MINNEAPOLIS — So much of the conversation surrounding the Cardinals has been and will continue to be how they, with their playoff aspirations at stake every night, can make more from their offense.
That should not discount how much they can take, too.
The Cardinals turned four stolen bases and nine walks, including one with the bases loaded, into a runaway 6-1 victory against Minnesota at Target Field on Friday night. On their way to one of the most well-rounded wins of the season, the Cardinals tied the game and broke that tie by scoring their first three runs on rallies spurred by stolen bases as much as hits. It was only later that the Cardinals walked away with the rout — pushing home a run in the eighth with the bases loaded all while starter Andre Pallante & Company kept the Twins grounded.
The win gave the Cardinals their first three-game winning streak in two months and returned them to .500 for the first time since the season slipped along the Ohio River in Cincinnati.
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With two starters about to return from the injured list and decisions looming, Pallante strengthened his bid to remain in the rotation — or force the Cardinals to expand it to six pitchers — with his second consecutive seven-inning outing. Pallante’s evening started unsteady before he blitzed through seven innings by retiring 17 of the final 18 batters he faced.
Brendan Donovan personified the mix of offense the Cardinals created and capitalized upon.
He walked and stole second in the fourth inning to help spark the game-turning rally. Two innings later, Donovan led off the sixth with a solo home run that widened the Cardinals’ lead to 4-1. The homer was his 10th of the season, giving the Cardinals seven players with at least double digits in home runs.
Donovan and catcher Willson Contreras each reached base three times. Rookie Luken Baker came off the bench to pinch-hit in the fourth inning and also reached base three times — each one of them by taking the walk offered. In the eighth, Twins reliever Trevor Richards walked Baker just before walking Victor Scott II with the bases loaded. A wild pitch allowed both of them move into scoring position.
While Pallante (6-6) and reliever John King combined to retire 16 consecutive Twins going into the ninth inning, the Cardinals had 16 baserunners in that same span.
Take extra bases, create runs
Before Donovan’s homer produced a run all on its own, the Cardinals generated their comeback for the lead on the bases, by taking more than what they were given.
Contreras helped set the pace.
The Cardinals’ catcher pulled a ball to left field that was going to fall easily for a single in the fourth inning, but as the outfielder gave chase, Contreras decided to push the play. He dashed for second base and — in part because the Twins left fielder threw the ball to the cutoff man — outran the throw for a double where once a single was only promised. All three of the Cardinals first runs involved some taking of an extra base like Contreras did, and three came shortly after a stolen base.
In the third inning, the Cardinals tied the game when Masyn Winn laced a single that scored Victor Scott II from second.
Scott was only at second with two outs because he stole it.
In the fourth inning — the same inning Contreras led off with his double — Nootbaar cracked the 1-1 tie with a double into right field. Contreras scored to break the tie, and Donovan followed him home for a 3-1 lead. They both got into scoring position on a double steal shortly before Nootbaar’s double. By the end of the sixth, the inning that opened with Donovan’s homer, the Cardinals had four steals against the Twins and turned those into three additional at-bats with runners in scoring position and three of the four runs.
Get Ks, gain a groove
Pallante’s first tour of the Twins’ lineup began with a walk and featured and ill-timed one in the second inning that assisted with Minnesota’s run that inning.
That second tour was more of a breeze.
Pallante struck out three of the nine Twins he faced going through their order for a second time, and by the end of the fourth inning the Cardinals’ right-hander had eight swings and misses on his four-seam fastball. Pallante walked the leadoff batter to start the first inning, but quickly slowed that opportunity for the Twins with a strikeout and a vintage double play. In the second, the leadoff hitter again reached. The Twins followed that with another single and a one-out walk to the No. 8 hitter.
Toss in Austin Martin’s high-bounding, short-traveling single that produced Minnesota’s run, and the Twins twice had the bases loaded against Pallante.
Replay helped avoid another run, but not as much as defense.
Paul Goldschmidt whipped a throw home on a grounder that got the lead runner on the force play. The Twins challenged that out, and a review in Manhattan affirmed the call on the field by home-plate umpire James Hoye. Instead of a 2-0 lead, the Cardinals had two outs and Pallante’s grip on the game tightened. He struck out the next batter to end the inning.
Only one Twin would reach base against Pallante from the end of the second through the start of the seventh inning.
Which he started.
Pallante had thrown fewer than 90 pitches to get the first 18 outs, and at one point he retired 13 consecutive Twins. Three of those outs were strikeouts. Only the 13th of those 13 Twins got the ball out of the infield — though No. 9 hitter Austin Martin sure had a chance. But his liner was caught by a leaping Donovan to end the fourth inning.
Run some, lose one
More a walk back to the base than an attempt to take a run away from it caught the Cardinals in the top of the seventh inning and unplugged a potential rally.
The Cardinals had two runners on and one out when Donovan returned to the plate for his next at-bat after the solo homer. He skied the ball to left field for an out that was deep enough for the runner, pinch-runner Tommy Pham, to attempt to score from third. Pham took a few strides off third base and when left fielder Matt Wallner threw the ball in, Pham was off the base. A quick jab of the glove by Twins third baseman Royce Lewis got Wallner’s throw and spun it to third to get the double play before Pham touched the base.
That cost Nolan Arenado a chance with two runners in scoring position.
He led off the next inning with a single.
And that’s when the Cardinals started pulling away for their five-run lead.
Cardinals 6, Twins 1
ºüÀêÊÓƵ AB R H BI BB SO Avg.
Winn ss 4 0 2 2 0 0 .280
Burleson lf 3 0 0 0 1 1 .276
Pham pr-lf 1 0 0 0 0 0 .228
Contreras c 5 1 3 0 0 1 .263
Donovan 2b 3 2 1 1 2 0 .266
Arenado 3b 5 1 1 0 0 2 .271
Nootbaar rf 5 1 2 2 0 1 .234
Goldschmidt 1b 4 0 0 0 1 2 .226
Carpenter dh 0 0 0 0 1 0 .250
Baker ph-dh 0 0 0 0 3 0 .333
Scott cf 3 1 0 1 1 1 .140
Totals 33 6 9 6 9 8
Minnesota AB R H BI BB SO Avg.
Castro ss 3 0 0 0 1 0 .254
Larnach dh 3 0 0 0 0 3 .250
Miranda ph-dh 1 0 0 0 0 0 .305
Lewis 3b 4 0 1 0 0 0 .267
Wallner lf 3 0 0 0 1 0 .250
Jeffers c 3 1 2 0 0 0 .237
Farmer ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 .194
Santana 1b 4 0 0 0 0 0 .237
Kepler rf 4 0 1 0 0 1 .262
Julien 2b 2 0 0 0 1 1 .217
Martin cf 3 0 1 1 0 0 .257
Totals 31 1 5 1 3 6
ºüÀêÊÓƵ 001 201 020 — 6 9 0
Minnesota 010 000 000 — 1 5 0
LOB: ºüÀêÊÓƵ 10, Minnesota 6. 2B: Contreras (17), Nootbaar (11). HR: Donovan (10), off Alcala. SB: Scott (4), Donovan (4), Contreras (4), Goldschmidt (8). SF: Winn.
ºüÀêÊÓƵ IP H R ER BB SO ERA
Pallante, W, 6-6 7 5 1 1 2 5 3.84
King 1 0 0 0 0 0 2.81
Fernandez 1 0 0 0 1 1 3.44
Minnesota IP H R ER BB SO ERA
Festa, L, 2-3 32/3 3 3 3 2 5 5.20
Thielbar 11/3 1 0 0 1 1 5.54
Alcala 1 1 1 1 2 0 3.21
Richards 2 3 2 2 3 1 4.09
Okert 1 1 0 0 1 1 5.09
Inherited runners-scored: Thielbar 1-0. WP: Richards(2). T: 2:53. Att.: 29,634.