The Milwaukee Brewers are at the point where they need a strong 35-game finish to return the postseason.
The Brewers look to make up some ground in the playoff derby when they host the opener of a three-game series on Friday against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Milwaukee resides in third place in the National League Central, four games behind the first-place Chicago Cubs. The Brewers trail the St. Louis Cardinals, the Philadelphia Phillies and the New York Mets in the race for the second NL wild card.
The Brewers are hoping Wednesday's rain-shortened 5-3 win at St. Louis was a starting point. Milwaukee had lost six of its previous eight contests prior to the crucial 7 1/2-inning win.
The Brewers set the tone with four first-inning runs against Cardinals right-hander Adam Wainwright, three coming on Mike Moustakas' 31st homer of the season.
"I caught it out front pretty good," Moustakas told reporters. "He made a really good pitch. I got lucky that I was able to stay back just enough and get the barrel to the ball."
Moustakas' career high for homers is 38 with the Kansas City Royals in 2017. He is forming a formidable power duo with reigning NL MVP Christian Yelich, who has 41 home runs and 89 RBIs.
The series is highly important to Arizona, which sits 1 1/2 games behind Milwaukee in the wild-card chase.
The Diamondbacks lost three of four to the Brewers last month in Phoenix, allowing 27 runs in the series.
Arizona also has experienced issues in Milwaukee, as it has lost five straight at Miller Park.
The Diamondbacks had a three-game winning streak halted Wednesday when they dropped a 7-2 decision to the Colorado Rockies in Phoenix.
