ST. LOUIS — Monday’s Game Report: Cardinals 7, Blue Jays 3 (10 innings)
It took an at-bat in the 10th inning to do it, but Paul Goldschmidt picked a pretty dramatic way to extend his hitting streak on Monday night.
After going 0-of-4, striking out three times and grounding into a double play, Goldschmidt came up again with two outs and the bases loaded in the extra inning at Busch Stadium.
On a 1-2 pitch, Goldschmidt sent a 90 miles per hour slider over the wall in left field for a walkoff grand slam that gave the Cardinals the win over the Toronto Blue Jays.
The homer, Goldschmidt’s seventh of the season, extended his hitting streak to 15 games and his streak of reaching base by either a hit or walk to 29 consecutive games. During his 15-game streak Goldschmidt has had 18 hits, including 12 doubles and five home runs while driving in 22 runs.
It was the seventh extra-inning homer in Goldschmidt’s career and also his seventh career grand slam.
The Cardinals had several chances to win the game in the 10th before Goldschmidt’s at-bat. A wild pitch put ghost runner Lars Nootbaar on third with no outs, but Harrison Bader and pinch-hitter Albert Pujols struck out.
Tommy Edman drew a walk and pinch-hitter Edmundo Sosa also walked, bringing Goldschmidt to the plate.
The win was the fourth in a row for the Cardinals, their longest winning streak of the season.
Here is how the game broke down:
At the plate: After taking a 1-0 lead in the second on an RBI double by Brendan Donovan, the Cardinals had to rally from a 3-1 deficit to tie the game in the seventh. Juan Yepez hit his fourth homer before Donovan and Corey Dickerson singled and Bader’s single brought home the tying run … Arenado had three hits, including a double that just missed being a walkoff homer in the ninth … The Cardinals hit into double plays to end the seventh, eighth and ninth innings.
On the mound: After throwing five shutout innings, Miles Mikolas allowed a homer to George Springer in the sixth and then ran into more trouble in the seventh, when the Blue Jays loaded the bases with two outs. He was relieved by Andre Pallante, who walked the next two batters to force in the two runs that gave Toronto its lead before finally getting out of the inning. With both of those runs charged to Mikolas, it was the first time in nine starts he allowed more than two earned runs … Giovanny Gallegos and Ryan Helsley kept the game tied in he eighth and ninth before Genesis Cabrera stranded the ghost runner in the 10th, thanks in part to a diving catch by Donovan in right field.
Key stat: It was the Cardinals’ first walkoff grand slam in extra innings since Matt Carpenter hit one in the 11th inning on April 27, 2017, also against Toronto. It was the fifth time it has happened in franchise history in the modern era (since 1920).
Worth noting: It was a busy day of roster moves for the Cardinals, who put Steven Matz (shoulder) and Dylan Carlson (hamstring) on the injured list, optioned Angel Rondon to Memphis and placed Yadier Molina on the bereavement/family medical emergency list. Recalled from Memphis were Matthew Liberatore, who will replace Matz in the rotation, Nootbaar, Junior Fernandez and catcher Ivan Herrera. If he gets into a game Herrera will be making his major-league debut … A team official said Molina was returning to Puerto Rico, where his son is scheduled to have surgery on his arm on Tuesday. The Cardinals are hoping Molina will be back in time to catch Adam Wainwright’s next scheduled start on Thursday night … It also appears that Alex Reyes will need surgery on his injured right shoulder, according to a second medical opinion. That surgery could force him to miss the entire season.
Looking ahead: Jordan Hicks will get the start on Tuesday night in the final game of the two-game series.
Follow Rob Rains on Twitter @RobRains