ST. LOUIS — The Texas Rangers reminded the Cardinals on Monday night that sometimes how hard a ball is hit is not very important.
In a classic example of soft contact, the Rangers recorded five hits that did not leave the infield, which played a big role in their getting the win in the opener of a series at Busch Stadium.
Three of those infield hits came off starter Andre Pallante, who allowed three runs over five innings in what could have been his final start for the Cardinals, who acquired starter Erick Fedde from the White Sox in a trade earlier Monday.
The loss dropped the Cardinals to 1-3 in their current homestand and to just two games above .500 for the season.
Here is how Monday night’s game broke down:
At the plate: Matt Carpenter made only his second start since July 3, serving as the DH, and hit a two-run homwe in the third inning … The Cardinals loaded the bases with nobody out in the seventh but could only score one run, on a single by Michael Siani, before the inning ended when Masyn Winn lined into a double play … The top four hitters in the Cardinals lineup were a combined 1-of-15, with the only hit a single by Winn in the third.
On the mound: Two of the hitters who got infield singles off Pallante came around to score … The Rangers added three runs in the seventh, taking advantage of errors by Alec Burleson and Nolan Arenado in front of a two-run home run by Nathaniel Lowe off Chris Roycroft … Kyle Leahy kept the Rangers from adding to their lead with two scoreless innings in the eighth and ninth.
Key stat: The Rangers were 4-of-12 with runners in scoring position. In the first four games of this homestand, the first three of which were against the Nationals, the Cardinals’ opponents had a combined 59 at-bats with a runner on second or third, collecting 19 hits.
Worth noting: The two errors snapped a steak of 17 consecutive games without an error by the Cardinals, the longest in franchise history … The Cardinals also reunited with outfielder Tommy Pham in the three-way trade with the White Sox and Dodgers on Monday. Pham is expected to join the Cardinals on Tuesday, when they will have to make another roster move to add him to the active roster … The trading deadline is at 5 p.m. Tuesday St. Louis time.
Looking ahead: St. Louis native Max Scherzer will get the start for the Rangers on Tuesday night in the second game of the series while Lance Lynn will start for the Cardinals.
Follow Rob Rains on X @RobRains.