Tuesday’s Game Report: Cardinals 8, Cubs 7
By Rob Rains
The impact of the Cardinals’ win over the Cubs on Tuesday night likely won’t be fully known until much later in the season.
But for one night, it seemed like a very big win, and befitting that result, there were plenty of heroes and late-inning drama before the Cardinals could celebrate at Busch Stadium.
The Cardinals hit three more home runs, but just as big as any of those long blasts was Masyn Winn tagging up and scoring from second base on a sacrifice fly when Pete Crow-Armstrong apparently forget how many outs there were in the inning.
There was Alec Burleson falling into the netting in right field to make the final out of the seventh inning, stranding the tying run on third base.
And in the ninth, the Cubs again had the tying run on third when Ryan Helsley got a grounder and Nolan Arenado turned in a highlight reel play to record the game’s final out.
The second consecutive win in the four-game series shaved another game off the Cubs’ division lead, with the Cardinals now 2 ½ games out of first place.
Here is how Tuesday night’s game broke down:
At the plate: One night after hitting four home runs, the Cardinals came back from an early 5-2 deficit by hitting three more. Lars Nootbaar took over the team lead with his 11th of the season, a two-run shot in the second, before Winn added another two-run homer in the third and the third home run came from Nolan Gorman leading off the fourth … Winn drove in two more runs with a double in the fourth, then took advantage of the mistake by Crow-Armstrong to score what turned out to be the winning run … The Cardinals had only two hits over the final four innings but still were able to hold on for the win.
On the mound: Michael McGreevy got the spot start and worked 4 2/3 innings. He allowed five runs in the third, including a three-run homer, but bounced back from that inning by retiring six hitters in a row before leaving the game with two runners on base in the fifth … Steven Matz got out of that jam but then gave up a two-run homer in the sixth that cut the Cardinals’ lead to 8-7 … Phil Maton was able to strand runners on first and third in the seventh thanks to Burleson’s catch and then in the ninth, Helsley gave up two singles that put runners on first and third before Dansby Swanson’s groundout ended the game.
Key stat: The Cardinals have won seven of their last eight games and in those eight days have gained 4 ½ games on the Cubs in the standings. They were seven games out of first place when that stretch began on June 17.
Worth noting: The Cardinals claimed utility player Garrett Hampson on waivers from the Reds on Tuesday and added him to their 26-man roster. He is expected to join the team on Wednesday. Hampson has played for numerous teams in his career, including spending time on the Marlins when Cardinals coaches Brant Brown and Jon Jay were on that staff. “I think he can he helpful,” said manager Oli Marmol … To make room for Hampson, Jose Barrero was designated for assignment … In their other roster move, Roddery Munoz was optioned back to Memphis after his one-day in St. Louis to open a spot for McGreevy … Quinn Mathew retired only four hitters in his start for Memphis on Tuesday night in Durham while allowing two hits and walking six. He was charged with five runs, three of which scored after he left the game with the bases loaded before a grand slam.
Up next: Erick Fedde will get the start on Wednesday night in the third game of the series. It will be the Cardinals’ 81st game as they reach the half-way point of the season.
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