ST. PETERSBURG, Fla.—The Cardinals have scored 10 or more runs in three of Miles Mikolas’ 12 starts this season. Unfortunately, they also have had five in which they have scored none while he was in the game and one in which they scored once.
That last game came on Thursday afternoon, in the blink of an eye as it was completed in 1 hour 54 minutes, the fastest game of the season and the briskest for the Cardinals in 12 seasons.
The Cardinals scored an unearned run off Tampa Bay ace Shane McClanahan in the seventh but, before that, Ji-Man Choi had slugged a two-run homer off Mikolas in the fourth.
The Cardinals’ righthander (4-4), allowed just three hits, fanned a season-high nine and walked none in an 85-piece masterpiece complete game of eight innings. But Choi’s fifth homer of the season made the difference in a 2-1 Tampa Bay win that cemented the Cardinals’ first sweep by an opponent this season. They finished an eight-game trip at 3-5 after they had won three of five in Chicago.
Winner McClanahan (7-2) allowed just two hits--one a fluke--and struck out nine over eight innings.
Albert Pujols doubled—sort of—to open the Cardinals’ second. First baseman Choi couldn’t track down the pop fly in short right field and second baseman Vidal Brujan overran it as right fielder Brett Phillips stood by.
But Pujols didn’t move off second as Tyler O’Neill grounded to short, Juan Yepez fouled to Choi and McClanahan fanned Harrison Bader with high heat. McClanahan has a major league-leading 24 strikeouts of just three pitches this season
But Mikolas required just 27 pitches in setting down the first nine Rays hitters in order. Center fielder Bader and left fielder O’Neill had to range deep into the outfield for the first two outs of the third inning.
Paul Goldschmidt became the second Cardinal to reach scoring position in the fourth. After a conference among the umpires it was ruled that Goldschmidt’s bat had tipped catcher Mike Zunino’s glove for catcher’s interference.
But shortstop Taylor Walls speared Nolan Arenado’s liner and Pujols fouled to Choi. Goldschmidt made it to second on McClanahan’s wild pitch but O’Neill became McClanahan’s sixth strikeout.
Kevin Kiermaier, who had been two for 26 with 11 strikeouts, singled to right for the Rays’ first hit in the fourth. Manuel Margot flied out but Choi hopped on a 1-0 sinker and sent his fifth homer flying over the right-field boards.
McClanahan, who needed just 52 pitches to complete five innings, got some defensive help from Phillips, who slid to snatch Edmundo Sosa’s blooper for the final out of the fifth.
Mikolas also necessitated but 52 pitches through five. The only difference was that he still was two runs behind.
Cardinals catcher Andrew Knizner lined to left fielder Margot for the second time in the sixth. Then, Tommy Edman sent center fielder Kiermaier scurrying to the track for the second out of the inning.
Goldschmidt drew the first walk of the game as he extended his on-base streak to 45 consecutive games. Arenado singled hard to left to give the Cardinals two runners on base in the same inning for the first time.
McClanahan tried to barehand Pujols’ bouncer to the mound. The left-hander knocked the ball down, lost his balance and then bounced a throw past first once he picked up the ball.
Goldschmidt scored but Arenado was held at third. O’Neill lined to center for the third out on the Cardinals’ fourth hard-hit ball of the inning.
Mikolas had his own fielding misadventures in the Rays’ sixth. Kiermaier sent a roller to first. Mikolas thought he could handle it himself and then step on the bag for the out but booted the ball and Kiermaier was safe. But Kiermaier had over-run the bag and was turned toward second before trying to return safely to the bag, and he was tagged out by Mikolas.
Mikolas then made Margot his eighth strikeout.
Yepez and Bader represented McClanahan’s seventh and eighth strikeouts in the seventh. Sosa then flied to deep center.
After McClanahan had thrown 94 pitches, he yielded to right-hander Jason Adam, who pitched around a leadoff walk to Arenado in the ninth. Pinch hitter Nolan Gorman fanned after being ahead 3-1 in the count and O'Neill bounced into a double play.
