A youth-infused pitching debut and a balanced offensive explosion fueled the Arizona Diamondbacks nine-run surge against St. Louis Cardinals, proving this lineup can damage opponents from the leadoff spot to ninth.
The Arizona Diamondbacks picked up a 9-4 win in game three of a four-game slate in St. Louis.
The St. Louis Cardinals took game one, 3-2, but Arizona rebounded with a 4-3 win in game two and took the third in a game where they managed to put up nine runs.
Freshly called up 22-year-old Mitch Bratt went three innings. Ryan Thompson followed up his short start with two of his own as he would pick up his third win of the season.
Thompson, 33, is now 3-1 on the year. He and Bratt each gave up a run before Drey Jameson gave up two of his own in the ninth. At that point, it was too little too late and the Cardinals had no chance of getting back into the game.
Bratt Looked Fine in a Small Sample Size
It's hard to tell exactly what the Diamondbacks have in the Canadian pitcher, but he only allowed one run in the nine outs he recorded. Bratt gave up a pair of hits and two walks as well, but he did strike out three batters. Command was a slight issue, but he threw 10 first pitch strikes against the 13 batters he faced.
Of his 54 pitches, 15 of them were fouled off. The Cardinals were making consistent contact with Bratt's stuff, but that doesn't mean it was bad or wasn't big-league ready. Building up stamina and confidence will come with time, but all things considered, this was a great first appearance for the youngster.
All Nine Starters Recorded a Hit
The most impressive thing to come out of this one at Busch Stadium was the fact that all nine of the Diamondbacks starters recorded a hit. A pair of players came in for pinch-hit appearances and neither got on base, but take nothing away from what this starting nine was able to do against a very solid St. Louis squad.
Tommy Troy and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. each had two hits on the night. Together, they combined for four of the Diamondbacks' 12.
Two Arizona players went deep, and to no surprise, Ketel Marte was one of them. Coincidentally, it was the team's leadoff and nine-hole hitter who went yard. Lujames Groover, who's had just 43 at-bats this season, hit his first of the year as part of the Diamondbacks' two-home-run fourth inning.
St. Louis will look to salvage the four-game series in Thursday's finale.
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