Loss spells end for stadium

~ Work will begin to demolish Busch Stadium to make way for a new ballpark for the Cardinals.

ST. LOUIS -- Busch Stadium hosted its last game.

Forty seasons of baseball came to an end at the concrete relic when the Cardinals lost 5-1 to Houston on Wednesday in Game 6 of the NL championship series, sending the Astros to the World Series against the Chicago White Sox.

Demolition will begin within days as crews make way for completion of the new Busch Stadium, being built next to the old ballpark.

To those outside of St. Louis, Busch was known as one of the "cookie-cutter" ballparks built in the 1960s to house both baseball and football. To Cardinals fans, it has been a shrine, a place where more than 3 million traditionally gather each season.

As the Astros celebrated near the pitcher's mound after the final out, Cardinals fans stood and cheered -- perhaps to recognize the Astros, perhaps for the Cardinals, or perhaps as a tribute to the ballpark.

Many hugged. Some cried, among them 23-year-old Chris Tracy of Champaign, Ill.

"I'm just reliving all the memories," he said.

Mike Turner of Newport, Ark., said he felt more pride than sadness.

"The fact that we lost, of course, I hate it, but it's almost overridden by the feelings I have for the tradition of this team and this place," Turner, 51, said.

Most of the crowd stayed for a 10-minute video tribute. Flashes of longtime broadcaster Jack Buck, players such as Ozzie Smith and Bob Gibson, and stirring plays drew loud applause.

An hour after the game, hundreds gathered around the Cardinals dugout chanting "MVP! MVP!" Finally, Albert Pujols emerged, holding his young son.

The stadium opened May 12, 1966, with the Cardinals beating the Atlanta Braves. The Cardinals played six World Series in the stadium, winning two (1967 and 1982). They were 1,760-1,409 in the regular season, 35-18 in the postseason.

Stopping momentum

Apparently momentum doesn't mean nearly as much as starting pitching.

The St. Louis Cardinals came into Game 6 of the NLCS on the heels of Albert Pujols' dramatic ninth-inning, two-out, three-run homer that sealed a 5-4 win in Game 5.

Rejuvenated, the 52,438 at Busch Stadium were delirious as the game began, cheering wildly for each Houston out in the first inning and giving Pujols a long standing ovation in his first at-bat, even as he struck out.

But if the Pujols homer let the air out of the balloon in Houston in Game 5, it was more of a slow leak as the Cardinals faltered at Busch, beginning when Mark Mulder's wild pitch allowed the Astros' first run.

Houston starter Roy Oswalt, who allowed just one run on three hits in seven innings, kept things relatively quiet the rest of the way.

The crowd tried to get back into it in the fifth when the Cardinals put their first two on, but the rally produced only one run on a sacrifice fly.

Struggles all around

Pujols' homer aside, clutch hits had been hard to come by for both the Astros and the Cardinals in the first five games.

St. Louis hitters entered Game 6 hitting .171 (6-for-35) with runners in scoring position in the NLCS. The Cardinals overall were hitting .223. Pujols had six of the team's 15 RBIs.

Houston was hitting .270 overall, but .103 (4-for-39) with runners in scoring position.