Randal Grichuk drives in a pair as Cardinals top Arizona

Grichuk’s blast guides Cardinals to victory

A second-inning blast from Randal Grichuk proved to be the difference for the St. Louis Cardinals on Tuesday night, as the young outfielder went 2-for-3 with a pair of runs batted in to lead St. Louis to a 6-4 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks.

The blast, which was Grichuk’s second on the season, came on a 3-1 pitch from Arizona starter Archie Bradley – giving the Cardinals a 5-3 edge early-on.

At first, it looked like St. Louis would have problems with Arizona, as starting pitcher Jaime Garcia spotted the Diamondbacks two runs in the first inning. The Cardinals responded with four in the bottom of the first, with the key blow coming on a two-RBI double by Jhonny Peralta, the hero from Monday’s walk-off win at Busch Stadium.

After Arizona cut the St. Louis lead to 4-3 on a homer by Nick Ahmed, the Cardinals responded again as Grichuk’s homer padded the St. Louis lead back to two. He later added an RBI single for the final run of the game.

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In the win, Matt Holliday tied a franchise record, reaching base safely for the 42nd-straight game to start the season when he lined an RBI single off Bradley in the bottom of the first inning.

Garcia looked impressive in his second outing following his return from shoulder issues. He allowed three earned runs but walked none, adding five strikeouts in six innings of work. Matt Belisle and Seth Maness finished out the game, with the latter earning his third save.

With the win, the Cardinals became the first team in the National League to hit 30 wins on the season, following the Houston Astros, who became baseball’s first 30-win team earlier in the day. St. Louis maintained it’s 4 1/2 game lead in the Central after the Chicago Cubs topped the Washington Nationals, 3-2.

St. Louis first baseman Matt Adams left Tuesday’s contest with a strained right quad and, according to GM Jon Mozeliak, a roster move is imminent.

After some bumpy stretches, it appears the Cardinals may be on the right track once again. But will it be enough to earn the sweep on Wednesday?

Up next

Lance Lynn (3-4, 3.46 ERA) makes his tenth start of the season in a game Wednesday at 8:15 p.m. CT. He will face Arizona right-hander Josh Collmenter (3-5, 5.19), who has had some rocky times as of late.

Next: St. Louis Cardinals’ MLB Draft Preview: Ian Happ