Cardinals close Twins series with loss

Kennys Vargas walk-off costs Cardinals game

Had this been the 1987 World Series, this game would have ended in dramatic fashion.

Thursday’s contest with the St. Louis Cardinals and Minnesota Twins did end with a walk-off homer, but it wasn’t the kind that would make Jack Buck yell “Go crazy, folks!”

A home run by Kennys Vargas in the ninth inning was enough to close out a 2-1 win for the Twins in the final game of a four-game series. Vargas was recently recalled from Triple-A Rochester because Minnesota needed a power bat in the middle of the lineup.

The Cardinals, unfortunately, found out Vargas could swing that power bat.

St. Louis (43-23) still owns baseball’s best record, but its lead over the Pittsburgh Pirates slipped to 4 games because the Pirates scored a 3-2 win over the Chicago White Sox.

The game was scoreless until the top of the seventh inning, when Jason Heyward homered off Twins pitcher Mike Pelfrey.

The game of homers continued in the eighth, when Cardinals reliever Kevin Siegrist blew a save as Joe Mauer homered to tie the score at 1-1.

That set the stage for the ninth inning, where Vargas sent the Target Field crowd home happy as he homered to end the contest.

The loss spoiled an otherwise decent outing for Jaime Garcia, who lasted six innings and gave up no runs. He walked two and struck out four while lowering his ERA to 1.76.

Up next

The Cardinals stay on the road as they travel to Philadelphia to start a weekend series with the Phillies. They caught a bit of a break because Philadelphia starter Cole Hamels will miss one turn due to a hamstring strain.

Starting in Hamels’ place is Philippe Aumont, who is a converted starter for the Phillies. Tyler Lyons will pitch for St. Louis Cardinals.

Game time for Friday is 7:10 p.m.

Next: Sounds silence Redbirds