photo: Alec Burleson (Kevin Jairaj/USA TODAY Sports)
The St. Louis Cardinals began the 5-1 week with a sweep of the White Sox in Chicago, and gained ground on Chicago and Milwaukee in the NL Central. Alec Burleson swung a hot bat with a 1.275 OPS along with three home runs with nine RBI. We look at memorable walk-offs during this period in team history.
Game recaps
Monday, June 16, 2025 – Off day
Tuesday, June 17, 2025 – Cardinals 12 at White Sox 2
The Cardinals walloped the White Sox in a 12-2 blowout in Chicago on Tuesday. Starter Matthew Liberatore pitched six innings, gave up two runs on five hits, and struck out four to earn his fourth win of the season.
Riley O’Brien relieved Liberatore and threw two scoreless innings of relief. Andre Granillo tossed a scoreless ninth.
Chicago took a 1-0 lead in the first inning. St. Louis answered with a five run second. Nolan Arenado singled. Lars Nootbaar drew a walk. Pedro Pagés hit a sac bunt and Arenado scored on a throwing error, with Nootbaar to third base and Pagés to second base on the play. Victor Scott was hit by a pitch to load the bags. Brendan Donovan singled to plate Nootbaar. Pagés came home on a ground out by Masyn Winn. Iván Herrera drove in Scott and Donovan.
The Cardinals added a run in the top of the fifth to increase the lead to 6-1. Willson Contreras walked. Alec Burleson singled and Contreras advanced to third. On a ball four pitch to Arenado, Burleson attempted to steal second and Contreras stole home on the throw to second.
The White Sox scored a run in the home half of the fifth to cut the lead to 6-2. The Cardinals put up two runs in the sixth to increase the lead to 8-2. Donovan singled. Masyn Winn doubled. Herrera plated Donovan and Winn on a single.
Burleson hit a solo home run in the seventh to widen the lead to 9-2. The Cardinal made it 10-2 in the eighth. Winn walked. Contreras walked. Burleson drove in Winn on a single.
In the ninth, the Cardinals scored two more runs for a final score of 12-2. Pagés singled and Scott followed with a two run home run.
The Cardinals scored 12 runs on 13 hits. Herrera was 2-for-5 with four RBI. Donovan was 4-for-5 with an RBI and two runs scored. Burleson was 3-for-5 with two RBI. Scott had two RBI and two runs scored. Pagés and Winn scored two runs.
On the bases, Contreras stole his third base of the season. The Cardinals did not commit an error on defense.
Wednesday, June 18, 2025 – Cardinals at White Sox (postponed)
Thursday, June 19, 2025 – Cardinals 5 at White Sox 4 (Game one)
The Cardinals edged the White Sox in a one run win in the first game of a twin bill on Thursday. Starter Erick Fedde pitched five innings and allowed two runs, one earned, on six hits, four strikeouts, and two walks.
Steven Matz relieved Fedde and surrendered two runs in 1 2/3 innings of relief. Andre Granillo threw 1/3 scoreless innings to earn his first win. Phil Maton hurled a scoreless eighth, and Ryan Helsley tossed a scoreless ninth to earn his 14th save.
The Cardinals took a 1-0 lead in the first inning. Masyn Winn walked. Iván Herrera singled. Alec Burleson walked. Winn scored on a sac fly by Willson Contreras.
The White Sox tied the game in the fourth and took the lead 2-1 in the fifth. St. Louis tied the game at 2-2 in the top of the sixth. Herrera singled. Burleson reached on catcher interference. Nolan Arenado was intentionally walked. Lars Nootbaar walked and Herrera scored.
Chicago answered with two runs in the home half of the sixth to lead 4-2. In the eighth, the Cardinals put up three runs to go ahead 5-4. Burleson singled. Contreras followed with a two run home run.
Nolan Gorman reached on an error, and advanced to second base on a wild pitch. Nootbaar walked. Yohel Pozo plated Gorman on a single.
The Cardinals scored five runs on eight hits. Burleson was 2-for-3. Herrera was 2-for-4. Contreras tallied three RBI.
On the bases, Nootbaar was caught stealing second base.
On defense, shortstop Winn made a throwing error.
Thursday, June 19, 2025 – Cardinals 8 at White Sox 6 (10 innings, game two)
The Cardinals defeated the White Sox in the second game of the twin bill in extra innings to sweep Thursday’s doubleheader. Starter Michael McGreevy pitched five innings, gave up one run on three hits, five strikeouts and one walk.
Riley O’Brien relieved McGreevy and threw a scoreless sixth. John King surrendered two runs in 1/3 innings. Kyle Leahy yielded three runs in 1 2/3 innings. JoJo Romero hurled a scoreless ninth and was awarded his third win. Andre Granillo tossed a scoreless 10th and earned his first MLB save.
The White Sox went up 1-0 in the second inning. The Cardinals put up a four run third to lead 4-1.
Victor Scott singled and stole second base. Willson Contreras was hit by a pitch. Alec Burleson followed with a three run home run.
Nolan Arenado thumped a solo home run.
St. Louis added two runs in the fourth to increase the lead to 6-1. Nolan Gorman doubled. Pedro Pagés singled. Victor Scott walked. Contreras plated Gorman and Pagés on a double.
Chicago came back to tie the game with a five run seventh.
The game went into extra innings, tied at six. The Cardinals scored two runs in the top of the 10th to regain the lead.
Jordan Walker pinch-ran for Contreras at second base to begin the frame. Arenado singled in Walker, and was thrown out at second base on the play. Nootbaar hit his ninth home run to extend the lead to 8-6.
The White Sox failed to rally in the bottom frame.
The Cardinals scored eight runs on 12 hits. Burleson was 2-for-5 with three RBI. Arenado was 3-for-5 with two RBI. Pagés was 2-for-4. Contreras had two RBI.
On the bases, Scott stole his 20th base of the season. Scott was also picked off at first base.
On defense, catcher Pagés had a passed ball.
Friday, June 20, 2025 – Cardinals 6, Reds 1
The Cardinals were the winner of a 6-1 contest against the Reds at Busch Stadium on Friday. Starter Andre Pallante pitched six scoreless innings, allowed two hits, fanned four and walked one to earn his fifth win of the season.
Phil Maton relieved Pallante and threw a scoreless seventh. John King surrendered one run in ⅓ of an inning. JoJo Romero hurled a scoreless inning. Riley O’Brien recorded the final two outs.
The Cardinals took a 1-0 lead in the third inning. Victor Scott was hit by a pitch and stole second base. Brendan Donovan reached on a fielder’s choice. Scott was out at third. Masyn Winn doubled. Donovan scored on a sac fly by Alec Burleson.
St. Louis put up a five- run seventh to stretch the lead to 6-0. Pedro Pagés walked. Scott was hit by a pitch for the second time in the game. Donovan walked to load the bases. Winn plated Pagés on a single. Nolan Gorman drew a bases-loaded walk to bring Scott home. Thomas Saggese reached base on an error, and Donovan scored on the play. Lars Nootbaar drove in Gorman with a single.
Cincinnati scored their only run in the eighth to cut the lead to 6-1.
The offense scored six runs on seven hits. Nootbaar was 2-for-4 with an RBI. Winn was 2-for-5 with an RBI. Donovan scored two runs.
On the bases, Scott stole his 21st base of the season.
On defense, right fielder Jordan Walker made a throwing error. Second baseman Donovan had a fielding miscue. Pagés picked a runner off first base.
Saturday, June 21, 2025 – Cardinals 6, Reds 5 (11 innings)
The Cardinals edged the Reds in extra innings on Saturday.
Starter Sonny Gray pitched five innings, gave up one run on five hits, fanned five and walked two.
Steven Matz relieved Gray and surrendered three runs in 1 ⅔ innings of relief. Andre Granillo yielded one run in 1 ⅔ innings. John King threw ⅔ scoreless innings. Ryan Helsley hurled a scoreless 10th. Phil Maton tossed a scoreless 11th to earn the win.
The Cardinals went up 2-0 in the first inning on a two run home run by Alec Burleson.
The Reds cut the lead to 2-1 with a run scored in the third.
Cincinnati put up three runs in the seventh to lead 4-2. They added a fifth run in the top of the eighth. St. Louis scored two runs in the home half of the eighth to shrink the lead to 5-4. Victor Scott singled. Brendan Donovan singled. Masyn Winn plated Scott on a single. Burleson drove in Donovan on a single.
The Cardinals tied the game in the bottom of the ninth on a solo home run by Nolan Arenado. The game went into extra innings and neither team scored in the 10th.
The Reds did not score in the top of the 11th. In the bottom of the 11th, Jordan Walker pinch ran for ghost runner Willson Contreras. Nolan Arenado was hit by a pitch. After pop outs by Nolan Gorman and Lars Nootbaar, Yohel Pozo hit a single to right field to score Walker and win the game in a walk off.
The Cardinals scored six runs on nine hits. Burleson was 2-for-5 with three RBI. Scott was 2-for-4.
On the bases, Gorman was picked off second base.
On defense, Donovan made a throwing error. Contreras had a dropped foul error.
Sunday, June 22, 2025 – Cardinals 1, Reds 4
The Cardinals fell to the Reds in the final game of the series, and thus failed to sweep. Starter Miles Mikolas pitched five innings, gave up three runs, two earned, on four hits, one walk, and six strikeouts. Mikolas took the loss.
Kyle Leahy relieved Mikolas and surrendered one run across two innings of relief. Gordon Graceffo tossed the final two scoreless innings.
The Reds went up 1-0 in the first inning. The Cardinals tied the game in the second. Nolan Arenado singled. Thomas Saggese reached on an error. Yohel Pozo singled to score Arenado.
Cincinnati added two runs in the fifth and one run in the sixth to lead 4-1.
The Cardinals scored one run on three hits. No Cardinal had multiple hits. The offense was 1-for-5 with runners in scoring position and left four men on base.
On the bases, Winn stole his fourth base of the season. On defense, Pozo had a passed ball.
Big Picture
The Cardinals improved their performance from last week, ending the week with a 5-1 record. They swept the White Sox and won 2 of 3 against the Reds. The team remains in third place, 4.5 games back of the Cubs and one game back of the second place Brewers.
The offense was much better this week, though helped along by playing the White Sox, who hold the worst record in the American League. They did manage to score 13 runs against a solid Reds team, so it wasn’t all a mirage. A meeting with the Reds’ Andrew Abbott on Sunday squashed a higher number.
The top offensive performers for the week by OPS are Yohel Pozo (1.200 in 5 ABs), Alec Burleson (1.162), Nolan Arenado (.991), and Lars Nootbaar (.935). A few days’ rest for Nootbaar did wonders for dragging him out of the basement, where he resided last week.
At the bottom were Jose Barrero (.393), Nolan Gorman (.375), Thomas Saggese (.286 in 7 ABs), and Jordan Walker (.182). Saggese has an excuse because he just came up from Triple-A over the weekend. Barrero is a bench player who hardly ever plays, but Gorman and Walker are causing more whiplash than a 20 car pileup on the interstate. Gorman was finally getting more playing time and showing some promise, but has since come down to earth, at least for now. Same with Walker, who hit for a brief time after his return from a rehab assignment, but has cooled off.
On the pitching side, the team improved as well. All starters had ERAs under 4.00 for the week. The team also inserted Michael McGreevy as a spot starter, and he pitched well. Andre Pallante looked as good as he has looked all season against the Reds.
The bullpen was sturdy, apart from hiccups by John King (frequent flyer on this list) and Steven Matz (not a frequent flyer). Kyle Leahy also continues to struggle, somewhat. The team called up Andre Granillo from Memphis, and sent him down again in less than a week. It was not, however, for pitching badly. The team just needed a fresh arm, and he was apparently lower on the pecking order than other relievers who didn’t pitch as well, and had options remaining.
The Cardinals begin the upcoming week with a four game series with the Cubs. Chicago has just come off losing a series against the Mariners, and the teams are playing at Busch, not Wrigley. Nevertheless, this is going to be as tough of a series as the Cardinals have played all season. The team ends the week on the road against the Guardians in Cleveland.
NL Central Standings
| Team | W | L | Pct | GB |
| Chicago | 46 | 31 | 0.597 | |
| Milwaukee | 43 | 35 | 0.551 | 3.5 |
| St. Louis | 42 | 36 | 0.538 | 4.5 |
| Cincinnati | 40 | 38 | 0.513 | 6.5 |
| Pittsburgh | 31 | 48 | 0.392 | 16.0 |
Trade and Acquisition Rumors
There are no trade and acquisition rumors to report.
Transactions
- 6/19 – The Cardinals recalled RHP Michael McGreevy from the Memphis Redbirds.
- 6/20 – The Cardinals optioned RHP Michael McGreevy to the Memphis Redbirds.
- 6/20 – The Cardinals placed C Iván Herrera on the 10-day injured list. Left hamstring strain.
- 6/20 – The Cardinals recalled 2B Thomas Saggese from the Memphis Redbirds.
- 6/22 – The Cardinals optioned RHP Andre Granillo to the Memphis Redbirds.
- 6/22 – The Cardinals recalled RHP Gordon Graceffo from the Memphis Redbirds.
Injury Report
- LHP Zack Thompson (left lat strain) was placed on the 15-day injured list on March 24. Thompson missed most of spring training. Thompson had a setback in his rehab and was sent for an evaluation. According to Derrick Goold of the Post Dispatch, Thompson has returned to the Cardinals spring training facility in Jupiter, Florida to resume his throwing program.
- C Iván Herrera was placed on the 10-day injured list with a left hamstring strain. Herrera felt pain in his hamstring strain during the first game of the June 19 doubleheader. An MRI revealed a Grade 2 strain that could keep Herrera out for 2 to 6 weeks.
Looking Ahead
The Cardinals see the Cubs for the first time this season, as they come to St. Louis for a four game series beginning Monday. Matthew Liberatore will get the Monday start, followed by Erick Fedde on Tuesday. No starters have been named for the final two games.
Another road trip begins to end the month, with two three game series with the Guardians and the Pirates. The Pirates series extends into July, and after a travel day on Thursday, July 3, the Cardinals once again play the Cubs, this time at Wrigley Field for a weekend set.
After a Monday off day, the Cardinals return home to Busch Stadium to play a six game homestand with the Nationals and the Braves before the All-Star break begins on July 14.
Following the All-Star break, the Cardinals are on a west coast road trip. with the first stop in Phoenix to play the Diamondbacks in a weekend three game series. The road trip ends in Denver with a three game set against the Rockies.
Blast from the Past
Last week we took a look at Cardinals walk-off wins for a period in franchise history. We continue that this week with a list of walk-off wins for the period June 16 through June 23.
Walk-off wins are the most exciting way to end a baseball game. This series will continue off and on going forward.
Below is a list of walk off wins during the period June 16 through June 23 in past Cardinals seasons, starting with the date of the game, the hitter who was responsible for the walk-off, and any other notable details.
June 17, 1951 – On this date, the Cardinals won a 5-4 walk off win against the Phillies at Sportsman’s Park III. The game was tied 4-4 at the end of regulation. The game went into extras, and the Phillies failed to score in the top of the 10th.
In the bottom of the 10th, the first batter up to the plate was Stan Musial, who hit a solo home run to RF to give the Cardinals the 5-4 win.
June 18, 1987 – On this date in 1987, the Cardinals beat the Pirates 8-6 in 10 innings at Busch Stadium II. With the game tied 6-6 at the end of the ninth, the game continued into the 10th.
The Pirates did not score in the top of the 10th. In the home half of the 10th, Tom Herr got on base with a single. Next up was Jack Clark, who blasted a two run home run to give the Cardinals the 8-6 walk off win.
June 20, 2007 – On this day, the Cardinals played the Royals at Busch Stadium III. The game went into extra innings in a 6-6 tie, and neither team could score through the 10th, 11th, 12th, and 13th innings. The Royals continued to struggle for a run in the top of the 14th, but the Cardinals did not. In the bottom of the 14th, Ryan Ludwick was the first batter at the plate and he hit a solo home run to left center field for the 7-6 win.
June 22, 1999 – On this date, the Cardinals won another game in walk-off fashion in the 14th inning. This game was against the Astros at Busch Stadium II.
The game was tied 3-3 at the end of regulations. After neither team scored through the 13th inning, and the Astros failed to score in the top of the 14th, the Cardinals came to bat in the bottom of the inning.
Following strikeouts from Mike Mohler and Thomas Howard, Joe McEwing singled to RF. Placido Polanco then singled to CF. Mark McGwire came to bat and singled to CF, scoring McEwing and giving the Cardinals the 4-3 win.
June 23, 2001 – A 6-5 walk off win for the Cardinals in nine innings happened on this date in 2001. The Cardinals were facing the San Francisco Giants at Busch Stadium II.
The game was tied 5-5 after the top of the ninth. In the bottom of the ninth, Jim Edmonds started the inning with walk. Ray Lankford struck out. Albert Pujols was intentionally walked. Craig Paquette struck out. Edgar Renteria walked to load the bases.
Mike Matheny came to bat with two outs and the bases loaded and singled to left field to score Edmonds. The Cardinals beat the Giants 6-5.
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