The St. Louis Cardinals entered Monday night’s matchup with the Cincinnati Reds carrying plenty of momentum after winning the first game of their day-night doubleheader. With a chance to complete the sweep, the Cardinals handed the ball to Andre Pallante, one of their more dependable starting pitchers this season.
The biggest question was whether St. Louis’ offense could provide Pallante with enough support. For much of the night, the Cardinals appeared capable of doing exactly that. Iván Herrera delivered the biggest early blow, while Jordan Walker provided energy with his bat and aggressive baserunning. However, missed opportunities, defensive miscues and an inability to add insurance runs ultimately came back to haunt St. Louis.
In the end, the Cardinals watched their one-run advantage disappear in the ninth inning before Elly De La Cruz delivered the final blow in extra innings, giving Cincinnati a dramatic 6-5 victory and preventing St. Louis from completing the doubleheader sweep.
The Reds wasted little time putting pressure on Pallante in the bottom of the first inning. Elly De La Cruz, Sal Stewart and JJ Bleday opened the inning with three consecutive singles, immediately loading the bases with nobody out.
Cincinnati managed to push one run across when Eugenio Suárez lifted a sacrifice fly to center field, putting the Reds ahead 1-0. However, Pallante prevented the situation from getting completely out of control. He worked his way out of the inning by inducing Toglia into a double play, limiting the damage to just one run.
The Cardinals finally answered in the fourth inning.
Iván Herrera, who had just made an impressive defensive play by throwing out De La Cruz, provided the offensive response moments later. Herrera crushed a 93 mph sinker and sent it deep into the right-center field seats for a solo home run.
The blast immediately erased Cincinnati’s lead and tied the game at 1-1.
St. Louis continued applying pressure after Herrera’s home run. Alec Burleson and Jordan Walker followed with consecutive singles, putting runners on base and giving the Cardinals another opportunity to take control.
Joshua Báez then reached on a fielder’s choice, allowing Burleson to advance to third. Masyn Winn came through in the next at-bat, lining a single into right field to bring Burleson home. The Cardinals had suddenly flipped the game around and taken a 2-1 lead.
Cincinnati had an excellent opportunity to respond in the bottom of the fourth, but Pallante once again managed to escape trouble.
JJ Bleday and Suárez opened the inning with back-to-back singles, putting runners at first and third with nobody out. The Reds appeared to be in position to immediately tie the game, if not take the lead.
Instead, Pallante shut the door.
He struck out Toglia and McLain consecutively before getting Rodriguez to hit a weak ground ball to Burleson at first base. The Cardinals escaped the inning without allowing a run.
St. Louis then did something it has needed to do more consistently: add to a lead instead of allowing an opponent to hang around.
Jordan Walker started the sixth-inning rally with a hustle double to left field. His aggressive baserunning once again put him in scoring position, and Nathan Church followed by driving him home with a single.
That gave the Cardinals a 3-1 advantage.
St. Louis added another run two batters later when Blaze Jordan singled to left field, bringing Church home and stretching the lead to 4-1.
The inning could have produced even more, but Bryan Torres, who had drawn a walk, was thrown out while trying to advance to third. Still, the Cardinals had accomplished what they needed: they had built a three-run cushion.
Unfortunately for St. Louis, that cushion would not last long.
The Reds began chipping away in the bottom of the sixth. Bleday and Suárez again reached on consecutive singles, this time with one out. Toglia followed with a double to left field, allowing Bleday to score and cutting the Cardinals’ advantage to 4-2.
Cincinnati had another opportunity to score when McLain lifted a ball to left field. The Cardinals appeared to have a chance to make a play at the plate, but Torres’ throw sailed over home plate. Cincinnati ultimately did not send the runner from third, and Pallante was in position to back up the play.
At the time, it appeared to be a missed opportunity for the Reds.
Moments later, however, it became irrelevant.
Rodriguez delivered a two-run single, bringing both runners home and tying the game at 4-4.
Pallante did not have his best outing, but he still gave the Cardinals six innings of work. He surrendered 10 hits and four earned runs while striking out five and issuing only one walk.
With the game tied, St. Louis turned to Peter Strzelecki in the seventh inning. The Cardinals needed their bullpen to keep Cincinnati off the scoreboard while waiting for the offense to regain its footing.
Strzelecki did exactly that in the seventh.
The Cardinals then threatened again in the eighth inning.
Jordan Walker led off with a single, giving St. Louis another chance to put a runner in scoring position. Báez and Fermín were unable to move him forward, but Winn eventually drew a walk, putting two Cardinals on base.
Walker, however, did not wait around.
Showing the same aggressive baserunning that had helped him earlier in the game, Walker stole third base. His hustle put the Cardinals in position to reclaim the lead, and Torres took advantage.
Torres worked a smart at-bat and guided a seeing-eye single through the left-center field area, allowing Walker to score and putting St. Louis ahead 5-4.
There was an opportunity for the Cardinals to make the lead even larger. Winn could have potentially taken second while Walker was stealing third, but he remained at first. Blaze Jordan then struck out, leaving Winn and Torres stranded.
That failure to add another run would prove significant.
Strzelecki returned for the bottom of the eighth and continued to keep the Reds quiet. The only real scare came when Suárez hit a ball that bounced off the third-base bag and ricocheted into left field for a double.
Even then, Strzelecki escaped.
The Reds were unable to bring the pinch-runner home, as Strzelecki got Toglia to fly out to short center field to end the inning.
Entering the ninth, Cardinals fans were surely hoping their offense could finally provide some breathing room.
JJ Wetherholt appeared to give them a promising start when he beat out an infield single to deep short. But St. Louis could not capitalize.
Herrera struck out, Burleson grounded into a force play, and Walker struck out to end the inning.
The Cardinals had just three outs remaining to protect their 5-4 lead.
Strzelecki was asked to return for a third inning of relief, an enormous assignment considering how much work he had already done.
He immediately recorded two outs, striking out McLain and Rodriguez.
One more out would have secured the victory.
But baseball can be cruel.
Pinch-hitter Dane Myers stepped to the plate and launched a home run into the left-field seats, tying the game at 5-5 and breaking the hearts of the Cardinals.
Stephenson then flew out to center, sending the game into extra innings.
In the top of the 10th, Emilio Pagán took the mound for Cincinnati. Under extra-inning rules, Jordan Walker began the inning at second base as the automatic runner.
Joshua Báez came to the plate first and appeared to be hit on the hand by a pitch. However, the umpires determined that Báez had swung, meaning the pitch was ruled a foul ball rather than awarding him first base.
Báez eventually struck out on a 96 mph fastball high in the zone.
José Fermín followed and drew a walk, helped in part by a successful ABS challenge. With runners at first and second, Masyn Winn stepped in with a chance to give St. Louis the lead.
Winn fell behind 0-2 but fought back to work the count full. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, he was called out on a check swing for the second out.
The call clearly frustrated Cardinals manager Oli Marmol, who argued the decision and was eventually ejected.
Pinch-hitter Pereira then grounded into a force play, ending the Cardinals’ half of the 10th without a run.
That left Cincinnati needing only one run to end the game.
Justin Bruihl entered for St. Louis with the difficult task of keeping the Reds off the scoreboard.
He could not do it.
De La Cruz stepped to the plate and hit a ball through Blaze Jordan at third base and into the left-field corner. The ball rolled away from the Cardinals’ defense, allowing the winning run to score.
Cincinnati had completed the comeback.
The Reds won 6-5, while the Cardinals were left wondering what could have been.
St. Louis had several chances to put the game away. They led 4-1 at one point, held a 5-4 advantage entering the ninth and had opportunities to score insurance runs late in the game.
Instead, Cincinnati continued fighting, and the Cardinals ultimately paid for their inability to finish.
For Walker, though, it was another encouraging performance. His hustle double, single and aggressive stolen base demonstrated the kind of energy he can bring to the lineup. His baserunning directly contributed to St. Louis taking the lead in the eighth inning.
Unfortunately, the Cardinals could not turn that lead into a victory.
The loss also highlights the razor-thin margins that often determine baseball games. A runner advancing one extra base, an insurance run, a defensive mistake or a single pitch can completely change the outcome.
St. Louis had the opportunity to sweep the doubleheader, but Cincinnati refused to cooperate.
Now the Cardinals must put the disappointing loss behind them quickly.
The series continues Tuesday night with Game 3 between St. Louis and Cincinnati at Great American Ball Park. Kyle Leahy is scheduled to start for the Cardinals, while Andrew Abbott is expected to take the mound for the Reds.
First pitch is scheduled for 5:40 p.m. Central Time.
After letting a potential sweep slip away in dramatic fashion, St. Louis will have another opportunity to respond immediately. The Cardinals will need better execution, more timely hitting and, perhaps most importantly, a way to finish games when they have the lead.
Because Monday night showed exactly how quickly a game can disappear.
The Cardinals were just one out away from victory.
Instead, they left Cincinnati with a 6-5 loss and a reminder that in baseball, nothing is over until the final out is recorded.
READ MORE
