ST. LOUIS _ The unthinkable started with a walk, as so many things do.
This was back on Sept. 2, 2011, five years ago. Something called "Karaoke Battle USA" was on ABC; the iPhone 4s was not yet in our pockets; Roger Clemens had just left a federal courthouse where he was possibly facing a second trial for alleged lies about PED use; and Donald J. Trump was reviewing books, calling Dick Cheney's memoir "very, very angry and nasty." It was a different time. Pastoral. Even Twitter was quaint.
And, the Cardinals could score on Aroldis Chapman.
I was reminded of the anniversary and, knowing what we now know, it's a fascinating flashback. The Cardinals limped into September and after an 11-8 loss to Chapman and the Cincinnati Reds they trailed by 8{ games in the National League Central and the National League wild-card race. They had 24 games remaining. Like the fact that WWE Smackdown! appeared on SyFy network that night, there isn't much familiar about the lineups or the moment. Sure Edgar Renteria was starting at shortstop, but for Cincinnati. Yadier Molina is the only member of the Cardinals' lineup on Sept. 2, 2011, who is still on the active roster, and the Cardinals' starting pitcher that night was just inducted into the team's Hall of Fame.
Chris Carpenter allowed six runs on eight hits and one walk in six innings against the Reds. He wouldn't allow that many runs the rest of the month, not in the 40 innings he pitched.
Still, the Cardinals had rallied to tie the game, 5-5, in the bottom of the fifth inning, and they'd rally again to tie the game, 6-6, in the sixth. David Freese hit a solo, leadoff home run _ not yet his thing, you know _ in the bottom of the sixth to knot the game, for a moment.
Rafael Furcal "hit his third homer in three days _ a first for him in his career _ in the fifth as the Cardinals tied the game and Freese hit his ninth in the sixth as they retired it," Rick Hummel wrote in the game story from that day. "But a couple of other surges were blunted by the dreaded double play as the Cardinals extended their major league lead to 147 double plays grounded into with two on Friday, both coming with two men on."
Yonder Alonso put the Reds ahead in the seventh, with a home run.
To start the eighth inning, the Reds turned to lefty Chapman to hold the lead. (Francisco Cordero was the closer back then.) Molina drew a leadoff walk. He took second when second baseman Ryan Theriot walked. Allen Craig pinch-hit for Mitchell Boggs _ their careers on the upswing _ and grounded out to move Molina to third. Furcal singled Molina home for an RBI.
History.
That was the last run the Cardinals scored against Chapman.
Five years ago.
That was the eighth time in his young career that Chapman had faced the Cardinals. The next time came in April, when he was the closer. Chapman struck out five in a two-inning appearance that netted him the win. As a closer, Chapman has been on the verge of perfect against the Cardinals. His stats are Nintendo.
Now with the Cubs as their closer, Chapman has gone his past eight appearances against the Cardinals without allowing a hit. His next appearance against them could complete a no-hitter 17 months in the making. This has been repeated often, but is worth noting again: Not once since he took over the job as manager has Mike Matheny seen the Cardinals score a run against the Cubs biggest trade deadline acquisition.
But there's hope for Matheny's lineup.
Well, if not hope, there's a hint.
"Even Joe Maddon admits Aroldis Chapman is the shiny new toy the Cubs are trying to figure out how to use out of the bullpen," CSN Chicago baseball writer Patrick Mooney wrote Thursday in an article about preserving the lefty for October. "Chapman ... has been as good as advertised _ 12-for-14 in save chances, 1.62 ERA, 28 strikeouts in 162/3 innings _ though not the four- or five-out closer the Cubs envisioned changing the shape of entire playoff games."
Chapman pitched three consecutive games this past week against the Pirates, helping the Cardinals increase their wild-card lead on the Bucs with three Cubs victories. He wasn't pitching for the Cardinals, but he was pitching for the Cardinals. In his final appearance of the series, a one-inning save on Wednesday, Chapman needed 31 pitches to get through the inning. He faced six batters and allowed one run. The hint helped.
Two wild pitches put the runner in position to score.
Another wild pitch put the tying run at second.
A walk, which involved a wild pitch, put the go-ahead run on base.
There was a time when the Cardinals sent Tommy Pham to the plate in a key spot against Chapman because Pham had excelled at hitting fastballs all season. He remains a solid fastball hitter. He was up there to swing and did until turning back to the dugout. Chapman doesn't just throw fastballs; he throws meteors. Sometimes they're comets and slide. In their five years without a run against him, the Cardinals have walked just six times. They have walked five times since July 2013 against Chapman. It's so few times that we can easily look up the hitters and celebrate the dates of their patience:
Yadier Molina _ Aug. 5, 2015
Matt Holliday _ April 12, 2015
Tony Cruz _ Sept. 20, 2014
Matt Holliday _ Sept. 11, 2014
Carlos Beltran _ Sept. 5, 2013
And, yet, here's the thing: Every time the Cardinals have scored a run against Chapman he walks a batter. Every time. In fact, it has privately been one of the thoughts the Cardinals have had when facing Chapman. Twenty-one times the lefty has faced three or fewer batters against the Cardinals. Eighteen times he hasn't allowed a baserunner. That, the Cardinals say, means they haven't seen him from the stretch much. Some Cardinals hitters have never faced him from the stretch. He's always from the windup. A walk changes that. A little patience might go a long way.
In May 2011, the Cardinals did that, too. A young, heat-seeking Chapman record one out and did not allow a hit. He did, however, walk four batters and all four would score.
The last run he allowed against the Cardinals _ five years ago _ was a walk.
Molina took it. Molina scored it.
And we all know where that led.
Starting the day after their last solved Chapman, the Cardinals won 17 of their next 24 games. They had the best record in the National League during that stretch, and they ran down Atlanta, who had the worst, 8-17. That allowed the Cardinals to creep into October and go gonzo. They would oust the 100-win Phillies, topple division champion Milwaukee, and follow Freese to the 11th World Series title in franchise history. Anything's possible. Even, apparently, a primetime show on network television called "Karaoke Battle USA." Even Donald J. Trump reviewing a book it turns out he didn't read.
Even scoring on Chapman.
