Matt Holliday, John Smoltz and Ryan Franklin are among the St. Louis Cardinals players receiving well-deserved headlines for the club’s stirring 3-2 ninth-inning win over the Chicago Cubs on Friday at Busch Stadium. The win cut the Cards’ magic number for clinching their division to six.
Holliday’s walk-off home run deep to right field off Chicago reliever Aaron Heilman ended the game in the most dramatic fashion possible.
The long ball made the recently-struggling Franklin the winner after he fanned two in a scoreless top of the ninth, Bobby Scales and Jake Fox.
Holliday’s heroics accentuated another fine start by the 42-year-old future Hall of Famer Smoltz. Coming back after missing a turn with right shoulder tendinitis, the right-hander allowed just two runs on six hits and three walks in six innings of work.
Yet right-hander Kyle McClellan may have had the biggest night of all.
In his first of two scoreless innings of bullpen work in support of Smoltz on Friday, the 25-year-old second-year reliever fanned the side in the seventh. Cubs’ 1-2-3 hitters Ryan Theriot, Kosuke Fukodome and hot-hitting Derrek Lee were sat down in order.
It was the 17th time this season Cardinals hurlers retired the side via strikeout but perhaps the most impressive. Smoltz is the only one to have achieved the feat in consecutive innings, against San Diego in his St. Louis debut on August 23.
In 2009, McClellan has 15 holds, a 2.87 ERA and a .228 opposing batting average against in 62 2/3 innings over 61 games. He was the Cardinals Rookie of the Year in 2008.
Following are those who preceded McClellan this season.
Cardinals striking out the side, 2009
| Date | Pitcher | Opp | Batter | Score | Inn | RoB | Out | Play Desc. | |||
| 4/30/2009 | Mitchell Boggs | @WSN | Cristian Guzman | ahead | 2 | – | 0 | b 1 | — | 0 | Strikeout Swinging |
| Mitchell Boggs | @WSN | Adam Dunn | tied | 2 | – | 2 | b 1 | — | 1 | Strikeout Looking | |
| Mitchell Boggs | @WSN | Elijah Dukes | tied | 2 | – | 2 | b 1 | — | 2 | Strikeout Swinging | |
| 5/4/2009 | Dennys Reyes | PHI | Shane Victorino | down | 1 | – | 6 | t 7 | — | 0 | Strikeout Swinging |
| Dennys Reyes | PHI | Ryan Howard | down | 1 | – | 6 | t 7 | 1– | 1 | Strikeout Looking | |
| Kyle McClellan | PHI | Jayson Werth | down | 1 | – | 6 | t 7 | 1– | 2 | Strikeout Swinging | |
| 5/5/2009 | Adam Wainwright | PHI | Jayson Werth | down | 0 | – | 1 | t 2 | — | 0 | Strikeout Swinging |
| Adam Wainwright | PHI | Pedro Feliz | down | 0 | – | 1 | t 2 | — | 1 | Strikeout Swinging | |
| Adam Wainwright | PHI | Carlos Ruiz | down | 0 | – | 1 | t 2 | 1– | 2 | Strikeout Swinging | |
| 5/17/2009 | Todd Wellemeyer | MIL | Rickie Weeks | tied | 0 | – | 0 | t 1 | — | 0 | Strikeout Swinging |
| Todd Wellemeyer | MIL | Prince Fielder | tied | 0 | – | 0 | t 1 | -23 | 1 | Strikeout Swinging | |
| Todd Wellemeyer | MIL | Manny Parra | down | 0 | – | 4 | t 1 | 1-3 | 2 | Strikeout Swinging | |
| 5/18/2009 | Chris Perez | MIL | Mike Cameron | down | 0 | – | 4 | t 5 | -12 | 0 | Strikeout Swinging |
| Chris Perez | MIL | Corey Hart | down | 0 | – | 4 | t 5 | -12 | 1 | Strikeout Swinging | |
| Chris Perez | MIL | Braden Looper | down | 0 | – | 5 | t 5 | 123 | 2 | Strikeout Looking | |
| 6/10/2009 | Chris Perez | @FLA | Ronny Paulino | ahead | 10 | – | 4 | b 8 | — | 0 | Strikeout Looking |
| Chris Perez | @FLA | Chris Coghlan | ahead | 10 | – | 4 | b 8 | 1– | 1 | Strikeout Swinging | |
| Chris Perez | @FLA | Emilio Bonifacio | ahead | 10 | – | 4 | b 8 | 1– | 2 | Strikeout Swinging | |
| 6/17/2009 | Todd Wellemeyer | DET | Marcus Thames | ahead | 3 | – | 2 | t 6 | — | 0 | Strikeout Swinging |
| Jason Motte | DET | Brandon Inge | ahead | 3 | – | 2 | t 6 | 1– | 1 | Strikeout Swinging | |
| Jason Motte | DET | Gerald Laird | ahead | 3 | – | 2 | t 6 | 1– | 2 | Strikeout Swinging | |
| 7/1/2009 | Adam Wainwright | SFG | Travis Ishikawa | tied | 1 | – | 1 | t 9 | 1– | 0 | Strikeout Swinging, Renteria Steals 2B |
| Adam Wainwright | SFG | Juan Uribe | tied | 1 | – | 1 | t 9 | -2- | 1 | Strikeout Swinging | |
| Adam Wainwright | SFG | Fred Lewis | tied | 1 | – | 1 | t 9 | -2- | 2 | Strikeout Swinging | |
| 7/10/2009 | Chris Carpenter | @CHC | Mike Fontenot | ahead | 8 | – | 3 | b 6 | — | 0 | Strikeout Swinging |
| Chris Carpenter | @CHC | Koyie Hill | ahead | 8 | – | 3 | b 6 | — | 1 | Strikeout Looking | |
| Chris Carpenter | @CHC | Jeff Baker | ahead | 8 | – | 3 | b 6 | — | 2 | Strikeout Swinging | |
| 2009-07-12(2) | Ryan Franklin | @CHC | Milton Bradley | ahead | 4 | – | 2 | b 9 | — | 0 | Strikeout Looking |
| Ryan Franklin | @CHC | Jeff Baker | ahead | 4 | – | 2 | b 9 | — | 1 | Strikeout Looking | |
| Ryan Franklin | @CHC | Micah Hoffpauir | ahead | 4 | – | 2 | b 9 | — | 2 | *ENDED GAME*:Strikeout Looking | |
| 7/21/2009 | Todd Wellemeyer | @HOU | Kazuo Matsui | down | 1 | – | 4 | b 5 | 3 | 0 | Strikeout Swinging |
| Josh Kinney | @HOU | Carlos Lee | down | 1 | – | 5 | b 5 | 1– | 1 | Strikeout Swinging, Tejada Steals 2B | |
| Josh Kinney | @HOU | Geoff Blum | down | 1 | – | 5 | b 5 | -2- | 2 | Strikeout Swinging | |
| 7/29/2009 | Joel Pineiro | LAD | Matt Kemp | down | 0 | – | 1 | t 5 | — | 0 | Strikeout Swinging |
| Joel Pineiro | LAD | Clayton Kershaw | down | 0 | – | 1 | t 5 | — | 1 | Strikeout Swinging | |
| Joel Pineiro | LAD | Orlando Hudson | down | 0 | – | 1 | t 5 | 1– | 2 | Strikeout Looking | |
| 8/12/2009 | Chris Carpenter | CIN | Wladimir Balenti | ahead | 3 | – | 0 | t 2 | — | 0 | Strikeout Looking |
| Chris Carpenter | CIN | Alex Gonzalez | ahead | 3 | – | 0 | t 2 | — | 1 | Strikeout Looking | |
| Chris Carpenter | CIN | Drew Sutton | ahead | 3 | – | 0 | t 2 | — | 2 | Strikeout Swinging | |
| 8/23/2009 | John Smoltz | @SDP | Kevin Kouzmanoff | ahead | 4 | 0 | b 2 | — | 0 | Strikeout Swinging | |
| John Smoltz | @SDP | Will Venable | ahead | 4 | – | 0 | b 2 | — | 1 | Strikeout Looking | |
| John Smoltz | @SDP | Nick Hundley | ahead | 4 | – | 0 | b 2 | — | 2 | Strikeout Swinging | |
| John Smoltz | @SDP | Luis Rodriguez | ahead | 4 | – | 0 | b 3 | — | 0 | Strikeout Looking | |
| John Smoltz | @SDP | Edward Mujica | ahead | 4 | – | 0 | b 3 | — | 1 | Strikeout Swinging | |
| John Smoltz | @SDP | Everth Cabrera | ahead | 4 | – | 0 | b 3 | — | 2 | Strikeout Swinging | |
| 9/2/2009 | Jason Motte | MIL | Jason Kendall | ahead | 10 | – | 3 | t 8 | — | 0 | Strikeout Swinging |
| Jason Motte | MIL | J.J. Hardy | ahead | 10 | – | 3 | t 8 | — | 1 | Strikeout Looking | |
| Jason Motte | MIL | Felipe Lopez | ahead | 10 | – | 3 | t 8 | -2- | 2 | Strikeout Looking |
Thanks to Tom Orf for the above table.