Cardinals seal the deal on a series win vs D.C. and extend winning streak to 7 wins!
Step right up, step right up! The first frame’s upon us, and the hour is five past four, Eastern Daylight Time, at the grand Nationals Park! Let’s begin—
To the top of the first, three gentlemen stand, three gentlemen fall! Now batting, young Nootbaar—grounds one, second to first, and that’s one away, sold! Next up, Winn—lines it, sharp and true, but right at the second baseman, Garcia Jr., and he is out, two down, sold! Donovan takes his chance, grounds to short, Abrams swift to Lowe—three up, three down, the hammer falls!
To the bottom of the first—please be advised, a brief delay on the field, gather your patience, folks! Play resumes—Abrams up, lines out to the sure hands of Gorman at second, that’s one gone. Alex Call at the plate, grounds it sharply, pitcher Pallante fields, over to Contreras at first—two away, sold! Wood steps up, cracks a single, right to Nootbaar in right field, folks, a touch of excitement! Lowe at bat, lines out to center, Victor Scott II with a smooth, diving catch—three outs, the gavel falls!
Top of the second we go—Arenado swings and misses, struck out by Williams, one down! Contreras to the plate—he’s hit by the pitch, sirens for the batter, he’ll take his base. Burleson walks—two on, no out, tension in the room! Gorman grounds into a force, Garcia Jr. to Abrams, Contreras advances, Burleson is out at second, Gorman safe, two outs! Pagés steps in, singles to right, Contreras scores, the bid is up—St. Louis leads, one-nil! Scott II up, singles left, Gorman scores, Pagés to second—St. Louis now up two! Nootbaar with a drive, doubles to right, Pagés and Scott II both cross the plate! Nootbaar races for third, the price climbs higher—four to nothing, St. Louis! Winn takes his turn but strikes out, inning’s over, folks!
Bottom of the second—Ruiz grounds out, Gorman to Contreras, one down! Garcia Jr. follows, same story, second to first—two gone! Tena up, grounds to Arenado at third, over to Contreras, three away, move along!
Top third—Donovan pops up, Tena at third catches in foul ground, one out! Arenado swings and misses, two gone! Contreras grounds out, Abrams to Lowe, three away, sold!
Bottom third—Young at the dish, caught looking, called third strike, one gone! Crews lines out to Arenado at third, that’s two! Abrams flies out sharply to Donovan in left, who leaps, snags it from the air, and that’s three, the crowd goes wild!
Top of the fourth—Burleson singles to left, Call fields. Gorman pops up to short, Abrams under it, one away! Pagés swings and misses, two down! Burleson makes a dash, steals second base—safe! Scott II bunts, Williams to Lowe at first, three away, change hands!
Bottom four—Call swings and misses, one away! Wood goes down swinging, two gone! Lowe grounds out to Winn at shortstop, Contreras at first, three down, and we roll on!
Top of the fifth—Nootbaar grounds out, Lowe to Williams, that’s one! Winn singles to center, Young fields. Donovan grounds a double down the third base line, Winn to third! Arenado lines one, but Tena at third snares it, tags the runner for an unassisted double play! Three outs, the auctioneer’s gavel falls!
Bottom fifth—Ruiz singles, Donovan in left fields. Garcia Jr. grounds out to Contreras at first, Ruiz to second, one away! Tena strikes out swinging, two gone! Young bunts, singles to Arenado at third, Ruiz to third! Crews up, swings and misses, three away, folks!
Top sixth—Contreras grounds out, Abrams to Lowe, one away. Burleson singles to center, Young fields. Gorman grounds into a force, Garcia Jr. to Abrams, Burleson out at second, Gorman safe, two gone! Pagés flies out sharply to Young in center—three outs, the gavel is swift!
Bottom sixth—another delay, patience, ladies and gentlemen! Play resumes—Abrams flies out to Donovan in left, one down! Call grounds out, Gorman to Contreras, two away! Wood, called out on strikes, three gone, sold!
Top seventh—pitching change, Cole Henry now on the mound! Scott II swings and misses, one away! Nootbaar flies out to Crews in right, two gone! Winn flies out to Young in center, three away, hammer falls!
Bottom seventh—Lowe strikes out swinging, one away! Ruiz grounds out, Contreras to Pallante, two gone! Garcia Jr. flies out to Scott II in center, three down!
Top eighth—Donovan grounds out, Garcia Jr. to Lowe, one away! Arenado hit by pitch, he’ll take his base, but there’s an injury delay, hold your bids! Contreras walks, Arenado to second! Pitching change, Brzykcy in now! Burleson flies out to Call in left, two gone! Gorman pops up to Abrams at short, three away, Brzykcy strands two runners—fine work!
Bottom eighth—Tena singles to right, Nootbaar fields. Young grounds out, Gorman to Contreras, Tena to second, one away! Crews steps up—crack! Home run over left field, Tena scores, the crowd erupts! Four to two, St. Louis still leads! Pitching change, Romero takes the mound. Abrams doubles to left, Donovan fields. Call grounds out softly, Pagés to Contreras, two gone! Wood walks, two on! Lowe grounds out, Arenado to Contreras, three away!
Top ninth—pitching change, Ferrer now pitching. Pagés walks, one on! Scott II bunts, Ferrer to Lowe, Pagés to second, one away! Nootbaar flies out to Young in center, two gone! Winn grounds out, Tena to Lowe, three away, sold!
Bottom ninth—pitching change, Helsley in for Romero. Defensive switch, Barrero at second for Gorman. Ruiz grounds out, Winn to Contreras, one down! Garcia Jr. swings and misses, two gone! Tena singles to left, Donovan fields. Pinch-hitter Bell replaces Young, wild pitch by Helsley, Tena to second! Bell walks, and pinch-runner Nuñez now in for Bell. Tena steals third, Nuñez steals second—double theft! Crews walks, bases loaded! Abrams flies out to Nootbaar in right, three away, and that’s the ballgame!
St. Louis holds on, four to two, Ryan Helsley with his seventh save—sold, to the Cardinals! That’s 7 in a row!
Umpire is calling some deep in the strike zone balls, definitely a pattern this year, smh
- 7 hits per team today, Cardinals capitalize on 4 runs to Nationals 2
- Pallante had his best start of the season and went 7 1⁄3 IP with 7 K and no BB, 2 ER
- Pallante lowered his ERA to 4.36 and xFIP to 3.7 today
- Victor Scott II amazing catch!
- Pedro Pages makes it 1-0
- Victor Scott II makes it 2-0
- Lars Nootbaar finishes off the Cardinals deadly 2nd inning attack with a 2 RBI double (9th double of the season for Noot)
- Only Burleson had a good day at the plate: 2 for 3 with a walk… but no runs scored or RBI
- Andre Pallante gets win probability player of the game
Next game is at 12:35 CST: Mikolas vs Gore as the Cardinals go for the sweep. MacKenzie Gore is having himself a good season, but career-wise he’s a pretty mediocre pitcher. Miles Mikolas has only given up 3 runs over his last 16 1⁄3 IP. He has given up under 1 hit per inning during this time, while walking 5 batters over his last 3 starts.