ST. LOUIS (AP) — A drained Tony La Russa sat behind the podium, jersey gone and a blue towel draped around his neck,

“When you dream,” the St. Louis Cardinals manager said, “you dream about seventh game, all the heroics.”

After one of the greatest games in baseball history, a 10-9, 11-inning victory over Texas in Game 6 in which the Cardinals were twice within one strike of elimination, it was too soon for La Russa to announce his Game 7 starter. His choice was whether to send ace Chris Carpenter to the mound on short rest Friday night or start Kyle Lohse or Edwin Jackson.

“This is a very important game and if you don’t want it, then there’s no need to be here,” Carpenter said.

Down to their final strike in the ninth and 10th, the Cardinals won Game 6 on David Freese’s 11th-inning homer off Mark Lowe. Afterward, La Russa still would not commit to a Game 7 starter.

“Just barely started to think about tomorrow, but actually it’ll be fun to think about it now because there is a Game 7,” he said. “Might just roll Jake (Westbrook) back out there. Who knows?”

Texas manager Ron Washington made his decision days ago, announcing he would stay in rotation and start Matt Harrison, the Game 3 loser.