Looking back at 5 Cardinals-Dodgers postseason series

2009 National League Division Series

The Cardinals came into this series as NL Central division champions (91-71) and the Dodgers as NL West division champions (95-67).

The Cardinals lineup included Albert Pujols, Yadier Molina, Matt Holliday and Ryan Ludwick. The pitching staff included 19-game winner Adam Wainwright, 17-game winner Chris Carpenter, Kyle Lohse and closer Ryan Franklin.

The Dodgers lineup included Matt Kemp, Andre Ethier and Manny Ramirez. Their pitching staff had Clayton Kershaw, Randy Wolf, Chad Billingsley and closer Jonathan Broxton.

The most notable aspect of the first game is neither starters, Randy Wolf and Chris Carpenter, were very effective. The Dodgers got a two-run homer from Matt Kemp off Carpenter in the first inning to take a lead they would never relinquish, winning 5-3 in a nearly four-hour game.

Game 2 saw an incredible pitching duel between Adam Wainwright and Clayton Kershaw. Wainwright’s jewel was however ended in the ninth, when Cardinals closer Ryan Franklin gave up two runs, and the Dodgers won 3-2.

Game 3 saw the Dodgers starting pitcher, Vicente Pidella dominate the Cardinals, allowing no runs through 7 innings. Andre Ethier’s three run homer in the third, would be all the Dodgers needed in a 5-1 win and sweep the series.

The Dodgers would advance to the NLCS vs the Phillies, but lose 4 games to 1.

2014 National League Division Series

The Cardinals came into this series as NL Central Division champions (90-72) and the Dodgers as NL West Division champions (94-68).

The Cardinals lineup included Yadier Molina, Matt Holiday, Matt Adams and Jhonny Peralta. The pitching staff included 20-game winner Adam Wainwright, 15-game winner Lance Lynn, Shelby Miller and closer Trevor Rosenthal.

The Dodgers lineup included Adrian Gonzalez, Hanley Ramirez, Juan Uribe and Yasiel Puig. The pitching staff had 21-game winner Clayton Kershaw, 17-game winner Zack Greinke, Dan Haren and closer Kenley Jansen.

Game 1 featured starting pitchers Adam Wainwright and eventual Cy Young Award Winner Clayton Kershaw. However, the game turned into a 26-hit slugfest, which the Cardinals would eventually win 10-9.  The Cardinals put the game away in the seventh inning behind Matt Carpenter’s three run double and Matt Holliday’s three run homer.

Game 2 was nearly the exact opposite with solid pitching performances by Zack Greinke and Lance Lynn. The game wasn’t decided until an eighth inning home run by Matt Kemp off Pat Neshek and Kaley Jansen’s shut down ninth, to give the Dodgers a 3-2 win.

Game 3 featured another fine pitching performances by starters Hyun-jin Ryu of the Dodgers and John Lackey of the Cardinals. The game wasn’t decided until Kolten Wong’s two run homer in the seventh to give the Cardinals an eventual 3-1 win.

Game 4 was another pitching gem by both teams. Clayton Kershaw started on three days rest and Shelby Miller got the nod for the Cardinals. The Dodgers struck first in the sixth inning, chasing Miller from the game to take a 2-0 lead. However, in the bottom of the seventh, Matt Adams hit a three run homer off Kershaw to take a 3-2 lead and the Dodgers were never able to answer.

The Cardinals won the series three games to one, but would go on to lose in the NLCS to the San Francisco Giants four games to two.

2004 National League Division Series

The Cardinals came into this series as NL Central Division champions (105-57) and the Dodgers as NL West Division champions (93-69).

St. Louis’ lineup included Albert Pujols, Scott Rolen, Jim Edmonds and Larry Walker. The pitching staff included Matt Morris, Jeff Suppan, Woody Williams and closer Jason Isringhausen.

The Dodgers lineup included Adrian Beltre, Shawn Green, and Milton Bradley. Their pitching staff included Jeff Weaver, Odelis Perez, Jose Lima, and closer Eric Gagne.

In Game 1, the Cardinals jumped on the Dodgers early and didn’t let up. Larry Walker’s and Jim Edmonds homers in a five run third inning put the game away. Woody Williams pitched six solid innings and was relieved by a solid Cardinal bullpen in 8-3 win.

The Cardinals won Game 2, 8-3. Their bats kept adding runs throughout the game, with catcher Mike Matheny driving in four runs. Finally, the bullpen saved a faltering Jason Marquis in the fourth and shut down the Dodgers the rest of the way.

In Game 3, Dodger starting pitcher Jose Lima managed to shut down the Cardinals explosive offense and pitch a complete game 5 hit shutout for a 4-0 win. This was a first postseason win for the Dodgers since the 1988 World Series and forced a game four.

However, in Game 4, a combination of Jeff Suppan’s pitching performance and Albert Pujols three run homer in the fourth inning put the game and the series away.

The Cardinals would go on to the NLCS and defeat the Houston Astros four games to three, but eventually lose the 2004 World Series to the Boston Red Sox in four games.

2013 National League Championship Series

The Cardinals came into this series as NL Central division champions (97-65) and the Dodgers as NL West division champions (92-70).

The Cardinals lineup included Yadier Molina, Matt Holiday, Carlos Beltran, and David Freese. The pitching staff included 19-game winner Adam Wainwright, Shelby Miller, Lane Lynn and closer Edward Mujica.

The Dodgers lineup included Adrian Gonzelez, Hanley Ramiriz, Juan Uribe, and Yasiel Puig. Their pitching staff included the soon-to-be-named Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw, Zach Greinke, Hyu Jin Ryu and closer Kenley Jansen.

Game 1 turned into a 13-inning pitching duel, but was finally decided when Carlos Beltran hit a double of Kenley Jansen that scored Daniel Descalso from second, which gave the Cardinals a 3-2 win.

Game 2 was another pitching duel, this time between Michael Wacha and Clayton Kershaw. While Kershaw was better, allowing only 2 hits, Michael Wacha got the 1-0 win. Wacha only allowed 5 hits and Trevor Rosenthal struck out the side in the ninth inning to secure the win.

Game 3 was another low scoring affair, but this time it came at the expense of Adam Wainwright and the Cardinals. Hyun-jin Ryu pitched seven shut out innings and the Dodgers won 3-0.

Game 4 saw the Cardinals jump on top by scoring three runs in the third inning off a double by Matt Carpenter and a home run by Matt Holliday. The Dodgers were never able to catch up and the Cardinals won 4-2 to take a 3-1 series lead.

In Game 5, Dodgers bats came alive and Zack Greinke pitched seven strong innings for a 6-4 win, and lived to fight another day. Kenley Jansen held off a two-run rally in the ninth to secure the win for the Dodgers.

Game 6 turned out to be anti-climatic with the Cardinals scoring four runs in the third inning and five in the fifth inning. Kershaw was credited with giving up seven earned runs and 10 hits in a Cardinals 9-0 victory. Michael Wacha earned the win and the NLCS MVP Award. The Cardinals earned their 19th NL Pennant.

The Cardinals went on to face the Boston Red Sox in the World Series, hoping to win their 12th World Championship, but lost the series four games to two.

1985 National League Championship Series

The 1985 NLCS is the most memorable of all the Cardinals/Dodgers postseason series. In fact, Game 5 could arguably had been the most memorable postseason game until Game 6 of the 2011 World Series.

The 1985 Cardinals were probably Whitey Herzog’s best during his tenure as the Cardinals skipper. They finished 101-61 and won the National League East by three games over the then-hated New York Mets.

The Dodgers were the winners of the National League East with a 95-67 record and outpaced the Cincinnati Reds by 5.5 games.

The Cardinals roster 1985 was filled with names such as Ozzie Smith, Willie McGee, Tommy Herr, Jack Clark, Vince Coleman and Andy Van Slyke. Their pitching staff included John Tudor, Joaquin Andujar, Danny Cox and closer Jeff Lahti.

The Dodgers roster included Mike Scioscia, Steve Sax and Pedro Guerrero. The pitching staff was impressive and the strength of the team, featuring Fernando Valenzuela, Oriel Hershiser, Jerry Reus, Bob Welch, Rick Honeycutt, and closer Tom Niedenfuer.

The Dodgers jumped up two games behind Valenzuela and Hershiser. However, the Cardinals came back in game three behind Danny Cox and scoring 4 runs in the first two innings in a 4-2 win. Game 4 was an easy Cardinals victory 12-2 behind the pitching of John Tudor. The most memorable event about this game was actually before the game when the field tarp trapped Vince Coleman and ended his season with a broken ankle.

Then came Game 5. The Cardinals and the Dodgers had played to a 2-2 tie going into the ninth. Tom Niedenfuer came in to hold the Cardinals and get the game to the tenth. But with one out, Ozzie Smith hit a home run to win the game 3-2. What was remarkable, is as many Cardinal fans of the day knew, the switch-hitting Ozzie Smith had never hit a home run in his career from the left side.

Of course this next led to the famous Jack Buck call of “Go crazy folks! Go crazy!” I can’t believe what I just saw!”

Ozzie’s home run and Jack Buck’s call have gone down into Cardinal lore as one of the most memorable events in the history of Cardinals baseball.

Of course, Game 6 still had to be played and the Cardinals won it behind Jack Clark’s three run homer in the ninth off Niedenfuer. With the 4-2 series win, the Cardinals advanced to the World Series.

Unfortunately, the Cardinals lost the 1985 World Series to the Kansas City Royals, four games to three. (Thank you, Don Denkinger)

Looking Forward to the 2021 Postseason…

Out of five postseason series vs the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Cardinals have won four. Impressive if you consider the Dodgers teams the Cardinals have beaten.

Nevertheless, this version of the Dodgers may be the best Dodgers team the Cardinals have ever faced in the postseason. As I write this, they are 40-13 since August 1 and now have won 104 games.

The Cardinals are playing their best baseball, not only of this year, but the best September run in their history. Their 17-game winning streak has propelled them into the postseason and I believe any team would be worried playing them in a one game winner-take-all.

It seems appropriate that these two franchises with 18 World Series and 40 National League Pennants between them, find themselves fighting in. a one game winner-take-all wild card game.

If we’re lucky, maybe there will be another moment like we saw in Game Five in 1985.