St. Louis Cardinals at Cincinnati Reds
· Major League Baseball9 - 4
Contreras, Baker boost Cardinals to 9-4 win, Reds drop 1 1/2 games back in wild card race
Nolan Arenado had three hits and snapped a career-long 11-game streak without an RBI. The Cardinals have won four of five and scored five or more runs for the sixth straight game.
Cincinnati led the NL Central at 59-49 at the start of August but is 14-21 since. The Reds (73-70) trail Arizona (74-68) and Miami (73-68) for the last wild card.
Hunter Renfroe hit a two-run homer and Nick Senzel had a solo drive in the third inning for the Reds. who stranded 12 runners and went 0 for 7 with runners in scoring position.
Cincinnati twice left the bases loaded, when Harrison Bader hit into an inning-ending forceout in the second against Drew Rom and when Matt Liberatore (3-5), the fourth of six Cardinals relievers, struck out Tyler Stephenson in the sixth.
“I didn’t feel any more adrenaline than I have any other time,” the left-hander said. “I thought he’d be aggressive, but he wasn’t. I figured he was looking fastball middle, middle-in, and try to beat me, but I wasn’t giving in.”
Liberatore fanned Stephenson with a four-seam fastball.
“That was a big moment,” Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said. "It’s a credit to him for not letting the game speed up on him.”
St. Louis’ bullpen pitched five scoreless innings.
“Liberatore made the pitch of the game right there," Reds manager David Bell said. "You get into a position like that when you’re down and have an opportunity to come back and break through and maybe even take a lead. Tyler has been swinging the bat well. He’s had a lot of success a pinch-hitter. We got him up there, they made a pitch and got out of it.”
The Reds opened a stretch in which they play 17 of their last 20 games against teams with losing records.
Andrew Abbott (8-5) tied his career high by allowing six runs. He pitched four innings, giving up four hits and three walks.
Contreras hit a 440-foot homer into the second deck in left.
“It looked like 760 feet from where we were,” Marmol said, “That ball went a long way. It gave us momentum.”
Baker, who entered with one RBI in 18 games of his rookie season, boosted the lead to 6-0 in the third.
“He hasn't gotten a lot of steady opportunities, but he's done a nice job with the opportunities he's had,” Marmol said. “He hits the ball hard.”
Rom, a 23-year-old left-hander who went to Highlands High in Fort Thomas, Kentucky, gave up four runs and seven hits in 3 2/3 innings.
The Reds' Noelvi Marte scored on a double steal in the fourth.
JORDAN RULES
Right fielder Jordan Walker made a diving stop in the gap of Harrison Bader’s line drive single and quickly got the ball back to the infield, throwing out Bader when he overslid the bag while also holding Noelvi Marte at third.
RUNNING WILD
Marte and Spencer Steer’s double steal increased Cincinnati's major league-leading total to 165, the most by the Reds since 190 in 1997.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Reds: INF Joey Votto (left shoulder strain) and INF Jonathan India (left foot plantar fasciitis) each hit two-run doubles for Triple-A Louisville on rehab assignments. Votto was 1 for 4 and India 1 for 2 with a pair of walks. Bell expects them to be back in Cincinnati’s lineup on Sunday.
UP NEXT
Cardinal LHP Zack Thompson (4-5, 3.91, 53 strikeouts) is scheduled to start Saturday against RHP Carson Spiers (0-0, 6.75, seven strikeouts), who will be making his second career appearance and start.
How can I watch St. Louis Cardinals vs. Cincinnati Reds?
- TV Channel: Cardinals at Reds 2022 MLB Baseball, is broadcasted on Apple TV+.
- Online streaming: Sign up for Fubo.
Matchup Prediction
Scoring Summary
9th Inning | Martini struck out swinging. | |
9th Inning | Encarnacion-Strand flied out to right. | |
9th Inning | Stephenson struck out looking. | |
9th Inning | Helsley relieved Gallegos | |
9th Inning | Contreras grounded out to pitcher. | |
9th Inning | Arenado flied out to right. |
Statistics
STL | CIN | |
---|---|---|
1 | Games Played | 1 |
1 | Team Games Played | 1 |
1 | Hit By Pitch | 2 |
10 | Ground Balls | 20 |
9 | Strikeouts | 7 |
8 | Runs Batted In | 3 |
0 | Sacrifice Hit | 0 |
9 | Hits | 10 |
1 | Stolen Bases | 2 |
4 | Walks | 5 |
0 | Catcher Interference | 0 |
9 | Runs | 4 |
0 | Ground Into Double Play | 0 |
0 | Sacrifice Flies | 0 |
36 | At Bats | 36 |
1 | Home Runs | 2 |
0 | Grand Slam Home Runs | 0 |
10 | Runners Left On Base | 19 |
0 | Triples | 0 |
1 | Game Winning RBIs | 0 |
0 | Intentional Walks | 0 |
3 | Doubles | 0 |
17 | Fly Balls | 9 |
0 | Caught Stealing | 0 |
160 | Pitches | 168 |
0 | Games Started | 0 |
1 | Pinch At Bats | 4 |
0 | Pinch Hits | 1 |
0.0 | Player Rating | 0.0 |
1 | Is Qualified | 1 |
1 | Is Qualified In Steals | 1 |
15 | Total Bases | 16 |
41 | Plate Appearances | 43 |
162.0 | Projected Home Runs | 324.0 |
4 | Extra Base Hits | 2 |
5.6 | Runs Created | 7.2 |
.250 | Batting Average | .278 |
.000 | Pinch Hit Average | .250 |
.417 | Slugging Percentage | .444 |
.306 | Secondary Average | .361 |
.341 | On Base Percentage | .395 |
.758 | OBP Pct + SLG Pct | .840 |
0.6 | Ground To Fly Ball Ratio | 2.2 |
5.6 | Runs Created Per 27 Outs | 7.5 |
53.0 | Batter Rating | 32.0 |
36.0 | At Bats Per Home Run | 18.0 |
1.00 | Stolen Base Percentage | 1.00 |
3.90 | Pitches Per Plate Appearance | 3.91 |
.167 | Isolated Power | .167 |
0.44 | Walk To Strikeout Ratio | 0.71 |
.098 | Walks Per Plate Appearance | .116 |
.056 | Secondary Average Minus Batting Average | .083 |
17.0 | Runs Produced | 7.0 |
0.9 | Runs Ratio | 0.8 |
0.5 | Patience Ratio | 0.6 |
0.3 | Balls In Play Average | 0.3 |
92.5 | MLB Rating | 86.0 |
0.0 | Offensive Wins Above Replacement | 0.0 |
0.0 | Wins Above Replacement | 0.0 |
Game Information
Location: Cincinnati, Ohio
Attendance: 29,870 | Capacity:
2024 National League Central Standings
TEAM | W | L | PCT | GB | STRK |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Milwaukee | 93 | 69 | .574 | - | L1 |
St. Louis | 83 | 79 | .512 | 10 | W1 |
Chicago | 83 | 79 | .512 | 10 | L1 |
Cincinnati | 77 | 85 | .475 | 16 | W1 |
Pittsburgh | 76 | 86 | .469 | 17 | L1 |