CHICAGO • Before stepping to the plate in the seventh inning Sunday afternoon at Miller Park in Milwaukee, Cardinals leadoff hitter Matt Carpenter watched as Brewers starter Jimmy Nelson was at the center of a meeting on the mound.
The Cardinals trailed by two runs.
This would be Carpenter’s last chance to change that.
With two runners on base and a lefthanded hitter coming to the plate in Carpenter, the Brewers had a decision to make about keeping their young starter, Nelson, in the game or going to a lefty. Carpenter had watched video of any pitcher the Brewers could throw at him, so he didn’t spend that time thinking about who was coming.