When Edwin Jackson last saw the Cardinals, they lit him up for eight runs in only 1.1 innings. The Nationals righty is having trouble again Wednesday afternoon. Entering the bottom of the second, the Cards lead Game 3 of the NLDS, 4-0.
With two men on and none out in the second inning, the Cards' Pete Kozma blasted one into the left-field seats. If you aren't yet familiar with Pete Kozma, this would be a good time: since his Aug. 31st call-up, he managed a .952 OPS in the 82 plate appearances he was given. The Cardinals have a habit of making postseason stars out of relatively unknown players. We'll see whether Kozma is the David Freese of 2012.
As Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch notes, Jackson keeps dipping from the four-seam well, and it sure doesn't seem to be working out for him:
The RBI double by Craig, double by Freese, Descalso single and Kozma's HR -- all on 4-seam fastballs. EJax must not like slider today
— Bernie Miklasz (@miklasz) October 10, 2012
After suffering a hit from pitcher Chris Carpenter, the Cardinals gave Jackson a much-needed double play, and Carlos Beltran grounded out to end the inning.