St. Louis Cardinals win 4-3 over Pittsburgh Pirates

It took 14 innings to do it but the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-3 on a walk-off single from Adron Chambers that scored outfielder Jon Jay.
Aug 13, 2013; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals center fielder Adron Chambers (56) celebrates with teammates after hitting a walk off single off of Pittsburgh Pirates relief pitcher Jared Hughes (not pictured) during the fourteenth inning at Busch Stadium. St. Louis defeated Pittsburgh 4-3 in 14 innings. Image Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
Tuesday’s game was one that the Cardinals needed to win. They needed the confidence that came with a win. With the Cards, Pirates, and Cincinnati Reds all going after playoff spots, a win was a must in order to gain ground in the National League Central.

The game took nearly 5 hours from the start to finish.

The Pirates got on the board early with a 3-0 lead following home runs in the first and second innings. It took the Cardinals some time to rally back.

In the 6th inning, the Cardinals scored 2 runs to lower the deficit. With bases loaded, David Freese grounded into a double play but he drove in Carlos Beltran. Jay singled and scored Allen Craig.

There were several opportunities to tie the game and even win it but nothing would come of those. In the bottom of the 9th inning, Craig did what he does best. He drove in a runner in scoring position to tie the game. Beltran, however, overran second base and was nearly at third base before getting caught in a run-down. As such, the game went into extra innings.

The bases were loaded in the 10th inning but nothing became of that. With runners on the corners in the 11th inning, Seth Maness grounded into a double play. In the 12th inning, it was 3 up and 3 down. In the 13th, Maness was up with bases loaded but struck out to end the inning. Finally, in the 14th inning, the Cards won it on a walk off.