Monday’s Game Report: Marlins 5, Cardinals 4
By Rob Rains
The outcome of Monday night’s game against the Marlins was all too familiar for fans who have been watching the Cardinals this season.
Carrying a 4-2 lead into the seventh inning, Miles Mikolas issued back-to-back walks with one out before he was pulled from the game and replaced by Andre Pallante.
One pitch later, the game was tied. Before the inning was over, the Marlins had the lead and the Cardinals were headed to another one-run loss.
It was the 17th blown save this season for the Cardinals and they fell to 8-17 in one-run games.
Here is how Monday’s game broke down:
At the plate: The Cardinals rallied from a 2-0 deficit to tie the game on an RBI single from Lars Nootbaar in the second and a home run by Willson Contreras with two outs in the third … Contreras led off the sixth with a double and scored on a two-out double by Paul DeJong to give the Cardinals the lead and they added another run in the seventh when Nootbaar walked, went to third on a single by Paul Goldschmidt and scored on a sacrifice fly by Nolan Arenado … A one-out single by DeJong and a hit batter put the tying run on second with one out in the eighth, but Nootbaar flew out and Tommy Edman struck out … Contreras had three hits and also reached base on a walk … The Cardinals were 3-of-13 with runners in scoring position and stranded 10 runners.
On the mound: After allowing two runs through the first four batters he faced in the first inning, Mikolas allowed only one more hit through his 6 1/3 innings, a second-inning single. He retired 14 batters in a row before the two consecutive walks, both on 3-2 pitches, that ended his night … Pinch-hitter Yuli Gurriel doubled on the first pitch from Pallante to drive in both runs to tie the game, and pinch-runner Jon Berti scored on a single by Nick Fortes to put the Marlins ahead … Pallante had allowed only five of 22 inherited runners to score this season before Monday night.
Key stat: When the Cardinals fell behind in the seventh inning and couldn’t come back, it left them with a record of 1-40 this year in games in which they were losing after the seventh inning.
Worth noting: Mikolas has allowed at least two runs in the first inning in four of his last six starts … The Cardinals recalled Luken Baker from Memphis before the game and inserted him into the lineup as the designated hitter. He was 1-of-4, getting a single in his first at-bat and scoring the first St. Louis run … To make room for Baker on the roster, outfielder Oscar Mercado was designated for assignment … The Cardinals on Monday announced that they had signed their first player from Taiwan, 21-year-old righthanded pitcher Chen-Wie Lin. The 6-foot-7 Lin will be assigned to the rookie Complex League team in Jupiter, Fla … Tink Hence, the top pitching prospect in the organization, will make his debut for Double A Springfield on Tuesday after his promotion from Peoria over the weekend.
Looking ahead: Adam Wainwright, trying to bounce back from two consecutive poor starts, will start for the Cardinals in Tuesday’s Fourth of July game. First pitch is scheduled for 12:10 p.m. St. Louis time.
Follow Rob Rains on Twitter @RobRains
