Cards Ride Late Power Surge Past the Houston Astros, 9–4

The Cardinal Chronicle
Cardinals Ride Late Power Surge Past Astros, 9–4
St. Louis, MO
By Ray Mileur

The Cardinals didn’t just win Friday night—they took control of the game when it mattered most.

Nolan Gorman’s three-run blast in the seventh and Iván Herrera’s two-run homer an inning later broke open a tight contest, lifting St. Louis to a 9–4 win over Houston at Daikin Park. What had been a one-run game quickly turned into a statement victory, as the Cardinals improved to 11–8 and pushed their winning streak to three.

This one had a little bit of everything—early pressure, young players stepping up, and a bullpen that slammed the door when the game was still in doubt.

And maybe most importantly, it had the look of a club starting to find its footing.

 
Early Pressure, Then a Response
St. Louis struck first in the opening inning on Jordan Walker’s RBI single, and they kept pushing in the third.

After loading the bases without a hit, Masyn Winn—playing in front of family just outside his hometown—delivered the kind of swing that can turn a season around. His two-run single stretched the lead to 3–0 and gave him twice as many RBIs as he had through his first 14 games combined.

That’s the kind of moment young players build on.

Houston answered the only way they could all night—solo home runs. Christian Vázquez and Yordan Alvarez went back-to-back in the third, and Jose Altuve added another in the fifth. But that was the story for the Astros: power without pressure.

Three homers. Three runs. No sustained offense.

 
Leahy Holds the Line
Kyle Leahy won’t get headlines for dominance, but he gave the Cardinals exactly what they needed.

Five innings. Three runs. Six strikeouts. No walks.

He allowed three solo homers but kept Houston from stringing anything together, and that made all the difference. When he left with a 4–3 lead, the game was still very much up for grabs—but the foundation was there.

From there, the bullpen took over.

Justin Bruihl, JoJo Romero, Ryne Stanek, and George Soriano combined for four scoreless innings. Stanek had to work through trouble in the eighth, escaping a bases-loaded jam with his third strikeout of the inning—a quiet but critical moment in the game.

Soriano closed it out cleanly to secure the win.

That’s how you protect a lead.

 
The Knockout Punch
For six innings, this was a one-run game.

Then the Cardinals reminded everyone what timely power looks like.

Alec Burleson doubled. Walker walked. And Gorman—after striking out in his first three at-bats—delivered the swing of the night. His three-run homer off Bryan Abreu turned a 4–3 edge into a 7–3 cushion.

One swing. Ballgame changed.

An inning later, Herrera added the exclamation point with a two-run shot, pushing the lead to 9–3 and removing any doubt.

That’s five RBIs from Gorman and Herrera in the final three innings.

That’s how you finish.

 
At the Plate
This wasn’t a one-man show. The Cardinals lineup was active top to bottom:

Jordan Walker extended his hitting streak to 12 games with an RBI single
Masyn Winn delivered two RBIs in a homecoming performance
Iván Herrera added three RBIs, including his late homer
Nolan Gorman’s three-run blast broke the game open
JJ Wetherholt reached base three times and scored all three times
Every starter except Victor Scott II recorded a hit. Six different players scored.

That’s not just production—that’s lineup depth.

 
Old School Take
This one felt like a team learning how to win together.

Leahy didn’t panic after giving up home runs.
The bullpen didn’t blink when traffic showed up.
The young guys didn’t shrink in big moments.
And when the opportunity came late—the middle of the order delivered.

That’s baseball done the right way.

No shortcuts. No panic. Just steady pressure until the door opens.

At 11–8, the Cardinals are now three games over .500 for the first time this early in a season since 2022. More importantly, they sit just a half-game out of first place in the NL Central.

You can feel the momentum starting to build.

 
Worth Noting
The Cardinals have won three straight
Houston falls to 8–13 and continues to struggle with bullpen consistency
President of Baseball Operations Chaim Bloom confirmed pitcher Richard Fitts underwent season-ending surgery this week
At Memphis, catcher Jimmy Crooks hit two home runs, bringing his season total to six
 
Up Next
The Cardinals will look to secure the series Saturday afternoon.

Andre Pallante (1–1, 4.80 ERA) gets the ball for St. Louis against Lance McCullers Jr. (1–0, 5.87 ERA) for Houston. First pitch is scheduled for 4:10 p.m. CDT.

The opportunity is there.

Now it’s about finishing what they started.

Cardinal Chronicle in association with Gateway Sports