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Cardinals History: The day the worst hitter in MLB completely owned a legendary pitcher

Sometimes baseball just wants to baseball!
ByJosh Jacobs|
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May 13, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; St. Louis Cardinals left fielder Pete Kozma (38) walks back to the dugout after striking out during the fourth inning against the Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images
May 13, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; St. Louis Cardinals left fielder Pete Kozma (38) walks back to the dugout after striking out during the fourth inning against the Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images | Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

One of the reasons we love the sport of baseball is that, on any given day, you could see just about anything at the ballpark. That even includes witnessing the worst hitter in all of baseball look unbeatable against a future Hall of Famer and legend of the sport.

On May 26th, 2013, Pete Kozma drew the start at shortstop for the St. Louis Cardinals and Clayton Kershaw and the Los Angeles Dodgers. Kershaw was at the peak of his powers and would go on to win the NL Cy Young that year with a 1.83 ERA and an 8.1 bWAR season. Kozma, on the other hand, would finish the year with a 49 wRC+, the worst in baseball among hitters with at least 400 plate appearances that season.

But on this day, Kozma absolutely owned Kershaw.

Kozma would go 4-4 on the day with three doubles and three RBIs in the Cardinals' 5-3 victory over the Dodgers. Two of Kozma's doubles and a single came off of Kershaw, who infamously had multiple bad moments against the Cardinals in his career, including later that year in the postseason.

In Game 4 of the 2013 NLDS between the Cardinals and the Dodgers, Kershaw would once again shake his head on the mound, as Matt Adams crushed a three-run shot to put the Cardinals up on Los Angeles and lead the Cardinals to the NLCS. It's a moment that still rubs Kershaw the wrong way, evidenced by Kershaw's frustration with the Cardinals showing a video of the homer when Kershaw was in St. Louis last summer.

The Cardinals had a habit of getting to Kershaw, and Kozma did 13 years ago today. It was a shocking moment to say the least, but it wasn't the only time that Kozma shocked the baseball world with his bat.

Pete Kozma, who wasn't known for his bat, has one of the biggest posteason moments in Cardinals history

Kozma was thrust into the Cardinals' starting shortstop job in 2012, and during Game 5 of the 2012 NLDS against the Washington Nationals, it was Kozma's bat that allowed St. Louis to complete one of the most improbable comebacks in postseason history.

Down 7-5 heading into the top of the ninth inning, lockdown Nationals' closer Drew Storen struggled to close the door for Washington, allowing second baseman Daniel Descalso to tie the game on an RBI single before Kozma stepped to the plate.

Kozma then slashed a line drive down the right field line to drive in both Descalso and David Freese, giving the Cardinals a 7-5 lead before Jason Motte closed the game and sent them to the NLCS,ˇ cementing one of the best games in recent Cardinals history.

Kozma's history with the Cardinals is a complicated one, as he contributed to some huge moments during their contending years in the 2010s but also was a player whom they often won in spite of.

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