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By Randy Gardner

I thought for sure that I would be writing this week’s column about how the St Louis Blues are one game away from heading to the next round of the playoffs but once again as I have done for years upon years, I’m  writing about how they are letting it slowly slip away.

On Tuesday, after they fell last night 4-3 after being up 2-0, they will have played one more game before you read this so I will give a couple of scenarios. Either the Blues are one win away or they are on the ropes heading back to Los Angeles. It goes back to the same thing I talk about all of the time, Momentum . You have seen throughout this series, leads being squandered and lost and then the other team gets the momentum. That is exactly what is happening right now.

Breaking it all down, it comes down to the experience of a Stanley Cup winning Franchise like LA to an inexperienced playoff team in the Blues. Hopefully goaltending will get hot and the Blues will prevail.

Starters and Bullpen Can Both Excell

So many people love different aspects of a ball team especially the St. Louis Cardinals. In years past, it has always been about the hitting with Albert Pujols and then it was the infield play but it really always comes down to pitching.

The Cardinals have always had a good bunch of starters and relievers but it didn’t take long for  some of them to start dropping like flies. It either seems like the Cards have excellent starting pitching or relief pitching, never are they on a roll at the same time. That has been pretty evident this year also.

Surprisingly though, the bullpen  with some new young arms has really stepped things up over the past  week or so and have been a pleasant surprise. If this team can put it all together they can definitely be a major force in this division, not that they aren’t already based on the standings

I am a huge fan of Mike Matheny and would love to see him pull it together again this year. I think the players both as rookies and veterans buy into his philosophy. It’s a philosophy that needs to be brought back into sports.

NASCAR Can Get You Hooked on Sport

You  may also know that I am a huge NASCAR fan and it is only getting better in this sport as the rivalries are heating up even more. The crashes are getting bigger and better and the drivers are showing more emotion than ever. If you watch the post-race comments, drivers are baring their souls about other drivers and race teams.

They are almost putting bounties out on them. It is truly creating the villain and hero scenario that we used to see in the past. It is a lot of fun. It is truly a sport that bleeds emotion.

If you have always turned your nose to it, pick your favorite number or color of car or driver and follow it for a few weeks. You will be hooked. Before you know it, you will have bumper stickers on your car, wearing a bandana, or even  buying an RV to follow the races around the country. Be cautious, it is easy to get hooked on this sport.

And last, but never least…don’t forget Moms on their day this Sunday.  You can even take Mom to the Cardinals game and get a big floppy hat.

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