Hochman: What MLB history says of 2024 Cardinals possibly making playoffs (hint: could be tough)
During the course of a rough go, I can’t imagine our newspaper ever putting a Cardinals “season” on a gravestone. Not because it isn’t clever. But because of the infamous 2005 edition of the Houston Chronicle. On June 1 of that year, the Astros were 19-32. And the front of the Sports section showed a tombstone with the team’s logo and the words: “RIP Astros season; April 5, 2005-June 1, 2005.”
The 2005 Astros went on to win the pennant.
As the late Joaquin Andujar famously said, the best word to describe baseball is: “Youneverknow.”
Which brings us to the 2024 Cardinals, who entered Saturday with a 19-25 record (.432 winning percentage). It’s indeed been a rough go — and a sequel to the rough go that was the 71-91 season a year ago.
So, what does history tell us about the Cards possibly making the playoffs?
This was brought to my attention by Brandon Kiley, a radio host on ESPN 101.1 FM. The wild-card playoff era began in 1995. That’s 29 postseasons. Only 16 times has a team started a season with a 19-25 record or worse … and made the postseason.
Of those 16 teams, only five made the World Series: the 2003 Marlins, the 2005 Astros, the 2007 Rockies, the 2018 Dodgers and the 2019 Nationals (the Marlins and Nationals won it all).
And per research on , only eight of the 16 teams even made it to the LCS.
Hey, at least for the current Cardinals, the outlook is better than it was as recently as Monday.
After 40 games, the Cardinals entered this week with a 16-24 record. Teams in the wild-card era that made the playoffs with that record or worse after 40 games?
Five.
There are quite a lot of games remaining on the schedule in 2024. But if this hole gets any deeper, it could be impossible to climb out of, let alone to climb into the playoffs.
The Cardinals’ offense has been confounding most of this season. How can this many guys underachieve at the same time? Coach Turner Ward and the hitting department work tirelessly, but I have to wonder about the messaging, since the players can’t seem to execute routinely (especially hitting with runners in scoring position, but also, just hitting). That said, in a small sample size, the Cards’ offense recently came to life. Ƶ salvaged the embarrassing series at Milwaukee with a win — and then won two of the three games against the Angels, followed by a Friday win at home against Boston.
But it wasn’t just that they won, but how they won — with slugging and contagious hitting. Score totals in those four wins were: four, 10, seven and 10 again. In that Friday game with 10 runs, four Cardinals hit a four-bagger.
On Saturday before the game, I asked Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol about the offense. Notably — for examples of things he saw out of hitters in that stretch that he hadn’t seen in weeks prior.
“Mentally, I would say, when it wasn’t going well, guys were trying to get three hits on one swing,” Marmol said. “And chasing that knock, ‘Because, man, it seems hard to come by right now.’ They’re controlling the strike zone. And previous to (Friday’s) game, just being able to take the walk and not trying to do too much — it’s a good sign of no longer chasing hits, but just taking a quality at bat and trusting the guy behind you.
“(Friday) was an example of getting good pitches in the zone and doing damage. Four homers, guys driving the ball, but also not trying to do too much. Like, (Lars) Nootbaar wasn’t trying to hit a home run. He’s trying to move the runner and took a really good swing. It’s combination of things, but (Friday) was a positive day that allows you to celebrate all the other stuff that’s going on that’s been good and maybe taken for granted.”
Of the 16 teams who started 19-25 or worse and made the playoffs, one was the 1996 Cards.
That was a pivotal team in franchise history.
It was the first team with the new ownership (the DeWitt family and others), new manager (Tony La Russa), new (actual) grass, a new marketing slogan (“Baseball like it oughta be”) and new players (notably Ron Gant, Andy Benes, Todd Stottlemyre, Royce Clayton, Gary Gaetti and Dennis Eckersley).
The season was Ozzie Smith’s last, and the acquisition of the shortstop Clayton created some internal problems.
By May 19 (Sunday’s date in 2024), the Cardinals were swept by the Rockies in Colorado and had fallen to 17-26. It sure seemed like ’96 would be another frustrating 1990s season. But the Cards won their next five games and began clicking.
In the end — thanks to a lot of help from Brian Jordan and Ray Lankford and even a little help from Miguel Mejia — the Cardinals finished 88-74 and in first place.
They knocked off San Diego in the first round.
They took a 3-1 lead against the Braves in the NLCS.
Then, alas, Smoltz-Maddux-Glavine happened.
And so, there are inspirational examples for the 2024 Ƶ Cardinals.
But right now, the playoff odds — especially if the hitting doesn’t get right for a long stretch — are low.
Masyn Winn called his first Busch Stadium homer, then secured it for his mom: Cardinals Extra
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Entering the Cardinals’ series opener against the Red Sox on Friday night at Busch Stadium, Masyn Winn went without a homer in his first 34 games at Busch Stadium. In 76 games after being called up to the majors last August, the rookie had two homers with the first coming on the road in Atlanta and the second in San Diego.
So, when the 22-year-old belted a two-run home run — his first of 2024 — in the sixth inning of Ƶ’ 10-5 win over Boston, the timing felt just right.
“My mom texted me about a week ago,” said Winn, who traded a game-used bat to get the home run ball from the fan who caught it. “(It’s) kind of a little convenient. She said when you get your first one, try to get it back because I kept my first home run ball last year. She didn’t get one. She got a single. I wanted to get that for her. It was great. It feels great.”
It also provided a comeback after some gamesmanship from Red Sox starter Brayan Bello.
After getting quick-pitched by Bello in the fourth inning, Winn let teammates including Lars Nootbaar and Pedro Pages know that he was going to try and swing for the fences in his next at-bat against Bello. The 22-year-old planned to “pimp it” if he knew he got all of it.
Although he didn’t face Bello when he stepped to the plate in the sixth, and although he didn’t feel it off the bat, Winn’s swing on a 1-2 sweeper thrown low from lefty Cam Booser sailed 402 feet and cleared the left-center field wall for his first Busch Stadium blast.
“I don’t want to say it’s bush league. It’s part of the game,” Winn said of Bello’s quick pitch. “But I’m so competitive that I take everything personally. He did that. I really wanted to face him again. I wanted to hit a home run off of him, but his teammate got caught in the crossfire.”
The homer extended Winn’s hitting streak to seven consecutive games. He has at least one hit in nine of his last 10 games after a quiet set of games to begin May. Through 40 games in his first full season in the majors, the Cardinals’ opening day shortstop is batting .280 with a .343 on-base percentage. He entered Saturday tied for second in average among MLB rookies, first in on-base percentage, and tied for fourth in hits (35).
The 22-year-old’s success at the plate has come with adjustments as the opposition adjusts to him.
Since the start of May, Winn has gone 11-for-46 (.239) with a .271 on-base percentage. He’s walked twice in his last 13 games after walking 11 times in 24 games during April and seen more pitches on the inner half of the plate.
“When you look at what they’ve done, it’s no different than any young player,” Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said. “They stay away from you until you prove that you can use the whole field and once you prove that you can do that, they start pounding you in an up and you have to do a good job of hitting the ones you’re supposed to and laying off the ones they want you to swing at. If you do, then the next adjustment comes.”
Winn’s approach at the plate this season has yielded a 36.3% rate of opposite field contact, per FanGraphs, and a line drive rate (32.7%) second only to Dodgers star Freddie Freeman (37%). As the opposition looks to challenge him with more inside pitches, his point of contact could make swings like Friday night more common for Winn, who belted 18 home runs in 105 games for Triple-A Memphis a year ago.
“If a team is going to start coming inside, I think that’s whenever I’ll probably start finding and running into some balls on accident,” Winn said. “Just not trying to do too much is the biggest thing. But... I think it’s when teams start coming inside, I think that’s where I’m going to start popping them.”
It’s part of the “game within the game” and a step the rookie may need to take to continue adapting to the big leagues.
“If that’s the case, you’re going to have to show that you can get them out of there,” Marmol said. “And one way to do it is to do what you did the night before. Drive the ball that way. Not get sped up in there. The one thing they want to do is to speed you up to go back out there. He’ll be fine. He’s a good enough athlete.”
Extra Bases
Right-hander Keynan Middleton (forearm flexor strain) is slated for a rehab appearance on Sunday with Double-A Springfield, Marmol said. The outing will be Middleton’s third of his rehab assignment after going down with a forearm injury in early March. Following Sunday, Middleton is expected to throw back-to-back outings on Wednesday and Thursday. Marmol said on Friday that a decision on when Middleton is activated from the injured list may come after his back-to-back outings.
Right-hander Giovanny Gallegos’ bullpen on Friday was his second since being placed on the IL with a right shoulder impingement, Marmol said. Gallegos’ next step in his recovery has not been determined yet.
How Ivan Herrera and his mother have helped the Cardinals keep the line moving offensively
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Wherever the confidence that accompanies regular playing time intersects with that warm and familiar feeling of a mother’s home cooking, that’s where Cardinals catcher Iván Herrera has resided for roughly the last two weeks.
Cosmic coincidence aligned Herrera’s injury-propelled rise to the primary catcher role with a visit from his mother, Dona, during the Cardinals previous home stand. As a result, Herrera has provided a stabilizing force for a club that appeared teetering on the edge of calamity.
On Saturday night, Herrera’s steady presence played a key role in the pivotal inning of a 7-2 series-clinching win of the Cardinals against the Boston Red Sox in front of an announced crowd of 40,690 at Busch Stadium.
Herrera extended his career-best hitting streak to nine games with an RBI single in the eighth inning that put the Cardinals (20-25) ahead for good as they captured their fifth win in their last six games.
Afterward, Herrera made a very clear connection between his recent run of offensive production and his mother’s visit from Panama.
“Since she came here, I started raking,” Herrera said with a laugh and a big smile. “She’s probably going to start living with me too.”
Herrera, 23, has batted .284 through his first 31 games of this season. He entered the night with the third-highest batting average in the majors since May 6 (.448).
Herrera said his mother came to United States last summer when he got called up to the majors, but she had to leave before he’d gotten to play in a game. So her first time being in the ballpark and seeing him play in the big leagues came earlier this month.
“Yeah, it is emotional,” Herrera said. “I owe everything to her. She’s the reason why I’m here. I’m just happy I can make her proud, playing good in front of her.”
With the score tied 2-2 in the eighth inning and two men on base after singles by Nolan Arenado and Alec Burleson, Herrera mashed a first-pitch sweeper from Red Sox reliever Justin Slaten on the ground through a drawn-in infield and into left field for an RBI single.
Herrera’s hit, which had an 105.5-mph exit velocity – drove in the go-ahead run and opened the floodgates on a five-run inning that featured six singles, a sacrifice fly and a fielding error.
“If you saw my previous at-bats, they were (throwing) a lot of off-speed,” Herrera said. “I was chasing because I was stubborn in my approach that ‘I want to get a fastball. I want to hit a fastball.’ Then I told (hitting coach) Turner (Ward) that I’m just going to sit off-speed because I know that’s what want to do with me.
“I got the slider. Hit it pretty good. I saw it really good, almost tried to put it in the air. Got the job done. I’m just happy to help the team win.”
The Cardinals offensive woes have been prominent in the early stage of this season. They entered the weekend series with the worst scoring offense in the National League. Several of their key hitters have performed below expectations.
The drum beat about the offensive futility really started to intensify during that previous home stand. Just when the club’s struggles began to become the only relevant daily topic of discussion, their hottest hitter, emotional catalyst and starting catcher Willson Contreras suffered a fractured forearm.
If the sky didn’t already feel like it was falling prior to that point, it might have only been because Contreras’ bat was holding it up.
In the aftermath of his disappointing diagnosis, Contreras tapped his partner behind the plate, Herrera, and let him know it was now his job to keep the sky from falling one at-bat at a time and one pitch at a time as he assumed the responsibility of shepherding the pitching staff to success.
“He’s done a really good job,” Cardinals star third baseman Nolan Arenado said of Herrera. “I mean, his bat is really good. He hits the ball hard. Great at-bats. And it seems like his catching is only getting better as he continues to play.
"He’s doing a great job. It’s hard to pick up Willson. That’s a huge piece for us. But I think like any player, the most at-bats you get the more comfortable you’ll get. It seems like that’s what he’s doing.”
Herrera helped the pitching staff hold the Red Sox (22-24) to two runs and just six hits.
Cardinals starting pitcher Miles Mikolas, became the 32nd pitcher in franchise history to make 150 starts for the club, allowed just one run on two hits and one walk in five innings.
Through four innings, Mikolas allowed just one hit and it resulted in a run. Red Sox star third baseman Rafael Devers belted a 1-2 curveball below the zone an estimated 431 feet to center field for a solo home run.
Devers’ blast, his second of the series, snapped a string of seven consecutive batters retired by Mikolas.
The Cardinals defense recorded their 10th outfield assist of the season, which is tied for the second-most in the NL. Their infield defense anchored by Arenado and first baseman Paul Goldschmidt on the corners along with rookie shortstop Masyn Winn and second baseman Nolan Gorman stood tall once again.
Winn made multiple diving plays at shortstop to steal hits and keep the Red Sox from extending innings, while Arenado made a sliding catching along the wall in foul territory to end and inning. Arenado also made an outstanding barehanded play to field and throw to first to keep another runner off base.
For the second night in a row, the Cardinals matched their season high for hits in a game (14). Ten batters recorded at least one hit for the Cardinals.
“I think it’s just the ebbs and flows of the season,” Cardinals infielder/outfielder and leadoff hitter Brendan Donovan said. “You’re going to through rough patches where things aren’t going your way. You’re going to through patches where things are going your way.
"I think that’s a testament to the toughness of this team and the relentlessness and selflessness of this team. If we can continue to do that on a daily basis, I think we’ll be happy with where we’re at.”
Gorman went 2 for 4 with a home run and two runs scored, while Burleson (2 for 4), Arenado (2 for 3) and Lars Nootbaar (2 for 5) also enjoyed multi-hit games.
Winn extended his hitting streak to career-best 10 consecutive games.
In their last six games, they’ve scored 40 runs. They’ve hit home runs in six consecutive games, and they’ve collected 37 hits in their last three games alone.
“At some point you have to put what’s going on behind you and take a deep breath,” Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said of the recent offensive turnaround. “Guys are — if I could narrow it down to something — just playing with confidence. You just see it. The way they’re carrying themselves. The way they’re holding their shoulders. Just taking the field looks different, and they’re getting results.
“Playing at home and playing well is meaningful. I mean playing in front of that crowd today and them getting behind it, giving them something to cheer about, that gets you going too.”
How to watch Sunday's Cardinals-Red Sox game, which airs on Roku
Cardinals fans wanting to tune in to Sunday's game will have to watch it on Roku, thanks to MLB's new broadcast deal.
The game vs. the Red Sox is the first in MLB's new deal with Roku. Starting time was moved up to 12:05 p.m., more than an hour earlier than the usual Sunday afternoon start time at Busch.
The game is available for free and without an account. Here's how to watch:
If you have a Roku device, the game is available on your home screen. Or by searching "MLB Leadoff."
On smart TVs and other streaming players, search for the apps section, then search for "The Roku Channel" and install it. Once you've got the app installed, search "MLB Leadoff."
The Roku Channel is accessible on Amazon Fire devices, Samsung TVs and Google TVs.
On the web via a computer, the game is available at . Here's a .
On a cellphone or tablet, you'll need to download the Roku App via the or the . Then search "MLB Leadoff."
If you already have an or MLB Extra Innings subscription, the game is available there for free and without blackout restrictions worldwide using the MLB app or your cable system as you would any other game.
If you want to watch it later, a full game replay will be available to stream via the above methods six hours after the game ends.
The Cardinals' game on June 16 at Wrigley Field vs. the Cubs also airs on Roku.
The games will feature local broadcasters, and Cardinals play-by-play man Chip Caray will call Sunday's game along with Bally Sports Midwest colleague Alexa Datt and Red Sox broadcaster Will Middlebrooks.
Can former October rivals, Red Sox and Cardinals, avoid another fall? Best Podcast in Baseball
For these two October rivals, once legends of fall now just legends after a fall, who is closer to a return to postseason prominence?
With the Red Sox in Ƶ for the first time since 2017, the year before their most recent championship, . In the stands late Friday night at Busch Stadium with the sounds of a winding-down ballpark all around them, Ƶ baseball writer Derrick Goold and Abraham discuss the similarities between the two teams, the impatience of their respective fanbases, their shared history, and their shared challenge of returning to meet expectations as some of their peers widen the gap on spending and what it means to go all-in for a championship. Like, say, the Red Sox once did.
Change is either the goal or the need -- for both clubs.
And depending on how 2024 turns out for them, change could be forced upon them.
But somethings that won't are the ties that bind Boston and the Cardinals.
As the Cardinals look to regain an edge and rethink how they develop players (especially pitchers), they've hired former Boston general manager Chaim Bloom, and as Boston prepares for the possibility of manager Alex Cora's departure when his contract expires at the end of this season, it's possible a former Cardinal (or few) could emerge as candidates to replace him as the Red Sox have shifted to a new direction beneath Cora's feet. Abraham details the forces in play when it comes to Boston's new front office direction, new pitching coach, and how that all fits with the pre-existing manager who led them to their most recent World Series championship. The longtime baseball writer, who opined for the Globe throughout Bloom's tenure leading the Sox, also offers a viewpoint on what role he could best serve with the Cardinals going into a new era.
The two baseball writers also discuss Tyler O'Neill's first impression with his new team after being traded from the Cardinals to the Red Sox, and what could be his future at Fenway Park as a pending free agent.
Former Cardinal Tyler O'Neill made his first visit to Busch Stadium after a December trade that sent him to the Boston Red Sox.
The Red Sox, off to a strong and even surprising start, arrived in Ƶ with the lowest team ERA in the majors -- before, that is, the Cardinals scored 10 runs to win the first game of the series -- and behind that radical reduction in ERA is a shift in pitching approach. Abraham, , explains the change Boston made, the pushback it got from some pitchers, and ultimately the strong results that won games and won over pitchers even while upending convention and throwing fewer fastballs. It's an innovation and response to the talent they have on the pitching staff that the Cardinals, likewise, are looking to make. Yet another overlap for the organizations.
The biggest connection, of course, could be the fan bases, which Abraham deftly describes by borrowing from another member of Major League Baseball's royal franchises: the Yankees. He quotes New York executive Brian Cashman's description of how the Yankees play 162 one-game series with all the pressure and attention and expectation that comes with everything being on the line that day. That fits for Boston and Ƶ, too. And pressure is building in both places.
The Best Podcast in Baseball, sponsored by Closets by Design of Ƶ, is a production of the Ƶ, , and Derrick Goold. It is part of the constant Cardinals coverage at and in the pages of the morning Post-Dispatch.
Willson Contreras said his return from an arm fracture could come sooner than expected, and here's why his optimism should be taken a little differently than previous happy injury talk.
Postseason defines 3-person class set for September induction to club's Hall of Fame: Duncan and Morris were key in October revival, Whitey Kurowski won three titles with Cardinals.
Manager insists 'we're in a much better spot' after road trip that included longest losing streak of season and longest winning streak but changed little in the standings.
Early home run sparks Cardinals’ offensive bonanza in 10-run outburst against the Red Sox
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An icebreaker, in the form of an early run or two, has become a key element of Cardinals wins this season. It’s not a necessity, but it’s typically an indicator of which direction a game is headed.
Fortunately for the Cardinals, on Friday night Brendan Donovan and combined for an opening salvo that set the stage for one of their best offensive performances so far this season.
Boston Red Sox young ace Brayan Bello took the mound having allowed two runs or fewer in five of his previous six starts this season. He’d given up just five home runs this season and held opposing hitters to a pedestrian batting average of .210. He also just so happened to be celebrating his 25th birthday.
The Cardinals, having posted the lowest-scoring offense in the National League through their first 43 games, jumped on the birthday boy from the onset of his first career start in Ƶ.
Donovan swatted the second pitch from Bello for a leadoff double and Nootbaar followed with a two-run home run that landed approximately 430 feet away in straightaway center field. Two batters in, the Cardinals grabbed a two-run lead and set the tone for a 10-6 series-opening win over the Red Sox in front of an announced crowd of 37,961 at Busch Stadium.
The Cardinals (19-25) carried that early momentum throughout the night as they scored early and often in the first of nine consecutive games against teams that were .500 or better entering play on Friday.
“The first goal is to move the runner over in that situation there, give (Paul Goldschmidt) a chance with a runner on third, at the very least, to drive him in with less than two outs in the first inning and hopefully get us on the board there,” Nootbaar said of his approach in his first-inning at-bat.
Instead, Nootbaar’s drive carried far enough that Red Sox center fielder Jarren Duran had no chance of getting a glove on it without the aid of stilts.
“You never know,” Nootbaar said of his feeling at contact. “I hit one a little bit harder against Milwaukee and it didn’t go. When I hit it, I was like ‘Okay.’ At the very least he can tag up on that ball. But when you see it hit that lawn, you’re like, 'Alright, that’s pretty cool.'”
Second baseman Nolan Gorman, designated hitter Alec Burleson, rookie shortstop Masyn Winn and Nootbaar each hit home runs in the game.
The Cardinals have now hit home runs in five consecutive games, which ties their longest streak of the season. They homered in five straight games from April 7-12.
went 3 for 5 with an RBI as the Cardinals matched their season highs for runs in a game and hits in a game.
Donovan went 2 for 5 with two runs scored, while Goldschmidt (2 for 4, one walk), Burleson (2 for 5) and Ivan Herrera (2 for 4) had two hits apiece. Nootbaar went 1 for 3 with two walks.
“That’s what it’s supposed to look like,” Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said. “Those guys continue to take really competitive at-bats. You look at the last couple games, they’ve done that. Today was fun. Up and down that lineup, not a whole lot of breathing room. Extra-base hits. Homers. Some key hits when they were needed from just about everybody.”
They also scored in seven of the eight innings they came to the plate (they did not bat in the bottom of the ninth). Eight of the nine batters in their starting lineup recorded at least one hit.
“It’s sweet because you always feel like you have a chance to get up to the plate,” Nootbaar said. “And everybody is contributing in games like that, when it feels like every inning something is happening. Tonight was a good night. We kept the guys rolling. The vibes were high definitely in the dugout.”
Bello (4-2) entered the day with a 3.13 ERA. The opening day starter and anointed ace of the staff — he received a six-year contract extension prior to the start of the regular season — he’s the leading man of a stingiest pitching staff in the majors. The Red Sox (22-23) entered the day leading the big leagues in both team ERA and starting pitchers ERA.
Despite the Red Sox’ collective success on the mound and Bello’s individual success the Cardinals chased the right-hander from the game before he could complete five innings.
Bello, who had won his previous three starts, allowed a season-high five runs on seven hits in 4 2/3 innings. The Cardinals tagged him for three home runs and a total of five extra-base hits.
“We just kept string at-bats together and wear down on the starter,” Burleson said. “I think he had 50 or 60 pitches in three innings or something like that. Just wearing on him and getting to that bullpen and then having tough at-bats. It’s always good to get out early, but you definitely have to continue to add on as the game goes on.”
After Nootbaar’s first-inning homer, the Red Sox tied the score in the second on a two-run triple by David Hamilton against Cardinals starting pitcher Kyle Gibson with two outs and two-strikes.
That Cardinals lead didn’t last long. tied the score again in the bottom of the third with a solo home run to start the frame. Devers’ blast went an estimated 443, the longest home run hit at Busch Stadium this season.
The 3-3 tie lasted until the fourth inning when Burleson swatted the third home run of the game by a Cardinals left-handed hitter. Burleson, who entered the day batting .280, has now hit five home runs in his last 17 games.
Burleson’s homer gave the Cardinals a 4-3 lead in the fourth. They added a run in the fifth on a two-out RBI single by Goldschmidt that chased Bello from the game and pressed the Red Sox bullpen into duty.
The Cardinals added five runs against the Red Sox bullpen and led by as many as five runs in the eighth inning.
“I think we’re just putting pressure, just constant pressure on the team, on the pitchers,” Arenado said of the sustained scoring. “That starter today is really good. He’s got a really good arm. We were able to lay off tough pitches and hit some balls hard, foul some balls off, just put a lot of pressure on that team.”
Gibson (3-2) allowed five runs on eight hits and three walks in six innings, and the Red Sox added an unearned run in the ninth inning against reliever John King.
The Cardinals improved to 11-4 this season when they’ve scored first, something they did just once during their recent seven-game, two-city road trip.
“It seems like we’ve been having to come from behind a lot this year,” Arenado said. “So it was nice to kind of have the lead right there. Obviously, they scored quick. But we bounced right back also. That was huge.
"Gibby did a really good job of staying in the game. He’d probably tell you he wasn’t really happy with his performance, but he did a really good job of keeping us in the game and saving our bullpen.”
Photos: Ƶ Cardinals defeat Boston Red Sox in Ƶ
Expect traffic snarls Sunday in downtown Ƶ with big parade, 2 sporting events
If you're planning to visit downtown Ƶ on Sunday, plan ahead as the city's biggest parade combined with two major sporting events may cause traffic headaches.
The , which begins at 1 p.m., will close most of Market Street downtown for several hours on Sunday afternoon.
The route runs from 20th Street east to Seventh Street, near Busch Stadium.
The parade, first held in 1910, is the second-largest African American parade in the country and is expecting about 3,500 participants and 30,000 spectators.
It's just one of three events expected to draw 30,000 or more attendees downtown on Sunday.
The Battlehawks, who drew nearly 33,000 people to their last home game, host the DC Defenders starting at 11 a.m. Sunday. A Battlehawks win would clinch a playoff berth.
The Cardinals, who played in front of an announced crowd of 43,000-plus in their last Sunday home game, host Boston at 12:05 p.m. Sunday.
Both events will likely be letting out as the parade is still ongoing.
MetroLink remains an option for those wanting to avoid the traffic and parking headaches.
Though the Eighth and Pine station downtown remains closed for refurbishment, there are other downtown stations located near the parade route as well as both Busch Stadium and the Dome at America's Center.
For parade attendees, a from the Schnucks location near the corner of Natural Bridge Avenue and Union Boulevard. The shuttle runs from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Cardinals prospect Victor Scott II homers, Jordan Walker collects two hits: Minor League Report
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Having produced steady on-base results over the past week, Cardinals prospect Victor Scott II used his second stroll to the plate on Friday to show he can run into a jolt with his bat.
With two outs and a runner on first in the second inning of Triple-A Memphis’s home matchup vs. Gwinnett, Scott drove a 2-2 slider thrown low-and-in to right field for a 378-foot homer that left his bat with a 100.2 mph exit velocity, per Statcast. The two-run homer aided Memphis in its 10-3 win over the Braves Class AAA club and continued Scott’s recent success at the plate.
Following a nine-for-52 (.173) stretch at the plate in 13 Triple-A games after being optioned to the minors, the 23-year-old is seven-for-26 (.269) with a .406 on-base percentage in his last eight games. Scott’s past eight games include five walks, five singles, a triple, a home run, and a hit-by-pitch.
The outfield prospect has a .205 average and .287 in 21 games since he was sent to Triple-A on April 21. While in the majors after originally skipping Triple-A and beginning the year as the Cardinals’ starting center fielder, Scott batted .085 and had a .138 on-base percentage.
Here are other notable performances from across the Cardinals farm system:
Right fielder Jordan Walker, Class AAA Memphis:Hitting second in Memphis’s order behind the speedster Scott, Walker went two-for-four with a triple, two RBIs, and a walk. Walker’s hits registered as two of the hardest hit balls between Memphis and Gwinnett hitters. After Scott worked a walk on an eight-pitch at-bat to begin the bottom of the first inning, Walker belted a fly ball that bounced off the top of the wall in left-center and kicked away from center fielder J.P. Martinez. As Martinez chased for the ball, Walker raced to third base for a stand-up triple that plated Scott for the game’s first run. The triple, which registered a 104.2 mph exit velocity, was Walker’s fifth extra-base hit in 58 at-bats since being sent to the minors. The 21-year-old added to his night with a single in the fourth inning. The single jumped off his bat with a 111.4 mph exit velocity, making it the hardest-hit ball between Memphis and Gwinnett hitters and the second-hardest-hit ball on Friday night across Triple-A. Walker has a .328/.394/.431 slash line in 15 games with Memphis. He has reached base safely with a hit in 11 of his last 12 games.
Right-handed pitcher Ian Bedell, Class AA Springfield:The Mizzou made righty delivered arguably his strongest out of the season during Springfield’s 9-4 loss to Midland. Bedell completed seven innings and kept opposing hitters to one run on three hits and a walk on 81 pitches (56 strikes). He struck out six batters in the outing. The only run Bedell allowed came on a leadoff homer in the fourth inning. The outing was the 24-year-old’s longest of the year and secured his first quality start in Double-A. Bedell, a former fourth-round pick in the 2020 draft, has a 5.70 ERA in 36 1/3 innings — nine of which have come as a reliever. He’s notched 38 strikeouts across seven games (five starts).
Outfielder Won-Bin Cho, Class High-A Peoria:The wait for Cho’s first High-A home run ended in the first inning of Peoria’s 6-1 loss to West Michigan. Cho belted a 1-1 slider that sailed just beyond the berm at Dozer Park. Cho, one of the Cardinals top outfield prospects, did not homer in 92 at-bats in his introduction to High-A after spending last season in Low-A. The 20-year-old, who also singled on Friday night, is batting .198 with a .572 OPS through 27 games. He has struck out 41 times and walked nine times. The home run and single in Peoria’s loss to West Michigan gave the 20-year-old his first two hits of May.
Now with Red Sox, Tyler O'Neill reflects on 'special' time with Ƶ: Cardinals Extra
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Many things come to mind for Red Sox outfielder Tyler O’Neill when he reflects on six seasons spent with the Ƶ Cardinals.
There are the off-field moments.
“A lot of life happened for me. I got married during this phase and had a baby girl,” O’Neill said from the visitor’s clubhouse ahead of Friday’s series opener between the Cardinals and Red Sox. “Just came in as a young kid and left as a husband, father, (and) just more of a human.”
There are the on-field moments like in 2021 when the Cardinals won a franchise-record 17 consecutive games that clinched a National League Wild Card spot.
“I’ll never forget that run that we went on (in 2021). ... That was super special,” O’Neill said.
And the experiences like an arbitration case he lost in 2022 and a pair of injury-limited campaigns in his final two years as a Cardinal.
“A crazy couple of years over here it just kind of started off like. Just kind of up and down. And then some injuries happen. Just never got going from there,” he said.
In a new uniform and with a different franchise after a December trade to the Boston Red Sox, the 28-year-old feels he has a “fresh start.”
“I think it was obviously coming to everyone,” O’Neill said of the trade. “It was just a matter of where I was going to go. It was just a waiting game for a little bit, man. It was a tough time with uncertainty in not knowing what was going on. But it all ended up for the best and I’m really thankful for where landed. I landed in Boston and on my feet.”
Acquired in a July 2017 trade with the Seattle Mariners, O’Neill reached the majors in 2018 with the Cardinals and played in 477 games for Ƶ. The Canadian-born outfielder batted .249 with 78 homers, 40 stolen bases, and posted a .788 OPS in six seasons. He won two Gold Glove awards (2020 and 2021) in left field and finished eighth in National League MVP voting in 2021 — a season during which he batted .286 with a .912 OPS and an OPS+ of 148 in a career-high 138 games.
During his final two seasons before being dealt to Boston this past winter for righty reliever Nick Robertson and right-handed prospect Victor Santos, O’Neill combined to play in 168 games as he dealt with multiple injuries including back, shoulder, and hamstring injuries. He produced a .229 average and .707 OPS in the injury-limited campaigns.
He described his offseason prep as one during which he’s adjusted his training program to “a more complete structure” in order to avoid the setbacks he faced the past two years.
To begin his career as a member of the Red Sox, O’Neill owns a .256 average and a .925 OPS with 10 home runs and 16 RBIs in his first 34 games for Boston. Seven of his first 10 home runs came in his first 15 games before he spent just over a week on the injured list with a concussion. He comes into his first series as a visitor to Busch Stadium having gone 16-for-73 (.219) at the plate and produced a .730 OPS in 19 following his IL activation.
“I got off to a hot start, which was nice,” O’Neill said. “Being able to backspin the ball to all fields is when I know I’m going right. I went through a bit of a stretch just pulling off balls, pulling the ball foul, (and) still barreling the baseball (and) pulling it foul.”
In his first at-bat on Friday, O’Neill received a ovation from the Busch Stadium crowd and stepped aside to tip his helmet to fans and his former teammates and coaches before lacing a single to left-center field.
He said prior to the series-opener that he hoped to receive some sort of positive reception before proceeding with the series like any other.
“Wearing that home uni for a lot of time over in that first base dugout it was super special,” O’Neill said. “A special experience for me and to just see how this fan base and this heritage treats their former players s really special. Hopefully if I get something similar tonight and we can put that to rest after that.”
Extra Bases
Matthew Liberatore will start on Sunday against the Red Sox. The lefty has filled the spot in the Cardinals’ rotation left open after Steven Matz (lower back) went on the injured list on May 3. Marmol said Liberatore, who began the year in a bullpen role and had a 3.78 ERA in 16 2/3 innings, is expected to remain in Matz’s rotation spot until the Cardinals feel they have a “better option” while Matz recovers from injury.
Right-hander Giovanny Gallegos threw a bullpen on Friday, Marmol said. Gallegos (right shoulder impingement) has been on the injured list since May 6.
Right-hander Keynan Middleton completed a scoreless inning of relief on Thursday with Double-A Springfield as he continues to rehab from a right forearm injury. Middleton’s next rehab outing and where it takes place has not been determined, Marmol said. After two rest days, the Cardinals hope to have Middleton make back-to-back rehab appearances. Following that, the Cardinals b will likely decide if the righty will need to continue his rehab with appearances of more than one inning or if he will be activated. Middleton has not pitched in a game since March 7.
Circular No. 24 patches to honor the late Hall of Fame manager Whitey Herzog were added to the arm sleeves of the Cardinals home white uniforms ahead of Friday’s series opener. The Cardinals are set to have No. 24 patches honoring Herzog on their home whites, road grays, cream-colored Saturday home jerseys, and the victory blue Saturday road jerseys for the rest of the 2024 season. The patches appear on the sleeve opposite the advertisement patch on Ƶ’s jerseys.