The Cardinals Took Care Not To Celebrate In The Diamondbacks' Pool

The Cardinals found themselves in much the same position as the Dodgers did a year ago: at Chase Field, about to clinch the division. Would they celebrate the same way, by diving into the right-field pool and peeing all over the unwritten rules? They would not, because the Cardinals are class personified.

A Pirates loss earlier in the afternoon clinched the NL Central for St. Louis, so they had time to discuss how they would throw down afterward.

"We made sure we weren't going in the pool," said scheduled starter Adam Wainwright, who was a last-minute scratch after the Pirates were eliminated.

"We were staying over here (in the clubhouse). Especially with Tony La Russa at the helm over there now. That's our former skipper. We don't want to make him mad or disrespect him in any way."

"Those Dodgers they celebrated here and they had a good time," Wainwright said. "We're going to celebrate inside and have a good time."

The Cards probably would have been all right taking a dip, because the D-Backs have noticeably de-gritted in recent weeks, firing their gritlord manager and gritmaster GM and replacing the latter, at least, with a guy who knows how to party.

But the Cardinals, unlike the Dodgers, aren't a giant trash franchise that wakes up every morning wondering how they can disrespect the game and make the children of Cooperstown cry. The Cardinals kept their celebration to the visitors' clubhouse and out of the RamTrucks.com Pool, just like God intended.

The Cardinals open up their NLDS matchup with the Dodgers on Friday. There may be a lot of projecting in that series.

[via Hardball Talk]