St Louis Cardinals

It’s difficult to imagine where the St. Louis Cardinals would be without their rookie pitchers.

Between Carlos Martinez, Seth Maness, Trevor Rosenthal, Kevin Siegrist and Michael Wacha, the Cardinals' young hurlers have individually and collectively played a crucial role in the team's success this October.

However, one very important name has been absent from the mix: Shelby Miller.

The St. Louis Cardinals find themselves in Game 5 of the National League Division Series yet again this year.

Just like 2012, they will turn to Adam Wainwright to lead them to victory and on to the National League Championship Series.  Wainwright hopes to put the team in a position to win instead of the team overcoming a poor start like what occurred last year.

Albert Pujols didn’t define the St. Louis Cardinals franchise.

Sure, he was one of many cornerstone players to ever don the birds on the bat. But this rich and historic organization won before him and with him, and now they are winning without him.

If St. Louis Cardinals fans partied it up on Thursday night in celebration, it’s likely that on Friday night they’re hitting the bottle.

What happened at Busch Stadium Friday afternoon was the polar opposite of Game 1 of the National League Division Series between the Cardinals and the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Having already clinched its first National League Central division title in four years, St. Louis completed a three-game sweep of division rival Chicago Sunday to secure the NL’s best record and home-field advantage throughout the 2013 playoffs.

With 11 World Series championships, the Cardinals will venture into October hunting for their second title in three years.

The St. Louis Cardinals, having won their division for the seventh time in the past 14 years, head into the playoffs facing some fierce competition.

A 7-0 rout of the Chicago Cubs on Friday night assured the St. Louis Cardinals of an NL Central title, their first since 2009.

Despite dominating for most of the regular season, they face a whole new set of challenges in their pursuit of the 2013 World Series Championship.

Here are three reasons why St. Louis may succumb to an early playoff exit.

With a 7-0 win over the Chicago Cubs, the St. Louis Cardinals clinched their first National League Central division title since 2009.

The Cardinals provided the news via Twitter:

For the first time since 2009, the St. Louis Cardinals aren't heading to the postseason as a mere wild-card team.

Nope, not this year. Meet your 2013 National League Central champions.

The St. Louis Cardinals are considered by many to be favorites in the National League heading into the playoffs.

With a record of 92-65, the Cardinals have the fourth-best record in all of baseball and are showing they are contenders once again.