6 serious stars in St. Louis Cardinals series win over Reds

The St. Louis Cardinals got a nice little confidence boost playing the Cincinnati Reds before the All-Star Break.

The Cardinals took the two games played in their final series before the All-Star Break with the Cincinnati Reds. The Cardinals won Friday 7-3 and on Saturday 11-3. The game Sunday was postponed due to some much needed rain in the area.

The postponed game will be played as part of a doubleheader on Sept. 17.

Andre Pallante earned his first win in some time on Friday. He’s now 3-4 on the season. He pitched five innings, giving up six hits, three walks and three earned runs. He did strike out five and induced five swings and misses. It wasn’t the most outstanding of performances but thanks to some good offense, it was good to see Pallante get the win.

The bullpen also looked good in this game. Giovanny Gallegos earned his sixth hold of the season, pitching the sixth inning. He gave up one hit but did strike out three. He induced five swings and misses. Jordan Hicks pitched 1.1 innings.

Genesis Cabrera pitched two-thirds of an inning, giving up two hits and striking out one. He did induce two swings and misses. Cabrera created a little controversy as he spike the ball off the mound when Manager Oli Marmol removed him from the game. Marmol grabbed Cabrera and addressed the matter, before the young reliever headed to the dugout where he was given a lecture to by Cardinals clubhouse leader Albert Pujols. It was something to behold and you instantly knew the matter was being taken care of as Pujols spoke with the youngster.

Ryan Helsley earned his eighth save of the season, pitching the ninth giving up one hit and striking out one.  Helsley hit a top speed of 101.5 mph.

Miles Mikolas earned his seventh win of the season on Saturday, pitching in a scorcher of an outing. Mikolas went seven innings, giving up three hits, a walk and a home run to Jonathan India to begin the game. Not the greatest way to start a game, but Mikolas settled down and pitched well, striking out four batters, inducing seven swings and misses, and keeping the Cards in the game.

T.J. McFarland entered the game in the eighth inning, managing a third of an inning. He gave up two walks and two runs in the outting. Not a great effort from the struggling reliever. He needs this break desperately.

Johan Oviedo pitched the final 1.2 innings, giving up a hit and a walk, but striking out two and inducing three swings and misses. It’s nice to see his improvement. Really nice.

The Cardinals go in to the All-Star break with a record of 50-44. After the break, the Cardinals head out on a lengthy road trip that begins Friday in Cincinnati. They will have a three game set with the Reds at their place. Hopefully this is a nice jump start for the last half of the season. It should be fun!

Now let’s take a look at the stars from the series to end the first half.