I GOT THIS: Chris Carpenter, who won Game 7 of the World Series last year, will take the mound for the Cardinals in Game 3 of the ALDS today in Washington. (AP)
WASHINGTON — He wouldn’t be a Carpenter if he didn’t know the drill.
There is a better chance the Cardinals’ Chris Carpenter will get hit by a bus on his way to the ballpark today than he will succumb to emotion when taking the mound against the Nationals in Game 3 of the NLDS.
“One, it’s called experience, and it happens where you’re going to get excited,” Carpenter said yesterday. “This is what I live for. I woke up this morning — it’s the day before and I got that going in my stomach already. I couldn’t wait to get here and talk to [the media], do my thing. It’s an exciting time.”
With the series tied 1-1, Cardinals manager Mike Matheny couldn’t have asked for a better candidate to start a crucial swing game than his 37-year-old warhorse, who was among the team’s heroes last October.
The climax came in Carpenter’s third start of the World Series against the Rangers, when he earned the Game 7 victory by allowing two earned runs over six innings. Carpenter finished the postseason 4-0 with a 3.25 ERA in receiving a second world championship ring in six years.
But the right-hander never really got to take a victory lap, as he missed most of the 2012 season, first resting a right shoulder that had nerve-related damage and then recovering from July surgery to correct thoracic outlet syndrome.
Carpenter wasn’t supposed to pitch this year, but returned to make three September starts, in which he went 0-2 with a 3.71 ERA.
Matheny could have opted for ace Kyle Lohse on normal rest, but said it was important to get Carpenter the ball in this spot. Lohse is scheduled to pitch tomorrow’s Game 4 for the Cardinals, with Adam Wainwright set for a potential Game 5 on Friday.
“It really comes down to wanting to get Carp on the mound and trying to figure out where it fits best,” Matheny said. “I didn’t want to drag it out too far, realizing what he brings and his experience — what he brings with the success he’s had in the postseason and in his career in general.
“And to me, he’s been better every time he’s thrown, so there’s enough reason there to make a case in a couple spots. But this is what we felt gave us the best chance.”
If Carpenter has a concern, it’s the fact he has thrown only 17 innings this season.
“That’s not too many innings to work the kinks out in live games,” he said. “But I’m confident in my stuff. My stuff has gotten better each time out. It was good last time against Cincinnati and I’m looking forward to it being better this time out, too.”
The Nationals will have no shortage of experience on the mound today, with veteran Edwin Jackson ready to take the ball. Jackson earned a world championship ring pitching for the Cardinals last season and then signed a one-year deal with the Nationals.
Behind Jackson, the Nationals have lefty Ross Detwiler for Game 4 and Gio Gonzalez in line to pitch a potential fifth game.
On paper, the Cardinals would seem to have the starting pitching edge for the next two days, at least.
“I unfortunately sat back and watched [our] guys pitch all year and they did a great job,” Carpenter said. “That’s what got us here. They were consistent through that starting rotation all year long.
“This is a nice team to compete against, because they all compete pretty much the same way as our team competes, and that’s hard every day, fair, and they play the game the right way.”
Matheny is just glad to have a known quantity like Carpenter in position for today’s start.
“It’s an invaluable experience, when you talk about a Chris Carpenter, an Adam Wainwright, a Yadier Molina who have won twice,” Matheny said. “There are a lot of players who think they can perform at the highest level and come together and witness what it takes for a team to collectively do what we all set out to do in April. But it’s a rare few that actually get to do that.”