Friday’s Game Report: Mariners 3, Cardinals 2
By Rob Rains
When the first two hitters for the Cardinals reached base in the eighth inning on Friday night they found themselves in position for yet another possible comeback victory.
Trailing by a run, JJ Wetherholt and Ivan Herrera opened the inning with singles, putting the tying and go-ahead runners on base with nobody out.
The would-be comeback wasn’t to be, however, as Alec Burleson struck out and Jordan Walket grounded into a double play and the Mariners held on for the win in the opener of a three-game series at Busch Stadium.
The Mariners had taken the one-run lead in the sixth on a home run by Josh Naylor off Andre Pallante, one of only four hits for Seattle in the game.
It was the first one-run loss of the season for the Cardinals.
Here is how Friday night’s game broke down:
At the plate: Masyn Winn drove in both of the Cardinals runs with a two-out single in the fourth inning. Burleson drew a walk before Nolan Gorman doubled with two outs, his second hit of the game … Winn also singled leading off the seventh but was stranded, and Nathan Church had a two-out single in the ninth but Ramon Urias struck out to end the game … The Cardinals had only four at-bats with a runner in scoring position.
On the mound: The Mariners put the leadoff hitter on base in four of Pallante’s five-plus innings, and three of them came around to score. Randy Arozarena doubled in the second, Naylor walked in the fourth and then homered in the sixth. Pallante struck out eight in his 5 1/3 innings, the most strikeouts by a Cardinals pitcher this season … Justin Bruihl walked two and hit another among the four batters he faced but did not give up a run … Gordon Graceffo worked a perfect eighth and ninth innings to keep it a one-run game.
Key stat: Winn has driven in 10 runs in his last seven games, joining Walker for the most RBIs in a seven-game span this season.
Worth noting: Because he is on the injured list with a groin strain, former Cardinal Brendan Donovan did not travel to St. Louis for the series. With the current schedule, the next time the Mariners will play in St. Louis is in 2028 … Victor Scott II had the day off for a “work” day after getting just two hts in his last 25 at-bats and seeing his season average fall to .197 … Former first-round pick Chase Davis hit two home runs for Springfield on Friday night.
Up next: Matthew Liberatore will get the start in the 1:15 p.m. game on Saturday in the second game of the series.
Follow Rob Rains on X @RobRains
