ST. LOUIS - This World Series, like many before it, is chock full of fun storylines. Theres David Ortiz, hitting .667 with two home runs and four walks in 16 plate appearances. If the Red Sox win this thing, hes surely the MVP of this Fall Classic. How about the Cardinals Allen Craig, hobbling around on essentially one foot and having not played a game since his injury, returning for the Series and immediately shaking off the rust to the tune of four hits in eight at-bats? He also scored a big run in Game 3, if memory serves. St. Louis Carlos Beltran deserves credit for gutting through a rib injury suffered while making a heroic, over-the-wall catch to rob Ortiz of a grand slam in opener. Bostons Felix Doubront, with 4 2/3 innings of one run ball split over two nights, has served as a credible bridge between the Red Sox starters and late relievers. But what is standing out, like the proverbial sore thumb, are the mistakes being made at crucial times in games. "We saw things that didnt quite look right but, once again, this is a game that has humans involved and there are going to be errors," said Cardinals manager Mike Matheny. "Its just going to happen and weve got to figure out how to minimize them as much as we can and get ahead of them." Red Sox manager John Farrell prefers to look ahead. "Theres been a lot of uniqueness to this entire postseason, not just this series," said Farrell. "When you consider how closely games have been played, whether its been Divisional Series in both leagues, Championship Series in both leagues, I cant imagine Major League Baseball wanting anything more than whats taken place on the field." Pete Kozma had a first game to forget. He dropped a Matt Carpenter throw to start a would-be inning ending double play, resulting in a bases loaded, one out situation for the Red Sox. Boston would score three times in that first inning. Kozma hadnt settled down by the second. With two on and one out, he couldnt corral a Shane Victorino chopper, again resulting in a bases loaded situation for the Red Sox. Boston would score twice more, lead 5-0 after two innings and would go on to win 8-1. The shoe was on the other foot in Game 2. The Red Sox led 2-1 in the seventh when the Cardinals Matt Carpenter hit a bases loaded sacrifice fly to left field to bring home the tying run. Catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia couldnt handle the throw from left fielder Jonny Gomes and it was a good thing pitcher Craig Breslow was backing up. A good thing, until Breslow tried to throw out base runner Jon Jay trying for third. He hurled the ball into left field, Jay scored the go-ahead run and St. Louis went on to win the game 4-2. Game 3 ended with an obstruction call against Boston third baseman Will Middlebrooks. It was Saltalamacchias errant throw during the play, however, which created the awkward situation between Middlebrooks and base runner Craig. Provoking eerie memories of Breslow two nights before, Saltalamacchia attempted to throw Craig out at third after he tagged out Yadier Molina trying to score. It was another ill-advised mistake and St. Louis took the series lead with a 5-4 win. Then, in Game 4, while it wasnt the reason the Cardinals lost, Boston closer Koji Ueharas pick-off of pinch runner Kolten Wong at first base for the final out was stunning. At the very least, the play took the bat out of Carlos Beltrans hands; he was up as the potential tying run in a 4-2 game. The strategies of both managers, too, have come into question, particularly Farrells in Game 3 and Mathenys in Game 4. Playing under National League rules, with the increased usage of bench players, pinch hit scenarios and defensive replacements via double switches, opens the door to greater scrutiny. For both teams, there can be no looking back. Down to a best of three, the club which wins the required two likely will be the one that makes the fewer number of mistakes. Sloppiness will be costly. "It hasnt been typical for our style of play," said Matheny. "But were still figuring out a way to get past it and getting ready for the next one." cheap jerseys . In 10 games, hes collected five goals and two assists. The idea of suffering from a sophomore slump is not something that crossed Gallaghers mind. cheap jerseys From China . - Seattle Mariners pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma will not throw for four to six weeks because of an injury to the middle finger of his right hand. http://www.overalljersey.com/. Williams, playing in Dubai courtesy of a wild card, has been sidelined with a back injury since losing to Ana Ivanovic in the fourth round of the Australian Open last month. It took Williams the first set to adjust to the left-handed Makarovas ability to jam many of her shots into the top-ranked Americans body. wholesale jerseys . Islanders coach Jack Capuano was also fined $10,000 for his role in the incident. The National Hockey Leagues Department of Player Safety announced the penalties on Saturday. Hamonic was given a minor penalty for instigating, a major penalty for fighting and a game misconduct on the play, which occurred at the 15:23 mark of the third period. cheap nfl jerseys . With only 11 players in uniform, just eight of which got into the game, the Raptors spoiled Bryants disappointing season debut just hours after Masai Ujiri pulled off a franchise-altering move. ST. LOUIS -- Over and over, Chris Carpenter insisted his elbow was fine. Sure, he got treatment, but who isnt sore this time of the year? There was no let up from the Cardinals ace, who gave his all on defence and kept it close for six innings in St. Louis 3-2 victory in the opener of the World Series on Wednesday night. He gave the bullpen a bit of a break, too, becoming the first Cardinals pitcher to go six innings since his three-hit shutout over close friend Roy Halladay and the favoured Phillies in the deciding Game 5 of the division series. Guess he wasnt hiding anything after all. "If you dont make a lot of pitches theyre going to bang you around," manager Tony La Russa said. "The thing about Carp, he was exactly what we needed." The 36-year-old Carpenter is 8-2 for his career in the post-season, breaking a tie with Hall of Famer Bob Gibson, who of course earned all of his victories in the World Series. Carpenter is 2-0 lifetime in the World Series and 3-0 this post-season. This October, the Cardinals have won all four of the 36-year-old right-handers starts. "Hes our guy," said Lance Berkman, who had a two-run single in the fourth. "When he takes the mound, I think were going to win the game every time. "You want to win the games that your ace pitches," Berkman added. That brought a joking response from Carpenter, seated alongside Berkman at the podium: "I love you, Lance." The 2005 NL Cy Young winner has always been a big-game pitcher for Cardinals, setting the tone for the rest of the rotation with a combativeness that can rub some opponents the wrong way. Hes tangled with the Reds and Johnny Cueto, dodged a wad of chewing tobacco from the Brewers Njyer Morgan and done his share of barking at umpires. Carpenters willingness to sacrifice his body to make a play on the second batter he faced had to impress his teammates in Game 1. With one out in the first, first baseman Albert Pujols ranged so far to his right to field Elvis Andrus grounder he might as well have been playing second base, and Carpenter had to dive to snare a low, long-distance toss. While sliding on his stomach, Carpenter tagged the base with the glove and then slapped it again with his right hand to make sure, then pulled the hand back just in time to avoid Andrus foot. "That ball in thee first, I think we need to work on that one next spring," Carpenter said.dddddddddddd "It was just an instinct. He threw that ball, it was a little out of my reach and I dove. I was like Im going to go get it, and it turned out to work out." Both Carpenter and Pujols made nice plays on Michael Youngs grounder down the first base line to end the sixth. Pujols made the play several feet past the bag and timed the throw perfectly for a sprinting Carpenter. "Thats the play of the game, really, for us," La Russa said. "Carp getting over to first base is the second part of that good play." Carpenter lasted only one inning longer than his Game 3 victory in the NLCS against the Brewers, when he gave up three runs and received treatment on his elbow afterward. When manager Tony La Russa opted for a pinch hitter on Wednesday, it was more about tactics than a pitcher running on fumes given the Cardinals had two men on with two outs in the bottom of the sixth in a game tied at 2. The move paid off with Allen Craigs go-ahead single off Alexi Ogando, a slicing liner to right that barely eluded Nelson Cruzs attempt at a sliding catch. The lone damage against Carpenter was Mike Napolis two-run homer in the fifth. "Very nice," catcher Yadier Molina said. "He was aggressive in the strike zone, only two runs. He did a great job." Carpenter was quick enough to the plate that Molina had enough time to throw out Ian Kinsler attempting to steal after leading off the game with a hit. Baserunners were just 5 for 11 against him in the regular season. The 36-year-old Carpenter was a deceptive 11-9 this year, very much the leader of the staff after 20-game winner Adam Wainwright was lost to reconstructive elbow surgery in spring training. Craig was strong down the finishing stretch of the Cardinals improbable drive to overtake flagging Atlanta on the final day of the season for the NL wild card, keeping the offence hot while Matt Holliday was out with a finger injury. Hes been their most dangerous pinch hitter in the post-season, going 2 for 5 with three RBIs, and foiled the Rangers move to a right-handed reliever. "Thats why we like him so much," La Russa said. "Hes got a history of taking great at-bats, especially runners in scoring position." ' ' '