Rookie Catcher Smashes Go-Ahead Homer, but White Sox Rally off Cardinals Closer in Ninth

A strike away from victory and ready to celebrate the late-game heroics of standout rookie catcher Leo Bernal on Saturday night at Busch Stadium, the Cardinals and slumping closer Riley O’Brien looked on in horror as an opposite-field shot stayed inside the foul pole and trickled over the wall in right for a back-breaking, two-run homer.

Facing a 1-2 count with two outs in the top of the ninth inning, former Cardinals outfielder Randal Grichuk hit a 95.6 mph sinker from O’Brien just over the wall in right to disappoint a Busch Stadium crowd of 40,387 and lift the White Sox to a 6-5 win over St. Louis.

The 358-foot homer went over the wall at one of the closest distances at Busch Stadium, but it still would have been a home run in 28 of 30 MLB ball parks, per Statcast.

For O’Brien, it was the third time this season that he’s allowed a game-turning homer while being a strike away from ending the inning or game. Nick Castellanos hit a two-strike homer in the ninth off O’Brien in a game the Padres won in 10 innings. Then, on Aug. 23, O’Brien blew a 4-0 lead with two outs in the ninth inning by giving up six runs – a rally capped by Kyle Schwarber’s towering, walk-off homer.

"It's tough and it definitely hasn't been going well recently, but I just have to keep working," said O'Brien, who dropped to 3-8 and 36 of 44 in save chances. "It just gets a little harder after more and more bad ones."

The Grichuk blast ruined what could have been a game-winning home run for Bernal, who smashed his first long ball in Busch Stadium in the eighth inning.    

Having already driven in more runs than any rookie in the storied history of the Cardinals over the first 10 games of a career, Bernal took his blistering-hot start to new heights on Saturday to electrify 40,387 fans at Busch Stadium.

Bernal broke open a tied game with a smashing 421-foot home run in the eighth inning – a drive that left his bat at 106.2 mph – to briefly lift the Cardinals to a 5-4 lead.

"Basically, (emotional swings are) just part of the game and you have to know how to handle that," Bernal said through translator Kleininger Teran. "I don't think (Grichuk) made really good contact, but the ball went out. But there's nothing we can do about that now. At the end of the day, we just have to keep competing."  

On a night when the Cardinals inducted legendary catcher Yadier Molina into their Hall of Fame, Bernal showed why he just might be the best catching prospect in the organization since the two-time World Series champion retired in 2022. The Cards have spent the past 3 ½ years trying to replace Molina, and Bernal is certainly off to a good start.

Legendary slugger Albert Pujols, who was inducted alongside of Molina, also had to like what he saw the slugging catcher.

The native of Panama, who was promoted from Triple-A Memphis on Sept. 1 when MLB rosters expanded to 28, crushed his third home run, recorded his 13th hit and plated his 13th run in the first 11 games of his career.

"In the bullpen, I had some tears and got some (strong) feelings when I heard Yadi talking and giving that speech about the way he played the game, the toughness that it took and about everything he did trying to get this organization the wins," Bernal said candidly. "He left a lot of things behind (for Bernal) and he taught me a lot of things. I'm trying to copy what he did and be the best that I can."   

Facing a 1-2 count, Bernal got a 98.2 mph fastball that was well above the strike zone from Chicago’s Grant Taylor. Bernal once again flashed his quick hands and explosive power by smashing the ball that sailed over the St. Louis bullpen beyond the right field wall.   

Making his first Busch Stadium appearance on Saturday and trying to repeat the flawless domination he flashed in his MLB debut six days earlier, Cardinals’ rookie left-handed Cooper Hjerpe instead endured an outing about as unorthodox and funky as his herky-jerky throwing motion.

In a span of 11 hitters faced over two innings, Hjerpe allowed just two balls to be put in play – both hits – but he threw only 25 strikes among his 52 pitches. He struck out two, but the rest of the outing was badly disjointed with two hit two batters, four walks and two bases loaded free passes. In all, Hjerpe was tagged for four earned runs, and his struggles played a major role in the Cardinals blowing two three-run leads early in Saturday’s game.

Six days earlier, Hjerpe had a debut for the ages when he pitched four perfect innings and struck out six in relief in a victory over the woeful Colorado Rockies.

Such is life for an MLB rookie, and for a Cardinals club that came into Saturday first in the National League in games played (543), hits (363), runs scored (206) and homers (48) by first-year big-league players.

Continuing to show more length in their lineup, the bottom of the Cardinals’ order strung together four straight hits to score three times in the second inning. Following a Nolan Gorman single and a Thomas Saggese opposite field single off scheduled starter Luis Castillo, Winn pulled a 99.2 mph double between Miguel Vargas and the third base bag for a two-run double.

For Winn, it was his 20th double of the season and his first big moment since fracturing his thumb on Aug. 18 – the first game of his career with three extra-base hits (a homer and two doubles). That left thumb pain cost Winn 18 games in a 19-game stretch. When Winn came around to score on Jose Fermin’s sacrifice fly the Cardinals led 3-0 after two innings.

The White Sox got within 3-1 in the fourth inning when Hjerpe entered the game and almost immediately struggled to find the strike zone after punching out Miguel Vargas. He walked two, hit one and walked in a run, but stranded the bases loaded by striking out Braden Montgomery.