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(SportsNetwork.com) - Its been 21 long years since the Pittsburgh Pirates have been in this position. Who can blame them for wanting to stick around a little longer? Pittsburgh will continue its first postseason run since 1992 on Thursday when they start the best-of-five National League Division Series against the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium. "We know the Cardinals and they know us; there wont be any secrets," Pirates second baseman Neil Walker said. Of course, these teams are no stranger to one another, having played 19 times in the regular season. In fact from June 21 on, it was essentially a two-horse race for bragging rights in the NL Central before St. Louis eventually pulled away from Pittsburgh and captured its first division title since 2009 by virtue of a league-best 97-65 mark. So, the Pirates had to settle for a wild card spot, despite finishing above .500 (94-68) for the first time since that 1992 season. Nobody in the Steel City was complaining, though, as they hadnt experienced postseason baseball since Barry Bonds was roaming the outfield at Three Rivers Stadium. And Pittsburgh rewarded its fans on Tuesday, as Francisco Liriano fired seven innings of one-run ball and Russell Martin cracked a pair of solo home runs in the Pirates 6-2 win over Cincinnati in the NL wild card game. "We didnt talk about one and done, we talked about one and run," Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said. "Win one and run to St. Louis." Pittsburgh had five All-Stars at this years Midsummer Classic, but none shined brighter than Andrew McCutchen, who continued to state his case as one of the best young players in the game. McCutchen hit .317 with 21 home runs, 84 RBI, 27 stolen bases, a .404 on-base percentage and .508 slugging percentage in 157 games. He became just the fourth major league center fielder since 1947 to have consecutive seasons of hitting .300 with a .400 slugging percentage and .500 on-base-plus-slugging percentage, joining Mickey Mantle, Willie Mays and Ken Griffey Jr. Veteran right-hander A.J. Burnett will get the call for the Bucs in Game 1. Burnett was only 10-11 this season, but pitched to a 3.03 ERA and is no stranger to postseason baseball. "It means a lot," Burnett said about getting the ball for Game 1. "I wouldnt want it any other way. Theyve come a long way, these men in here. Step 2 was tonight. We have a lot of work still to be done, a lot of games to be played. It was a great win, a great step. Now we have to get ready for another series." Burnett has pitched to a 5.08 ERA in seven postseason games, but is 1-0 with a 1.54 ERA in his two Division Series outings. While Pittsburgh may be getting its first taste of postseason action since 1992, St. Louis is holding court in October for the third straight year and for the 10th time in the last 14 seasons. The Cardinals have won four playoff series in the past two seasons and have claimed two World Series titles in the past seven years. Amazingly, Mike Mathenys team keeps chugging along no matter what obstacles seem to be thrown their way. The Cardinals also enter the postseason hot, having won their last six games and 10 of the last 12 in the regular season. McCutchen may be the NL frontrunner for an MVP, but the Cards have a pair of candidates as well in catcher Yadier Molina and second baseman Matt Carpenter. In addition to being the best defensive catcher in the game, Molina has also become a more than capable bat in the lineup. This year, he hit .319 and drove in 80 runs. Carpenter was a real surprise, though, as the rookie earned an All-Star berth, hitting .318, while scoring a major league-best 126 runs. "I dont know where wed be without him -- having that leadoff hitter and having the kind of season that hes having and what hes done defensively," Matheny said of Carpenter. "Its just off the charts, as far as how good he has been and how much hes proven just what a solid baseball player he is -- no matter where we put him." The key for St. Louis will be jumping out in front on a hot Pirates team that seems to be gaining momentum by the day. And who better to do just that in Game 1 than NL wins leader Adam Wainwright, who won 19 games this season and pitched to a 3.00 ERA in three starts versus the Pirates. Wainwright was 4-0 in his final five starts, working seven or more innings in all of them except for a tuneup his last time out. "All in all, a Cy Young-caliber season," Matheny said. "Were not afraid to put him on the mound against anybody." Pittsburgh narrowly won the season series, 10-9, but lost six of nine in St. Louis. Terron Armstead Saints Jersey . Defenceman Yannick Weber scored the go-ahead goal early in the third period and the Canucks breathed a sigh of relief with a 2-1 win on Saturday night. Rafael Bush Black Jersey . Robinson finished with 17 points, all but two in the second half, and Lawson had 14 after halftime and finished with a game-high 11 assists as the Nuggets handed Dallas its first home loss in eight games this season. J.J. Hickson led Denver with 22, and Kenneth Faried added 10 points and 10 rebounds. http://www.jerseysaintssportsauthentic.com/saints-...ld-jers ey/ .875,000, avoiding arbitration. Clippards deal Monday means all eight Nationals players who filed for arbitration wound up settling before a hearing. Ronald Powell Black Jersey . Coach Tom Thibodeau says the former MVP will probably start travelling with the team in the next few weeks. Rose tore the meniscus in his right knee at Portland in November and was ruled out for the remainder of the season by the Bulls. Anthony Spencer Black Jersey . -- The Sacramento Kings are set to become the first major professional sports franchise to accept Bitcoin virtual currency for ticket and merchandise purchases. MIAMI -- When Anibal Sanchez escaped his only jam of the night, he pounded his glove with satisfaction as if it were a playoff game. The stakes will rise soon enough. In the meantime, Sanchez all but clinched the AL ERA title by pitching five scoreless innings Saturday for the Detroit Tigers, but Joaquin Benoit blew a save and they lost to the Miami Marlins 2-1 in 10 innings. Sanchez lowered his ERA from 2.64 to 2.57 to increase a slim lead. Oaklands Bartolo Colon ranks second at 2.65 followed by Seattles Hisashi Iwakuma at 2.66, and both have pitched their final game of the regular season. "Im happy for the ERA title," Sanchez said. "But its not about numbers. Its about getting ready for the playoffs." The AL Central champion Tigers learned Saturday their opponent in next weeks division series will be the Athletics in Oakland beginning Friday. "Theyre very good," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said, "and were very good." "My thoughts are that were going to win," slugger Prince Fielder said. "Obviously theyre a great team or they wouldnt be in this position. Its going to be tough, but of course I think my team is better." With their playoff slot decided, the Tigers next-to-last game of the regular season was mostly about statistics. Miguel Cabrera, already assured of his second consecutive AL batting title, went 2 for 4 to hike his average to .348. Hell be held out of the starting lineup in Sundays finale, but his first series in Miami since being traded by the Marlins in 2007 has been a box-office success. The crowd of 28,750 was the largest since the Marlins home opener in April. Detroit took a 1-0 lead into the ninth before the Marlins rallied against Benoit. He blew a save for only the second time in 26 chances this year, which prevented Sanchez from earning his 15th victory. "If its going to happen, it had better happen now and not in the post-season," Benoit said. "Better to get it over with. But its still not a good thing to go through." "He just wasnt sharp," Leyland said. "I have no concerns about him whatsoever." Ed Lucas singled home the tying run with two outs in the ninth, and Benoit loaded the bases before he got out of the inning after throwing 31 pitches. With a runner at second in the 10th inning, Miamis Donovan Solano ttook a 95-mph fastball from Evan Reed off his helmet.dddddddddddd The sound could be heard in the upper deck as the helmet flew off, and Solano slowly went to one knee, but then walked off the field. After the game, Solano said he was OK. "I felt the hit but I feel normal now," he said. "It got the helmet." Reed (0-1) loaded the bases with a walk, and with one out Giancarlo Stanton hit a winning RBI single. Sanchez allowed two hits, walked none and struck out eight to finish with 202 strikeouts. He faced the Marlins for the first time after spending the first 6 1/2 seasons of his career with them. "The first day I got here, a lot of memories went through my mind," he said. "I didnt try to do something special. I just went to the mound to do my job, throw strikes and get ready for the playoffs." Miamis Nathan Eovaldi, plagued by poor run support all season, allowed one run in six innings. He finished with a 3.39 ERA. "Im happy with the outing," he said. "I feel like I finished on a good note this year. I made my pitches when I needed to." Steve Cishek (4-6) pitched a hitless 10th. Jhonny Peralta, who returned Friday from a 50-game suspension, went 2 for 5 for the Tigers. They went 0 for 5 with runners in scoring position, stranded 10 runners and grounded into two double plays. Sanchez retired his first nine batters. He escaped a two-on jam in the fourth when Stanton grounded into an inning-ending double play, then finished with flourish, striking out the side in the fifth. Detroit scored its run in the fourth when Fielder led off with a walk, took third on a single by Peralta and came home on Alex Avilas sacrifice fly. Eovaldi saved a run when he caught Fielders comebacker with two on to end the fifth. Fielder lined the ball sharply into Eovaldis glove, then flipped away his bat in disgust at his bad luck. "If the ball had GPS on it," Fielder said, "everybody would hit .400." NOTES: RHP Jose Fernandez was chosen as the Marlins most valuable player and rookie of the year in voting by local sports writers. ... With 11 strikeouts Saturday, Tigers pitchers have 1,415 this season, breaking the major league record of 1,404 set by the 2003 Cubs. ... RHP Justin Verlander goes for his 14th victory Sunday against Miamis Henderson Alvarez. 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