So far, the way this season can be described for ST Louis is a roller-coaster after a horrendous 2-4 record two weeks ago. They went 5-2 last week, but those two losses were against the Chicago Cubs at HOME!
This week it is a road swing through Chicago to play the AL Central leaders, the White Sox, and then to Arizona to face the Western Division cellar-dwelling Diamondbacks.
First up:
Chicago White Sox
Game 1, 5/24 @ Chicago White Sox 5 Cardinals 1
The Cards set up to face former a starter in Lance Lynn and former Redbird manager Tony LaRussa. The game was an outstanding pitcher's duel for five innings. Lynn held the Cardinals hitless until the sixth when Paul Goldschmidt singled to left field to drive in the Redbird's only run of the game.
Kwang Hyun Kim took the bump for the Cardinals. He had his longest outing of the year, going 5 2/3 gave up 3 runs on 5 hits and 3 walks. He also stuck out 5. However, with two outs and a runner on first, Kim served up an 0-2 pitch just a little too fat to Andrew Vaughn, who hit it over the left-field wall to put the home team up by one. After a walk to the next batter, Daniel Ponce de Leone relieving Kim after a hit batter. Tim Anderson doubled home two more before getting thrown out at third.
Yermin Mercedes hit a sac fly in the seventh to plate the final run for the White Sox.
In the bottom of the third, Harrison Bader landed on the ball, trying to make a diving catch. He would leave the game. It was determined that he has a fractured rib and is on the 1o day IL. The Cards start the week 0-1 and a 26-21 overall record.
Game 2 5/25 @ Chicago White Sox 8 Cardinals 3
Jack Flaherty took the hill looking for his ninth win in 10 tries. He wouldn't get it, only going 3 2/3 innings, allowing 7 runs (3 earned) on 6 hits, 2 walks, 2 hit batters, and a wild pitch, and struck out 3. It was his earliest exit from a game this year. It ends a streak of six games in a row where he has gone six or more innings. His trouble started in the first when Tim Anderson reached on an Edmundo Sosa error, then Flaherty hit Adam Eaton with a pitch one out later, Jose Abreu grounded out to Flaherty driving in a run. Then Yermin Mercedes reached on a Tommy Edman error scoring another run. In the second inning, after a Single and a Walk, Nick Madrigal singled home a run Anderson reached on a Nolan Arenado error to load the bases with no one out. Flaherty walked Yoan Moncada to force in another run. In the 4fourth, Abreu came up with a man on, and one out blasted a moon shot to left field for two more runs. A ground out and a single later Jack's day was done, down 7-2. Tyler Webb came in and got the final out of the fourth, pitched a scoreless fifth, and got the first out in the sixth before leaving the game with a man on first base.
Junior Fernandez relieved Webb, giving up a single to Abreu before getting Mercedes to ground into a double play. Fernandez would finish the game going 2 2/3 IP 0 runs on 3 hits, striking out 1. The cards got a single run in the 3rd on a Dylan Carlson single. They got another in the fourth when Arenado scored on a wild pitch, and the final run came in the seventh when Max Moroff singled home Matt Carpenter, who had two hits in the game. The Redbirds did manage 10 hits but again couldn't get those hits with runners on base. Besides Carpenter, Arenado also had two hits, and Edmundo Sosa extended his hitting streak to seven games. The loss makes the Cardinals 0-2 for the week and 26-22 overall.
Game 3 5/26 @ Chicago Cardinals 4 White Sox 0
The Cardinals avoided the sweep at the hands of the White Sox when John Gant and the big three, With the help of Tommy Edman and Edmundo Sosa, pulled off the 4-0 shutout against the South-Siders.
Starter John Gant 5 IP 5 H 3 BB and 3 Ks. It was time for the big 3! Genesis Cabrera, Giovanny Gallegos and Alex Reyes. They combined for the final four innings giving up 2 hits, 2 walks and striking out 6. Gant is now 4-3 with a 1.81 ERA
Tommy Edman produced the first Cardinal run when he homered to left-center in the third. He would give the Cardinals their second run in the eighth on a home run to Left Field. It gives Edman four home runs for the year and his 14th multi-hit game. Edmundo Sosa would drive in two more with an infield hit in the ninth. It also gives Sosa an eight-game hitting streak. The win made the Redbirds 1-2 for the week and 27-22 overall and still in 1st place in the NL Central.
Next Up The Arizona Diamondbacks for 4 games.
Game 1
5/27 @ Arizona, Cardinals 5 Diamondbacks 4 - 10 innings
Carlos Martinez Carried a No-Hitter through the sixth inning. He would give up two singles and an RBI double to David Peralta in the seventh.
Carlos final line was; 6 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 6 Ks.
Genesis Cabrera came in and gave up a two-run double to Pavin Smith. After a single and a walk, the bases were loaded and NO outs.
In Stepped Ryan Helsley
Helsley Fired off with hot-hitting Carson Kelly three swings later, and Kelly headed back to the dugout. Pinch hitter Andy Young struck out swinging on a 2-2 pitch. Then the top of the order, Josh Rojas, grounded out to second on the first pitch. In the eighth, the Diamondbacks tied the Game 4-4 on a Smith double off Gallegos.
The Cardinals scored in the second inning. In his 1st game back from the IL, Tyler O'Neill hit his ninth home run 451 feet into Center Field with a man on. Later in the inning, Paul Goldschmidt drew a walk, driving in another run. In the fifth, Nolan Arenado would double to the left, driving in the fourth Cardinal run.
Extra innings
The game would go the 10th with a runner on second Yadier Molina doubled into left, driving home the go-ahead run. Molina went 3-5. It was Molina's seventh multi-hit game this year, and he has hit nine of his last 11 games.
Alex Reyes pitched a scoreless ninth to win, and Daniel Ponce de Leone pitched a 1,2,3 10th to get his first save of the year. The win evened the Cards record for weeks 2-2 and a 28-22 overall mark.
Game 2
5/28 @ Arizona, Cardinals 8 Diamondbacks 6
Cardinals starter Johan Oviedo had another rough outing. He was sent to AAA on May 16 after his last outing (and the return of Miles Mikolas) and was recalled on May 26 (when Mikolas went back on the IL). In his last game, his control was an issue, and it was the same thing Friday.
He walked the first batter of the game. Two outs later gave up a single to David Peralta. He walked the first batter in the second inning, scoring on a Carson Kelly sac fly. He started the third with back-to-back walks leading to yet another run. Oviedo would go 4 1/3 giving up 2 Earned Runs on 3 Hits, 6 Walks, and 3 Strikeouts. The Cardinals committed three errors. One by Tommy Edman in the third on a force out at second. A disputed error that actually appeared to be a catch by Yadier Molina on a foul ball. Tyler O'Neill committed a throwing error in the fifth.
Enter Jake Woodford
With one out in the fifth, Mike Schildt turned to Jake Woodford to get the Cardinals out of a two-on, one-out jam. Woodford responded with back-to-back strikeouts of Nick Ahmed and Tim Locastro to end the threat in the fifth. Woodford would pitch 2 2/3 innings giving up only 1 hit and striking out 6 and walking NONE, and getting his first win of the year. It was a shot in the arm for a bullpen with a few rough moments over the last couple of weeks. Woodford has made seven appearances. He has only been scored on in two of those. He has pitched 12 1/3 innings, allowed 5 ER, 7 BB, 15 Ks.
Ryan Helsley, Who Shut down a bases-loaded situation the day before, started the 8th. He got the first out, then a bloop double, infield single, and a walk loaded the bases. A single by Eduardo Escobar plated two runs. Daniel Ponce de Leone came in and closed the door. Ponce de Leone started the 9th. He struck out the 1st batter, then double, single, and a walk later, the bases were loaded. Ketel Marte drove in a run with a ground out. Ponce got the next batter to ground out also. Ending the game and earning his second save in consecutive days.
The Redbirds opened the scoring with a sac fly by Paul Goldschmidt, then an RBI doubles by Molina, and a Tyler O'Neill two-run homer later, and the Cards had a 4-0 lead. They added a Run in the third on an Arenado home run. The birds would add two more on a Tommy Edman single and a Dylan Carlson double in the fourth. Arenado added his second RBI of the game with a sac fly in the ninth. The third win in a row made the birds 3-2 for the week and a 29-22 overall record.
Game 3
5/29 @ Arizona Cardinals 7 Diamondbacks 4
Tommy Edman was on base three times and had his 15th multi-hit game this season. He leads the team in that category. Tyler O'Neill hit his third home run in as many games and went 3-5 with 3 RBIs. Yadier Molina went 2-5 with 3 RBIs had his 10th multi-hit game. Adam Wainwright (3-4) had a so-so game 5 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, and 6 Ks. Four Cardinal relievers combined for four scoreless innings, and Alex Reyes earned his 15th save to give the Cardinals their fourth win in a row and maintain their half-game lead in the division.
Molina got things going in the first with a single to score a run for the early 1-0 lead. Yadi would strike again in the 3rd and reach an infield ground ball, leading to a throwing error plating 2 more runs. Molina has now hit safely in 8 of his last ten games, with 3 multiple-hit games in that stretch. He is hitting .317/.349/.463 with 6 RBIs
Tyler O'Neill would double-scoring two more runs. Justin Williams grounded out that brought in the fifth run of the inning.
Tyler Would strike again in the fifth with a 450-foot absolute bomb to Left Center Field. he would also double in the seventh, giving him three hits for eight total bases. Right now, O'Neill is on pace for 44 Home Runs and 100-115 RBIs
On the pitching side of things.
Adam Wainwright retired 12 of the first 14 batters he faced, only giving up a walk in the third to the pitcher Seth Frankoff. Eduardo Escobar would double in the fourth. In the fifth, Steven Vogt would take Wainwright deep on a 2-0 pitch to Right Center. In the sixth, after a walk to Escobar and double by David Peralta, Christian Walker would hit a two-run single to Center Field. Genesis Cabrera would come in and put out the fire in the sixth.
Relief Work
After Cabrera, Giovanny Gallegos held the Diamondbacks at bay in the seventh, allowing one walk and getting one strikeout.
Struggling, Tyler Webb came in to handle the 8th. After a Single by Pavin Smith, who was 3-4 in the game, a flyout, strikeout, ground out ended the inning. It was the second game where Webb has pitched well in relief. Alex Reyes pitched the ninth, allowing the first two runners to reach base then getting a fly-out and two strikeouts to end it. The win gave the Cards a guaranteed series win, a 4-2 record for the week, and a 30-22 record.
Game 4
5/30 @ Arizona Diamondbacks 9 Cardinals 2
BREAKING NEWS- Matt Carpenter hits two doubles from the leadoff spot- Cards lose film at 11:00
A game where Matt Carpenter is your leadoff batter gets two doubles. You might think you have gone back in time. Nope on May 30, 2021, it happened. Schildt, to rest some regulars for the upcoming Dodgers. Tommy Edman, Yadier Molina, Nolan Arenado were on the bench. Newly promoted, Jose Rondon was at third base, Andrew Knizner was behind the plate, and Matt Carpenter was second base.
Four Cardinal rookie call-up Jose Rondon went 2-4 with a pair of Singles. The Redbirds scored in each of the first two innings. In the first, a Dylan Carlson solo home run would put the Cards on the board.
In the second, an Andrew Knizner Double drove home the Second Cardinal run. Arizona starter Matt Matt Peacock would go six innings giving up two runs on six hits and striking six for Arizona.
The Birds on the Bat had multiple chances after that but could not push a run across. The Diamondbacks would Score in the second on Tim Locastro's single to Left Field. They would plate another tally in the third on a Ketel Marte off Starter Kwang Hyun Kim. They would score two in the fourth on a Marte Single. Kim only made it to the fifth, giving up four runs on none hits, walking one, and striking out. In the sixth shoddy play and an untimely walk, let the D'Backs come up with five more runs.
Tyler Webb would start the inning; Locastro would receive an error from the SS, Edmundo Sosa. Then Pavin Smith, who had been red hot the entire series going 7-11 the first three games with three RBIs (He would end up 8-13 against St Louis for the series), singled after fouling off four pitches and being behind in the count 1-2.
Josh Rojas reached on a fielder's choice, resulting in an out at the plate but runners on second and third. Marte was intentionally walked to load the bases. Webb threw four straight balls well out of the zone to walk in Arizona's fifth run.
Eduardo Escobar had an infield single (that, quite frankly, should have been a double play) on a 1-2 Count and drove in another run. Jake Woodford came in and surrendered a Single to Christian Walker, driving in a run. Josh Reddick singled in another run. Nick Ahmed reached on a fielder's choice that resulted in an out. Woodford was able to get Locastro for the final out of the inning. In all, Webb would get tagged for 2 H, 2 BB, 5 R only 3 Earned in 1/3 of an inning. This despite the Left-hander throwing 20 pitches 14 for strikes. Woodford gave up two hits and no official runs, but three inherited runners scored. After that, Junior Fernandez pitched two scoreless innings while Riley Smith pitched three scoreless for Arizona, giving up only four hits and striking out four with one Walk.
The loss dropped the Cards to 4-3 for the week and 30-23 overall, maintaining a 1/2 game lead over the Chicago Cubs in the NL Central.
Next up, it is on to Dodger Stadium for three games.
Then home to face the Cincinnati Reds for Four.
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