Monday’s Game Report: Cardinals 8, Marlins 3
By Rob Rains
A day after losing a game because of their own mistakes, the Cardinals picked up a win on Monday night by taking advantage of sloppy baseball by the Marlins.
The win snapped a five-game losing streak for the Cardinals.
The Marlins committed two errors, had four wild pitches, a passed ball and issued five walks to help out the Cardinals offense. Five of the Cardinals who scored each reached base because of an error or walk.
The biggest mistake was a dropped fly ball by right fielder Dane Myers which would have ended the seventh inning. Given a new life because of the two-base error, Alec Burleson followed with an RBI single that broke a 3-3 tie.
A leadoff walk in the eighth led to another run and the Cardinals opened up the game with three runs in the ninth, capped by a two-run homer by Nolan Gorman.
Here is how Monday night’s game broke down:
At the plate: The Cardinals had just one hit through the first four innings but took advantage of a leadoff walk, an error and two wild pitches to spark a three-run fifth inning. That broke a streak of 23 consecutive scoreless innings against the Marlins dating back to the last series in St. Louis … Willson Contreras returned to the lineup and had two hits and a sacrifice fly … Burleson had a three-hit night with two RBIs.
On the mound: Matthew Liberatore allowed two runs through the first five innings but was pulled from the game after giving up back-to-back doubles in the sixth … After hits from the first two batters in the first, Liberatore allowed only one more hit, a home run, through the fifth … Matt Svanson relieved Liberatore and worked two scoreless innings before JoJo Romero pitched the eighth and Jorge Alcala the ninth.
Key stat: Gorman’s homer was the 23rd by the Cardinals since the All-Star break and moved them out of a tie for the fewest home runs in the NL over that stretch. The Pirates, Reds and Padres have all hit 22 home runs since the break.
Worth noting: After trying to avoid the move for a week, the Cardinals finally placed Brendan Donovan on the injured list because of a sore groin and toe. Donovan had played in just two of the Cardinals’ last eight games. The move was backdated so Donovan will be eligible to return next Monday … Jose Fermin was recalled from Memphis.
Up next: Michael McGreevy will get the start on Tuesday night in the second game of the series.
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