The St. Louis Cardinals have kept their postseason hopes alive, in unusual fashion.
The Cardinals advanced to the National League Divisional Series with a 6-3 win over the Atlanta Braves. But the game prompted a protest from the Braves, after an unusual call in the 8th inning gave a lift to the Redbirds.
The Cardinals failed to field a shallow fly ball, which appeared to leave the Braves with the bases loaded and one out, trailing 6-3. But the umpire had already ruled the batter out, citing the infield fly rule. That left the Braves with two out. They failed to score in the inning and ultimately lost 6-3.
Angry fans littered the field with trash, forcing a nearly 20-minute delay in the game. Atlanta filed a protest, but Major League Baseball quickly rejected it, saying the umpire made an appropriate judgment call.
St. Louis advances to the next round of the playoffs, facing Jayson Werth and the Washington Nationals, starting Sunday.
