By Barry M. Bloom / MLB.com

It happened in 1996 when St. Louis was up 3-1 over Atlanta. The Braves won twice to tie the best-of-seven series, and then won the Game 7 finale, 15-0, behind a four-hit shutout by Tom Glavine and two relievers.

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La Russa has managed the Cardinals since 1996 and has been to the NLCS four times. He has yet to get the Redbirds into the World Series.

This time, the Cards were up 2-0, but the Astros came back to tie the series with weekend victories at Minute Maid Park. La Russa couldn't have been more disappointed after his team couldn't hold leads of 3-0 and 5-3 to lose Game 4 on Sunday, 6-5.

"Well, if you're not disappointed, you don't care about winning the game," La Russa said. "Sometimes you break their hearts, sometimes they break yours."

Vitals check
A look at key statistics through Game 4 of the NLCS.

Team stats

Digits		Trend	The Deal
ERA	5.82		Total breakdown: Four starters have allowed 13 runs and 20 hits in 21 innings
BA	.267		Revived after a Game 3 slowdown, but quieted down in the later innings
Runs	23		Outscored, 9-2, in Game 3s, while outscoring the opposition, 41-25, in other postseason games
Errors	0		Make that 72 postseason innings and counting without an error

Who's hot?

Player	Digits	Trend	The Deal
Albert Pujols	.600 (9-for-15, 3 HR, 6 RBI, 6 R)		Is 0-for-3 vs. Roger Clemens, 9-for-12 vs. rest of Astros staff
Scott Rolen	.375 (6-for-16, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 2 R)		After slow start, was raking it until whiffing in last two at-bats

Who's not?

Player	Digits	Trend	The Deal
Tony Womack	.118 (2-for-17, 1 RBI, 3 R)		At least he contributed something with a walk and a run scored
Edgar Renteria	.071 (1-for-14, one single)		Has disappeared off the face of the earth after .455 NLDS vs. Dodgers

Behind the numbers
The starters have been bad, but the relievers were worse on Sunday. Kiko Calero and Julian Tavarez couldn't hold a 5-3 lead.

Frozen moment
You had to wonder what Jason Marquis was thinking when he tried to stretch a single into a double with one out and nobody on in the fourth. Right-fielder Lance Berkman nonchalanted the ball, but woke up from his nap long enough to easily toss Marquis out at second base. Larry Walker and Pujols followed with singles, so the gaffe cost the Cardinals at least a run, maybe a big inning and perhaps the game.

Slick move
It was a good idea at the time: La Russa lifted Marquis in the fifth inning with Craig Biggio on first via a single, none out and a strike on Carlos Beltran. Calero came on and whiffed Beltran and Jeff Bagwell looking before Biggio was tossed out trying to steal second with Berkman at the plate. But the very next inning, Calero allowed the game-tying runs.

Homers, homers, homers
The Cards (8) and the Astros (11) have combined to hit 19 in the first four games of the series, four less than the 23 the Marlins and Cubs hit last year in seven NLCS games.

Cards have been there before
Houston is the first team to come back from an 0-2 deficit in the NLCS since the Cards did it to the Dodgers in 1985. St. Louis won that series in six games. The year before, the Padres turned the same trick against the Cubs and won in what was the last year of the best-of-five LCS format.

Last word
"I wouldn't say winning [Game 5] is essential, but it would be nice to get on that plane [on Monday] night and work out in our own ballpark on Tuesday with a chance to lock up the series on Wednesday." -- Cardinals reliever Ray King

Barry M. Bloom is a national reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

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