Cardinals clinch NL Central, 4th straight postseason

Posted: Sep 27, 2022 / 09:55 PM CDT

Updated: Sep 28, 2022 / 06:00 AM CDT

MILWAUKEE – One of the most storied seasons for one of the most storied franchises in baseball history leads to a familiar spot. The St. Louis Cardinals are National League Central division champions.

The Cardinals clinched the NL Central crown with a six-score victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday. It marks the fourth straight postseason berth for the St. Louis Cardinals and first NL Central title since 2019.

It all comes during one of the team’s most memorable campaigns in recent history. Albert Pujols reached 700 career home runs in his sendoff season, Adam Wainwright and Yadier Molina set MLB’s battery record and Paul Goldschmidt has flirted with a Triple Crown.

While the Cardinals entered the series with a magic number of three, they have clinched the division even with a magic number of one still remaining on technicality. By winning the season series with 10 head-to-head victories, St. Louis officially secures a tiebreaker edge for the division in the case they finished the same record as the Brewers.

The Cardinals, barring a dramatic finish to the season, will finish the regular season as the No. 3 seed in the National League for MLB postseason. The Los Angeles Dodgers have already wrapped up the top seed and the New York Mets and Atlanta Braves are competing for the second spot, both with at least a six-win advantage in overall record compared to St. Louis.

What’s next?

With the No. 3 seed essentially secured, St. Louis will face the National League’s No. 6 seed in the Wild Card series. It’s the first time MLB has introduced this opening round format in a 162-game season.

The Cardinals will play host for at least two games in a best-of-three series against a NL Wild Card contender. Right now, that’s shaping up to be either the Philadelphia Phillies, San Diego Padres or the Milwaukee Brewers they just defeated for the central crown.

All three of those Wild Card games will be played at Busch Stadium from Friday, Oct. 7 to Sunday, Oct. 9.

If the Cardinals advance, they would then proceed to play the No. 2 seed in the National League, most likely the New York Mets or Atlanta Braves. The winner in a battle of the No. 4 and No. 5 seeds will play the Los Angeles Dodgers in that series.

The generic range of dates for each of the four possible postseason rounds include: