Sunday’s Game Report: Cardinals 4, Diamondbacks 3
By Rob Rains
As Nolan Arenado crumbled to the ground, grabbing his back, it appeared he might have suffered a serious injury in trying to help preserve a ninth-inning lead for the Cardinals on Sunday at Busch Stadium.
Luckily, Arenado was able to stay in the game after making the lunging catch on a foul popup, then falling into the net and the first row of seats behind third base.
Arenado then got to celebrate the victory with the rest of his teammates that completed a sweep of the three-game series. The win left the Cardinals a season-high seven games over .500 at 30-23.
Victor Scott II’s single in the seventh inning drove in Jordan Walker from second, breaking a 3-3 tie and sending the Cardinals to the victory.
All three games in the series were one-run decisions, and all had their share of drama in the ninth inning.
A two-run homer off Ryan Helsley on Friday night brought the Diamondbacks within a run and on Saturday Helsley had to pitch out of a two-on, one-out jam to complete the victory.
On Sunday, with Helsley unavailable after throwing a combined 53 pitches the two previous days, Phil Maton was asked to get the final three outs. A leadoff double and hit batter put the first two runners on base before Maton struck out Corbin Carroll for the first out.
Then came Arenado’s spectacular catch. By rule, because he threw the ball back toward the infield after falling into the seats, the two baserunners were allowed to each move up one base.
With the tying run now on third and the go-ahead runner on second, Maton struck out Lourdes Gurriel Jr. to end the game.
Here is how Sunday’s game broke down:
At the plate: The Cardinas had tied the game at 3 in the sixth on a sacrifice fly by Ivan Herrera, who had singled in their first run in the first inning … Brendan Donovan had his ninth three-hit game of the season, including two four-hit games … Masyn Winn’s sixth homer of the year, with one out in the third, produced the other run for the Cardinals … In the seventh, Walker led off with an infield single, took second on a ground out and scored on the single from Scott II, who had struck out in his first two at-bats.
On the mound: Sonny Gray allowed two first-inning runs but then kept the Diamondbacks from scoring again until they got three consecutive one-out hits in the sixth … John King worked a 1-2-3 seventh before JoJo Romero protected the one-run lead in the eighth, pitching around a two-out walk.
Key stat: The win improved the Cardinals record in May to 16-6 with five games left in the month. They won 17 games in May in 2022,18 games in the month in 2015 and 20 games in 2013.
Worth noting: Each game of the weekend series produced an announced attendance of more than 34,000. The Cardinals drew 31,000 or more for four games in the six-game homestand … Willson Contreras missed his third consecutive game because of back spasms after the Cardinals had hoped he would be OK to play on Sunday. He could be in the lineup as soon as Monday … Top pitching prospect Quinn Mathews made his second rehab start on Sunday, at Palm Beach, and worked three scoreless innings. He allowed two hits, did not walk a batter and struck out four.
Up next: The Cardinals will open a three-game series on Monday against the Orioles in Baltimore. Erick Fedde is the scheduled starter, with the first pitch set for 2:05 p.m. St. Louis time. It’s the start of a six-game road trip that also includes three games in Texas.
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