PHILADELPHIA — Friday’s Game Report: Phillies 9, Cardinals 2
Carlos Martinez and the Cardinals could not overcome one bad inning on Friday night in the loss in Philadelphia.
The Phillies took advantage of some shaky defense to score six runs in the second inning in keeping Martinez winless on the season.
The big hit was a two-run double by Bryce Harper that capped the inning.
Martinez fell to 0-3 on the season with a 7.80 ERA. He has only pitched five innings in each start. Since his last win as a starter on July 7, 2018, Martinez has gone 0-8 in 11 starts.
Here is how Friday night’s game broke down:
At the plate: The Cardinals’ only runs came on a two-run homer by Justin Williams, his first in the majors, in the eighth inning. It followed a double by Dylan Carlson and snapped a streak of 19 consecutive scoreless innings dating back to their nine-run fifth inning on Tuesday … Tommy Edman had two hits to extend his hitting streak to a career-high 11 games but Yadier Molina went 0-of-4, ending his streak at 10 games … Scott Hurst made his major-league debut as a pinch-hitter for Martinez in the sixth, popping out to shortstop.
On the mound: In their 13 games, the Cardinals have had only two pitchers who went beyond five innings in their start and only one who lasted six innings … After the six-run second, Martinez retired the next nine hitters he faced over the next three innings … Kodi Whitley gave up a two-run homer to J.T. Realmuto in the seventh before the Phillies scored their final run off Andrew Miller in the eighth.
Key stat: Williams’s home run extended the Cardinals streak to 16 consecutive games with at least one home run at Citizens Bank Park, dating back to 2015. It’s the longest streak ever by the Cardinals with a home run in Philadelphia and ties the record for most consecutive games with a home run by any visiting team in Philadelphia.
Worth noting: Both Molina and Realmuto hit cleanup in Friday night’s game, the first time both the catcher for the Cardinals and their opponent had their catcher hitting in that spot since Aug. 30, 2015, when the Cardinals played the Giants. The catchers that night were Molina and Buster Posey … Hurst traveled with the Cardinals to Philadelphia on Thursday after he was called up from the alternate site camp and Lane Thomas returned to that camp in a swap of outfielders. Hurst will normally wear No. 36 but like all players was wearing 42 on Friday night in honor of Jackie Robinson … The Cardinals have three pitchers on their taxi squad for this trip, along with infielder Jose Rondon and catcher Ali Sanchez The pitchers are Angel Rondon, Seth Elledge and Jake Woodford.
Up next: Kwang Hyun Kim is scheduled to make his season debut on Saturday in the middle game of the series. The Cardinals will have to make another roster move before the game when he is activated. It remains to be seen if they will go to 14 pitchers or make a pitcher-for-pitcher swap and stay at 13.
Follow Rob Rains on Twitter @RobRains
