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The entire sequence was a blur to Mike Matheny. So was his throw to first base that saved the St. Louis Cardinals.
Matheny made a super play behind the plate for the final out, and the Cardinals held off the Philadelphia Phillies 6-5 Tuesday night.
With the bases loaded and two outs in the ninth, closer Jason Isringhausen struck out Pat Burrell swinging at a high fastball.
The ball deflected off Matheny's glove all the way to the backstop, but the two-time Gold Glove winner chased it down. With no play at the plate, he fired a long throw to first, getting Burrell by a half-step and preserving the victory.
``I don't remember seeing it. I just chucked it,'' Matheny said. ``It could have been real ugly. It would have been a nightmare.''
It was an ending that Matheny, Isringhausen and even 25-year veteran manager Tony La Russa had never seen.
``I can never figure this game out,'' La Russa said. ``It had a little bit of
everything tonight.''
Scott Rolen and Jim Edmonds each drove in two runs for St. Louis.
Bobby Abreu hit two of Philadelphia's four homers. Jim Thome and Burrell also connected.
Five Cardinals relievers combined for four scoreless innings. Isringhausen struck out the side in the ninth for his third save in four chances. The Cardinals walked Thome intentionally with runners at first and second and two outs to get to Burrell.
``Thome has a ton of confidence against us,'' La Russa said of the slugger's .444 average and 15 career homers against St. Louis. ``If we're going to walk into the clubhouse and somebody beat you, it can't be him.''
Chris Carpenter (2-1) got the win despite allowing all four homers and five earned runs in five innings.
Phillies starter Brett Myers (0-2) had another subpar outing, allowing 10 hits and six runs -- three earned -- in 5 2-3 innings. Myers, who won 14 games last season, has yet to go more than six innings this year. His ERA stands at 6.64.
AP - May 4, 9:41 pm EDT
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His spot as the Phillies' fifth starter might be secure for now, but rookie
reliever Ryan Madson's 15 2-3 scoreless innings this season could mean a demotion
for Myers soon.
``A loss is always tough, but I felt good tonight,'' Myers said. ``My command was the best it's been for some time.''
With the Cardinals ahead 5-2 in the fifth, Abreu, Thome and Burrell hit consecutive home runs to tie it. It was the fifth time in franchise history the Phillies hit three in a row. The last time it occurred -- April 29, 1999 -- Rolen hit the first homer.
St. Louis regained the lead in the bottom half on an RBI grounder by Tony Womack that scored Marlon Anderson -- also a former Phillie.
Mike Lieberthal narrowly missed a two-run homer in the eighth when his drive off Julian Tavarez sailed several feet wide of the left-field foul pole. Lieberthal then grounded out.
``We battled until the end, but we got all our runs on home runs,'' Phillies manager Larry Bowa said.
Rolen, traded from Philadelphia to St. Louis in 2002 after a long, public dispute with Phillies management, was booed loudly the entire game.
Rolen shook off the rough treatment to give the Cardinals the early lead with a two-out, two-run single in the first inning. St. Louis took a 3-0 lead in the third when Womack reached on an error by shortstop Jimmy Rollins and scored on a two-out single by Edmonds.
Abreu homered in the bottom half to cut it to 3-2.
But in the fifth, the Cardinals tacked on two more unearned runs. Womack singled with one out and advanced on a wild pitch. Ray Lankford hit a grounder that Thome misplayed at first base, scoring Womack and sending Lankford tosecond. Two batters later, Edmonds lined a single to right-center.
Notes
Phillies 3B David
Bell started despite a sore hip that relegated him to pinch-hitting duties on
Sunday. ... Thome's eighth homer of the season was the 389th of his career,
tying him with Hall of Famer Johnny Bench for 42nd place on the all-time list.
Thome is one behind Graig Nettles. ... Abreu improved to 7-for-15 career against
Carpenter. ... Rolen is batting .407 (22-for-57) against the Phillies since
being traded. His two hits off Myers made him 7-for-13 this season. ... Womack
stole his ninth base in the sixth inning and has yet to be thrown out. ... Phillies
reliever Roberto Hernandez limped off the field with a strained calf and slammed
his glove down after making a putout in the seventh. He strained his calf earlier
this year, too. After the game, the team placed Hernandez on the 15-day DL and
called up LHP Jim Crowell fromthe minors. Madson will take over Hernandez's
role in the bullpen.
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