Depressing stat shows just how remarkably bad Cardinals implosion was

The St. Louis Cardinals fumbled the bag big-time in Game 1 of the Wild Card Series against the Phillies. One stat shows just how bad it was.

The St. Louis Cardinals held the Philadelphia Phillies scoreless for eight full innings on Friday afternoon, but Philadelphia exploded for six runs in the ninth inning with their backs against the wall.

It was an incredible implosion. Ryan Helsley — who did not get out of the game physically unscathed — gave up four earned runs with Andre Pallante accounting for the other two. Helsley in particular struggled to command his fastball, throwing just 15 strikes of his 33 pitches.

One Reddit user pointed out that the Cardinals were 93-0 in postseason history after leading by two runs or more beyond the eighth inning. After Friday? 93-1.

It was so improbable for the Phillies to win that the probability chart looks like the Kingda Ka at Six Flags in Jersey.

"Phillies @ Cardinals win probability from baseball"

Fans bolted for the exits before the game was over in absolute dismay over what they had witnessed. On their home field, no less.

New Wild Card format gives Cardinals chance at redemption

One of the positive changes stemming from the 2022 lockout is that the league and player’s union negotiated additional Wild Card teams and games. Previously, the Wild Card games were single-elimination which created high stakes, but left little margin for error.

Now, the Wild Card series are best of 3, meaning that the Cardinals get a chance at redemption after a wildly improbable loss in Game 1.

The Cardinals now have their backs against the wall, but lucky for them the entire series is played in one location, and the Cardinals have home-field advantage as the higher seed.

As a fan, you have to love the new format. It allows the Wild Card series to take on a character of its own over the course of several days rather than being just one and done.