Sunday’s Game Report: Phillies 6, Cardinals 4
By Rob Rains
The Cardinals had a 4-0 lead, Riley O’Brien on the mound and were one out away from ending their longest road trip of the season with a win over the Phillies on Sunday.
They never got the last out.
The Phillies pulled off a stunning rally to tie the game before Kyle Schwarber hit O’Brien’s 39th pitch of the inning over the center field wall for a two-run homer that capped a six-run inning and gave them a walk-off victory.
It was the third walk-off loss on the trip for the Cardinals, the second in three days against the Phillies.
O’Brien gave up a leadoff double to Bryce Harper to start the ninth, but then retired the next two batters. J.T. Realmuto singled and Justin Crawford walked to load the bases before former Cardinal Edmundo Sosa cleared the bases with a double down the left-field line.
A single by Bryan De La Cruz tied the game and brought Schwarber to the plate for his game-winning homer that completed a sweep of the three-game series.
It was a bitter end to the trip for the Cardinals, who lost two starting pitchers and an outfielder to the injured list and had to play the last four games without shortstop Masyn Winn in the starting lineup because of a sore thumn.
The loss left them with a 5-6 record on the trip to Chicago, Cincinnati and Philadelphia. It was their fourth loss this year in a game they led going to the ninth inning.
According to ESPN research, it’s only the second time in the majors this season a team has won a game they were losing by four runs in the ninth inning.
Here is how Sunday’s game broke down:
At the plate: Alec Burleson drove in the first two runs for the Cardinals with a pair of singles, bringing his RBI total to 96, tying him with Jordan Walker for the team lead … They increased the lead to 4-0 on a home run from Jose Fermin, his sixth of the season, and an RBI single by JJ Wetherholt … Walker also stole his 17th base of the season and Wetherholt picked up is 14th steal.
On the mound: Working with a limited pitch count, Kyle Leahy shut out the Phillies over the first four innings before having to come out of the game after throwing 63 pitches … That started a parade of relievers, and Luis Gastelum, Justin Bruihl, Ryne Stanek and George Soriano all worked a scoreless inning before O’Brien took the mound in the ninth.
Key stat: Burleson’s two RBIs increased his total for 22 games in August to 25, the most in the National League. It ties the most RBIs in any month in Burleson’s career; he also drove in 25 runs in July 2024.
Worth noting: Before the game the Cardinals placed outfielder Everson Pereira on the 10-day injured list with a swollen left hand. Ramon Urias was recalled from his rehab assignment in Memphis and immediately put into the lineup, playing second base. He had been out of the major-league lineup since May 3 because of a sore elbow … The Cardinals hope resting Winn for the weekend will allow him to be back in the lineup on Tuesday … Rainiel Rodriguez and Jesus Baez hit back-back homers twice for Springfield on Sunday. Rodriguez has hit 21 homers this year, 17 at Springfield, while Baez has hit 33 homers this year, 19 at Springfield.
Up next: The Cardinals will have the day off on Monday before hosting the Orioles in a three-game series beginning Tuesday night at Busch Stadium.
Follow Rob Rains on X @RobRains
