The Pittsburgh Pirates had a golden opportunity to supplant the St. Louis Cardinals in the NL Central this week, but failed to do so. St. Louis took two out of three from their division rivals and claimed their third consecutive division title with their 100th win of the season on Wednesday night.
Tuesday's game between the Cardinals and Pirates was postponed, so the two MLB clubs squared off in a doubleheader on Wednesday. St. Louis already won the first game of the series on Monday and it was up to Pittsburgh to claim the final two games of the series to have a shot at avoiding having to play in the Wild Card Game.
But once again, the MLB's best team proved why they're atop the league. The Cardinals dropped the first game by a score of 8-2, but then came out hot in the second game and routed the Pirates 11-1 thanks to a Jason Heyward grand slam in the third inning. Pirates starter Charlie Morton lasted only two innings after giving up five runs while Cardinals rookie Tyler Lyons pitched seven scoreless and gave up only four hits.
"This was one of those seasons where guys feel it and when they push through it and are able to come out on top," Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said, via The Associated Press. "This has a lot more meaning than what it looks like at face value."
The Cardinals also clinched the best record in the MLB with last night's win. If they lose their final three games they'll finish 100-62, and the Pirates, who have the second-best record in the MLB, can finish with a 99-63 record at best. St. Louis will travel to Atlanta to face the Braves this weekend while the Pirates will host the Cincinnati Reds.
It's been an incredible year for St. Louis. They've been without ace Adam Wainwright since the end of April and slugger Matt Holliday has only played in 72 games due to injuries. First baseman Matt Adams also missed most of the season due to a torn quad, so the Cardinals had to overcome a number of losses in their quest to be tops in the MLB. All three players have returned from injury, so the Cardinals will have that going for them as they head into the postseason, but they will be without Carlos Martinez, who has been their best starter this season, and perhaps catcher Yadier Molina, who suffered a ligament tear in his thumb and will at least miss the rest of the regular season.
St. Louis managed to come out on top in the NL Central with various disadvantages while also competing with the other two best MLB teams. The Pirates have the second-best record in baseball and the Chicago Cubs have the third-best record. Unfortunately for the Pirates and Cubs, they'll be subject to the one-game Wild Card playoff because they did not win the division.
The Cardinals will face the winner of that game next week in the NLDS.
