The 2004 National League Division Series (NLDS), the opening round of the 2004 National League playoffs, began on Tuesday, October 5, and ended on Monday, October 11, with the champions of the three NL divisions—along with a "wild card" team—participating in two best-of-five series. They were:
- (1) St. Louis Cardinals (Central Division champion, 105–57) vs. (3) Los Angeles Dodgers (Western Division champion, 93–69): Cardinals win series, 3–1.
- (2) Atlanta Braves (Eastern Division champion, 96–66) vs. (4) Houston Astros (Wild Card, 92–70): Astros win series, 3–2.[1]
The National League division and wild card races were some of the most exciting in the wild-card era, as the National League West came down to the final weekend of the season, while there were as many as four teams trying for a post-season berth via the wild card the last week of the season, which ultimately saw Houston clinch the Wild Card spot on the final day of the regular season.
The St. Louis Cardinals and Houston Astros went on to meet in the NL Championship Series (NLCS). The Cardinals became the National League champion, and lost to the American League champion Boston Red Sox in the 2004 World Series.
- ^ The higher seed (in parentheses) had the home field advantage. Although the team with the best record was normally intended to play the wild card team, the Cardinals played the Dodgers, rather than the wild card Astros, because the Cardinals and Astros are in the same division.