St. Louis Cardinals edge past Chicago Cubs 9-1 - MLB Recap
Jon Jay made three runs as the St. Louis Cardinals held on for a 9-1 victory against the Chicago Cubs in the rubber match of a three-game series, at Wrigley Field on Thursday, May 12.
Jaime Garcia tossed seven solid innings while Colby Rasmus and Yadier Molina each had three hits for St Louis, which has won six of its previous nine contests. Garcia (5-0) gave up one run on a season-high nine hits and struck out four, throwing 84 pitches
on an 84-degree afternoon.
St Louis, resting some of its regulars, notched their second victory in the three-game series headed into a series in Cincinnati with the defending National League Central champions Cincinnati Reds.
"That's always a good sign when a pitcher comes out of the bullpen after warming up and doesn't have his best stuff, but is still able to go out and pitch the game that he did," said St Louis’ acting manager Joe Pettini.
Jeff Baker went 3-for-4 and knocked in the lone run for the Cubs, who have lost three of four. Chicago starter Casey Coleman (1-3) allowed six runs on nine hits and walked four in four innings.
"[We] want to do better with guys in scoring position," Baker said.
Cardinals put up a five-spot in the middle. Matt Holliday led off a five-run second by clubbing his fifth home run of the season, a long shot off Casey Coleman (1-3) that cleared the bleachers in left-field.
Rasmus then singled and Molina followed with a double and with one out, Coleman intentionally walked Tyler Greene to load the bases, but Garcia foiled that strategy with his own RBI single. Jon Jay followed with a two-run double and Allen Craig hit a sacrifice
fly to make it 5-0.
St Louis tacked on another run in the fifth, as Molina hit an RBI single for a six-run cushion.
Garcia blanked Chicago until the sixth when Marlon Byrd, Aramis Ramirez and Baker hit straight singles to stake the Cubs on the board. Carlos Pena pulled a walk that loaded the bases with one out, but Garcia then retired the left-hander Alfonso Soriano on
a pop-up and struck-out Welington Castillo to escape further damage.
"Sometimes you're going to throw really good and sometimes, like today, you won't have your best stuff. But if you battle, that's what it's all about," Garcia said.
St Louis accounted for the final scoring 9-1 with a three-run seventh, as Greene and Nick Punto knocked in RBI doubles and Jay added an RBI single. Jay, starting with Lance Berkman resting, had three hits and drove in three runs during the inning.
Coleman lasted only four innings, allowing nine hits and six runs with four walks.
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