Cardinals take the game and series, climbing back to .500
Game Result
Steven Matz allowed an early run, but settled in to quiet the Astros’ bats, setting down 15 in a row. The bullpen parade followed suit, allowing but 2 hits themselves. Remarkably, zero walks across the board, until Helsley came into the ninth. Lars Nootbar hits a key 3-run HR to power the victory. Net-net, Cardinals close out a nice 4-2 homestand against two good team. Well done.
Pre-game Notes
- Looks to be a nice spring day in St. Louis for the noon-fifteen start.
- This game is for the series. Cardinals romped in game one and were shut out in game 2. What is in store for game 3?
- Not only is the game for the series, but it helps define the homestand as well. Coming in off the rough road trip, I’d suspect most fans looked at the homestand, and the opponents, and would have been happy to split 3-3. Now, I’d suspect most of those same fans would view that outcome as second-rate. It’s just one game, but funny how this one outcome can influence the view of an entire week.
- In the minors, Mathews to IL-7 with shoulder issues. Hjerpe to IL-60 with Tommy John surgery. Will need to research a bit more, but thinking the Cardinals have an interesting 40-man roster decision to make with him this winter. He will miss at least half of his age 25 season and will need the rest of that to rebuild and recover his command. He has accumulated less than 100 IP in his professional career. Can you keep a guy like that on the 40-man? But that is for later and may well be determined by how others around him advance.
- Both Winn and Herrera have been cleared for light baseball activities.
Line-up (and roster) Machinations
Roster changes occur in the organization almost daily, and we try to track them here. As well, the line-up itself is a daily re-construction based on match-ups, needed off-days, and the desire to keep everyone fresh and involved. Day game, getaway travel day plays into these decisions today, too.
- Matz with his first start of the year for the Cardinals and the beginning the 6-man rotation. I’m curious to see how this goes. Ronel Blanco for the Astros.
- The Cardinals target Matz for 65 pitches (or so), so figure 4 innings. With that tidbit, we turn attention to the bullpen.
- Leahy with 2 IP last night, so wouldn’t expect him to be available, unless…Munoz has pitched back-to-back, so he is probably down, too. It turns out literally, as he is sent down, replaced by Svanson.
- Everyone else should be well rested and good to go. Have to remember with 6 starters now, only seven relievers, not the normal eight. That means 6 guys to cover 5 innings, if Matz gets his 4 IP. I am curious who the multi-inning guy is. Does this scenario increase the odds of extra innings, I wonder? Baseball being baseball, and all.
- Contreras DH. Burly at 1B. Sags at SS, so Gorman on the bench today. Pozo at C.
The Game
An inning-by-inning breakdown, with score card entries and observations along the way. I do it this way on day games as I figure most people are at work and unable to listen or watch the game and might like a little more detail.
T1 – Two lead off singles and perhaps an ill-advised throw to third puts runners at 2nd and 3rd no one out. 4-3 drives in the games first run. A backwards K. F9 ends the inning. Astros lead 1-0.
B1 – Nootbar works yet another 3-2 count before walking. Contreras F8. Donovan lines out right and Arenado flies out F9.
T2 – Backwards K. F9 (boy, it’s nice not to cringe on balls hit right, huh?). A K ends the inning. Matz stuff is good. Command a little flighty. He at 35 pitches after 2. They will need some length from him.
B2 – Burleson flies out to left. Walker with a foul pop out. Pozo takes a walk, defying the stats that says he swings at everything. Scott F7.
T3 – Foul out F3. Lineout to second. 5-3 ends the inning. Matz getting into a groove here. I believe that makes nine in a row set down.
B3 – Sags F9. Cardinals are in swing mode today. I wondered with Blanco if they’d make him work a bit more, with his fairly pedestrian 2:1 K:BB ratio. As I write that, Nootbar walks on 4 straight. Contreras out F7. Is he a good fit in the 2 hole? Quite a few track power shots today up and down the lineup. Weird. Noot advances on the out. Another fly out. F4. Astros still up 1-0.
T4 – F8. 5-3. K. Matz really rolling. 12 outs in a row.
B4 – Arenado pops out. Burly with a swinging bunt hit to break up the no-hitter. Burly swipes second. Leaves early, but the pitcher threw to first and Burly snuck in. Walker fouls out F9. Pozo grounds out 6-3. The very first GB out in this game for Blanco.
T5 – F9. 3-1. Backwards K. Matz finishes with a flourish. Retires the last 15 in a row. 5 IP. 5 K. 1 ER. 0 BB. 71 pitches. Overall, a very, very good outing. Just those first two batters. He leaves down 1-0.
B5 – Scott leads off with a bunt that dies right on the line. Sags goes the other way, advancing Scott to third. Yet another fly ball turns out well as Nootbar clouts a 3-run HR. 108 mph. Out in 25 parks at 418 ft. Interestingly, it would NOT have been an HR in Colorado, of all places. Contreras K’s. Donovan extends his hit streak to 12 with a bash up the middle. Arenado pops out. Burleson lines out to short. His hardest hit ball of the year, I believe, at 107.4. Cards now up 3-1. A bullpen game now.
A video clip of this sequence.
T6 – Fernandez leads the reliever parade. F8 to start the inning. Altuve singles. 6-4 force out puts Pena on a first with 2 out. Paredes K’s to end the inning. Fernandez cleared out the top of the leader board for FB velocity in this game. Good inning.
B6 – VenWey in for Blanco. Walker singles past Walker. Pozo singles him to second. Scott pops out on a bunt attempt. Sags doubles to right, Walker scores. 2nd and 3rd, 1 out. Pitching change. Okert in for VanWey. Nootbar lines out. Contreras K’s after 9 pitch AB. Cards now up 4-1.
T7 – Leahy in. I’m surprised. I wonder how he recovers after a 2 IP outing last night. Walker out 5-3. Ground rule double follows. K. Ground out 6-3 ends with Leahy putting up a zero. Nice job.
B7 – Donovan HBP. Arenado F9. Burleson flies out. Okert is relieved by Scott to face Walker. SB by Donovan. Walker lines out to Walker.
T8 – Maton in. Behind him comes the close-out defense. Siani to CF. Walker to RF. 5-3. K. F7. A decidedly boring (in a welcome way) inning for Maton. Cards still up 4-1.
B8 – Pozo F9. Facing Scott, Scott walks. Scott steals. Scott advances to third on a flyball out by Sags. I believe that was Sags third productive AB involving situational hitting, taking the ball the other way in this game alone. I see progress! Sousa relieves Scott. Nootbar dribbles out to end the inning.
T9 – Helsley in. 4-3. Helsley wiping Fernandez’ name off the velo leader board. Paredes works a nine pitch walk. Walker pops out. Line out to Scott (in RF) ends it. Save Hels.
Post-game Notes
- In the minors last night, Robberse, Mautz and Brandt Thompson had good starts, but were abbreviated in IP (5) and pitches (less than 75). Saladin labored a bit and was pulled just below … 75 pitches. The Cardinals are serious about limiting innings (and pitches) in April.
- After the game today, the Cardinals jet off to New York for a 4-game set with Mets, then 3 in Atlanta.
- Here is a stat. Burleson has 43 batted ball events in 2025. 0 barrels. He has never been particularly good a barreling pitches, but this is rough! He gets his first barrel today in his 46th batted ball event, breaking the run. If I read correctly, the book on him is throw off-speed/breaking pitches in the zone, fastballs at edge or just off the zone. Expect he will swing at almost all of them, hit most of them and do damage with very few of them.
- Yesterday, Gabe writes up 5 fast starters in the Cardinal minor-league system. Josh Kross being one of them. Instead of being hexed, he goes out and hits for the cycle last night!
- Much was made during the off-season about the Cardinals poor hitting with RISP. The lack of power was the key to that struggle. A 3-run HR, by definition, occurs with RISP and involves the best kind of power. Per Denton of mlb..com, the Cardinals but 10 of these last year. This year? They already have 6. 3-run HR are really super helpful, aren’t they?
- Funny, but the Astros look like a similar team to the Cardinals. A good hitter short in the lineup (hoping Smith evolves quickly?), kind of station-to-station on the bases. They have a few hitters that could use a bit more plate discipline. Stronger in the infield, not so deep in the outfield. They, too, play in a division where there is no dominant team. Those are my impressions after this series, plus I got to see them a couple times this spring.