ST. LOUIS — There’s really nothing about a game in June that screams “must win” but the Cardinals likely felt Sunday’s game did carry a little extra importance than some games.
A loss would have meant dropping three of the four games at home against the last-place Rockies, the first of five consecutive series against losing teams that provided a chance for the Cardinals to close the gap in the NL Central.
Instead, the Cardinals got the win that at least earned them a split of the series and the way the game went also left them with a positive feeling heading into Monday’s day off.
Andre Pallante turned in five scoreless innings, Alec Burleson homered, Masyn Winn drove in two runs and the Cardinals played a clean game defensively, something they haven’t been able to say lately, all important aspects of the victory.
“We definitely didn’t want to lose the series to these guys,” Winn said, “but my personal opinion is I feel like every game is a must win. We’re two games under .500 now. We’ve got to get going. Everything was good today.”
It was only the fourth time in their 15 wins at Busch Stadium that their winning margin was more than three runs.
“Just the way that we prepare for each game kind of says ‘must win,’” Brendan Donovan said. “If you think about it ‘Oh my goodness we have to win this game’ you put a little extra pressure on yourself.
“I think it’s like treat every game the same; that’s kind of the mentality that we have. … The preparation is kind of off the charts with this group. The hardest part about this game no matter how it’s going is just showing up again.”
Here is how Sunday’s game broke down:
At the plate: Burleson’s ninth homer of the year leading off the third followed a sacrifice fly from Pedro Pages in the second that scored Dylan Carlson, who led off that inning with a double … Winn’s two-run single in the fourth increased the lead to 4-0 … A leadoff walk turned into their final run in the sixth on a Colorado throwing error …Winn and Nolan Arenado each had two of the team’s 10 hits.
On the mound: Pallante allowed only three hits, walked one and struck out six … Between a leadoff single in thie third and a two-out walk in the eighth, Pallante, Matthew Liberatore and Ryan Fernandez retired 17 of 18 hitters, with only a walk by Pallante in the fifth allowing a Colorado runner to reach base … A leadoff double and RBI single in the ninth off John King spoiled the shutout.
Key stat: After winning the final game in just two of their first 15 series to begin the season, the Cardinals have now won the final game of their last six series.
Worth noting: The Cardinals had committed 28 errors in their previous 26 games, including 12 in their last eight games … Burleson’s homer was the 28th at home for the Cardinals this season, the 19th which came with nobody on base … The Rockies had two stolen bases on Sunday, giving them eight in the series. Cardinals catchers have thrown out only eight of 58 basestealers this season. They have not thrown out a runner attempting to steal in their last 13 games … The largest margin of victory for the Cardinals at Busch Stadium this year has been five runs, a 7-2 win over the Red Sox on May 18.
Looking ahead: After Monday’s day off, the Cardinals will welcome the Pittsburgh Pirates to town for the first time this season. Rookie Paul Skenes, off to a 3-0 start to his career, will pitch the opener of the three-game series while Miles Mikolas is scheduled to start for the Cardinals.
Follow Rob Rains on Twitter @RobRains
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