Braves NL Wild-Card Lead Reduced to One
By Editorial Staff
With three games remaining, both league’s wild-card races have come down to the wire. After yesterday’s shutout defeat at the hands of the Washington Nationals and another Cardinals victory, the Atlanta Braves had their NL wild-card lead reduced to a single game.
Atlanta’s offense went stagnant for the second day in a row Sunday. Ross Detwiler and the Nationals bullpen, currently sporting the 5th best ERA in the Majors, held the Braves to only four hits yesterday. None were of the extra base variety.
On the other end, Michael Morse continued celebrating his 2011 coming out party by launching his 29th home run of the year. This coupled with a Wilson Ramos solo shot proved all the support Washington’s pitchers would need.
Meanwhile in St. Louis, the Cardinals came back twice against the Cubs, going ahead for good in the 8th inning on Rafael Furcal’s solo home run.
With their wild-card lead reduced to one game, the Braves travel home to welcome the Philadelphia Phillies. The NL East rivals will face off in a three game set to end the season.
St. Louis ends the year on the road but against far inferior competition. The Cardinals will try to overtake the Braves during their final regular season series of the year against the Houston Astros.
For more on the Braves and Cardinals, be sure to check out Tomahawk Take and Redbird Rants.