Paul DeJong hit a tiebreaking, ninth-inning homer and Nolan Gorman and Lars Nootbaar also went deep as the St. Louis Cardinals won their third straight game, beating the host Chicago Cubs 6-4 on Tuesday night.
Chicago’s Javier Assad (0-2) threw five scoreless innings of relief before DeJong drove a pitch well into the left field bleachers to break a 4-4 tie. DeJong, who went to high school in Antioch, Ill., finished 2-for-3 with a walk to raise his average to .350.
Andrew Knizner’s second double drove in another run in the ninth for St. Louis, which has followed an eight-game skid by winning a season-high three in a row. By taking the first two of three games in Chicago, the Cardinals have won a series for the first time since April 10-12 at Colorado.
Dansby Swanson had a homer, two doubles and three RBIs while Christopher Morel also homered in his season debut for the Cubs, who have dropped three straight and nine of 12. Chicago twice left the bases loaded without scoring and was on the wrong end of four double plays.
Each team scored a run in the first inning. Gorman went deep off Cubs starter Jameson Taillon, and then Swanson doubled home Nick Madrigal in Chicago’s half of the frame.
St. Louis ended Taillon’s night in the third. Nootbaar hit a drive into the right-center-field bleachers, and Taillon later issued a bases-loaded walk to Brendan Donovan to end his outing. Taillon, making his second start since missing time due to a groin injury, was charged with four runs on five hits and two walks through 2 2/3 innings. He struck out five and threw 69 pitches.
DeJong also drew a bases-loaded walk from Julian Merryweather in the third for a 4-1 St. Louis lead. However, Cardinals starter Jack Flaherty allowed a Madrigal double, then Swanson barely got the ball into the right field bleacher basket in the third to make it 4-3.
Flaherty allowed three runs on seven hits and five walks, but he got Seiya Suzuki to fly out with the bases loaded to end his fifth and final inning. Andre Pallante replaced Flaherty, and he yielded a sixth-inning, game-tying homer to Morel.
St. Louis’ Chris Stratton (1-0) earned the win after tossing 1 1/3 scoreless innings. Giovanny Gallegos tossed a 1-2-3 ninth for his second save.
–Field Level Media
