Cardinals win 17th in a row and clinch 2nd place in NL wild card

ST. LOUIS

Dylan Carlson, Nolan Arenado and Jose Rondon scored to back Adam Wainwright, and the St. Louis Cardinals extended their winning streak to 17 games and nabbed a wild card spot in the NL with a 6-2 win over the Milwaukee Brewers Tuesday night.

St. Louis will play in the NL wildcard game on October 6 at the Los Angeles or San Francisco Dodgers, whichever doesn’t win the NL West. The playoff trip will be the third in a row for the Cardinals.

Milwaukee was already assured of the NL Central title.

St. Louis was 71-69 on September 11 heading into the winning streak, the longest in team history and the longest in the major leagues since Cleveland won 22 in a row in 2017. The Cardinals are on the longest winning streak since September 1. since the 1935 Chicago Cubs won 21 in a row.

Wainwright (17-7) allowed two runs and seven hits over six innings, throwing 102 shots and blocking seven runners. Wainwright has won six straight decisions for the Cardinals and 10 of his last 11. He’s 4-0 in September and improved to 2-1 in four starts against the Brewers this season.

Paul Goldschmidt and Tyler O’Neill each had two hits in an 11-hit attack.

With a score of 2-2 in the fifth, Goldschmidt passed Jandel Gustave (1-1) and O’Neill followed up with a single with a straight single that gave him 22 RBIs in the last 20 games. The ball went under Avisail Garcia’s glove for a two-goal error, and allowing Nolan Arenado’s sacrifice fly made it 4-2.

Rondon scored with two strikeouts in the sixth – his three home runs this year. Arenado’s 34th home run, a two-strikeout drive in the seventh, tied Scott Rolen (2004) and Fernando Tatis (1999) for most Cardinals third baseman in a season.

Luis Urias hit a two-run homer in the fourth. Carlson did a home run in the bottom half and Wainwright fought off Harrison Bader.

Brandon Woodruff of Milwaukee allowed two runs and seven hits in four innings.

LIST MOVEMENT

Milwaukee RHP Hunter Strickland has been placed on the paternity list as he and his wife prepare for the couple’s third child. LHP Hoby Milner has been recalled from Triple-A Nashville to take his place.

TRAINERS ‘ROOM

Brewers: SS Willy Adames (left quadriceps discomfort) was scratched from the starting XI as a precaution. … 1B Rowdy Tellez (patellar strain) will play Wednesday and Thursday for the Triple-A Nashville Sounds, then join the Brewers on Friday in Los Angeles.

Cardinals: C Yadier Molina (stiff right shoulder) was scratched from the start and is considered overnight. … SS Edmundo Sosa (bruise on his right hand / wrist) played wrestling on Tuesday and could return. … RHP Jordan Hicks (Right Elbow Inflammation) will pitch in the Arizona Fall League. Hicks hasn’t played in a major league game since May 1 and has missed most of 2019 and 2020 after having Tommy John surgery.

FOLLOWING

Brewers: RHP Adrian Houser (9-6, 3.34 ERA) is 2-0 with a 0.45 ERA in three starts against the Cardinals this season.

Cardinals: RHP Miles Mikolas (2-2, 4.15 ERA) is 5-1 in his career against the Brewers. He recorded seven innings, a season-high, pitched last Wednesday in Milwaukee.