After 97 games, the Cardinals, because of a rainout a few days ago, became the last major league team forced to employ a starting pitcher other than the five-man rotation with which it started the season. Start No. 98 didn’t go well from just about the time rookie Mike Mayers took his last warmup toss and, although the Cardinals chased all night, they fell short to the Los Angeles Dodgers, 9-6, Sunday night at Busch Stadium.
The loss marked the 10th series out of 11 the Cardinals had lost at home to a winning team, with only the San Francisco Giants on the other side of the ledger.