By Chris Brown / STL Baseball Today | @cbrown_STLBBT | Oct. 11, 2015, 11:36 pm CT

Coming out of the bullpen during a postseason game for the first time since 2006, with a sold out crowd at Busch Stadium giving him a standing ovation and waving their rally towels, Adam Wainwright took a moment to take it all in.

“My hair was standing up on my arms like crazy,” he told KMOV. “When the gates opened and they started going crazy, man, I was doing my very best to control my emotions, but they get to me sometimes.”

Despite a 6-3 loss to the Cubs, Game 2 of the NLDS marked another major milestone in the comeback story of the 34-year-old three-time All-Star, who was ruled out for the season back in late April following surgery to repair a torn Achilles tendon.

Making just his fourth appearance out of the bullpen since returning at the end of September and his first in front of a home crowd, Wainwright showed his vintage form on Saturday night, retiring all five batters he faced and striking out the side in the eighth inning.

(Courtesy: MLB.com)

With the scoreless outing, Wainwright became just one of five pitchers in MLB postseason history to not allow a run in at least 11 innings out of the bullpen.

“He looked great,” manager Mike Matheny told MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch. “His curveball was there, everything (was) right on the mark, and (he) got the strikeouts that we needed. (It was) just a great step in a good direction for him and his progress.”

STL Baseball Today NLDS Coverage

Game 2 Recap: Cubs put squeeze on Cardinals, even series with 6-3 victory

Game 2 Video Recap: Cards fall to Cubs 6-3 in NLDS Game 2

Rough Outing: Despite illness, Garcia says there’s “no excuse” for poor Game 2 performance

Next Up: Cards set to face Arrieta as Game 3 moves to Wrigley; Game 4 starter TBD

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