucky enough to see Spring Training in Jupiter and seen the Cardinals play in old and new stadiums. As I write this I am looking forward to my latest road trip, or should I say, airplane ride, which is taking me to San Diego. Of course I have an ulterior motive and that is to see Jim Edmonds as a Padre.