Cards Explode for 5 Homers in 12-2 Game 1 Victory over the Tigers

Jack Flaherty took the hill for the Cards. Victor Reyes struck out chasing a high-and-outside 2-2 fastball. Jonathan Schoop struck out swinging at hanging late-breaking 3-2 slider. Miguel Cabrera struck out swinging at a low-and-away 0-2 slider in the dirt to end the inning. Wong flied an up-and-in 3-2 fastball to shallow right-center to lead off the bottom of the 1st. Edman lined a low-and-in 3-1 fastball to center. Goldschmidt struck out swinging at an outside 1-2 fastball to end the inning.

Jeimer Candelario grounded an up-and-in 1-1 fastball to Goldschmidt guarding the line to start the top of the 2nd. Willi Castro struck out swinging at a nasty low-and-in 2-2 slider. After Travis Demeritte walked on 5 pitches, Daz Cameron flied a low-and-away 1-2 slider to right to end the inning. DeJong grounded an 0-1 low-and-away change to short to lead off the bottom of the 2nd. After Ravelo worked a 3-2 walk, Molina, who is wearing #21 today to honor Roberto Clemente, drove an elevated 2-2 fastball over the left field wall for a 2-run HR to give the Cards a 1-0 lead.

After O’Neill worked a 3-2 walk, Bader struck out swinging at an 0-2 inside fastball. With Thomas at the plate, O’Neill stole 2nd base on the 1-0 pitch. Thomas struck out swinging at a high-and-outside 3-2 fastball to end the inning.

Austin Romine struck out looking at a low-and-away 3-2 slider to lead off the top of the 3rd. Isaac Paredes lined a high-and-outside 1-2 fastball over Wong’s glove and into right-center for a base hit. Reyes lined a 2-2 middle-in fastball to right to move Paredes to 3rd. Reyes deked a little bit and didn’t decide to move to 3rd until he rounded 2nd base. The ball was hit hard and Thomas did not come up throwing aggressively. Cabrera grounded a low-and-in 3-2 fastball up the middle to the left of the 2nd base bag. Wong fielded it behind the bag, raced forward to step on the bag for the force and then fired to first. His throw beat Cabrera to the 1st base bag, but it was wide to the right and the umpires initially ruled that the throw pulled Goldschmidt off the bag. But the Cards challenged the play, and the call was overturned because Goldschmidt’s foot was still on the bag when he caught the ball. Instead of the run scoring, it was a 4-3 inning-ending double play.

Wong walked on 5 pitches to lead off the bottom of the 3rd. Edman lined a high 2-1 change to left toward the line that rolled to the wall. Demeritte was playing Edman towards center, and bobbled the ball when it caromed off the wall. Edman had a double to score Wong all the way from 1st to extend the Cards’ lead to 3-0. Demeritte was not charged with an error.

Goldschmidt then walked on 4 pitches. DeJong grounded a low 3-1 fastball to the left side of the 2nd base bag to beat the shift for a base hit to left-center to score Edman, move Goldschmidt to 3rd and extend the Cards’ lead to 4-0. The 2nd baseman Schoop took a jab step to his left, which probably cost him the shot at making that play. The Tigers then brought in righty Joe Jimenez to pitch to Ravelo, who drove a low-and-in 0-2 fastball to the gap in left. Demeritte made an excellent play to run the ball down at the track and make an over-the-shoulder catch. Goldschmidt scored on the Sac Fly to give the Cards a 5-0 lead. After Molina flied a high 1-0 fastball to center, O’Neill smoked an 0-1 center-cut fastball into the seats over the bullpen in left-center for a 2-run homer to give the Cards a 7-0 lead.

Bader sharply grounded an outside 2-2 slider through the hole to left for a base hit. The catcher dropped an inside curve on the 2-1 pitch to Thomas, and it got away to his left for a passed ball that allowed Bader to advance to 2nd. Thomas then lined a hanging slider into the bullpen in left-center for a 2-run HR to extend the Cards’ lead to 9-0.

Righty Beau Burrows, who was added today as the 29th man, came in to pitch to Wong, who lined a high 3-2 fastball to right-center for a base hit. Edman flied a first-pitch outside fastball to shallow left to end the inning.

Cabrera flared an inside 2-2 change to right that dropped inside the line for a base hit to lead off the top of the 4th. Candelario then hit a low 0-1 slider over the right field wall for a 2-run HR to cut the Cards’ lead to 9-2.

Castro popped an inside 0-2 fastball foul to Edman at 3rd. Demeritte struck out looking at a 1-2 fastball that was several inches low. After Cameron worked a 3-2 walk, Romine flied a low-and-in 3-2 fastball to center to end the inning. Goldschmidt led off the bottom of the 4th by driving an outside center-cut high fastball over the wall in dead center for a solo HR to extend the Cards’ lead to 10-2.

DeJong flied a high-and-outside 3-2 fastball to center. Ravelo lined an outside 0-2 slider to left for a base hit. Molina grounded an outside 1-2 fastball up the middle for a base hit to move Ravelo to 2nd. O’Neill lined a high hanging 3-2 slider to left for a base hit to load the bases. Bader popped a high-and-outside 1-0 slider to 2nd. Thomas struck out looking at an outside 2-2 fastball to strand the bases loaded and end the inning. The pitch looked like it was a few inches outside, but the umpire has been calling that all game.

Paredes flied an 0-1 center-cut fastball to right to lead off the top of the 5th. Reyes grounded an 0-2 inside fastball to 2nd. Schoop grounded an 0-2 low-and-away slider to 3rd for a quick 8-pitch inning. Lefty Nick Ramirez came out to pitch the bottom of the 5th. Derek Hill came out to play CF to replace Reyes in the #1 spot, and Sergio Alcantara came out to play 2B in the #2 spot to replace Schoop. Wong grounded a low-and-away 0-1 cutter to the right side, where the 1st baseman Candelario made a good play to flip to the pitcher for the out. Edman lined a 2-1 change off of the pitcher’s glove that deflected towards the right side, where Alcantara raced over to make a good play and throw Edman out. Austin Dean pinch hit for Goldschmidt to make his Cardinal debut and flied an outside 0-1 change to end the inning.

Flaherty’s day was done at 95 pitches, and Seth Elledge came out to pitch the top of the 6th for the Cards. Dean stayed in the game at 1B in the #3 spot. Carpenter came out to play 3B in the #4 spot, with Edman moving from 3B to SS and DeJong leaving the game. Cabrera grounded a high 1-2 fastball through the mound to 2nd. Candelario lined an outside 2-1 fastball to the large gap in right-center. Bader raced over to cut it off, but that did not stop Candelario from standing up at 2nd with a double. Castro struck out chasing a 1-2 slider low-and-away and out of the zone. Demeritte flied a low 1-1 slider to right that Wong caught on the grass to end the inning. Ramirez hit Carpenter in the head with an 83 mph 3-2 cutter to start the bottom of the 6th. It might have deflected off of the top of his shoulder a bit, but it’s a good thing it wasn’t a fastball. Ravelo skied a low 2-2 change inside the foul pole and over the left field wall for a 2-run HR to extend the Cards’ lead to 12-2.

Molina struck out looking at a hanging 2-2 curve. O’Neill struck out looking at a 1-2 low-and-away fastball that looked like it was off the plate by a few inches. Bader smoked a first-pitch center-cut fastball that looked like it was going to go over Demeritte’s head in left-center, but he raced back and made a leaping catch to end the inning.

Nabil Crismatt, added today as the 29th man for the Cards, came out to pitch the top of the 7th. Cameron flied a first-pitch center-cut fastball to right. Romine smoked an inside 3-2 change right at Edman at short. Paredes grounded an 0-1 low-and-away fastball to end the game.

Flaherty (5 days rest) 5 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 6 SO, 1 HR; Elledge (2 days rest, top 6, ahead 10-2) 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO; Crismatt (22 days rest, top 7, ahead 12-2) 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 SO.