JUPITER, Fla. — Result: Cardinals 3, Mets 2
It was the kind of situation a manager wants to see in spring training.
A pitcher competing for a spot in the bullpen, in this case the Cardinals’ Riley O’Brien, came into Friday’s game against the Mets with Francisco Lindor and Pete Alonso the first two hitters due up in the fourth inning.
“It just lined up where he could get the Alonso at-bat,” said manager Oli Marmol. “Really good hitter. Wanted to see his stuff against some of the better guys so it was good.”
Marmol didn’t even mind seeing Lindor open the inning with a double, making the Alonso at-bat even more meaningful.
O’Brien struck out Alonso, then retired the next two hitters on groundballs.
“That worked out really well, where you get punched then have to face a really good guy, right on right, and see how he responds to that,” Marmol said. “I liked the way that played out.”
It was the third scoreless outing of the spring for O’Brien, acquired by the Cardinals from the Mariners in December.
O’Brien said he liked the matchup as well, getting the test and passing it.
“I don’t really try to think about which hitters (are up),” he said, “but it was cool facing those guys. Tried to focus on keeping Lindor on second and not allowing him to score.
“At the end of the day I just try to go with my best strengths versus the hitter. I try not to shy away from them too much and just attack them.”
O’Brien is one of a group of relievers competing for the three open spots in the bullpen.
“The results have been good,” O’Brien said. “There are still some things to clean up and get more consistent with. I try not to look too much at the results, more on the feedback of how I’m feeling and how the ball is coming out.”
Here is how Friday’s game broke down:
High: Felix Fermin went 3-of-3 out of the ninth spot in the batting order.
Low: Nick Robertson allowed a run on three hits and has now allowed four runs in three innings in his three appearances.
At the plate: The bottom three hitters in the starting lineup – Jordan Walker, Nick Burleson and Ferman – were a combined 6-of-9 with three runs scored and one RBI … Walker’s hit was a triple … Dylan Carlson had his first hit of the spring, an RBI single.
On the mound: Matthew Liberatore worked the first three innings, allowing a home run to Mark Vientos … Gordon Graceffo threw two scoreless innings while Andre Pallante and Ryan Fernandez each turned in a scoreless inning.
Worth noting: The routine pre-game batting practice was turned into a “closest to the pin” golf competition before the game, with players taking turns trying to hit a golf shot near a spot in center field from a mat on top of home plate on one of the back fields in the Cardinals complex. “We saw some really good swings from those we expected and some really bad ones from those we expected,” Marmol said. “A couple surprised me on both sides.”
Up next: Zack Thompson will make his second start of the spring on Saturday as the Cardinals travel to play the Astros in West Palm Beach.
Follow Rob Rains on Twitter @RobRains
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