There must be something in the water in the midwest, with both the NL and AL Central races coming down to the final two days of the regular season. But, while the AL Central's intrigue is predicated on Aristotelian confluence of events, the single game separating the Pirates and Cardinals lends itself a great deal more to the kind of wild speculation and adrenaline rushes of hope that make playoff baseball so wonderful.
MLB Saturday viewing guide: Pirates, Cardinals battle for NL Central
The Cardinals and Pirates may take the NL Central race down to the very last inning if nothing changes this weekend, but Saturday provides a massive opportunity for either team to take control.
Joe Robbins
The Pirates, who will be using Francisco Liriano as they try to make their way past the Reds and Alfredo Simon at the Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati, would be the third team on top of the division this season. The Brewers held the lead for much of the first half before falling back to earth, eventually ceding the division before dropping completely out of playoff contention over the last week and a half.
Milwaukee was usurped by St. Louis, who, in typical Cardinals fashion, grinded out victory after victory to find themselves with two games to play and control over the own playoff destiny. But they have been unable to capitalize, dropping games to the Cubs and Diamondbacks, two of the worst teams in all of baseball. They will hope to change their fortunes with Lance Lynn, his 2.73 ERA and the fact that World Series-winning former Redbird manager Tony La Russa just fired Diamondbacks' manager Kirk Gibson, and completely cleaned house.
Saturday's MLB schedule
Time (ET) | Game | TV | Reason to watch |
1:05 p.m. | FOX | The second-to-last game of Derek Jeter's career. Also, presumably, presents. | |
1:05 p.m. | Pirates at Cincinnati | Fox Sports 1 | "Long is the way, and hard, that out of Hell leads up to light." Or, you know, the potential for a second consecutive NL Central title. |
4:05 p.m | Fox Sports Florida, MASN | Stephen Strasburg in his last start before the NLDS. | |
4:05 p.m. | San Diego at Giants | Fox Sports San Diego, Comcast Sports Bay Area | There may not be a lot of tangible things left to play for, but home-field advantage for the NL Wild Card game is one of them. |
4:07 p.m. | MASN2, Rogers Sports Network | While Wei-Yin Chen's win-loss record makes his stats seem even better, a 3.56 ERA is still something to be proud of. | |
6:05 p.m. | SUN, Sports Time Ohio | The last start of the season for Carlos Carrasco and his 2.64 ERA. | |
7:05 p.m. | Fox Sports South, Comcast Sports Philly | Atlanta try to end this season with some positive thoughts. | |
7:08 p.m. | Sports Time Ohio, Fox Sports North | Detroit needs to win, and right now, or they may find themselves in the Wild Card Game. | |
7:10 p.m. | Fox Sports KC, Comcast Chicago | With the AL Central still up for grabs, this may be the biggest start of Danny Duffy's young career. | |
7:10 p.m. | Cubs at Brewers | WGN, Fox Sports Wisconsin | They still run the sausages, no matter what. |
7:10 p.m. | Comcast Sports Houston, SNY | The Mets might finish second in the NL East, and just 17 games back! | |
8:05 p.m. | A's at Rangers | Comcast Sports California, Fox Sports Southwest | Jeff Samardzija's 2.88 ERA and 7-12 record should tell you all you need to know about how things have went since he joined the A's. |
8:10 p.m. | Cardinals at Diamondbacks | Fox Sports Midwest, Fox Sports Arizona | The Cardinals have clinched a playoff spot, and very little else. Including peace of mind. |
9:10 p.m. | Fox Sports West, ROOT Seattle | The Mariners are still alive for the AL wild card. | |
9:10 p.m. | ROOT Rocky Mountains, SportsNet LA | Vin Scully calls Dodgers games. He's a national treasure. |
- Whether or not Stephen Strasburg ends up getting the ball for next Friday's first NLDS game, Federal Baseball's Patrick Reddington believes he deserves it.
- Now that they've made it, it's time to set the Royals playoff roster with Royals Review's Max Rieper.
- The A's still haven't clinched a spot in the playoffs after being the sport's best team for much of the season. Athletic Nation's Alex Hall looks at why.
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