As his team waited, some thumbs poised against cork and others still gripping and shaking the Champagne for maximum spritz, Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol stood recently in the middle of a clubhouse and chronicled a season highlighted by individual achievements.
During the team’s second-half surge to earn a celebration as National League Central champion, the box scores overflowed with signature numbers, the games soaked in milestones. Albert Pujols hit his 699th and 700th career home runs in back-to-back at-bats, and that came not too long after Adam Wainwright and Yadier Molina set an all-time record with their 325th start together as a battery.