photo: Sonny Gray (Jim Rassol/USA TODAY Sports)
The St. Louis Cardinals lost both series last week, going 2-4 and remaining in last place. As the offense struggles, Sonny Gray made a strong mound debut. Our history feature revisits notable events during the week in team history.
Game recaps
Monday, April 8, 2024 – Cardinals 3, Phillies 5 (10 innings)
The St. Louis Cardinals fell to the Philadelphia Phillies 5-3 in extra innings at Busch Stadium on Monday. Starter Miles Mikolas pitched 6 2/3 innings, gave up two runs on six hits, struck out three and walked two.
Matthew Libertore threw 1 2/3 scoreless innings of relief. Giovanny Gallegos surrendered one run in 1/3 of an inning. Andre Pallante secured the final out of the ninth. Ryan Helsley allowed the winning runs in the 10th and took the loss.
The game was scoreless until the Phillies plated two runs in the fifth. The Cardinals got on the board in the seventh on a solo home run by Ivan Herrera.
The Phillies made it 3-1 in the top of the ninth before St. Louis tied the game in the home ninth. Herrera walked and Alec Burleson doubled. Michael Siani pinch ran for Burleson. Herrera came home on a sac fly by Jordan Walker. Siani was driven in on a single by Masyn Winn.
In the top of the 10th, the Phillies scored two runs to lead 5-3. The Cardinals failed to score in the bottom of the ninth.
Winn was 2-for-4 with an RBI as the only Cardinal with multiple hits.
On the base paths, Victor Scott II stole his second base of the season. Nolan Gorman made a fielding error.
Tuesday, April 9, 2024 – Cardinals 3, Phillies 0
In the second game of the series, the Cardinals blanked the Phillies 3-0. Starter Sonny Gray pitched five scoreless innings, allowed five hits and struck out five to earn the win in his season debut.
Matthew Liberatore and Andrew Kittredge each threw 2/3 of a scoreless inning of relief. JoJo Romero hurled 1 2/3 scoreless innings. Ryan Helsley tossed a scoreless ninth for his fourth save of the season.
St. Louis took a 1-0 lead in the fourth on a solo home run by Nolan Gorman. The Cardinals made it 3-0 in the fifth. Alec Burleson singled and Masyn Winn doubled. Burleson was driven in on a sac fly by Victor Scott II. Winn scored on a ground out by Brendan Donovan.
Gorman was 2-for-4 with an RBI. Burleson was 2-for-2. Scott II and Donovan each drove in a run.
Wednesday, April 10, 2024 – Cardinals 3, Phillies 4
The Cardinals lost the final game and the home series to the Phillies on Wednesday. Starter Lance Lynn pitched five innings, gave up two unearned runs on one hit, struck out six and walked four.
Andre Pallante surrendered two runs without recording an out and took the loss. Zack Thompson threw 3 1/3 scoreless innings. Andrew Kittredge collected the final two outs of the ninth.
The Phillies went up 2-0 in the first inning. The Cardinals made it 2-1 in the second on a solo home run by Ivan Herrera. St. Louis tied it up 2-2 in the third on a solo long ball from Brendan Donovan.
The game remained tied until the sixth, when the Phillies took a 4-2 lead. The Cardinals got one run back in the eighth. Victor Scott II and Willson Contreras singled and Nolan Gorman walked. Nolan Arenado plated Contreras on a single.
The Cardinals scored three runs on seven hits. Alec Burleson was 2-for-4 as the only Cardinal with multiple hits. Donovan, Arenado and Herrera drove in one apiece.
Scott committed a fielding error. Lynn made an error on a pickoff.
Thursday, April 11, 2024 – Off day
Friday, April 12, 2024 – Cardinals 9 at Diamondbacks 6
In the first game of the weekend series in Phoenix, the Cardinals beat the Diamondbacks by the score of 9-6. Starter Steven Matz pitched 4 2/3 innings, gave up four runs, one earned, on eight hits and struck out two.
Giovanny Gallegos surrendered two runs in 1 1/3 innings of relief. JoJo Romero, Andrew Kittredge, and Ryan Helsley each tossed a scoreless inning. Gallegos earned the win, his second. Helsley received his fifth save.
The Cardinals went up 3-0 in the first inning. Brendan Donovan opened with a single. Paul Goldschmidt drew a walk. Nolan Arenado hit a three-run home run to left center field.
St. Louis added a run in the second. Masyn Winn singled and Victor Scott II doubled. Winn scored on a sac fly by Brendan Donovan. The Cardinals increased the lead to 6-0 in the third inning on a two-run home run by Lars Nootbaar. It was the outfielder’s first game of the season.
In the fifth, the Diamondbacks rallied with six runs to tie. St. Louis scored one run in the seventh to regain the lead 7-6. Donovan tripled and came home on a single by Paul Goldschmidt.
The Cardinals added two more runs in the eighth. Michael Siani pinch ran for Jordan Walker, who had doubled. Siani came home on a triple by Winn. Winn scored on a Scott sac fly.
The Cardinals scored nine runs on 14 hits. Arenado was 3-for-5 with three RBI. Donovan was 3-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored. Winn was 2-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored. Nootbaar drove in two.
In the field, Winn made a throwing error and Matz had a fielding miscue. Walker had an outfield assist at second base.
Saturday, April 13, 2024 – Cardinals 2 at Diamondbacks 4
The Cardinals fell to the Diamondbacks in the second game of the road series on Saturday. Starter Kyle Gibson pitched six innings, gave up four runs on six hits, struck out two and walked three. Gibson took the loss, his second.
Andre Pallante relieved and threw a scoreless seventh. Ryan Fernandez tossed a scoreless eighth.
The Diamondbacks took a 1-0 lead in the first inning. The Cardinals tied the game at 1-1 in the fifth. Jordan Walker tripled and came home on a single by Masyn Winn.
Arizona scored three runs on a home run in the sixth to lead 4-1. St. Louis made it 4-2 in the eighth. Nolan Arenado and Willson Contreras singled. Arenado was driven in on a single by Lars Nootbaar.
The offense scored two runs on 11 hits. Winn was 2-for-4 with an RBI. Contreras was 2-for-4. Goldschmidt was 2-for-5.
On the base paths, Winn stole his second base of the season.
Sunday, April 14, 2024 – Cardinals 0 at Diamondbacks 5
The Cardinals were blanked by the Diamondbacks in the final game of the series on Sunday. They continued their five-series streak of losing the final game of the set.
Starter Miles Mikolas pitched 4 2/3 innings, gave up five runs on four hits, struck out three and walked two. Mikolas took the loss.
Andre Pallante threw a scoreless inning of relief; however, he allowed all three runs inherited from Mikolas to score. Ryan Fernandez tossed the final 2 1/3 scoreless innings.
The game was scoreless until the bottom of the fifth, when Arizona scored five runs.
The Cardinals were held to a meager four hits in the game including doubles by Nolan Arenado and Willson Contreras. The offense was 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position and left six men on base.
The Big Picture
The Cardinals had a week to forget, as they lost both series while posting a record of 2-4. St. Louis has dropped the final game of all five series played in 2024.
The team remains in last place in the NL Central, two games under .500 with a record of 7-9. They are four games back of the first place Milwaukee Brewers.
In the six games played, the Cardinals offense scored more than three runs only once. In the one win in the Phillies series, they plated only three runs. For an offense that tends to be feast or famine, they have mostly been famine.
The top offensive performers by OPS were Ivan Herrera (1.047), Alec Burleson (1.045), Lars Nootbaar (1.018), and Masyn Winn (1.000). In the basement are Paul Goldschmidt (.399) and Victor Scott (.367).
Starting pitching for the week was fairly good. Miles Mikolas had two starts, with one bad inning that blew up the second one. Kyle Gibson struggled late against the Phillies, again bitten by the long ball. Sonny Gray was excellent in his debut start. Lance Lynn and Steven Matz suffered from bad defense which included their own errors. The bullpen was fine except for missteps from Andre Pallante and Giovanny Gallegos.
In the end, the continuing struggles of the offense is keeping the team back. They had one breakout game against the Diamondbacks but returned to prior form in the final two games of the week.
The Cardinals finish the road trip against the Athletics and end the week at home with their first series of 2024 against an NL Central team, the first place Brewers.
NL Central Standings
| Team | W | L | Pct | GB |
| Milwaukee | 10 | 4 | 0.714 | |
| Pittsburgh | 11 | 5 | 0.688 | |
| Chicago | 9 | 6 | 0.600 | 1.5 |
| Cincinnati | 9 | 6 | 0.600 | 1.5 |
| St. Louis | 7 | 9 | 0.438 | 4 |
Trade and Acquisition Rumors
There are no trade or acquisition rumors to report.
Transactions
- 4/9 The Cardinals optioned LHP John King to the Memphis Redbirds.
- 4/9 The Cardinals sent LF Lars Nootbaar on a rehab assignment to the Springfield Cardinals.
- 4/9 The Cardinals activated RHP Sonny Gray from the 15-day injured list.
- 4/11 The Cardinals optioned C Pedro Pagés to the Memphis Redbirds.
- 4/11 The Cardinals activated LF Lars Nootbaar from the 10-day injured list.
Injury Report
- CF Tommy Edman (arthroscopic wrist surgery) was placed on the 10-day injured list retroactive to March 25. Edman has not hit off live pitching since late in the 2023 season. Edman had an MRI on Wednesday, and “got good news”. The CF was cleared by doctors on April 8 to begin swinging a bat. Edman will begin hitting balls off a tee from both the right and left side as the next step in his recovery.
- LF Lars Nootbaar (two non-displaced rib fractures) was activated from the 10-day injured list. Nootbaar has returned to the roster and started the series in Phoenix with the Diamondbacks.
- RHP Sonny Gray (right hamstring) was activated from the 15-day injured list and made his first start against the Phillies on Tuesday, April 9.
- RHP Keynan Middleton (right forearm strain) was placed on the 15-day injured list retroactive to March 25. Middleton received a PRP injection in his right arm on April 6. No further updates have been made available.
- LHP Drew Rom (left bicep tendinitis) was placed on the 15-day injured list retroactive to March 25. The left hander will need several rehab assignments before he returns to the roster. No further updates are available.
- CF Dylan Carlson (left AC joint sprain) was placed on the 10-day injured list retroactive to March 26. Carlson received a pain-killing injection in his left shoulder. Carlson is set to return to baseball activities on Monday, April 15.
- RHP Riley O’Brien (right forearm flexor strain) was placed on the 15-day injured list on March 31 retroactive to March 29. O’Brien had an MRI on the right forearm that revealed no structural damage. A potential early May return continues to be the expectation.
- DH Matt Carpenter (right oblique strain) was placed on the 10-day injured list retroactive to April 2. No further updates are available.
- LHP Matthew Liberatore was kept out of the Diamondbacks series due to an illness. He will rejoin the team in Oakland for the Athletics series.
Looking Ahead
The West Coast trip continues to Oakland for three games against the Athletics. Sonny Gray will make the Monday start in Oakland, followed by Lance Lynn on Tuesday and Steven Matz on Wednesday.
The team returns to St. Louis on Thursday, April 18 and will begin a three-game series with the Brewers starting Friday, April 19. The homestand continues with the Diamondbacks at Busch Stadium beginning Monday, April 22 for three.
The Cardinals begin a road trip following the homestand with a weekend series in New York against the Mets beginning on Friday, April 26. The Cardinals then travel to Detroit to play the Tigers for three.
The team travels home on Thursday, May 2 to open a weekend series with the Chicago White Sox.
Blast from the Past
In this week’s Blast from the Past, we look at the period of April 8 through 14 to highlight unique events in Cardinals history. Some may have happened in a game, or they may be team-related events that are odd or just notable.
April 8, 1922 – In an exhibition game against the St. Louis Browns in Sportsman’s Park, the Cardinals wear their new uniforms for the first time. The uniforms have the two red birds on the bat with the word “Cardinals” across the front.
April 8, 2016 – The Cardinals set a record with three pinch-hit home runs in a 7-4 win over the Braves. The pinch-hit long balls were hit by Aledmys Diaz, Greg Garcia, and Jeremy Hazelbaker.
April 9, 1953 – St Louis Browns owner Bill Veeck sold Sportsman’s Park for $800,000 to Anheuser-Busch. Due to opposition from MLB, Gussie Busch renames the park “Busch Stadium” rather than his original idea “Budweiser Park”.
April 9, 1964 – The Cardinals trade Jimmie Coker and Gary Kolb to the Milwaukee Braves for catcher Bob Uecker. What was unique about this transaction is that Branch Rickey, then a Special Advisor to owner Gussie Busch, told Uecker after an introduction “I didn’t want you”.
April 10, 2006 – The controversial statue of Stan Musial was unveiled at Busch Stadium III outside Gate 3.
April 11, 1962 – A brand new franchise, The New York Mets, make their National League debut against the Cardinals at Busch Stadium. The debut was preceded by a rained out first game, and several players getting stuck in an elevator. The Mets lost to the Cardinals 11-4.
April 11, 2019 – Cardinals center fielder Harrison Bader became the first player to record two RBI on hit by pitches in the same game.
April 12, 1960 –The Cardinals and the Giants played the first game ever at Candlestick Park. The ceremonial first pitch was thrown by then Vice-President Richard Nixon. The game included a protest recorded in the third inning by the umpires concerning the foul poles, which were discovered to be entirely located in fair territory.
April 12, 1965 – On Opening Day in Chicago, the Cardinals played a 10-inning game against the Cubs that was tied 10-10 and was called due to darkness.
April 13, 1954 – Also, on Opening Day, Cardinals CF Wally Moon hit a home run in his first major league at-bat. Moon also hit a home run (called “Moon shots”) in his final at-bat in the 1954 season and was named Rookie of the Year.
April 14, 1969 – The Cardinals played in Montreal in the first ever regular season major league game outside the United States. The Expos won, 8-7.
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