In the first NLDS game of the evening, the Pirates meet the Cardinals in St. Louis with two pitchers familiar with the postseason on the mound. The Cardinals have made the postseason in four out of the last five years while the Pirates are making their first October appearance in more than a decade. Pittsburgh, of course, had to go through the Cincinnati Reds in the Wild Card Game before earning the right to take on St. Louis.
In 19 games against the Cardinals this season, the Pirates offense has clubbed 19 homers. Russell Martin and Marlon Byrd have already gone deep this postseason and will be looking to add to their power totals against St. Louis this year. Wainwright, however, managed to keep the Bucs in check in his three starts against them this year, pitching to a 3.00 ERA with seven innings pitched in each outing.
The game will be televised on TBS and Postseason.tv starting at 5:00 pm.
In May of this year it looked like Donnie Baseball's job might be on the line, then Yasiel Puig happened. The Dodgers find themselves in the playoffs after a thrilling run that helped them overcome a losing September record. Clayton Kershaw has been the best pitcher in baseball once again, pitching to a ridiculous 1.83 ERA in 33 starts. Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier are banged up but Kershaw's pitching can make none of that matter.
The Braves cruised through the non-competitive NL East to secure home field advantage. Playing at Turner Field this season the Braves have gone 56-25, the best home record in the majors. Atlanta won the season series with Los Angeles 5-2.
The game will begin at 8:30 pm and be televised on TBS and Postseason.tv.