| 2011 National League Championship Series | ||||||||||
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| Dates | October 9–16 | |||||||||
| MVP | David Freese (St. Louis) | |||||||||
| Umpires | Gary Darling (crew chief),Tim Timmons,Sam Holbrook,Mike Everitt,Bill Miller,Mike Winters | |||||||||
| Broadcast | ||||||||||
| Television | TBS MLB International | |||||||||
| TV announcers | Brian Anderson,Ron Darling, andJohn Smoltz (TBS) Gary Thorne andRick Sutcliffe (MLB International) | |||||||||
| Radio | ESPN | |||||||||
| Radio announcers | Jon Sciambi (Games 1–3, 6) Dave O'Brien (Games 4–5) Bobby Valentine (Games 1–4, 6) Buck Martinez (Game 5) | |||||||||
| NLDS |
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The2011 National League Championship Series (abbreviatedNLCS) was abest-of-seven playoff inMajor League Baseball’s2011 postseason pitting the winners of the2011 National League Division Series, the wild cardSt. Louis Cardinals and the second-seededMilwaukee Brewers, against each other for theNational League championship and the right to be the league's representative in the2011 World Series. The series was the 42ndNLCS in league history.
The series began on October 9[1] to accommodate the World Series, which was scheduled to begin on October 19.[2]TBS televised all games in theUnited States with Game 1 starting at 4:05pm EDT.[3] Games 1, 2 and 6 were played atMiller Park inMilwaukee, Wisconsin, while the other games were played atBusch Stadium inSt. Louis, Missouri. By coincidence,Brian Anderson, who usually called Brewers games onFox Sports Wisconsin during the regular season, did theplay-by-play for the NLCS on TBS, along withRon Darling andJohn Smoltz. Anderson filled in for regular TBS lead baseball announcerErnie Johnson, whose adopted son Michael (1988-2021), who suffered from Duchenne muscular dystrophy, was undergoing treatment.[4]
This was the Brewers' first-ever appearance in the NLCS, having moved to theNational League in1998. As anAmerican League team, the Brewers made theALCS in their pennant season of 1982, defeating theCalifornia Angels, 3–2. Thus, the Brewers became the first franchise to play in the LCS as a member of each league. The Cardinals, meanwhile, appeared in the NLCS for the first time since winning the2006 World Series. This was a rematch of the1982 World Series (a.k.a. the "Suds Series", with both cities associated with thebrewing industry with Milwaukee'sMiller Brewing Company,Joseph Schlitz Brewing Company, andPabst Brewing Company and St. Louis, whoseAnheuser-Busch company is namesake of the Cardinals'ballpark), which the Cardinals won, 4–3.
The Cardinals would go on to defeat theTexas Rangers in seven games in theWorld Series.
This was the lastLeague Championship Series in either league to be played between divisional opponents until2023. This is mainly due to the restriction between two divisional opponents meeting in theDivision Series being removed following this season.
St. Louis won the series, 4–2.
| Game | Date | Score | Location | Time | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | October 9 | St. Louis Cardinals – 6,Milwaukee Brewers – 9 | Miller Park | 3:35 | 43,613[5] |
| 2 | October 10 | St. Louis Cardinals – 12, Milwaukee Brewers – 3 | Miller Park | 3:36 | 43,937[6] |
| 3 | October 12 | Milwaukee Brewers – 3,St. Louis Cardinals – 4 | Busch Stadium | 3:10 | 43,584[7] |
| 4 | October 13 | Milwaukee Brewers – 4, St. Louis Cardinals – 2 | Busch Stadium | 3:25 | 45,606[8] |
| 5 | October 14 | Milwaukee Brewers – 1,St. Louis Cardinals – 7 | Busch Stadium | 3:09 | 46,904[9] |
| 6 | October 16 | St. Louis Cardinals – 12, Milwaukee Brewers – 6 | Miller Park | 3:43 | 43,926[10] |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Louis | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 9 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Milwaukee | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | X | 9 | 11 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| WP:Zack Greinke (1–0) LP:Jaime García (0–1) Sv:John Axford (1) Home runs: STL:David Freese (1) MIL:Ryan Braun (1),Prince Fielder (1),Yuniesky Betancourt (1) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Game 1 would be a back-and-forth affair. The Cardinals manufactured a run in the first with a walk byJon Jay, a single byAlbert Pujols, and a two-out single fromMatt Holliday. The Brewers answered with a two-run home run fromRyan Braun after a walk in the bottom half. The Cardinals would go ahead in the fourth on aDavid Freese three-run home run and would add on a run with aLance Berkman single in the fifth. The Brewers came storming back in the fifth. The inning began with aCorey Hart single and aJerry Hairston Jr. double. Braun then hit a ground-rule double, making the score 5–4.Prince Fielder put the Brewers ahead with a two-run home run and afterOctavio Dotel relieved starterJaime García,Yuniesky Betancourt hit another two-run home run to make it 8–5 Brewers. A Pujols double-play grounder in the seventh offTakashi Saito would make it 8–6 (the run charged to starterZack Greinke), but the Brewers got the run back with aJonathan Lucroy RBI single in the bottom half offKyle McClellan.Francisco Rodríguez would pitch a scoreless eighth inning andJohn Axford would get the save in the ninth as the Brewers took Game 1, 9–6.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Louis | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 17 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Milwaukee | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| WP:Lance Lynn (1–0) LP:Shaun Marcum (0–1) Home runs: STL:Albert Pujols (1),David Freese (2) MIL:Rickie Weeks (1),Prince Fielder (2) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Cardinals' offense erupted offShaun Marcum in Game 2, going up 2−0 in the first onAlbert Pujols's two-run home run. His two-run double in the third made it 4−0 Cardinals. Next inning,Yadier Molina hit a leadoff double and scored onNick Punto's single. In the bottom half,Prince Fielder hit a leadoff double offEdwin Jackson beforeRickie Weeks's home run put the Brewers on the board. In the fifth,Jon Jay hit a leadoff double offMarco Estrada, then scored on Pujols's double. Pujols moved to third on a groundout, then scored on a wild pitch. The Brewers had a chance to put the game within one run in the fifth, but Weeks grounded into a double play with the bases loaded, killing the Brewers' rally. In the seventh, Pujols hit a ground-rule double with one out, then scored onMatt Holliday's single offKameron Loe. AfterLance Berkman singled, RBI singles by Molina,David Freese, andNick Punto made it 11–2 Cardinals.Prince Fielder hit a solo home run for the Brewers in the eighth offMitchell Boggs and Freese did the same for the Cardinals in the ninth offChris Narveson. The Cardinals won 12–3, tying the Series at a game apiece as well as potential momentum going back to St. Louis. Pujols hit a home run, three doubles, three runs scored, and five RBIs.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Milwaukee | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| St. Louis | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | X | 4 | 9 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| WP:Chris Carpenter (1–0) LP:Yovani Gallardo (0–1) Sv:Jason Motte (1) Home runs: MIL:Mark Kotsay (1) STL: None | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rafael Furcal hit a leadoff single in the first inning offYovani Gallardo, moved to second on a wild pitch and back-to-back RBI doubles byJon Jay andAlbert Pujols made it 2–0 Cardinals. Two walks loaded the bases beforeYadier Molina's ground-ball double-play andDavid Freese's double scored a run each. Gallardo and three Milwaukee relievers held the Cardinals scoreless for the rest of the game. In the second, three consecutive leadoff singles offChris Carpenter put the Brewers on the board. After a fly ball movedJerry Hairston Jr. to third, he scored on Gallardo's sacrifice fly. Next inning,Mark Kotsay's home run made it a one-run game, but Carpenter and four relievers held the Brewers scoreless for the rest of the game as the Cardinals' 4–3 win gave them a 2–1 series lead.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Milwaukee | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 10 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| St. Louis | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| WP:Randy Wolf (1–0) LP:Kyle Lohse (0–1) Sv:John Axford (2) Home runs: MIL: None STL:Matt Holliday (1),Allen Craig (1) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Brewers starterRandy Wolf kept Milwaukee from falling into a 3–1 series deficit, throwing seven stellar innings, striking out six batters, but allowed home runs toMatt Holliday in the second andAllen Craig in the third to put the Cardinals up 2–0. The Brewers scored two runs to tie the game in the fourth inning, withJerry Hairston hitting an RBI double to scorePrince Fielder, who doubled to lead off, andYuniesky Betancourt followed with a single to score Hairston. The Brewers went up 3–2 in the fifth on a single byRyan Braun offMitchell Boggs with the run charged to starterKyle Lohse, and added an insurance run in the sixth on a crucial error byRyan Theriot onGeorge Kottaras's ground ball. Though the Cardinals had the tying run at the plate in three of the last four innings, Wolf, along with relieversFrancisco Rodríguez andJohn Axford, shut the Cardinals down to even the series at two games apiece, guaranteeing that the series would end in Milwaukee. It was also the Brewers' first playoff win on the road sinceGame 1 of the 1982 World Series.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Milwaukee | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 4 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| St. Louis | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | X | 7 | 10 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| WP:Octavio Dotel (1–0) LP:Zack Greinke (1–1) Sv:Jason Motte (2) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Cardinals took advantage of four Milwaukee errors to grab a 3–2 series lead.Yadier Molina's one-out RBI double with runners on first and second put them on the board in the second offZack Greinke. One out later, an error onJaime Garcia's ground ball scored two more runs. Garcia's groundout with runners on second and third in the fourth made it 4−0 Cardinals.Corey Hart's RBI single in the fifth provided the only run of the game for the Brewers. The Cardinals added to their lead onAlbert Pujols's RBI single in the sixth andMatt Holliday's two-run double in the eighth offMarco Estrada.Octavio Dotel got the win in relief of García andJason Motte earned another save with1+1⁄3 shutout innings.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Louis | 4 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 14 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Milwaukee | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 7 | 3 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| WP:Marc Rzepczynski (1–0) LP:Shaun Marcum (0–2) Home runs: STL:David Freese (3),Rafael Furcal (1),Albert Pujols (2) MIL:Corey Hart (1),Rickie Weeks (2),Jonathan Lucroy (1) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Cardinals got off to a quick start, scoring four runs offShaun Marcum in the first.Lance Berkman got things started with an RBI single. Eventual series MVPDavid Freese hit a three-run blast to extend their early lead. Marcum would last only this one inning. The Brewers got a run right back on a leadoff solo shot byCorey Hart in the bottom half of the inning offEdwin Jackson, but the Redbirds would make it a four run game again asRafael Furcal homered to make the score 5–1 in the second offChris Narveson. Milwaukee would start to claw their way back in their half of the inning, asRickie Weeks hit a leadoff home run andJonathan Lucroy hit a two-run home run to make the score 5–4. In the third, however,Albert Pujols led off with a solo shot of his own. They then loaded the bases on a single, double and intentional walk beforeNick Punto's sacrifice fly scored a run and moved the runners up.LaTroy Hawkins relieved Narveson and allowed a two-run single toAllen Craig. In the bottom of the fourth, back-to-back doubles byJerry Hairston Jr. andYuniesky Betancourt offFernando Salas made it 9–5 Cardinals, but in the fifth,Kameron Loe allowed back-to-back leadoff singles toMatt Holliday and Freese beforeYadier Molina's fielder's choice scored a run. After Punto struck out,Adron Chambers's sacrifice fly made it 11–5 Cardinals.Ryan Braun's groundout in the bottom half offMarc Rzepczynski scored the last run for the Brewers while the Cardinals added a run in the eighth offFrancisco Rodríguez on Pujols's RBI single. In the ninth, with the score 12–6, Cardinals closerJason Motte came on to pitch in a non-save situation. Motte struckMark Kotsay out swinging to end the game and give St. Louis the National League pennant.
2011 NLCS(4–2):St. Louis Cardinals overMilwaukee Brewers
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Louis Cardinals | 11 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 43 | 67 | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Milwaukee Brewers | 3 | 5 | 1 | 5 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 26 | 51 | 9 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Total attendance: 267,570 Average attendance: 44,595 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
National League Championship Series MVPDavid Freese would continue his torrid hitting in theWorld Series. In what is considered one of the greatest games ever played,[11] with theTexas Rangers leading the game 7–5, and leading the series by 3 games to 2, Freese came to bat in the bottom of the ninth with two out and two men on base. With a count of one ball and two strikes, Freese hit a two-runtriple off closerNeftalí Feliz just out of the reach ofNelson Cruz's glove to tie the game and send it to extra innings. In the 11th inning, Freese hit a game-winning lead-off,walk-off homerun to deep center field to send the World Series to aGame 7.[12] The Cardinals would win the next game, thus giving them their 11th World Series. For his heroics, Fresse became just the sixth player to win an LCS andWorld Series MVP in the same postseason.
On December 10, 2011, it was revealed byOutside the Lines that regular-seasonNational League MVPRyan Braun had tested positive for a performance-enhancing drug.[13] His initial positive test, from October 2011, had been overturned after Braun, and his legal team, waged a successful battle against the drug collector, Dino Laurenzi Jr. Laurenzi had waited to deliver the specimens to the lab, instead of delivering them right away per his instructions. Braun and his lawyers painted Laurenzi as incompetent and even insinuated that he purposefully tampered with Braun's urine sample because he was aChicago Cubs fan,a divisional rival of the Brewers, and ananti-Semite (Braun is ofJewish heritage).[14] In July 2013, Ryan Braun finally admitted to usingperformance-enhancing drugs and apologized to Laurenzi.[15] Nevertheless, he was suspended for the remainder of the 2013 season.[16] After admitting PED use in 2013, Braun never placed in the top-20 in MVP voting again and made just one All-Star game in the last eight years of his career.
Game 6 wasPrince Fielder's last game as a Brewer, as he signed a free agent contract with theDetroit Tigers in the off-season. Despite just seven seasons in Milwaukee, Fielder still ranks in the top 5 in most all-time offensive categories.[17] To date, his 50 homerun season in2007 is still the most in Brewers franchise history for a single-season.[18] For the Brewers, Fielder's absence left a huge hole. From 2012-2022, the Brewers had a different first baseman that led the team in appearances for each of these seasons. The streak did not end untilRowdy Tellez led the team in appearances at first base from 2022-2023.[19]