Record: 41-43. Change on last season: +11
I think that largely answered the question regarding which Diamondbacks team would turn up at the July 4th party: less the life and the soul, than a creepy frat boy, who stares at the girls in bikinis and doesn't talk to anyone. As we pounded the Dodgers on Sunday, so we were pounded by the Cardinals on Monday - same score, different direction, batting practice jerseys or not.
And like all the best parties, a fight broke out. Well, a bit of argy-bargy in the sixth, after we scored our run: Morris and Cruz exchanged words, apparently over a suggestion Green (on second) was stealing signs. Said Morris, "It's hard enough to get guys out if they know what's coming, not that they were, but we were just trying to protect against what's going on." If you can work out what that means, do let me know.
Not that we had much chance to steal signs, Morris allowing only one run over seven innings. Meanwhile, the Cardinals scored five off Webb, with the turning point a double play that wasn't quite turned in the third: instead of the innings ending, St. Louis went on to score three more. Webb was by no means awful, allowing four earned runs over seven innings, but it won't have helped his chances in the Final Man vote for the All-Star game. [He's currently a credible third]
Glaus drove in all three runs, including his 200th homer, while Green had three hits, batting in the clean-up spot, and Cruz added a couple. Our bullpen fell apart in no uncertain terms: between them, Aquino and Lopez faced eight Cardinals, and allowed four hits and three walks. It's now been eleven days and five appearances since Lopez even recorded an out: Shane Nance must be on the verge of being called up. Hell, even Choate would be a better option at this point.
Thanks to Devin and Otacon for proving there's life in the D'backs fanbase, if perhaps not the team. Not much else to report - I could always fabricate some rumour about us trading for Danys Baez... Counsell was apparently in the final cut of players from the All-Star team, which is nice - but that and $14.50 will get Craig into the Hall of Fame. Lyon threw another bullpen session, but I doubt he'll begin rehabbing in Tucson until after the All-Star break.
So, in non-Diamondback news, looks like Go Daddy may be moving me. To Gilbert. :-( Yes, the reason I took the job was because I wanted to drive to the other side of the city every day... However, we're also contemplating moving, simply because the real-estate bubble in this area is too huge to ignore any longer (and with youngest kid graduating this year, we don't need a good school district any longer).
We're currently looking at the options, only it seems everywhere in the Valley is now extortionate. Maybe we'll just move to a trailer in Prescott - can blog just as well from there! And it might be a good bit cooler too, for this is the time of year when it's a chore to live in Arizona. Made the mistake of bringing in the newspaper in bare feet earlier on, and I think skin grafts may now be required on my soles...
Oh, well: I'm sure the Diamondbacks will continue to cool off, and act like a giant air-conditioning system, sucking the heat away from the rest of the valley. Hey, we take our positives where we can find them, right?