News and notes from around the Wild Card race:
- St. Louis is hoping to give some of their regulars rest as they go down the stretch. David Freese got a day off on Friday as he plays through his first full healthy season. Jason Motte and Mitchell Boggs also got days off in the bullpen.
- Los Angeles may get Clayton Kershaw back soon. He threw a bullpen session on Friday, and if he is pain-free and bounces back well, he might start on Sunday.
- San Diego got a boost to their bullpen on Friday. They activated Huston Street off the DL prior to their game against San Francisco.
Looking at yesterday's results:
- Milwaukee got into a pitcher's duel with Washington. Both sides scored early, then the pitching locked down and kept it at 2-1 through eight innings. However, the Brewers rallied in the ninth inning, adding three runs on to take a late 4-2 lead, and they held on to win by that margin. Kyle has the recap if you missed it. (Box Score)
- St. Louis got Chris Carpenter back from injury yesterday. He gave them a solid start, and the Cardinals offense had a solid overall performance to give them a lead. It came down to the ninth inning, where the Cubs were down to their last out and last strike twice. However, David DeJesus and Darwin Barney came through with a single and home run to send it into extra innings. In the 11th, Welington Castillo singled to lead-off the inning, then Brett Jackson pinch-ran and went base to base to get to third with two outs. David DeJesus then hit the game-winning single to give the Cubs a 5-4 win. (Box Score)
- Philadelphia hit four home runs to account for their offense, and it was more than enough to back Kyle Kendrick, who allowed two runs over 6 2/3 innings. The end result was a 6-2 win over Atlanta. (Box Score)
- Los Angeles held the party up in Cincinnati for one more night. The Reds were on the verge of clinching the NL Central after the Cardinals loss, and had a pitchers duel going through nine innings as Bronson Arroyo, Joe Blanton, and the bullpens kept it at 1-1. However, Matt Kemp came through with a two out 2-RBI single in the 10th inning to give the Dodgers a 3-1 win. (Box Score)
- Pittsburgh is playing their way out of Wild Card contention quickly. They had hoped to get back on track in Houston, but those plans were derailed early as Jed Lowrie hit a three-run home run in the first inning. That was more than enough for Houston, who tacked on four more runs on route to a 7-1 win. (Box Score)
- Arizona had its way offensively in Colorado, scoring in eight of nine innings and racking up fifteen runs and nineteen hits. Wade Miley had a rough day but gave the Diamondbacks what they needed, as every pitcher Colorado used gave up at least one run. The end result was a 15-5 win. (Box Score)
- San Diego's chances at the postseason are nearly out. Ryan Vogelsong led a strong day of pitching for San Francisco, allowing one run in six innings. Pablo Sandoval led the offense with a 3-for-3 day and a home run, and the Giants closed in on clinching the NL West with a 5-1 win. (Box Score)
Here's the updated Wild Card standings:
| W | L | GB | Last 10 | Streak | Elimination # | |
| Atlanta | 86 | 65 | - | 5-5 | L1 | - |
| St. Louis | 80 | 71 | - | 5-5 | L1 | - |
| Milwaukee | 78 | 72 | 1.5 | 9-1 | W6 | 11 |
| LA Dodgers | 78 | 73 | 2 | 4-6 | W1 | 10 |
| Philadelphia | 77 | 74 | 3 | 7-3 | W4 | 9 |
| Arizona | 75 | 75 | 4.5 | 6-4 | W1 | 8 |
| Pittsburgh | 74 | 76 | 5.5 | 2-8 | L4 | 7 |
| San Diego | 72 | 79 | 8 | 6-4 | L1 | 4 |
Pressure mounted on St. Louis a little as they lost and the four teams behind them won. Milwaukee, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and Arizona all won to gain a game in the standings. Pittsburgh and San Diego are playing their way out of the playoffs as they both lost, putting themselves in a big hole.
With the Brewers winning and the Cardinals losing, the Brewers playoff chances got a good jump. Here are the updated standings from CoolStandings.com:
| Date | Odds |
| Today (9/21) | 28.9% |
| Yesterday (9/20) | 17.5% |
| One Week Ago (9/14) | 4.7% |
| Two Weeks Ago (9/7) | 0.9% |
| One Month Ago (8/21) | 0.1% |
Here is what is on tap for today:
Milwaukee vs. Washington - 12:05 PM CDT
Wily Peralta (2-0, 2.14 ERA) vs. Gio Gonzalez (19-8, 2.95 ERA)
St. Louis vs. Chi. Cubs - 12:05 PM CDT
Adam Wainwright (13-13, 3.97 ERA) vs. Travis Wood (6-12, 4.25 ERA)
Atlanta vs. Philadelphia - 3:05 PM CDT
Mike Minor (9-10, 4.31 ERA) vs. Roy Halladay (10-7, 4.03 ERA)
LA Dodgers vs. Cincinnati - 3:05 PM CDT
Stephen Fife (0-1, 2.49 ERA) vs. Mat Latos (12-4, 3.76 ERA)
Pittsburgh vs. Houston - 6:05 PM CDT
Kevin Correia (11-9, 4.09 ERA) vs. Dallas Keuchel (2-7, 4.97 ERA)
Arizona vs. Colorado - 7:10 PM CDT
Patrick Corbin (6-7, 4.02 ERA) vs. Jhoulys Chacin (2-5, 4.58 ERA)
San Diego vs. San Francisco - 8:05 PM CDT
Andrew Werner (2-1, 3.68 ERA) vs. Madison Bumgarner (15-10, 3.26 ERA)