Wainwright pitches complete game, sends Cards to NLCS

ST. LOUIS -- Adam Wainwright went all the way and the St. Louis Cardinals got two-run homers from David Freese and Matt Adams to beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 6-1 on Wednesday night, advancing to the NL championship series.

Wainwright scattered eight hits in his second dominant win of the division series, coming through for the Cardinals in a winner-take-all Game 5.

St. Louis gets to stay at home to open the NLCS against the well-rested Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday night.

The last three seasons, the Cardinals are 8-1 when facing elimination. They also won Game 5 of the NL division series at Washington last year and at Philadelphia in 2011.

Freese homered in the second inning off rookie Gerrit Cole and Adams connected in the eighth against reliever Mark Melancon to make it 5-1. Pete Kozma added an RBI infield single, and Wainwright finished it off by striking out Pedro Alvarez with two on.

Alvarez became the first player with an RBI in his first six postseason games on a fluke hit that caromed off first base in the seventh. But the Pirates were held to one run in each of the final two games in their first playoff appearance in 21 years. They haven't won a postseason series since the 1979 World Series.

The 23-year-old Cole beat the Cardinals with an impressive effort in Game 2. They got to him early this time even though his fastball hit 100 mph in the first inning against Matt Holliday.

Freese made the kid pay for a full-count walk to Jon Jay with two outs in the second, lining a 1-2 pitch into the visitors' bullpen in left.

The Pirates had the bullpen up in the fourth after Yadier Molina's infield hit and a throwing error put runners on second and third. Cole gave up just three hits over five innings, but was lifted for a pinch-hitter in the sixth.

Freese struggled this season to overcome a back injury in spring training and had nine homers and 60 RBIs. But just like teammate Carlos Beltran, he's an October star with seven homers, 29 RBIs and a .325 average in 36 career postseason games.

Adams' power hitting helped the Cardinals overcame a mid-foot sprain to cleanup man Allen Craig in early September and he hammered a first-pitch fastball from Melancon well over the right-field wall for his first RBIs of the series.

The Pirates scratched out their lone run on two infield hits and the single by Alvarez that looked to be a harmless inning-ending groundout before it hit the bag.

Freese was a hometown hero in 2011, both the NLCS and World Series MVP. He singlehandedly got the Cardinals to Game 7 of that World Series with a two-run triple with two outs and two strikes in the ninth and then ended Game 6 with a leadoff homer in the 11th.

The snapshot moment from the title run came when Freese joyously flung his helmet between the legs a few steps from the celebration waiting at the plate.

At 23 years, 31 days, Cole was the youngest NL pitcher to start Game 5 of a division series and the fifth-youngest NL pitcher to start a winner-take-all postseason game, according to STATS.

Counting the postseason, Cole didn't allow a homer in six straight starts. That ended when Freese connected for a 2-0 lead in the second.

Starling Marte robbed Matt Carpenter of a hit with a diving catch near the left-field line in the third.

Neil Walker drew a one-out walk in the first off Wainwright, who issued just 35 walks in the regular season for third-best in the majors and none in Game 1, but went no farther. Carpenter was perfectly positioned at second base to snare a soft liner by Alvarez, flipping to first for an easy double play.

Noteworthy

* Lou Brock, clad in a red sport coat worn by all the Cardinals' Hall of Famers, bounced the ceremonial first pitch, with pitcher Joe Kelly making a nice scoop.

* Josh Young, in town for the musical Evita, sang the national anthem.

* This was the 24th meeting between the teams this season, with each team winning 12 times.