Morris (9-1, 3.31)
Webb (8-4, 3.24)
Happy Fourth, folks. So, which Diamondbacks team will turn up for the pool party today? The keg-toting animals who pounded Dodger pitching yesterday, or the lame losers in waterwings, who could barely get the ball out of the infield in the series opener? Let's hope it's the former, because when you're facing the likely best team in the NL - they just had six players named to the All-Star Game - you need to fire on all cylinders.
At least the pitching matchup today should give us a chance: Webb has a slightly better ERA, but just look at that W/L record for Morris. No qualifying starter in the majors has a better win percentage: that's what happens when you play for a team like the Cardinals, and are no slouch on the mound to boot.
Really, we should not have much of a chance in this series; the Cards ERA is a lot lower than ours (3.54 vs. 4.87), though their batters have only got thirteen more hits than us. A split would be about the best we can hope for; anything more than that will be a very pleasant surprise indeed.
And for the first time, we say "Hello!" to Viva El Birdos, the St. Louis entry in the SportsBlogs nation. Must be nice to have a ten-game lead in your division - not to mention a team called the Cardinals that doesn't suck...