Happy Flight! Cardinals remarkable run takes them to the World Series

Left for dead in late August, the St. Louis Cardinals are heading to the World Series. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

On September 7th, even after a 2-0 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals, Milwaukee Brewers talkative center-fielder Nyjer Morgan took to Twitter to voice his content: “Where still n 1st and I hope those crying birds injoy watching tha Crew in tha Playoffs!!! Aaaaahhhhh!!!”

At that point, the Brewers were eight and a half games up on the Cardinals, a team that was also six and a half behind the Atlanta Braves in the Wild Card standings. Thirty-nine days later, St. Louis was celebrating on Milwaukee’s field, in Morgan’s presence, having knocked out his Brewers to punch their ticket to the World Series.

The Cardinals 22nd win in 31 games since the night of Morgan’s tweet was a powerful display that exemplified just how good they are. They scored first for the sixth-straight time, putting up four runs in the first–three on a homer by NLCS MVP David Freese. They managed to hold on to an advantage after a crazy, homer-filled Brewers comeback, hitting a few blasts themselves and pulling away late.

Not long ago, the Altanta Braves were expected to make the postseason. They held that eight and a half game lead and looked strong. Then, as the Braves bullpen hit a wall the Cardinals’ caught fire. It played as big a role in the team’s comeback as anything.

St. Louis would need that relief core on this night, as starting pitcher Edwin Jackson almost coughed up the early lead and lasted just two innings. Over the next seven five relievers combined to allow just two runs on three hits, with impressively bearded closer Jason Motte blowing away Mark Kotsay for the final out.

The celebration had begun. A chant of “Happy Flight” broke out, a cheer coined by shortstop Rafael Furcal after St. Louis stunningly disposed of the Philadelphia Phillies in the division series.

Their winning this series wasn’t as shocking, but it was nonetheless surprising. They even thought it was.

“Well, it was crazy,” outfielder Matt Holliday said. “We had a lot of adversity, but we found a way.”

Tony La Russa’s old-fashioned Cardinals relied on under-the-radar players, rising stars, and accomplished veterans like Holliday to beat the Brewers. They proved to be as likable as a team can get and very easy to root for. Their makeup is made for the World Series, full of great stories.

Lance Berkman, 35, is one of them. His career appeared to be on his last legs when he was with the New York Yankees, but he won the Comeback Player of the Year Award this season in the middle of the lineup. He had an rbi-single in Game 6.

The 33-year-old Furcal was in the same boat as Berkman, but that was just earlier this season. He was struggling in Los Angeles when the Cardinals traded for him on July 31st. All he did with St. Louis was excel as their leadoff hitter. He hit a towering homer to left early in Game 6.

Freese couldn’t stay healthy in the minor leagues and wasn’t a big-name prospect, but he proved how dangerous he could be on the biggest stage. He had his coming-out party in the regular season and has constantly delivering in the clutch this postseason. He went 3-4 with three runs scored and those aforementioned rbi’s.

Twenty-four-year-old reliever Lance Lynn was activated from the disabled list seven days ago and, despite being out since August, managed to throw 5 1/3 scoreless innings. He tossed a scoreless inning in Game 6.

Motte, another red-headed Redbird, had spent much of the season as a set-up man, but stepped into the closer’s role out of necessity in September and proceeded to dominate, hitting triple-digits with his fastball and consistently overwhelming opponents. The 29-year-old in his fourth year shut the door on Game 6.

Overall, the bullpen tossed 28 1/3 innings in the series, an average of 4 2/3 per game. The Cardinals became the first team every to win a best-of-seven series without having a starter go more than five innings. In their four wins, the relievers threw compiled 20 innings, allowing only three runs on six hits. The Brewers hit an amazingly poor .098 over that span against the relief core.

The bullpen was so important that Freese wanted to give his NLCS MVP Award to the whole lot.

“I wish we could make eight or nine of these and give them to our bullpen,” he said. “They’re the reason why we won this series.”

He also was so happy about his award and about how far the Cardinals have come.

“That’s unbelievable,” he told ESPN’s Tim Kurkjian. “It’s a team game. The individual awards are something else, but you’ve got to be a team to win this whole thing. To do this is something special.”

Then came the question Morgan never thought would be asked: “If someone had asked you when you were 10 1/2 out [on August 25th] that you were going to win the Pennant, what would you have said at that time?”

“Honestly?” Freese responded, laughing. “I would have probably said ‘no chance, but we’re going to try.’ Piece by piece, we got it done.”

Now, with Morgan’s Brewers in the rear-view mirror and the Texas Rangers straight ahead, Freese and his unlikely participant in the World Series will try to accomplish even more.