Cardinals At Rangers World Series Game 5 Preview

With the results of the fourth game of the 2011 World Series still pending, it's impossible to know exactly what will be at stake when the St. Louis Cardinals and Texas Rangers meet for Game 5 on Monday.  But whether it's a close-out game for the Cardinals or the opportunity for them or the Rangers to take a 3-2 lead, it's easy to understand its importance.

St. Louis took a 2-1 lead into Sunday's Game 4 following a 16-7 explosion on Saturday.  Albert Pujols tied postseason single-game records with three homers and six runs driven in.  The offensive fireworks in Game 3 featured nearly triple the eight runs the two clubs combined to score in the first two games of the Series.

In addition to the burst by Pujols, three Texas errors and a blown call by 1B umpire Ron Kulpa also contributed heavily to the scoring in Game 3.

The offense figured to continue in Game 4 when St. Louis' Edwin Jackson and Texas lefty Derek Holland were opposing each other on the hill.  Oddsmakers certainly were expecting it with a 10½-run total, the highest so far in this Fall Classic and befitting a couple of hurlers that have gone 6-0 to the 'over' in their combined postseason starts with more than 14 runs per game scoring in those outings.

Texas was favored to tie up the series in Game 4 with the MLB odds at -160.

Neither club had officially named its starting pitcher for Game 5 as of Sunday afternoon, but the initial mound battle is projected to be a rematch of Game 1 with Chris Carpenter going for St. Louis against Texas' CJ Wilson.

As big as Holland's start was for Texas in Game 4, Wilson's assignment on Monday will be even bigger.  If the Rangers are going to survive or take a 3-2 lead back to St. Louis, Wilson will have to completely turn things around in what has been a very rough postseason with control issues really hounding the southpaw.

Texas has won just one of Wilson's four October outings, his ERA well up there at 7.17.  He's walked 14 in just over 21 innings, nearly double his regular season walk rate.  Six of those walks, plus a hit batter, came in Game 1's 3-2 loss last Wednesday with Texas +115 at the betting window.

Carpenter and the Redbirds were -125 for the game, the Cards' fourth consecutive postseason win behind their big righty.  He only burned up 87 pitches in that start (6 IP, 2 ER).

Five previous starts at Rangers Ballpark, including Carpenter's days with the Blue Jays, have produced mixed results.  His lone start here in a St. Louis jersey came in the only previous meeting between these two franchises during the 2004 season.  Carpenter gave up 10 hits and seven runs, failing to make it through the sixth inning, but the only hitter left from that Rangers lineup is Michael Young.

Ted Barrett, an 18-year veteran working his 13th postseason series, will handle the plate for Game 5.  He was 17-13-2 to the 'over' in the regular season, but has since worked an 'under' when he called the balls and strikes in Detroit's 3-2 win at New York in the decisive Game 5 of their ALDS.

Barrett's only other World Series plate action was Game 3 of the 2007 World Series, a 10-5 win for the Red Sox in Colorado against the Rockies.

Weather should not be a factor on Monday with clear skies and relatively little wind in Arlington.  The thermometer should be around 80ºF at first pitch (8:05 p.m. ET).

If the Series does shift back to St. Louis, Game 6 will be Wednesday night at the same time.  No pitchers have been posted, but it would likely be Colby Lewis for the Rangers against St. Louis southpaw Jaime Garcia.