Well, we all knew it had to happen eventually. Chris Perez finally blew a save, his first bump in the road since being appointed the team's closer (and second blown save in eight opportunities.) It sucks, but it happens.

Of course, the problem here is that it was the team's 29th blown save of the season. I know I've harped on it a lot this year, but with even an average bullpen statistically, the St. Louis Cardinals would almost certainly be leading the wild card race, and breathing right down the Northsiders' necks.

On the other hand, watching the game yesterday, we all got a look at the future of the Cardinals' bullpen. We saw Jason Motte make his major league debut, sandwiched between Kyle McClellan and the aforementioned Mr. Perez. Those three pitchers should be fixtures in the Cardinal bullpen for the next several years, anchoring the back end of games.

The St. Louis Cardinals are not mathematically out of playoff contention this season, but fans can't help but wonder what's in store for next season. To take the beleaguered Cardinals fan's mind off September's woes, view some of the many sides of Tony La Russa -- and be glad your life's not on tape.

Tony Reads to Kids
A heart-warming video with the manager reading to a classroom full of students, howling like a dog and speaking Spanish.

Do you remember where you were when Bud Smith made history?

If the answer to that question is "no," don't feel bad. I realize that it's not quite on par with the day JFK got shot. But hey, it is Cardinal history, after all.

On September 3rd, 2001, Bud Smith became only the 18th rookie in the history of baseball to throw a no-hitter.

He did it in San Diego, twirling a repertoire of slow, slower, and slowest as he baffled Padres hitters over 134 pitches. Of course, given the way Smith's career ended up, with labrum troubles forcing him into retirement while still in his twenties, that pitch count has been scrutinized in the years since. Whether throwing that many pitches contributed to his downfall is a question for some other time. I just wanted to share with you my own memory of the night that Bud threw his no-no.

I watched Bud Smith throw his no-hitter on a dying big-screen television set in a deserted sports bar in Kirksville. The TV in question had serious issues with the color, and everything on the screen -- the players, fans, graphics, all looked a sickly shade of green. I must admit, though, I barely noticed it at the time.

The reason I was in Kirksville was, as most things in life are, because of a girl. She was attending Truman University that autumn, having transferred there after our relationship had gone bad in February. I'll call her Rachel, because that is her name.

Well, friends, it appears that we've finally reached the end of the road.

This year's version of the St. Louis Cardinals has given us an outstanding ride, but no longer. It would take a true miracle for them to somehow come back now and make a real run at the Brewers. Unfortunately, I think the Cards are fresh out of miracles.

Readers of the Brewers blog on the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel Web site are sounding off at the opinion St. Louis Post-Dispatch writer Bernie Miklasz, who wrote today that the Brew crew are a good, but an arrogant bunch.

The comments are harsh to say the least (perhaps Brewers fans a little bitter after being consistently beaten by the Cardinals up until this season?) and typically read like this:

"Takes a lot of guts to talk about the Brewers being arrogant considering the Cards and how they act. Albert needs to look in the mirror. Did anyone else think that they threw at Braun on purpose. They are bush league and just plain out jealous that they keep getting their a**'s handed to them. Do they realize that if the would have beat the Brewers this year they would be in the playoffs?"

Join the fray here.

Biggest Series of the Year, now over. The result? Exactly the same as it was going in. Of course, there are two less games now to try and make up the ground that needs to be made up, but the deficit remains the same. So, what did we learn from this series, kids?

First off, we learned that I am a truly awful prognosticator.

I really liked the Cards' chances against Ben Sheets, they always hit him well.

Kay. How does a 12-0 shutout taste, Aaron?

Hey, you know what? Ryan Braun is still hurting from his back thing. We may not even see him much this series. If we do, you have to think he won't be as effective as usual, so we may get away with missing the full brunt of the Milwaukee middle of the lineup.

Did you enjoy that home run? Was it all that you hoped it would be?

Hey, it's an art, not a science, people. Still, it would have been nice not to look quite so stupid. Oh well.

We learned that Carlos Villanueva clearly wasn't paying attention to what happened earlier this year when Brandon Backe decided to piss off Albert Pujols. Just in case any one else out there wasn't paying attention, I'll let you know how it turns out. Two words: not well.

I was watching Sunday's ballgame, watching as Brian Barton was having one of his best games yet as a major leaguer, and I couldn't help but get excited. And why not? I'm a big fan of the super-athletic type of player; the Upton brother types and guys like that. With Barton's combination of speed and power potential, it's easy to dream on what the guy could do down the road.

Of course, he then ended up getting hurt later in the game, and we have no idea when he'll be able to play again. Que sera, I suppose, but you also have to be a little disappointed.

But in watching Barton and following the Cardinal farm system, I've also been struck this season by just how much outfield depth the Cards have right now.

This time of the year, every series that a team plays is a big series. Unless they're out of contention, every single series, regardless of the opponent, is a huge series. No one series can be singled out as being bigger than any other.

That being said, this is one of the biggest series of the year for the St. Louis Cardinals.

Starting tonight, the Cardinals will play the Milwaukee Brewers, the team the Birds find themselves chasing for the wild card, in a two game series at Busch Stadium.

A nice little series win, two out of three over the weekend against a struggling Atlanta Braves team. Only thing is, it may not be enough. Not by a long shot.

The problem, of course, is that while the Cardinals were beating the Braves -- who just happen to be one of the worst teams in the league -- the Milwaukee Brewers were finishing up a sweep of the Pittsburgh Pirates in a twelve-inning marathon.

Well, that was certainly an ugly game. In fact, it was so ugly that I really don't have anything much to say about it. And so, I won't.

But while the Cardinals themselves were crapping the bed against a Pittsburgh Pirates team that has traded away their best players this year, a very interesting development was taking place in the Cards' farm system.

The Cards promoted Brett Wallace, their first round draft pick this year, to Double A Springfield. Part of the reason he's there is because Allen Craig, the regular third baseman at Springfield, is currently on the DL with an aching back. The other part, though, is that the Walrus was just flat-out beating up on low class A pitching. At Quad Cities, Wallace put up a slash line of .327/.418/.490 in 153 at bats. Now, that slugging may not look super impressive to you, but for a player straight out of college, getting his first taste of professional baseball, trust me, that triple slash line is wicked good.

A while back, I took a look at some of the more important players and issues that I thought would factor into the Cardinals' stretch run for 2008. After long hours of careful consideration... Alright, fine, it was only eight minutes of consideration while I was in line to get a bagel. You and I both know it. However, my editor hopefully doesn't know it, and I would like to keep it that way, okay? They're paying me literally tens of dollars to write this column, and I'm afraid if I lose this gig I'll have to go back to the cheap cat food, and I really don't want to. What? No, I don't have cats, I'm allergic. What does that have to do with anything?

So anyway, I was looking at the Cards, and I concluded that the most important player for the rest of this season was Rick Ankiel. It was a sound pick, I thought at the time, and I still agree with most of what I wrote. However, I think that I may just have to change my tune a bit on this one.

It's Adam Wainwright.

CHICAGO -- The relationship between Jim Edmonds and his wife's cooking, already strained to begin with, seems to have taken a turn for the worse.

When asked late Saturday evening about heating up some leftover chicken for dinner, Edmonds replied, "I'm fucking done with this chicken, and I'm fucking done with reheating dinner."

It wasn't the first time Edmonds had cut his ties with a former love.

What in the hell was Tony La Russa thinking last night, using Kyle McClellan in the eighth inning? Jesus, I am so sick and tired of watching this team mismanage the bullpen night after night after night...

See what I did there?

I will admit, I was more than a little bit nervous last night, watching McClellan struggle through the eighth. Mostly, of course, because I care deeply about what happens to this team, but also, to be honest, a little bit because I flat-out didn't feel like having to write about a blown save by the guy I've been advocating for to anyone and everyone who would listen. Selfish? Maybe, but hey, I'm a selfish guy.

Luckily, in the end, Chris Perez came to the rescue, inducing a double play to escape the eighth and then slamming the door shut in the ninth.

Have I mentioned before how much I like the McClellan-Perez combo at the end of the game? I'm pretty sure I have.

I do believe we may have seen the future last night. Or, at least, I hope we saw the future.

Seems like a trip to south Florida always does wonders for the spirits (and the record) for the Cardinals, doesn't it? The Cards have consistently pounded the Marlins the past few years, both here in St. Louis and down in Miami. It's just a shame we don't see them more often. Less games against the Brewers and more against the Marlins, and we might have something going.

Of course, my favorite part of the game last night? The last two innings.

Former Cardinal and now Cub Jim Edmonds reportedly blew off FSN Midwest broadcaster Brent Stover over the weekend during the Cardinals-Cubs series at Wrigley. This only fueled the fire that Cardinals fans feel for Edmonds, who is like an ex who you see doing so much better now that he left your underperforming ass.

A few Cards fans (or one really bizarre one) might have taken offense to whole baseball soap opera this weekend, because a dead cardinal was found on the sidewalk today in front of Edmonds' downtown St. Louis restaurant, reports InsideSTL's Tim McKernan. Toxicology results are pending on the bird. It's unclear if foul-play was involved.

For the morbidly curious, a photo of the dead bird is after the jump. Read the full story at From the Desk of Tim McKernan.