Rookie Leo Bernal hit a three-run homer to put the Cardinals comfortably ahead, but two relievers surrendered five hits, a hit batter, a walk and six runs in a game-turning eighth inning as the Giants rallied past St. Louis 7-6. The Giants won all three versus the Cardinals for their first sweep.
Rolling along through 7 ½ innings and in possession of a five-run lead, the Cardinals seemed well-positioned to avoid a sweep at Oracle Park and turn their three-city road trip into a winner over nine games.
Then, the Cardinals looked on in horror as their bullpen suffered yet another late-game collapse that could prove to be the final blow in their shrinking hopes of making the playoffs in 2026.
The Giants scored six runs in the eighth inning with two outs to rally past the Cardinals 7-6 and pull off their first three-game sweep of the season under first-year manager and St. Louis native Tony Vitello.
"A lot of different variables to that one, but at the end of the day it sucks," manager Oliver Marmol told Cardinals TV after his team's third straight loss. " You want to be able to take that last game and at least feel good about that, but you end up getting swept. There were just some things there that we'll learn from with some youthfulness there."
The Cardinals led 6-1 in the eighth inning and saw rookie reliever Cade Winquest strike out Grant McCray and get Christian Koss fly out to center field. However, Winquest then hit Brett Harris and walk Turner Hill. Bryce Eldridge followed with a two-run single that beat the St. Louis infield shift. Jonah Cox hit a slow roller to shortstop, but Thomas Saggese’s throw to first that would have ended the inning was late and Hill scored to make it a 6-4 game. Gold Glove shortstop Masyn Winn, who possesses one of the best throwing arms among all MLB infielders, was scratched from the starting lineup before the game because of lingering pain in his left thumb.
From there, Jung Hoo Lee cracked a two-run double off the wall in right field that tied the game. Soriano was then ambushed by Shay Whitcomb, who drilled another double off the top of the wall in center field to propel the Giants into the lead.
The collapse was reminiscent of the Cardinals’ loss in Philadelphia on Aug. 23 when they led 4-0 with two outs in the ninth, but they ultimately surrendered six straight runs to fall and cap a three-game sweep.
The Cardinals lost 5-4 in 11 innings on Monday night in San Francisco and 2-1 on Tuesday to the Giants to fall six games back of the final Wild Card slot in the National League playoff chase. Wednesday’s late-game meltdown just added more misery to a road trip that started with series wins over the Dodgers (2-1) and Rockies (2-1). They finished the trip at 4-5 instead of the 5-4 record they had their sights set on most of the day.
"We did some things well and did some things that weren't that good," Marmol said. "No different than any other road trip or home game. You learn from it and you attack those conversations when we get back on Friday and go from there."
Within a three-inning stretch early in Wednesday’s game at sun-splashed Oracle Park, when Leo Bernal threw out a runner trying to steal second base and then smashed a three-run homer, the 22-year-old rookie showed why he just might be the Cardinals’ best catching prospect since Yadier Molina.
Bernal continued to show why the Cardinals promoted him from Triple-A Memphis on Sept. 1 with a rookie road trip for the ages. Bernal, who was ranked as the No. 7 prospect in the St. Louis system prior to his promotion, singled in two runs in his MLB debut and then smashed a two-run homer in his second big-league game.
Bernal bested those feats on Wednesday when he ripped a fastball well above the strike zone for a 378-foot, three-run home run.
"He looks the part in a lot of different ways," Marmol said. "Obviously, physically we're starting to see what he's capable of doing and mentally he's been impressive with how he thinks about the game and prepares for the game. Then, he goes out there and executes the plan. So, I've been super encouraged by him."
Bernal saw his career-opening seven-game hitting streak come to an end on Tuesday night when the Cards mustered just five singles. But he potentially started another streak on Wednesday by bashing his second big league homer. He has been on base in all nine of his MLB games, and his four multi-RBI performances in his first nine games tied a mark set by legendary slugger Albert Pujols in 2001. Through nine games, the native of Panama is hitting .281 with two homers, a double and 10 RBI.
