Cardinals and Dodgers Roll to Victory

The St. Louis Cardinals destroyed the Pittsburgh Pirates behind a dominant start from Adam Wainwright and offensive outburst from Carlos Beltran. The 9-1 victory for the Cardinals was out of reach for the Pirates before they could even get going on the day. In the bottom of the third inning the Cards went up 7-0 on Pittsburgh starter A.J. Burnett. Also, those seven runs for the Cardinals came before anyone on the Pirates could even get a hit. The main highlight being a three run home run down the right field live by the aforementioned Beltran.

Wainwright lasted seven complete innings and struck out nine Pirates along the way. He allowed only one run to cross the plate on three hits. To say he was locked on would be a massive understatement. It should really come as no surprise, though. Wainwright is one of the best pitchers in the game today and anything other than dominance could be cause for concern.

Carlos Martinez and Trevor Rosenthal each pitched a scoreless inning of relief to help close the game.

The Pirates and Cardinals will continue their best of five game series Friday afternoon at 1:07. Lance Lynn will take the mound for the Rays while the Pirates will counter with the sensational rookie, Gerrit Cole

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Meanwhile, the Dodgers took on the Braves Thursday night and gathered their first win of their 2013 postseason. The 6-1 victory was anchored by the magical left arm of Clayton Kershaw. The big lefty and favorite to win the 2013 NL Cy Young award went seven innings and struck out 12 Braves hitters while allowing only one run to cross the plate. Brian Wilson and Kenley Jansen were solid in their one inning apiece of relief work.

Meanwhile, the Braves received zero help in the pitching department last game. Their starter, Kris Medlen, went four innings and allowed five runs to score on nine hits and a walk. For whatever reason, Medlen just didn’t have his A-game and it showed.

Offensively, the big blow of the game for the Dodgers came in the top of the third off of the bat of Adrian Gonzalez. His two run home run to center put the Dodgers up by a score of 4-0 and provided Kershaw with all the help he could possible need and then some. Outstanding Cuban superstar Yasiel Puig also turned in a magnificent performance in his big league playoff debut by going 2 for 4 with a run scored.

The Dodgers and Braves will face off in game two of their series on Friday evening. First pitch is scheduled for a 6:07 start time with Zack Greinke of the Dodgers facing off against the Braves’ Mike Minor.

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