The Latest Breaking News from Ryan Helsley

CINCINNATI — At a ballpark where innings are known to go super sideways as homers go up, up, and away, to walls both near and far, the Cardinals turned for a second consecutive day to their closer.

DENVER — He didn’t start the game. He just effectively finished it.

ST. LOUIS — The Cardinals should have consulted a cynic.

The Cardinals were two outs from a Game 1 win when everything fell apart.

ST. LOUIS — Jean Segura wasn’t even halfway down the first-base line when he leaped in the air, looking more like Mikhail Baryshnikov than the player who delivered a game-winning hit in the Phillies’ first playoff game in 11 years.

Who will come out on top between No. 3 St. Louis and No. 6 Philadelphia? Let’s break down the deciding factors in Friday’s first NL Wild Card Series matchup.

The last time Bryce Harper faced the Cardinals in the playoffs, he couldn’t legally drink Champagne.

PITTSBURGH — Whatever happened later in the game to decide who had the more runs, the Cardinals had at least a gulp of concern for who was lost from the game.

MILWAUKEE — The first goal the Cardinals set for themselves in spring training, the gateway goal that would get them into the postseason and closer to achieving their loftiest ambition, is also the one Nolan Arenado has brought up several times in recent weeks as a reminder.