ST. LOUIS -- Back in April when the season started, it was easy to expect the Pirates season-ending trip to Busch Stadium meaning something for both Pittsburgh and the St. Louis Cardinals.Instead, all Pittsburgh can do when it closes the season is play the role of spoiler against a Cardinals team trying to make its sixth consecutive National League playoff appearance.St. Louis starts the Friday night series opener fresh off the years most controversial win, a 4-3 decision Thursday night over the Cincinnati Reds that was decided by Yadier Molinas two-out RBI double in the bottom of the ninth inning.Molinas one-hop liner shouldnt have scored Matt Carpenter, though, because the ball hit off signage beyond the left field wall. It should have been a ground-rule double, but third base umpire Scott Barry ruled the ball in play and the Reds didnt challenge fast enough after the fact.Biggest win of the year, Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said, and tomorrow nights the biggest game of the year. Cant wait.St. Louis (83-76) is two games behind the New York Mets (85-74) for the NLs top wild-card spot and a game in arrears of the San Francisco Giants (84-75) for the second spot.The Giants close the season with a three-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, while the Mets finish with three at Philadelphia.The Cardinals will have the matchup advantage in the opener against the Pirates as St. Louis right-hander Carlos Martinez (15-9, 3.15 ERA) will face raw but talented Pittsburgh right-hander Tyler Glasnow (0-1, 4.91).Martinez is coming off a 3-1 loss Sunday night at the Chicago Cubs that saw him work six innings and give up two runs on six hits and four walks while fanning six. Martinez is 3-5 with a 4.01 career ERA against the Pirates, and 1-2 this season in three starts.Glasnow will make his fourth career start. His first occurred July 7 in St. Louis, where he pitched decently for 5 1/3 innings but lost 5-1 as Adam Wainwright stifled Pittsburgh for seven innings. The hard-throwing Glasnow can touch the mid to upper 90s with his fastball but has experienced command issues at times.The Pirates (78-81) reached the playoffs the past three seasons, but they fell victim to injuries and inconsistent pitching this year. They will have to sweep the series to avoid their 21st losing season in 24 years.Pittsburgh will be without left fielder Starling Marte (back) for the weekend and might be without shortstop Jordy Mercer (forearm) as well.Were going to play all the men that are capable of playing, Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said. Marte has been unplugged. Mercer might not be able to go. You saw a couple of throws he made across the diamond (Thursday). ... Thats basically all hes got.Pittsburgh leads the season series 9-7, having won five of the seven games in St. Louis. The Cardinals are 35-43 at Busch Stadium, clinching their first losing mark at home since 1999.The Saturday game will match Pirates right-hander Chad Kuhl (5-4, 4.25) against a pitcher to be determined. St. Louis will use Wainwright (13-9, 4.67) in Sundays regular-season finale opposite Ryan Vogelsong (3-7, 5.00). Cheap Jersey Website . You can watch the game live on TSN at 7:30pm et/4:30pm pt. The Flyers had won seven of eight before dropping their last two outings on consecutive days over the weekend. Philadelphia was handed a 6-3 loss by the visiting Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday afternoon before dropping a 4-1 decision to the Rangers the following night in New York City. Wholesale Jerseys Online . -- Jacksonville wide receiver Cecil Shorts will likely be a game-time decision whether hell play Sunday in the Jaguars home game against the San Diego Chargers. https://www.cheapjerseysreview.com/ . LOUIS -- The New Orleans Saints looked like a team playing out the string. Cheap Jerseys Review . Malkin got tangled up with Detroits Luke Glendening early in the third period and his left skate took the brunt of collision with the boards behind Pittsburghs net. Best Site Buy China Jerseys . Toronto has dropped games to Indiana and Miami since a five-game winning streak and closed out a three-game road trip at 1-2.HAMILTON, Ont. -- New stadium, new name. According to a CFL source requesting anonymity, Tim Hortons has purchased the naming rights for the new stadium being built in Hamilton to stage the soccer event for the 2015 Pan American Games. Theres no indication how much Tim Hortons paid for the rights or the length of the agreement but both the restaurant chain as well as the CFLs Hamilton Tiger-Cats will unveil details of the deal Friday at a news conference. The Ticats are playing their home games at Alumni Stadium in Guelph, Ont., while the new stadium is being built and is scheduled to move into the new facility in time for the 2014 CFL season. The new $145.7-million, state-of-the-art facility is being built on the same grounds thaat the Ticats long-time venue, Ivor Wynne Stadium, used to stand, The new stadium, which will reportedly be called Tim Hortons Field, will be home for the soccer competition for the 2015 Pan American Games.dddddddddddd The facility will have permanent seating for 22,500 spectators with the ability to be expanded to 40,000 seats for major events. Ivor Wynne Stadium was demolished following the 2012 CFL season after 84 years of existence to make way for the new venue. Tim Hortons is the largest publicly-traded restaurant chain in Canada and one of the biggest in North America in terms of market capitalization. As of March 31, Tim Hortons had 4,288 systemwide restaurants, including 3,453 in Canada and 808 in the U.S. ' ' '