The St. Louis Cardinals were never supposed to reach the 2011 NLCS. Not after Adam Wainwright went down with a season-ending injury in spring training. Not after they fell 10 games behind the Brewers in the National League Central Division and 10 ½ games behind the Braves in the wild card standings on August 24. […]
It’s an old baseball axiom that pitching and defense win championships. The Cardinals certainly used that formula to beat the Brewers 7-1 in Game 5 of the 2011 NLCS. With the series tied 2-2, the Cardinals pounced on four Brewers errors and once again relied upon a bullpen that had allowed just four earned runs
October 14, 2011: Cardinals capitalize on Brewers’ errors to win NLCS Game 5 Read More »
Early in the season, a five-inning start from Chris Carpenter wouldn’t have been enough for the Cardinals and their beleaguered bullpen. By the time the 2011 NLCS Game 3 rolled around, the Cardinals’ once-shaky bullpen had become key to their success, as evidenced by the four innings of scoreless relief provided by Fernando Salas, Lance Lynn,
2011 NLCS Game 3: Bullpen shines in Cardinals win Read More »
Game 1 of the 2011 NLCS had been a tough one for Albert Pujols and the St. Louis Cardinals. After jumping out to a 5-2 lead, the Cardinals allowed a pair of two-run home runs in the fifth inning of what turned into a 9-6 Brewers win. Most frustrating for Pujols was his at-bat in
October 10, 2011: Pujols drives in five as Cardinals even the NLCS Read More »
With Chris Carpenter and Roy Halladay taking the mound, Game 5 of the 2011 National League Division Series between the Cardinals and Phillies was primed for a pitching duel. The result more than lived up to expectations. After the Phillies captured two of the first three games in the series, the Cardinals forced the decisive
Chris Carpenter outduels Roy Halladay: 2011 NLDS Game 5 Read More »
With the Cardinals’ backs against the wall in Game 4 of the 2011 NLDS, David Freese and the Rally Squirrel made their debuts as postseason heroes. Down two games to one in the best-of-five series following a 3-2 loss in Game 3, the Cardinals needed back-to-back wins to keep their season alive. That was a
October 5, 2011: Rally Squirrel and David Freese emerge as postseason heroes Read More »
Things could not have looked much worse for the Cardinals early in Game 2 of their October 2, 2011, National League Division Series match-up against the Phillies. One day earlier, they lost the series opener 11-6 as Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard, a graduate of Wildwood’s Lafayette High School, launched a three-run homer as part
Cardinals rally vs. Cliff Lee to win 2011 NLDS Game 2 Read More »
David Freese made a habit of coming through with big, two-out hits in the fall of 2011. While Freese stunned the Rangers – and all of baseball – with his clutch performance in the World Series, the Cardinals got their first glimpse of Freese’s penchant for the dramatic on September 21, 2011, when his three-run
How David Freese pulled the Cardinals within 1 1/2 games of the 2011 wild card Read More »
With less than two weeks remaining in the 2011 season, every game was crucial as the Cardinals sought to catch the Braves in the National League wild-card race. Thanks to rookie Adron Chambers and his first career hit, St. Louis picked up a valuable win that placed them within striking distance of the playoffs. Entering
With four weeks remaining and a sizeable gap between the Cardinals and a playoff berth, Tony La Russa wanted to line up his pitching rotation for the home stretch of the regular season. To make it happen, he called upon Brandon Dickson, a rookie right-hander who had spent almost the entire season in Memphis, to