Wednesday’s Game Report: Giants 6, Cardinals 5 (10 innings)
By Rob Rains
This season doesn’t seem like it can end soon enough for Riley O’Brien.
The Cardinals’ closer has struggled in his recent games, and it took one pitch for him to have more trouble on Wednesday, ruining a valiant comeback by the team’s offense in the ninth inning.
After doing basically nothing offensively through the first eight innings, (three hits) the Cardinals scored two runs in the ninth to tie the game against the Giants and get it to extra innings.
O’Brien came out of the bullpen to start the 10th, and Drew Gilbert hit his first pitch for a two-run homer and the Giants held off another rally by the Cardinals in the bottom of the 10th to get the win at Busch Stadium.
The loss left O’Brien with an 0-5 record in his 11 games since Aug. 23, to go with three blown saves. He has earned four saves in that stretch, but has allowed 15 runs, 12 of them earned, in 10 innings.
Here is how Wednesday’s game broke down:
At the plate: Before the ninth, the Cardinals had been limited to three hits. They scored two runs in the seventh thanks to two Giants’ errors, two walks and a wild pitch … Trailing 4-2 in the ninth, Nolan Gorman walked. Thomas Saggese had an infield single and Ivan Herrera walked to load the bases with one out. Jose Fermin’s sacrifice fly drove in the first run and Leo Bernal’s single tied the game but Alec Burleson grounded out to strand the would-be winning run at third … In the 10th, a sacrifice fly from Saggese pulled the Cardinals within a run, but Victor Scott II, representing the tying run, was left on third base as the game ended.
On the mound: Matthew Liberatore allowed six hits and walked three over six innings but limited the Giants to just one run as he was able to pitch out of several jams … Luis Gastelum allowed two runs and Justin Bruihl one, but two of those runs were unearned because of Cardinals’ errors … Gordon Graceffo worked 1 1/3 scoreless innings before Gilbert’s home run off O’Brien, the third homer allowed by O’Brien in his last 11 games.
Key stat: Jordan Walker stole his 20th base of the season, becoming the first 20-20 player for the Cardinals since Tommy Pham in 2017.
Worth noting: Before the game the Cardinals activated JJ Wetherholt (right wrist tendinitis) from the injured list. He was scripted to play six innings and went 0-of-3 after missing the previous 15 games … To open a roster spot Ramon Urias was designated for assignment … In another roster move the Cardinals activated reliever Peter Strzelecki from the injured list and also designated him for assignment.
Up next: The Cardinals will have the day off on Thursda before hosting the Nationals this weekend in the final three home games of the season. Kyle Leahy is the scheduled starter for Friday night’s opener.
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