THE STAKES: The Cardinals are exploiting Houston’s cozy ballpark to get their inconsistent offense going again. After scoring just 11 runs in their previous five games, they scored 18 times in two games against the Astros.

That is a welcome development. So is the reduction of their magic number, which now stands at two. The Cards are about to clinch the National League Central title. Once that is out of the way, the team can focus on postseason preparations.