The Cardinals were determined to win the 5-game series against the Reds Thursday and they got a strong pitching performance by Michael McGreevy and the necessary offensive muscle to get the job done. However, the end result would depend on the Cardinals bullpen holding the lead. Spoiler Alert: you won’t believe what happened at the end.
JJ Wetherholt got things rolling for the Cardinals in the top of the 1st, but not in the way he would prefer. He was hit in the hamstring by Reds starter Brady Singer
which resulted in JJ getting some examination time from the St. Louis training staff. He stayed in the game and would end up doing a lot of running thanks to a single by Iván Herrera and then advancing to third on a flyout by Alec Burleson. Wetherholt scored the first Cardinals run when Jordan Walker grounded into a force out to make it 1-0 St. Louis.
Jordan Walker would play a huge role in expanding the Cardinals lead in the top of the 3rd inning when JJ Wetherholt smacked a one-out single followed by a walk to Herrera. Jordan stepped to the plate and turned an 83 mph Singer slider into a ball that barely cleared the centerfield wall 407 feet away for a 3-run homer and a 4-0 St. Louis Cardinals lead.
Michael McGreevy gave St. Louis the exact type of start they needed. He managed his pitch count wisely and didn’t allow the Reds to mount any kind of threat for the first 5 innings. The 6th inning has haunted the Cardinals this season and Thursday’s game was not an exception. It would begin when McGreevy walked Rodriguez to start the Reds 6th. Hayes followed that with a single which moved Rodriguez into scoring position at third. Michael would strike out De La Cruz for the first out, but then walked Sal Stewart to load the bases. Manager Oli Marmol took McGreevy out of the game and brought in Ryne Stanek. Stanek gave up a single to JJ Bleday which scored Rodriguez and reducing the Cardinals lead to 4-1. Ryne followed that up with a very crucial strikeout of Stephenson for the second out. That brought up Matt McLain who turned the game on its head when he crushed a 91 mph splitter into a go-ahead grand slam giving the Reds a 5-4 lead.
Could the Cardinals find a way to rally and avoid a disastrous end to the Cincinnati trip? St. Louis did nothing in the top of the 7th and a potential rally in the top of the 8th was shut down when Joshua Baez was caught stealing. It would come down to the top of the 9th inning as the Cardinals would have to score on Reds reliever Brock Burke. José Fermín was first up in the Cardinals 9th pinch-hitting for Nathan Church. He singled to left to give St. Louis a glimmer of hope. Bryan Torres was up next and the umpires ruled he was hit in the fingers by a pitch as he tried to lay down a sacrifice bunt. Blaze Jordan flew out to centerfield for the first out, but both Cardinals runners advanced to second and third base to get into scoring position. Everson Pereira was the pinch-hitter for Jimmy Crooks. He struck out unable to bring in the tying run for the second out. That meant the Cardinals hopes were on the shoulders of JJ Wetherholt. He flew out to left field in what looked like it would be the last out of the game, but a miracle happened! Dane Myers dropped the ball which allowed both St. Louis runners to score giving the Cardinals a last gasp 6-5 lead!
The Cardinals fortunately continued to add to their 9th inning lead. After the Reds intentionally walked Herrera, Alec Burleson singled to score JJ Wetherholt giving St. Louis another run to make it 7-5. The Reds decided to help the Cardinals ensure a series win as they ended up walking Joshua Baez with the bases loaded to make it 8-5 St. Louis. It just kept getting better as José Fermín came up again and singled in two more runs to give the Cardinals an unbelievable 10-5 lead.
It was George Soriano’s responsibility to hold the Reds down in the bottom of the 9th inning. He promptly walked the first batter he faced which was Matt McLain. Toglia was up next for the Reds and Soriano struck him out. Dane Myers, who was partially responsible for the Cardinals 9th inning miracle, was gifted a walk which resulted in a mound visit. TJ Friedl, who was at least an accomplice on the misplay in the top of the inning, struck out for the second out. The Reds still had a glimmer of life as Eugenio Suarez singled to make it 10-6 St. Louis. Elly De La Cruz was also walked which loaded the bases for Sal Stewart who represented the tying run. Manager Oli Marmol turned to closer Riley O’Brien to avoid an even bigger disaster. Stewart hit the first pitch he saw from O’Brien for a single which scored two and reduced the Cardinals lead to 10-8. Unbelievably, JJ Bleday was walked, too, which loaded the bases for Cincinnati and put the tying run on second base and the potential winner on first. Pitching coach Dusty Blake visited the mound before O’Brien faced Tyler Stephenson. Riley couldn’t find the strike zone as he walked Stephenson on four pitches which scored De La Cruz and made it 10-9 Cardinals with the tying run now just 90 feet away. Matt McLain nearly caused all of us to lose our lunch as he drove a Riley O’Brien 97 mph sinker to the right field wall which was tracked down by Jordan Walker.
WHEW!
The St. Louis Cardinals road trip travels to Philadelphia for a weekend series against the Phillies. Jesús Luzardo is the scheduled starter for the Phillies while the Cardinals have not announced their starter yet. First pitch is scheduled for 5:40pm central time and the game broadcast will be available via Cardinals.tv.
