ATLANTA (AP) — Julio Teheran closed out the regular season just the way he wanted.

Teheran pitched six strong innings, Daniel Castro drove in two runs and the Atlanta Braves beat the NL Central champion St. Louis Cardinals 4-0 on Friday night.

“You want to finish strong,” Teheran said. “That’s what you want to take home.”

St. Louis, which opens the postseason at home next Friday, was coming off a three-game series win at Pittsburgh that secured its third straight division title. Manager Mike Matheny gave most of his everyday players the night off.

Teheran (11-8) allowed five hits, walked one and struck out six. The right-hander went 2-1 with a 1.62 ERA in his last six starts. The Braves’ season ends Sunday.

“I know we were playing the best team in the National League,” Teheran said. “I was really focused on this game. I think I did really good.”

The Cardinals had the bases loaded with no out in the fifth but came up empty when pinch-hitter John Jay grounded into a double play and Tommy Pham struck out.

Atlanta, which stranded 12 runners, went up 2-0 in the third on Castro’s second homer and A.J. Pierzynski’s RBI double. Castro’s RBI double and Nick Markakis’ RBI single in the eighth made it 4-0.

Jaime Garcia (10-6) gave up six hits and two runs with two walks and five strikeouts in his shortest outing since April 19, 2013 at Philadelphia. St. Louis has been shut out in all six of his losses.

“I wanted to get a feel for things and I was able to accomplish that,” Garcia said. “All I can say is I’m going to be ready to go next week, whenever it is (that he pitches).”

Cardinals ace Adam Wainwright, making his second relief appearance since returning this week from an Achilles injury, faced four batters in the seventh. Castro reached on an error.

The Braves used four relievers. Closer Arodys Vizcaino, pitching the ninth in a non-save situation, struck out Pete Kozma to end it with a runner at second.

SAME TRADE, DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS

The deal that sent right fielder Jason Heyward to St. Louis and starting pitcher Shelby Miller to Atlanta last winter hasn’t exactly been a blessing for both.

Heyward, who was given the night off, returned to Turner Field for the first time since last November’s trade and leads his new team with a .292 average and 23 stolen bases.

“It’d be more of a homecoming if more of the teammates I played with were still here,” Heyward said. “I know this is the team I broke in with and I played a lot of games with, but it’s a different team and a different vibe.”

Miller, whose new club has the majors’ third-worst record, remains close with Matheny and several former teammates. He’ll be cheering for them when the playoffs start.

Despite making the NL All-Star team, Miller is 0-16 in his last 24 starts, but has a 3.77 ERA over that span since May 17. He will try to end the streak Saturday.

“They’re some of my best friends and I wish them the best of luck, but I’m going to try to beat them tomorrow,” he said. “They’re not going to get out of here easy, that’s for sure.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Cardinals: Matheny hopes OF Stephen Piscotty can play Saturday or Sunday. The rookie suffered a head contusion in an outfield collision on Monday and spent the night in a Pittsburgh hospital. Matheny said Piscotty passed a concussion test and did some hitting and running before the game.

Braves: RHP Paco Rodriguez, acquired in the trade that brought third baseman Hector Olivera from the Los Angeles Dodgers, has undergone Tommy John surgery and will miss all of next season.

UP NEXT

Cardinals: RHP John Lackey (13-9) is 1-0 with a 1.46 ERA in two career starts against Atlanta.

Braves: RHP Miller (5-17) will face St. Louis for the second time. He lost 1-0 at Busch Stadium on July 25.

— Associated Press —

PITTSBURGH (AP) — The celebration has become a fall ritual for the St. Louis Cardinals. The champagne showers. The rowdy sing-alongs. The giddy clubhouse joy.

Yet it doesn’t get old. Not for this group. Not after an emotionally draining season in which they somehow powered themselves to a third straight NL Central title, the clincher coming in an 11-1 dispatching of Pittsburgh in the second game of a doubleheader on Wednesday night that served as an exclamation point on a year unlike any other.

“Tell me another team that is going to lose their ace and their three-hole hitter and is going to win 100 games?” third baseman Matt Carpenter said, his eyes dripping with celebratory booze. “It’s just not going to happen and we found a way to do it.”

Jason Heyward’s third-inning grand slam led the way and Tyler Lyons (3-1) did the rest, shutting down the Pirates for seven innings in a spot start that exemplified the attitude the Cardinals have adopted during a turbulent summer in which they somehow grew stronger even as their stars went down.

“Obviously we have bigger plans,” said Lyons, who has bounced between the rotation and the bullpen all year. “This is exciting and hopefully we can ride this out for a little while longer.”

The Cardinals can ease up for a week while they finish the regular season in Atlanta and await the winner of next Wednesday’s wild-card game between the Pirates and the Cubs. St. Louis will host Game 1 of the NL Division Series on Oct. 9 as it chases the franchise’s third title in a decade.

It’s a race the Cardinals believe they’re ready for. Considering what they’ve dealt with over the last 12 months, they’ll hardly be an easy out.

St. Louis bounced back emotionally after promising outfielder Oscar Taveras was killed in a car accident last October. The Cardinals took over sole possession of first on April 17 and held on in a season when No. 1 starter Adam Wainwright, sluggers Matt Holliday and Matt Adams and high-profile relievers Jordan Walden and Matt Belisle spent large chunks of the season on the disabled list.

“It seemed like no matter what happened, this team never quit,” Carpenter said.

The way the relentless Pirates and surging Cubs kept coming, St. Louis really didn’t have a choice.

“This was one of those seasons where guys feel it and when they push through it and are able to come out on top,” Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. “This has a lot more meaning than what it looks like at face value.”

Wainwright returned from a torn left Achilles to pitch one inning of mop-up duty during an 8-2 loss in the opener, his astounding recovery four months ahead of schedule. Even Pirates manager Clint Hurdle applauded when Wainwright raced in from the bullpen in the eighth inning.

The smile was gone a few hours later as the Cardinals whooped it up a few hundred feet away in the visiting clubhouse. Pittsburgh has 277 wins since the start of 2013, the second-best record in the majors over that stretch. The Pirates also have zero division titles. Why? Because the Cardinals have 287 wins over the same span.

“We’ve still got to stay focused on right where we are,” Hurdle said. “They won their 100th game tonight. We’ve got 96. Separation is what it is. The ultimate goal hasn’t changed, to win a world championship. We’re just going to have to go about it in a different method now.”

The Pirates missed a chance to inject some real drama into the final week of the regular season when they left 16 runners on base in a 3-0 loss on Monday night. Though Gerrit Cole threw seven strong innings in the opener on Wednesday to briefly pull the Pirates within three games, the Cardinals wasted little time getting to Charlie Morton (9-9), just like always.

Morton came in winless against St. Louis since April 4, 2011, a span of 11 starts. Tasked with forcing the Cardinals to wrap up the division in Atlanta on Friday, Morton faltered once again.

Carpenter led off the game with a triple to the gap in left-center, with normally sure handed Pittsburgh outfielders Starling Marte and Andrew McCutchen letting the ball scoot between them. Carpenter scored on a double play, Heyward singled and then scored on a double by Adams.

Morton temporarily gathered himself only to unravel completely in the third. Carpenter doubled, Morton hit Jon Jay with a pitch and walked Jhonny Peralta. Reliever Bobby LaFromboise came in for Morton only to watch Heyward send his fourth pitch streaking into the seats in right-center to make it 6-0 and send the attendants in the visiting clubhouse at PNC Park scrambling to prepare for a party.

“It’s the first step,” said Heyward, acquired in an offseason trade from Atlanta. “We’ve still got a lot to get done.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Cardinals: Made room for Wainwright by placing RHP Carlos Martinez on the 60-day disabled list with a strained right shoulder.

Pirates: C Francisco Cervelli was treated between games by trainers after taking a foul ball off his left ear in the opener. He remained in the game and started the nightcap, a rarity for a catcher.

UP NEXT

Cardinals: St. Louis wraps up the year with a three-game set with the Braves in Atlanta starting Friday when Jaime Garcia (10-5, 2.36 ERA) faces Julio Teheran (10-8, 4.16).

Pirates: Host Cincinnati on Friday looking to secure homefield advantage for the wild-card. Francisco Liriano (12-7, 3.27 ERA) will look for his 10th win in his last 11 decisions.

— Associated Press —

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Matt Carpenter raced home to break a scoreless tie in the ninth inning when two Pittsburgh Pirates outfielders mishandled Jon Jay’s single, and Mark Reynolds followed with a two-run homer to lift the banged-up St. Louis Cardinals to a 3-0 win on Monday night.

The Cardinals reduced their magic number to clinch a third straight NL Central title to two after getting to Pittsburgh closer Mark Melancon (3-2). St. Louis can wrap up the division with a victory at Pittsburgh Tuesday night.

In the bottom of the seventh, Cardinals outfielder Stephen Piscotty was carted off the field following a violent collision with teammate Peter Bourjos. The team said Piscotty was taken to the hospital with a head contusion, and all tests conducted were negative. He will be held overnight for observation.

Carpenter singled with one out and scored all the way from first when Pittsburgh right fielder Gregory Polanco overran Jay’s hit and center fielder Andrew McCutchen couldn’t pick the ball up cleanly.

Reynolds then drilled his 12th homer of the year to give closer Trevor Rosenthal some cushion for his 48th save. Jonathan Broxton (4-5) earned the win.

Pittsburgh, already assured of a wild-card berth, left 16 runners on base while falling four games behind the Cardinals with five to go.

Pittsburgh has been relentlessly chasing frontrunning St. Louis for five months. Heading into the final week of the regular season, the Pirates finally had their chance to catch the Cardinals if they could earn a three-game sweep at home in a matchup of the teams with the two best records in the majors.

Instead, St. Louis did what it has done all year, relying on its pitching and just enough hitting to keep Pittsburgh at bay.

The Cardinals survived on a night they issued 10 walks. Pittsburgh put runners on base in every inning except the first, but none could find their way home on a night the Pirates went 0 for 12 with runners in scoring position, including 0 for 3 in the ninth with the tying run at the plate.

St. Louis starter Lance Lynn labored his way through five scoreless innings, most of them out of the stretch while the Pirates kept wasting opportunities to take control. Starling Marte was nailed at the plate to end the second while trying to score on a shallow fly to center by Jordy Mercer as Jason Heyward’s throw beat the speedy Marte by three steps.

Marte then struck out with the bases loaded to end the third. Polanco led off the fifth with a double only to run into an out at third on a chopper to shortstop by Josh Harrison. Lynn needed 96 pitches to retire 15 batters, walking four with six strikeouts.

Pittsburgh starter J.A. Happ, a revelation since being acquired at the non-waiver trade deadline from Seattle, was decidedly more efficient. The lefthander allowed only Kolten Wong’s single leading off the third.

Otherwise, he was dominant, striking out four and needing only 56 pitches to get through six shutout innings to lower his ERA to 2.04 in 10 starts with the Pirates. Happ was lifted for pinch-hitter Michael Morse with two outs and two on in the sixth. Morse walked to load the bases, but St. Louis reliever Seth Maness got Polanco to hit a routine fly to right to end the threat.

FRIGHTENING MOMENT

In a frightening scene during the seventh, Piscotty lay motionless on the grass in left-center field for several minutes after his collision with Bourjos. Piscotty, playing left, and Bourjos, playing center, were tracking Josh Harrison’s drive to the gap when Bourjos’ knee slammed into the head of the diving Piscotty. Bourjos made the catch while Piscotty crumpled to the turf.

Piscotty was strapped to a backboard and carted off the field. The rookie did manage a wave with his left hand before disappearing into a tunnel underneath the stadium, eliciting a big cheer from the Pittsburgh crowd.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Cardinals: C Yadier Molina’s injured left thumb will keep him out for the rest of the regular season. Molina, who suffered a slight ligament tear in the thumb on Sept. 20, met with a hand specialist on Monday and will be given at least a week off before being re-evaluated. … RHP Adam Wainwright, who tore his left Achilles tendon in April, could be ready to work out of the bullpen as early as Wednesday.

UP NEXT

The series continues on Tuesday when Michael Wacha (17-6, 3.15) faces Pittsburgh’s Charlie Morton (9-8, 4.54). Wacha is 3-0 with a 1.93 ERA in six games against the Pirates. Morton is 2-11 in his career against the Cardinals, his last victory coming on April 4, 2011.

— Associated Press —