SAN FRANCISCO — Returning to the leadoff spot has been a good move for Tommy Edman.
Edman had three hits and drove in three runs on Thursday night to lead the Cardinals to the win over the Giants in the opener of a four-game series in San Francisco.
Edman doubled in the third inning, drove in two runs with a single in the fifth and added another RBI single as the Cardinals broke the game open with four runs in the seventh.
After hitting ninth for the early part of this season, Edman has posted a .326 average (15-of-46) in 13 games in the leadoff spot, including the last 12 games hitting at the top of the lineup.
Here is how the game broke down:
At the plate: Yadier Molina put the Cardinals in front with his first homer of the season in the third. He also singled and scored on Edman’s hit in the fifth … Juan Yepez, starting for the second game in a row, had another two-hit game and drove in his first career run … Tyler O’Neill had a pair of hits, driving in two runs with his bases-loaded single in the seventh … Paul DeJong was hitless in four at-bats, dropping his average to .119.
On the mound: Miles Mikolas worked 5 2/3 innings, giving up one run. He left with the bases loaded in the sixth, but Andre Pallante got a groundout to get out of the jam before pitching the seventh … Nick Wittgren and Kodi Whitley also turned in scoreless innings of relief.
Key stat: Molina’s homer was only the second of his career at Oracle Park, formerly AT&T Park in 149 at-bats. The other homer came on May 12, 2012 off Sergio Romo.
Worth noting: Molina now has 999 RBIs for his Cardinals’ career, two away from tying Ken Boyer for sixth on the franchise career list … The home run was the 172nd of Molina’s career, tying him with Ted Simmons for ninth all-time in team history … By giving up one run, Mikolas’s ERA actually went up, from 1.52 to 1.53. for the season … Because of their recent Covid spike, the Cardinals brought pitcher Jake Walsh and catcher Ali Sanchez on the trip to serve as a taxi squad … The Giants used nine pitchers in the game, with only one throwing more than 22 pitches.
Looking ahead: Jordan Hicks will get the start on Friday night in the second game of the series.
Follow Rob Rains on Twitter @RobRains.