Week Ahead: Cards-Giants race to get Wild

Postseason pedigree is real, and this is often the time of the year when it shows up the most.

The week ahead takes us into the second half of the final month of the 162-game grind. We are in the thick of the pennant race, so every game between playoff contenders takes on extra meaning and is magnified on the now-short road to October.

The San Francisco Giants and St. Louis Cardinals have had their bumps and bruises along the way in a 2016 campaign that hasn’t been as smooth as either franchise would have liked. But a quick look at the standings shows that these two clubs, seemingly perennial playoff participants, are still in this thing. And beginning Thursday night at AT&T Park, they’ll play each other in a crucial four-game series that could determine each team’s place in the ever-tightening National League standings.

After Sunday’s 5-3 victory over Arizona, the Giants kept their spot at the top of the National League Wild Card. They are looking to win World Series titles in every even-numbered year since 2010, and despite a rough second half of the season, they are still heavily in the October mix. They’ll start the week with three games at home against San Diego before the huge weekend series vs. St. Louis begins.

“We have to do what we can to win each game,” Giants manager Bruce Bochy said over the weekend. “That’s the stage we’re in right now.”

The same can be said for the Cardinals, whose 2-1 loss to the Brewers on Sunday put them a half-game behind the Mets, who won, 10-3, over the Braves, for the second Wild Card slot and two games …

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