It was tabbed as the biggest series of the season for either team. 

It's ending with a new division leader, a ripe new rivalry, and a few punishments soon to be handed down by the MLB.

The Cardinals came into Cincinnati two games behind the division-leader Reds, a struggling road team, but optimism abound with their three top starters taking the mound against the Reds. 

The Reds were one of baseball's hottest teams fresh off a 3-game sweep of the Cubs at Wrigley. Then, All Star second baseman Brandon Phillips decided to screw it up for the Reds.

Phillips issued these comments just before the series with the Cardinals:

"I'd play against these guys with one leg. We have to beat these guys. I hate the Cardinals. All they do is b****h and moan about everything, all of them, they're little b*****s, all of "em. I really hate the Cardinals. Compared to the Cardinals, I love the Chicago Cubs. Let me make this clear: I hate the Cardinals."

Let me just take a moment to offer my sincere gratitude to Brandon Phillips. 

As I said, the Cardinals were two games behind Cincy, but are now division leaders after a convincing 3-game sweep in Cincinnati, outscoring the Reds 21-8 in three games. 

Chris Carpenter, Jaime Garcia, and Adam Wainwright all picked up a win for the Cardinals as they won 7-3, 8-4, and 6-1 today, despite being one of the worst road teams among playoff contenders. 

Thank you Brandon Phillips. 

After Phillips' comments, Carpenter pitched a gem on Monday night. The Cardinals scored 7 runs in the top of the fourth on 6 straight hits and a Skip Schumaker grand slam off of rookie Mike Leake to easily take the first game.

Then, the drama started. Phillips came to bat in the bottom of the 1st inning in the second game and tapped Molina's shin guards as is his routine when he comes to the plate. Molina kicked his bat away and when he tried to do it again, the benches cleared.

There are multiple connections between the two clubs which makes the brawl all the more interesting. Reds third baseman Scott Rolen played for the Cardinals for many years and originally tried to play peacemaker until he and Chris Carpenter got into it. Reds GM Walt Jocketty also used to be with the Cardinals before moving to Cincinnati as was Miguel Cairo and Russ Springer. 

Major League Baseball will assuredly review the videos to see what kind of suspensions need to be handed down. I could see Phillips, Yadier Molina, and Reds pitcher Johnny Cueto all get suspensions. 

Cueto may receive the biggest suspension as he was pinned up against the netting behind home plate and started kicking. He appeared to connect a couple times with Carpenter and also with backup catcher Jason LaRue, who sustained a concussion as well as body lacerations from Cueto's cleats. 

The umpires only ejected managers Tony La Russa and Dusty Baker, who also appeared to have harsh words for each other, but there will certainly be punishments handed down by MLB for the brief altercation.

Luckily, the injuries weren't too severe, but the Cardinals did have to call up a backup catcher from Double AA, Steven Hill, while LaRue tries to recover.

When all was said and done, the Cardinals again got the best of the Reds behind 5 1/3 strong innings from rookie Jaime Garcia and a 4-5 night with 3 RBIs from Matt Holliday. 

Molina may have enjoyed the best laugh, hitting a solo shot in his first at bat off Cueto, even mimicking Phillips' home run trot as he rounded second base right in front of Phillips. I guess I can't blame Molina for letting his play do the talking. 

You should do the same Brandon.

Phillips had 2 singles in the series and only hit 3 balls out of the infield. I bet you wish you had those comments back, huh Brandon?

The series finale was set for an early afternoon game, with the Cardinals sending their ace to the mound to face the Reds unsung hero of the staff. Fortunately for the Redbirds, Wainwright outdueled Bronson Arroyo to continue his bid for a Cy Young. 

Wainwright tied Ubaldo Jimenez for the MLB-leading 17th win, while lowering his ERA to 1.99. He tossed 7 innings, allowing no runs and 2 hits, while striking out four. 

Thankfully, he got all the offense he needed with one swing of the bat. 

Colby Rasmus hit his 19th homer and first career grand slam on his 24th birthday to put the Redbirds ahead for good in the 5th inning. The Cardinals added two more runs in the 7th on RBI singles, but Wainwright would cruise through his outing and turn it over to the bullpen.

Wainwright did not allow a run for his second straight start, which is even more remarkable because his last two starts have come away from Busch, where he has somewhat struggled this year. Great American Ballpark and the Reds potent lineup couldn't phase Wainwright. 

The Cardinals are now a season high 15 games above .500 and ran their record to 10-5 against the Reds this season, including 6-3 at Great American Ballpark. The two rivals only have one remaining series over Labor Day weekend at Busch Stadium. The Cardinals are now 17-8 since the All Star break. 

Come October, this could be the defining moment of the season in which Cincinnati lost all its momentum and were swept at home by the Cardinals.

Thank you Brandon Phillips.