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Clubhouse
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Statistics
Playoff History

Clubhouse
Roster
Statistics
Playoff History

(AP Photo/Tom Gannam)

Chris Carpenter pitched seven innings for his second NLCS victory.

Master Carpenter

Chris Carpenter, not Albert Pujols, is the reason the Cards advanced to the NLCS once again, writes Jayson Stark. Story

• Four-run sixth leads Cards ...

| Keith Law: Pads fail in clutch

• Inside Edge grades: Chris Carpenter | Woody Williams

SCOUTING REPORTS

Keith Law on Adam Wainwright
"Wainwright is the only [bullpen] bright spot at the moment, thanks to his out-pitch breaking ball. It's a real yakker, and is best when he doesn't rush through it and lets it tumble in at 71-74."
• Law's complete team reports: Padres

| Cardinals

• Law's series preview: Cards' hitters undisciplined

Inside Edge
Who had better offspeed effectiveness, Chris Carpenter or Woody Williams? Why did Carpenter's overall effectiveness rate a B+ grade? Check out Inside Edge's scouting report card on the Game 4 starters.
• Game 4 grades: Chris Carpenter | Woody Williams
• Full-roster reports: Cardinals

| Padres

MORE FROM ESPN.com

Sunday, October 8
Slumping Rolen says shoulder not right, gets benched: Scott Rolen, hitting just .091 in the NL Divisional Series, was out of the starting lineup for Game 4 against San Diego on Sunday after complaining of shoulder fatigue.
Saturday, October 7
Stark: Hoffman's time finally comes after eight years: Despite being the game's most prolific save artist, Trevor Hoffman waited eight years for a playoff opportunity ... until Saturday's Game 3.
Law: Young dominates Cardinals hitters: Chris Young's effort against St. Louis in Game 3 wasn't surprising because he's been unhittable for a few weeks.
Ace up sleeve: Cards call on Carpenter to start Game 4: Now Chris Carpenter has the chance to put the St. Louis Cardinals back into the NL Championship Series.
Friday, October 6
Bochy considering using injured Greene in Game 3: Although it's a long shot, Padres manager Bruce Bochy is considering using shortstop Khalil Greene in Game 3 of the division series against the Cardinals.
Nelson: Cardinals cruising right along: An underdog heading into October, the Cardinals are now playing at the top of their game.
Thursday, October 5
Neel: Start of a new story for Weaver: With the Cardinals needing a strong performance from Jeff Weaver, he pitched like the staff ace.
Law: Punchless Padres on life support: After scoring only one run in two games, the Padres have apparently sent their bats home for the winter.
Wednesday, October 4
Nelson: Despite facing deficit, Padres oozing with confidence: Much like the 2004 Red Sox, the Padres feature a completely tension-free clubhouse.
The Sports Guy: MLB playoff diary: Bill Simmons kicks off the 2006 playoffs with a running diary of the Cardinals-Padres game.
Tuesday, October 3
Neel: Seems like old times for Cardinals: With one swing of Albert Pujols' bat, the Cardinals gained a decided advantage in their series against the Padres.
Law: Carpenter brings his 'A' game: Chris Carpenter had all of his pitches working, and Tony La Russa took him out at the right time.
End text -------------------------
Padres, Cards set Games 2, 3 starters for division series: David Wells will start Game 2 and Chris Young Game 3 for the Padres, while Jeff Weaver gets the nod for Game 2 and Jeff Suppan Game 3 for the Cards.
Olney: Top 10 NLDS matchups: Will the Mets' offensive slump carry over into October? That's one of Buster Olney's top matchups in the NL Division Series.
Gillette: Ranking the playoff teams: Who has the best rotation, bullpen, lineup, defense and bench? Gary Gillette ranks the playoff teams in each category.
Gallo: MLB breakdown: DJ Gallo's in-depth, position-by-position analysis is your best bet to determine who will win the Divisional Series.
Monday, October 2
Now with home field, Padres hope to mimic '05 Cards: A year after being swept out of the playoffs by the St. Louis Cardinals, the NL West champion Padres get another shot at Chris Carpenter and the NL Central champions.
Spoiler alert: Playoff foes aim to prevent Subway Series: Everyone on Broadway is gearing up for another Subway Series. But six other teams like their playoff chances, too, and they plan to spoil the party.
Sunday, October 1
Cards lose, become NL Central champ with worst record: St. Louis Cardinals won their third straight NL Central title on Sunday despite a 5-3 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers, backing into the playoffs thanks to Houston's loss in Atlanta.
Padres survive ninth to win NL West: The Padres clinched the NL West title Sunday as Trevor Hoffman held on in a rough ninth inning for a 7-6 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks.
More Features

CARDINALS LOCAL HEADLINES

Cardinals local archive

PADRES LOCAL HEADLINES

Padres local archive

CARDINALS WON 3-1

Sun, 10/8

For second straight year, Cards eliminate Padres in NLDS
Final: Box Score | Play By Play

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SERIES NOTES

ELIAS SAYS ...
• Only three teams in major-league history reached the postseason despite losing as many as 28 of their last 50 regular-season games: the 1976 Royals, who lost the ALCS to the Yankees, and the Cardinals and Tigers this season. The Cardinals had the worst record in the NL Central from July 23 to the end of the season (28-37); the Tigers had the worst in the AL Central from Aug. 2 to the end of the season (24-32).

• The Padres failed to score in Sunday's 6-2 loss to the Cardinals after plating two runs in the top of the first, fueled by an uncharacteristic wild spell by Chris Carpenter. Carpenter walked three batters the inning, including a bases-loaded pass to Russell Branyan. Since debuting for the Cardinals in 2004, Carpenter hadn't issued as many as three walks in the first inning (93 regular-season starts) or walked a batter with the bases loaded (34 batters faced with the bases full).

• David Eckstein drove in the Cardinals' fifth run with a squeeze bunt in the sixth inning. Eckstein also executed a squeeze bunt against the Padres in Game 2 of the 2005 NLDS. No other player since 1930 has had more than one RBI sacrifice bunt in postseason play.

More from Elias Says

TEAM STATISTICS

SD		STL
.225	BA	.272
6	R	14
2	SB	2
0	HR	2
21	K	34
3.09	ERA	1.50

BATTING	PITCHING
Series Stats
SDG \| STL	SDG \| STL
Season Stats
SDG \| STL	SDG \| STL
Head-To-Head Stats
SDG \| STL	SDG \| STL

Regular Season head-to-head

EXPERT PICKS
Crasnick	Olney	Caple	Phillips	Kurkjian

Complete ESPN expert predictions