ST. LOUIS — The Cardinals did something Sunday they hadn’t done in 31 years, when the Cincinnati Reds last were World Series champions and the Cardinals most recently finished in last place in their division. The year was 1990 and the event, from May 4-7, was the last time the Reds had swept a four-game series in St. Louis.
When Jesse Winker, hitting two home runs off John Gant good for five runs batted in, mostly had accounted for a 7-0 Cincinnati lead heading into the sixth inning, the aforementioned scenario seemed a foregone conclusion.
Then, with Reds starter Wade Miley out of the game, the Cardinals, who have lost five games in succession and seven out of their past eight games, ravaged three Cincinnati relievers in a seven-run sixth inning to draw even. But Winker, connecting on an 0-2 curveball from Alex Reyes in the ninth, smacked his third homer of the game, giving him six RBIs and the Reds the lead.
The Cardinals had one more comeback left. Paul Goldschmidt, who had three hits, singled and Nolan Arenado, who had four hits, bounced a double into the stands to give the Cardinals runners at second and third with nobody out in the home ninth. But there they stayed and the Reds hung on for an improbable 8-7 win.
Reyes, still 16 for 16 in saves this year, was making his first appearance of the series because the Cardinals hadn’t been tied or ahead in the late innings in any of the previous games.
Against Michael Feliz in the sixth, Tyler O’Neill crushed his 13th homer 427 feet to the greenery in dead center following a leadoff single by Arenado, who has had six singles in the past two games.
Edmundo Sosa, who had a brilliant day defensively, walked and Jose Rondon got an infield hit when third baseman Suarez made a diving stop but couldn’t get the out. Andrew Knizner walked to load the bases and pinch hitter Matt Carpenter, who has done the best hitting of his career with the bases loaded, greeted Brad Brach with a two-run double off the glove of center fielder Shogo Akiyama in right center. Suddenly, it was 7-4.
Tommy Edman singled off the glove of Brach, Knizner scoring and Carpenter going to third when shortstop Mike Freeman threw high at first. Dylan Carlson walked to reload the bases but the inning hit a brief glitch when Goldschmidt hit a liner toward the mound where Tejay Antone stabbed the ball to his left and doubled off Carlson at first.
But Arenado delivered his second single of the inning and raised his RBI total to 40 with a two-run single to left center. The Cardinals had caught up at 7-7.
Gant carried a 1.60 earned run average into the game and had allowed more than two runs in an outing only once this season. But Winker bashed a two-run homer in the first inning and the Reds later had runners at second and third with one out when Cardinals pitching coach Mike Maddux made an early mound visit.
After Maddux left, the Cardinals turned a double play, but probably not the way he had designed it.
The rest of the infield was in but Arenado was at normal depth at third but fired home anyway after fielding Suarez’s hard grounder. Tyler Stephenson, running from third, skidded to a stop too close to catcher Knizner, who ran Stephenson down for one out and then, on the run, fired to second baseman Edman to catch Naquin, who was trying to get back to second safely and who later came out of the game with a hamstring injury.
The inning ended at 2-0 on just the second homer allowed by Gant this season in 50 2/3 innings. Philadelphia’s Bryce Harper had hit the other one on April 18 in Philadelphia.
But Winker would bat again in the second. And the result was even worse—a three-run homer. A leadoff walk by Gant was the start of his undoing.
Gant retired Freeman and Miley sacrificed before Gant, coming up and in, hit Jonathan India near the left elbow. Winker had taken a Gant slider over the boards in the first. This time, he savaged a fastball for a three-run homer, his 16th home run of the season. Winker had been two for 10 with four strikeouts against Gant before Sunday.
But the Reds weren’t done. Suarez doubled in two runs in the third and rookie Angel Rondon began warming up for what would be his major league debut, which came in a scoreless sixth inning.
Home-plate umpire Scott Barry to leave the game when he absorbed a O’Neill foul tip to the head in the bottom of the fourth. Second-base umpire Dan Iassogna took over behind the plate.
Gant left via a manager’s decision after four innings in which he gave up seven hits and seven runs, to be relieved by Andrew Miller, who spun a perfect fifth in his second outing after coming off the injured list.
After the Cardinals left the bases loaded in the fourth, they had a couple of good swings off Miley in the fifth. Right fielder Nick Castellanos flagged down Edman’s drive to deep right center but Carlson bounced a double off the wall. Goldschmidt then struck out.
