Cardinals' win an all-time Classic

ST. LOUIS

It was the 10th inning of Game 6 of the 1986 World Series.

Only a double feature.

It was the ninth inning of 2001 Game 4, followed by the ninth inning of 2001 Game 5.

In back-to-back innings, rather than back-to-back nights.

It was, unquestionably, an all-timer. A fitting gem for this 2011 baseball season that just won't end.

And now we'll wrap it up with the best event in all of sports: A Fall Classic Game 7.

As a beaming Tony La Russa said afterward to Newsday alumnus Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated: "Wow."

Wow, what a game. What a series. What resiliency by this Cardinals team, which faced two-run deficits in both the ninth and 10th innings and, for good measure, went down to its last strike in both frames as well.

What a night at the ballpark.

David Freese's 11th-inning homer off Mark Lowe made the Cardinals victorious in Game 6, 10-9 over Texas, late Thursday nightat Busch Stadium, tying the series at three games apiece.

"It's incredible to be a part of this," Freese said.

Freese's saga alone was pretty incredible. The NLCS MVP, he committed a cartoon-ish error to start the fifth, dropping an easy pop fly by Josh Hamilton that led to a run. And before he ended the game in the 11th, he kept it alive in the ninth with a two-out, two-run, two-strike triple to rightfield against Rangers closer Neftali Feliz, bringing home Albert Pujols and Lance Berkman.

When Hamilton went deep for a two-run homer off St. Louis' Jason Motte in the 10th, the Rangers again seemed poised to win their first title in franchise history. But Texas manager Ron Washington lifted Feliz for Darren Oliver, who could get just one out. And with two outs, a runner on second and one run in, Scott Feldman intentionally walked Pujols to go after Berkman, who stroked a game-tying single, sending the game to the 11th.

"I actually felt pretty good about it, because I figured I was in a no-lose situation," Berkman said. "If you don't come through right there, it's only one at-bat, and it's over with, and they might talk about it for a couple of days, but it's not that big a deal.

"If you come through, it's the greatest, and plus you've built up a little bank account of being able to come through, so that if I don't come through [in Game 7], I can be like, 'Well, I came through in Game 6. What do you want from me?' "

This whole team has compiled quite a bank account with its rabid fans. Suddenly, La Russa's bullpen phone snafus seem as distant as memories of Bob Gibson and Lou Brock.

How about the Rangers? This is a team that hasn't lost two straight games since a three-game skid Aug. 23-25. Now the Rangers must rebound from coming so close to their ultimate goal and falling short.

Twice.

"You know, it's not that easy to win a world championship, as we found out tonight," manager Ron Washington said. "We had the right people in the right spot, and they beat us.

"We'll bounce back [Friday night]. We've been in some tough situations before. We've always responded, and I expect us to respond [Friday night].''

I don't doubt him. Baseball has provided so many thrills, spills and chills since the final week of the regular season. And now we're down to the grand finale.

It's going to be awfully hard to top Game 6. Maybe flat-out impossible.

But they're going to try.

At this point, who could turn away?