Jeff Suppan pitched a pair of clinching games in 2004, the last time the St. Louis Cardinals made it to the World Series.
They'll ask him to do it again in Game 7 against New York Mets fill-in starter Oliver Perez.
Suppan beat Roger Clemens in Game 7 of the 2004 NLCS after eliminating the Dodgers in the divisional round. He was the team's second-most reliable starter with 12 victories, and had a 2.34 ERA after the all-star break.
His last outing was one of his best all season. He allowed only three hits in eight shutout innings in Game 3.
``We have a lot of confidence in Soup,'' third baseman Scott Rolen said. ``He's a great professional. He's going to go out and do his job, there's no doubt about that.''
Mets manager Willie Randolph waited until after beating St. Louis 4-2 on Wednesday night to announce that Perez would get his second start of the NLCS. Perez allowed five runs in 5 2-3 innings in New York's 12-5 victory in Game 4 after going 3-13 with a 6.55 ERA in the regular season.
``He's done a nice job for us since he's been here, very similar to Johnny Maine in a lot of ways,'' Randolph said. ``He's throwing the ball well. He needs to give us another quality start.''
Scrambling for starters throughout the postseason because of injuries to Pedro Martinez and Orlando Hernandez, New York had several choices for Game 7, including Steve Trachsel and long reliever Darren Oliver.
``Everyone wants to pitch in the seventh game,'' Perez said. ``You have to just prepare. It's another opportunity for me.''
Trachsel left Game 3 in the second inning with a bruised thigh after getting hit by Preston Wilson's hard comebacker. He would have been on regular rest, but was roughed up by St. Louis for five runs, five hits and five walks in one-plus inning last Saturday.
Trachsel is 0-1 with a 14.54 ERA in two playoff starts covering only 4 1-3 innings. He warmed up in the ninth, but Randolph said Trachsel was just getting some work.
Oliver replaced Trachsel in Game 3 and threw six scoreless innings of three-hit ball. But the left-hander hasn't made a start all season.
``This series has kind of gone back and forth,'' Mets outfielder Shawn Green said. ``The rotation obviously has had a lot of injuries and guys have stepped forward and got us to this point. We feel like we can find a way to win these last two and get to the World Series. It's obviously not going to be easy.''
Throughout the season, Suppan's favorite catchword was ``focus,'' and he leaned on it again in a pregame interview session Wednesday.
``My confidence comes from our team and I focus on what we have to do as a team to win,'' Suppan said. ``So, obviously our focus is on today. I don't really concern myself a whole lot on what the Mets have to do right now.''
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TOUGHING IT OUT: A rough start and finish to Game 5 of the NLCS could not keep David Eckstein, nursing a sprained shoulder and two bruised fingers on his right hand, out of the St. Louis Cardinals' lineup for Game 6.
Eckstein slightly sprained his left shoulder making a diving stop at shortstop on Jose Reyes' infield hit on the first pitch of Tuesday night's game. After getting some medical attention on the field, he remained in the game.
The same was true after he fouled a bunt attempt off the fingers on his left hand in the eighth.
And though manager Tony La Russa kept the top of his lineup card blank for a few hours Wednesday, ready to insert Aaron Miles if needed, he wasn't surprised that the 5-foot-7 Eckstein was out there again.
``He gets blasted with foul balls, hit by pitches, sliding into second base, diving _ he's fearless,'' La Russa said. ``Toughest guy I've ever been around.''
General manager Walt Jocketty called Eckstein ``the pulse of the club,'' whose value transcends his numbers.
``When he gets on he kind of generates excitement,'' Jocketty said. ``A lot happens when he's out there playing his game.''
Mets manager Willie Randolph is also an admirer.
``His talent does not jump at you but he's a winner,'' Randolph said. ``He gets the most out of his ability.''
Eckstein was 0-for-4 with a walk and a stolen base in Game 6. He said before the game that the bruised fingers would not be an issue, and that the shoulder only hurt when he swung and missed, as he did in his second at-bat in Game 5 when Tom Glavine fooled him with a changeup.
``It feels good, there's no more pain than there was yesterday,'' Eckstein said. ``The hand is nothing. They're (the fingers) not broke.
``Just don't swing and miss.''
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COUNTING ON THE KIDS: Until Game 6, Jose Reyes and David Wright, the Mets' 23-year-old All-Stars, had struggled during their first post-season. Reyes broke out on Wednesday, while Wright is still waiting.
Reyes, who entered with a .229 average, one steal and a .289 on-base percentage, hit a leadoff homer in the first inning and was 3-for-4 with two steals. He has not made an error at shortstop.
``I've said it many times: He's our catalyst, he's our igniter,'' Randolph said. ``His energy is infectious and we love him for that.''
Wright was 1-for-3 in Game 6 and is 3-for-21 in the NLCS with one RBI. He has a homer and five RBIs overall in the playoffs.
``David is obviously trying a little too hard, I think,'' Randolph said before the game. ``That's what I see, and that's natural. We were talking earlier about being in a situation for the first time. Until you go through the process, you need to learn how to channel some of that energy. He seems like at times he's a little bit overanxious.''
Regardless of the outcome of the series, Randolph thinks playing in October has been valuable for both young stars.
``I think it's been a great experience for them. I'm glad they are here to experience it obviously, our whole team in general,'' he said. ``Anytime you're a young player like that, you're starting your career and get a chance to taste what winning feels like, this is an unbelievable and valuable experience.
``So you go through your growing pains and you learn how to deal with the atmosphere and the anxieties of it sometimes. But this is what sets up champions and gives you the feel of what it means to be a champion.''
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BIG RED: Cardinals utilityman Scott Spiezio has the most distinctive look of the post-season, a soul-patch beard that gets a daily fresh coat of red dye.
Countless fans have adopted the team-colors look especially after his heroics earlier in the post-season, with the use of magic markers. Spiezio, a free spirit who used to sing in a garage band called SandFrog, came to spring training with a minor league contract and the red beard for his fresh start.
Spiezio was a World Series hero in 2002 with the Angels but got only 47 at-bats last year with the Mariners. He was back in the lineup for Game 6, entering with six RBIs on only four hits, including a two-run triple that tied Game 2 in the seventh and a two-run triple in the first inning of Game 3.
``I'm not a role model,'' Spiezio said. ``It's like a Cardinal spirit thing. The neat thing is they're getting involved in the hype of the team winning.
``We had that bad stretch at the end of the season and now they realize we have a pretty dang good team.''
© The Canadian Press, 2007
