To Bean Or Not To Bean

There were strategic complications too. The score was 1-0 in the top of the eighth. Given where Gonzalez fell in the order, he might not get another at bat and justice for the Cardinals might be denied. So when Diamondbacks second baseman Junior Spivey singled and then, with two outs, stole second base after the count had gone to 1 and 2 on catcher Chad Moeller, La Russa had the opportunity he needed. He gave the sign to intentionally walk Moeller. With first base open it appeared that La Russa had decided to pitch around Moeller. But the walk had nothing to do with thinking that the next batter would be an easier out.

La Russa didn't want Moeller to end the eighth inning, because then Gonzalez would bat fourth in the ninth and possibly not get to the plate. So La Russa took a chance, putting a second base runner on in a 1-0 nail-biter, just to get to Gonzalez in the ninth. The next batter, pinch hitter Steve Finley, struck out, so no harm was done.

The score was still 1-0 going into the top of the ninth when La Russa brought in Jeff Fassero from the bullpen. La Russa told the reliever of his hope that Fassero could get the first two batters out, then go through the usual routine for an intentional drilling: throw a breaking ball away so it looks as if he's having a little control problem, then hit Gonzalez in the ribs with the next pitch. Fassero executed it perfectly. He and La Russa were ejected, and the Cards lost 1-0.

La Russa had known that, if his plan backfired, he might cost his team the game for the sake of retaliation. He also realized that his friendship with Gonzalez might suffer, which bothered him immensely. After the game he left a message on Gonzalez's cellphone trying to explain his reasoning: "You can think what you want, but you check with anybody who has played with me. We don't hit someone just because he's hitting good against us."

La Russa sifted through the layers of his decision deep into the night and the next day. He knew that if he hadn't stood up for his players, the respect they had for him would crumble. Richards had once told him that sometimes you have to be willing to lose a game in order to win more later. This, La Russa concluded, had been one of those times. ?