A Reason to Believe in Clutch Hitting PITTSBURGH - One strike from elimination in the 2011 World Series, the St. Louis Cardinals roared back and won. One strike from elimination in their division series last fall, the Cardinals did it again. So it should be no surprise that the Cardinals have been unusually clutch at the plate this season. Then again, the concept of clutch hitting could be a myth. Statisticians often suggest that over time, players simply perform to their career norms in tight situations. The sample size may still be too small, but the Cardinals and their cleanup hitter, Allen Craig, have challenged that notion. The team entered the weekend hitting .327 with runners in scoring position, well above the major league average, .254. Craig, their first baseman, was hitting a mind-bending .452. "It's funny that it's just .450, because it feels like he always gets the guy in," Cardinals reliever Randy Choate said. The thing is, he can hit it anywhere. One time he'll pull it, and then all of a sudden, he's in the right-center-field gap. It's just amazing that every time we need it, he gets it done. In the last 40 seasons, the highest team average with runners in scoring position is .311 by the 2007 Detroit Tigers. The highest individual average in that time is .469 by Kansas City's George Brett in 1980. With a hot September, the Cardinals and Craig could top the lists. Craig said he would rather not analyze his approach, preferring to focus on basic concepts like making solid contact and not missing pitches over the middle. But he does believe that some players are better than others at thriving under pressure. "I definitely think that guys can be clutch," Craig said. I think it's hard to label anything in black and white, like you're either clutch or you're not. There's different levels of it. From my experiences in the big leagues, you look back at the 2011 World Series, what David Freese did, hitting that big home run - I think it takes a kind of presence to calm yourself to be able to get the job done. If you think that home run was just a random case of the statistics evening out, or the odds being in his favor for that to happen, I disagree with you. Freese hit a game-tying triple in the ninth inning of Game 6 against Texas, then won it with a home run in the 11th. Craig, now 29, was in his second major league season, and homered in that game as a replacement for the injured Matt Holliday. Then he ripped the go-ahead homer in Game 7. Last season, Craig kept coming through when it counted, hitting .400 with runners in scoring position. He continues to build on that success. "Allen goes up there with extreme confidence and a very simple approach," Freese said. He has a great swing, but he also has an idea of how he wants to go about attacking the pitcher. The No. 1 priority in those situations is to be relaxed and have confidence up there. If you don't have those two things, the odds of you coming through diminish immensely. When you get in those situations, you've got to understand that it's just you and the pitcher, just like any other scenario. The Cardinals showed faith in Craig by letting Albert Pujols leave as a free agent after the 2011 season. Pujols, who signed for 10 years and $240 million with the Angels, has crumbled physically and failed to produce as he did in St. Louis. Craig is in the first year of a five-year, $31 million deal and helps anchor a deep lineup. "I didn't really have time to sit and focus on that, as being the guy replacing those guys," Craig said, referring to Pujols and Lance Berkman, who left after last season. I just saw it as an opportunity to play. I still needed to prove myself more. There was no time for me to sit around and worry about that. I just think that we have a lot of good players that have had really good careers offensively. You look at Carlos Beltran, you look at Holliday. Yadi Molina's improving every season on the offensive side, and the younger guys have always hit well through the minor leagues and early in their big-league careers. We enjoy talking about hitting and getting better. It's a good combination.