ICYMI: Cardinals stumble early, fall in opener

All it took was one inning to cause the St. Louis Cardinals to stumble on Tuesday.

Thanks to a three-run first inning, the Cincinnati Reds raced ahead and held off the Cardinals for a 3-2 win in National League Central action at Great American Ball Park.

St. Louis dropped to 67-39 with the loss and stayed 5 1/2 games in front of the Pittsburgh Pirates in the competitive Central race. Its lead over the Chicago Cubs is 8 1/2 games.

RBI doubles by Jay Bruce and Marlon Byrd, and an RBI single from Eugenio Suarez, accounted for the three runs scored in the first inning.

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Cincinnati maintained its 3-0 lead until the third inning, when Matt Carpenter blasted a two-run homer and kept his average at .264 for the season. There was no other scoring following the top of the third inning, leaving both teams grasping for runs.

The fact St. Louis couldn’t score in six innings after the third is still disconcerting. What is it about the Cardinals offense that gets so anemic at times?

It could be Reds starter Anthony DeSclafani, who beat the Cardinals for the second time in a week. DeSclafani improved his record to 7-7 overall, but his mark against St. Louis includes three walks and 12 strikeouts in 13 innings pitched this past week.

John Lackey struck out five in six innings of work and took the loss.

What’s next?

Carlos Martinez (11-4, 2.61) will take the hill in Wednesday’s 7:10 p.m. contest, as he faces Cincinnati starter David Holmberg (1-0, 3.00).