Saturday’s Game Report: Mariners 11, Cardinals 9
By Rob Rains
Nathan Church had the best game of his life on Saturday – but the Cardinals did not get a win despite all of his efforts.
Church hit two homers, added a sacrifice fly and took a home run away from the Mariners but a leaky bullpen gave away a late lead in the loss at Busch Stadium.
The first two-homer game of Church’s career was part of a five-homer day for the Cardinals, but it became only the second time they have hit five or more home runs at home and lost.
The other time that happened was nearly 86 years ago – on Sept. 8, 1940, when they hit five homers and lost 16-14 to the Pirates.
The Cardinals led 9-7 going to the eighth inning but the Mariners scored twice in that inning and then broke the tie with two runs in the ninth, all of the damage coming against JoJo Romero and Riley O’Brien, the Cardinals’ two best relievers.
A single off O’Brien in the eighth allowed two inherited runners to score, and he then gave up a two-run single with the bases loaded in the ninth, the first earned runs he has allowed this season.
Here is how Saturday’s game broke down:
At the plate: JJ Wetherholt homered leading off the bottom of the first, followed by a home run from Ivan Herrera … Church’s first homer came with one out in the second before Pedro Pages hit a two-run shot that capped a four-run third inning which included the sacrifice fly from Church … Church broke a 7-7 tie with a two-run homer in the seventh … Wetherholt and Pages each had three of the team’s 14 hits and the Cardinals also had three batters hit by a pitch, including Herrera twice, and drew two walks … Victor Scott II snapped an 1-of-18 streak with a single in the fifth.
On the mound: The Mariners hit three homers, all off starter Matthew Liberatore that produced their first five runs. Liberatore was pulled after just 3 1/3 innings in which he allowed eight hits and walked one … That started a parade of seven relievers to get the next 17 outs. Gordron Graceffo and George Soriano each allowed one run before the Mariners’ rallies against Romer and O’Brien in the eighth and ninth … O’Brien gave up four hits, walked one and hit a batter while only recording three outs, throwing 39 pitches … The Mariners’ 19 hits were the most allowed by the Cardinals in a game at home since opening day of 2023, when the Blue Jays also had 19 hits.
Key stat: The eight combined home runs was one shy of the Busch Stadium 3 record of 9, when the Cardinals hit seven and the Dodgers two on May 18, 2023. It ties for the most home runs in a game in the majors this season.
Worth noting: Pages had to come out of the game because of tightness in his left hamstring after his infield single in the seventh … Ryan Fernandez was the only Cardinals’ reliever who did not appear in the game … This was only the seventh time in Busch Stadium 3 history that the Cardinals have hit five or more home runs … It was the first time the first two Cardinals’ batters homered in the first inning since Brendan Donovan and Alec Burleson did it on April 3, 2023 … The combined total of 33 hits was the most in the majors this season.
Up next: Michael McGreevy will get the start on Sunday as the Cardinals try to salvage the final game of the series and snap their three-game losing streak.
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