Cardinals Come Up Short in Arizona
Cardinals Come Up Short in Arizona
The Cardinal Chronicle
St. Louis, MO
By Ray Mileur
The St. Louis Cardinals opened the second half Friday night with a gritty road win in Arizona.
They could not back it up Saturday, coming up short as the Arizona Diamondbacks beat the Cardinals 5-3 at Chase Field, evening the three-game series and handing St. Louis a frustrating loss in a matchup that carried real National League Wild Card weight.
This was not one of those games where the Cardinals were buried from the first pitch. They had chances. They stayed close enough to make the Diamondbacks work. But Arizona did the early damage, protected the lead, and forced St. Louis to play from behind most of the afternoon.
That was the difference.
Dustin May got the start for the Cardinals, coming off one of the best outings of his season after throwing a complete-game shutout against the Padres before the All-Star break. Saturday, however, did not follow the same script.
May had moments where his stuff played, but the Diamondbacks made him work. Arizona scratched across a run, then put together the bigger swing of the game with a three-run inning that gave the Cardinals a hole they spent the rest of the afternoon trying to escape.
Against a team like Arizona, especially on the road, those middle innings matter. Give the Diamondbacks extra traffic and they can turn a tight game into a chase in a hurry.
That is what happened Saturday.
The Cardinals’ offense did not go quietly, but it also did not do enough early. Brandon Pfaadt kept St. Louis from landing the kind of big swing that could have changed the game. The Cardinals had baserunners, had traffic, and had chances to apply pressure, but Arizona’s pitching staff kept making the pitches it needed.
The result was familiar enough to sting: not enough damage with men on base.
The Cardinals did push across three runs and made Arizona finish the game, but the comeback never fully arrived. St. Louis needed one more big swing, one more extended inning, one more crooked number. Instead, the Diamondbacks were able to protect the lead they built early and turn the game over to the back end of their bullpen.
The loss does not erase Friday night’s win, but it does put the Cardinals back in position where Sunday matters. A series win was there for the taking after the opener. Now, St. Louis will need to win the finale to leave Phoenix with the series.
That matters.
These are not throwaway games. The Cardinals and Diamondbacks are both sitting in the same crowded National League postseason picture, and head-to-head games in July can carry weight later in the summer. Friday night helped St. Louis. Saturday gave one back.
The Cardinals still showed some fight. That has been part of the identity of this club. They do not fold easily, and they did not roll over in this one. But fight alone does not erase early damage, and it does not replace timely hitting.
Arizona did enough early.
St. Louis did not do enough late.
That is the ballgame in a series that matters because both clubs are fighting in the same National League traffic. Friday’s win was important, but Saturday’s loss means the Cardinals will need Sunday’s finale to leave Arizona with the series.
Sunday Becomes the Swing Game
The Cardinals still have a chance to take the series, but now they have to win the finale. After splitting the first two games, Sunday becomes the difference between a strong road series and a missed opportunity.
The bottom line is that the Cardinals did not get buried, but they did get beat.
Arizona built the lead early, Brandon Pfaadt kept St. Louis from breaking through, and the Cardinals’ late push came up short.
The series is even.
Diamondbacks 5, Cardinals 3.
Now the Cardinals need the finale to take the series.
The Cardinal Chronicle, in association with Gateway Sports & MiLB Today
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Photo Credit: Dustin May, St. Louis Cardinals | MLB