Cardinals done in by rain and Royals

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3. 7. Final. 2. 33

Rain costs Cardinals a chance at victory

On Friday night it was Chris Young that ruined the St. Louis Cardinals‘ chances to win.

Saturday, Mother Nature didn’t even take the mound, but the Cardinals still fell short as a result.

In a game shortened to six innings by rain, the Cardinals lost 3-2 to the Kansas City Royals. Their lead over the Chicago Cubs was shortened to three games, pending the result of the Cubs’ game against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

John Lackey fell to 2-3 overall despite having a decent performance. In five innings of work Lackey allowed three earned runs on six hits with two walks and two strikeouts.

In the top of the second inning, Yadier Molina grounded out to third and scored Jhonny Peralta to give the Cardinals a 1-0 lead. Kansas City promptly erased that lead when Alex Gordon smacked a two-run homer in the bottom half of the inning.

The crucial run came in the fourth when Salvador Perez‘s RBI single made it 3-1. An RBI single by Matt Carpenter cut the deficit to 3-2 in the fifth before the ultimate closer — rain — ended the Cardinals’ hopes of victory.

St. Louis would have loved another chance at pitcher Edinson Volquez, but it was not meant to be.

The Cardinals lost the Kansas City portion of the I-70 series, because there is only one more game left before they return home to face the Diamondbacks in a three-game series.

Up next

St. Louis hopes it breaks a three-game losing streak when it takes on the Royals on Sunday at 2:10 p.m. The Cardinals will have a good chance to salvage a game in this three-game set as Michael Wacha (6-0, 2.16 ERA) takes the hill against Kansas City’s Yordano Ventura (3-3, 4.56).

Next: St. Louis Cardinals MLB Draft Preview: Brady Aiken