Saturday’s Game Report: Cubs 9, Cardinals 1
By Rob Rains
It only took four pitches for Andre Pallante’s night to get off to a bad start for the Cardinals, and it did not get any better.
Michael Busch hit Pallante’s fourth pitch for a double on Saturday night, setting up the Cubs for two runs before Pallante recorded a second out.
It got worse in the second, when Busch hit a three-run homer in the four-run inning that helped the Cubs coast to the win over the Cardinals at Busch Stadium.
The Cubs had more runs in the first two innings, six, than Pallante got outs, five, before he was pulled from the game.
The lead grew to 9-0 as the Cubs also scored in the third, fourth and fifth innings before the Cardinals were able to spoil the shutout. It was the 30th game this season when they were shut out or held to one run.
Here is how Saturday night’s game broke down:
At the plate: Nolan Gorman’s single in the second inning was the Cardinals only hit until Lars Nootbaar led off the sixth with a double. He took third on a fly out and scored the Cardinals only run on a ground out by Alec Burleson … Three of their seven hits were infield singles and they were hitless in seven at-bats with a runner in scoring position.
On the mound: Pallante allowed seven hits to the 13 batters he faced, recording only two groundball outs … The Cubs added two runs off Gordon Graceffo and one off Ryan Fernandez, on a home run by Matt Shaw … The bullpen held the Cubs to just one hit after Shaw’s home run in the fifth.
Key stat: Busch has hit six home runs in 34 at-bats against the Cardinals this season out of the Cubs total of 19 homers in nine games against the Cardinals. The last Cub with six homers in a season against the Cardinals was Derek Lee in 2005.
Worth noting: The Cardinals have been outscored 17-1 in the first inning in their 21 games since the All-Star break … Brendan Donovan was in the original lineup but was a late scratch because of a tight groin. The move was said to be made for precautionary reasons … New reliever Jorge Alcala, claimed on waivers from the Red Sox, is expected to join the Cardinals on Sunday. A roster move will have to be made before he is activated.
Up next: Sonny Gray will get the start in the final game of the series on Sunday night. The game will be televised by ESPN.
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