Hi there folks, I will be venturing out here and doing a recap of the past week's action. Considering I waited until now, this first recap will encompass April 1st through April 18th. As always, please feel free to leave comments here, or you can email me at bortas2002@yahoo.com or on Twitter @bortas2002. So here we go with the first installment of DON'S CARDINAL RECAP!
First series 4/1, 4/3-4/4 @ Cincinnati
Game 1 The Cardinals started with an opening day win. Paul Goldschmidt went 4 -5, Tyler O'Neill and Dylan Carlson each had Home Runs. Although jack Flaherty only lasted 1 1/3 innings, the bullpen held on to preserve the win 11-6.
Game 2 Paul DeJong and Nolan Arenado each hit Home Runs, but Adam Wainwright only lasted 2 2/3 innings. And Reds scored 6 runs in the 3rd. Tyler Maihe held the Cards to just 3 hits through the first five. The Reds added runs in the 4th and 6th. St Louis chipped away but, the Reds took the game 9-6. Some added excitement, Nick Castellanos was hit by a pitch and later would come around to score on a wild pitch and seemed to "aggressively" taunt pitcher Jake Woodford. Who was covering the plate on the play and fell on Castellanos. Benches emptied, but no punches were thrown.
Game 3 was a complete blowout by the Reds, scoring in 4 innings and knocking out the Redbirds 12-1. Carlos Martinez looked good for 4 innings, then boom. Record 1-2
Next came a 3 game series @ Marlins 4/5-4/7
Game 1 Daniel Ponce de Leone gave up only 1 run in 5 innings, and the bullpen shut the door. Molina doubled home two runs in the 1st inning to give St Louis the 3-0 lead. Tommy Edman had a solo Home Run in the 5th. The Cardinals win 4-1
Game 2 Despite a 10 strikeout performance by former Cardinal Sandy Alcantara, the Cardinals scored 3 times in the 6th. And 1 in the 9th for a 4-2 win Giovanny Gallegos struck out the side in 7th. Carlson hit his 2nd Home Run of the year.
Game 3 Saw the Cardinals sweep their first series of the year with a 7-0 win over Miami. Jack Flaherty went 6 innings, and help from Gallegos and Hicks kept the Marlins off the scoreboard. Molina homered in the 7th, and Carlson homered in the 9th, his second in two days. Record 4-2
Home cooking vs. Milwaukee. 4/8-4/11
Game 1 The Cardinals looked to continue the winning at Home vs. division rival the Milwaukee Brewers,
The home opener featured the Normal pomp and circumstance a fan would expect(parade of players and, of course, the Clydesdales) and a tribute to Broadcaster Mike Shannon. It also featured the return of Kolten Wong. In his first at-bat Yadi as he did with Albert 2 years ago, stood in front of the plate as Wong was announced. The limited amount of fans (due to covid) responded with a standing ovation, and Cardinal starter Adam Wainwright tipped his cap in salute. The Brew Crew scored first in the 3rd with the help of two Cardinal errors. Bases loaded infield single by O'Neill tied the game in the 7th, and a two-run bomb to Left Field in the 8th by Arenado gave the Cards the lead 3-1. Alex Reyes closed the door to get the save.
Game 2 Unfortunately, the Cardinals' win streak ended here. The Brewers collected 5 runs on 13 hits, Avisail Garcia went 2-4 with 5 RBIs for the visitors, and first baseman Keston Hiura was 2-5 with 3 RBIs to pace Milwaukee. Austin Dean went 2-3 with 3 RBIs, and Yadi Molina was 3-4 with 2 runs scored.
Game 3 saw the Brewers jump to a 7-0 lead after two innings with Home Runs by Avisail Garcia and Travis Shaw. The Cardinals could not get the lumber to do much. They got a run in the second on a fielder's choice and 2 in the 6th via an Austin Dean Double. Johan Oviedo did throw 4 2/3 innings in relief, surrendering 2 hits, 0 runs, 4 Ks. the Brewers won 9-3, Record 5-4
St Louis hosted the Washington Nationals for a three-game set April 12th -14th.
Game 1 John Gant, in his second start, looked good 5IP, 6H, 3ER, 4Ks. He did, however, allow 3 walks. It was 1-1 until the 6th when the Nats plated 2 runs in the top of the frame. The Cardinals countered with one and could get no more while Washington added runs in the 7th and 8th for the 5-3 win.
Game 2 The Cardinal bats were HOT. HOT. HOT. Goldschmidt homered in the 1st. Nolan Arenado and Matt Carpenter homered in the 3rd to give St Louis a 5-1 lead the Birds the plated 9 runs in the 5th inning. The scoring started with a Justin Williams single and ended with a Justin Williams single. 4 Cardinal players had 3 RBIs Goldschmidt, Arenado, Carpenter, and Williams. Flaherty held the Nats to 1 run in the first 5 frames. Kodi Whitley and Genesis Cabrera combined for 3 scoreless innings as the Birds on the Bat won 14-3
Game 3 As HOT as the bats were in game two, and they were ICE COLD in game three. Nationals pitcher Joe Ross allowed the Cards only 4 hits and struck out 5. Adam Wainwright had a decent outing going 5 and giving up 3 ER on 7 hits and striking out 7. The Nationals won 6-0. Record 6-6.
The Birds then traveled to Philly 4/16-4/18
In-game 1, the Phillies jumped on starter Carlos Martinez for 6 runs in the second inning. Phillies starter Zach Eflin allowed the Cardinals 2 runs on 6 hits through 7 innings. The only blemish being a Justin Williams 2 run homer. Phillies won 9-2
Game 2 In a reversal of fortunes, the Cards bats came to life, and it was the first start for Kwang Hyun Kim. The Cards plated 6 in the 3rd inning, helped by back-to-back Home Runs by Yadier Molina and Paul DeJong. The Molina would go back to back again in the 4th inning, this time with Nolan Arenado. KK's outing was not particularly great. He only went 3 innings giving up 3 runs on 4 hits, but he struck out 4. The bullpen kept the Phillies at bay to preserve the 9-4 victory. Molina on the day was 3-5 with two homers and 4 RBIs
Game 3 John Gant had another fairly solid outing 5IP, 5H, 2ER, 5Ks but walked 4. His counterpart Aaron Nola went the distance, only allowing 2 hits while striking out 10 and walking NOBODY. St Louis lost 2-0. Record 7-8.
Summary
After 15 games, you would like to see a better outcome, with only 1 series win in 5 is disappointing. There is also frustration with the Jekyll and Hyde offense. Of course, we are right now without Harrison Bader and Tyler O'Neill. O'Neill should be back in a couple of days. Also still waiting for Miles Mikolas to join the starting rotation. If you look for bright spots through the first 15 games
Hitting
Molina .340, 4 HRs, 12 RBIs. Arenado .271 4 HRs, 10 RBIs. Carlson .255 3 HRs, 10 RBIs
Starting pitching:
Jack Flaherty 3 games 15.1 IP, 2-0 4.11 ERA, 16Ks 6BB, Gant - 3 games 14 IP, 0-2 3.11 ERA, 13Ks - 11BB,
Bullpen:
Reyes 6 games 6.1IP, 0-0, 3 SV, 0.00ERA, 5Ks. Hicks 6 games 7IP, 0.0, 0SV, 1.29ERA , 7Ks. Gallegos 7 games 9IP, 2-0, 0SV, 2.00ERA 13 Ks
Thanks for reading