ST. LOUIS — On a scale of injuries, the right wrist contusion suffered Tuesday night by Cardinals right-hander Jordan Hicks, who has had myriad elbow problems since 2019, doesn’t rank as the most dire thing that’s happened to him. For instance, he lives every day as a Type 1 diabetic.
Still, Hicks, transitioning to the rotation from the bullpen, had to exit his second career start, a 3-0 loss to the New York Mets, probably an inning before a pitch count would have hastened that departure. He finished the second inning after taking a Dominic Smith smash off his wrist. But he retired none of the three hitters he faced in the third, bouncing three consecutive pitches in a walk to New York’s Brandon Nimmo after permitting back-to-back doubles to Jeff McNeil and James McCann, the .125 batter who had three hits on Tuesday.
Hicks, at 42 pitches, was removed, in large part so that he could be evaluated and treated. In fact, X-rays taken at the facilities in Busch Stadium came back as negative and he may not miss too much time.
But the two runs charged to Hicks in the third largely were the difference in the game as the Cardinals, who had only three singles, went without an extra-base hit for the fourth time in six games.
There was action, however.
The Cardinals had two batters nicked in six innings by New York starter Chris Bassitt, who also threw close to another hitter. In the eighth, Cardinals reliever Kodi Whitley knocked the helmet off the head of Mets slugger Pete Alonso, who yelled some things at Whitley as he went to first but did not detour to the mound.
There seemed some building tension for an escalation. Nothing further happened in the top of the inning although home-plate umpire Mark Wegner issued warnings to both dugouts. But then former Cardinals farmhand Adam Ottavino hit the Cardinals' Tommy Edman in the right foot to start the eighth.
Wegner did not view this as retaliation. But both dugouts were chirping, with Mets righthander Max Scherzer very animated on the New York side. Then the Cardinals' Aaron Brooks hit Starling Marte in the back with the bases loaded in the ninth to force in the Mets' final run. That made a total of five hit batsmen for the two teams, with another game Wednesday afternoon.
Throwing 11 strikes in 16 pitches, Hicks worked a perfect first inning, fanning Francisco Lindor on a slider to end the inning as he got through the second inning unscathed, at least on the scoreboard.
Rookie Andre Pallante was brought in to replace Hicks in the third and was given all the time he needed to warm up.
Pallante allowed a run-scoring hit to left by Marte although left fielder Tyler O’Neill held the play to a single as he played it well off the short box-seat wall, freezing Nimmo from trying to third. This kept the double play in order and Pallante achieved that, getting two for one on Lindor’s grounder to help allay damage.
Pallante, the last player to make the club out of spring training, continued his strong early-season work, blanking the Mets for three innings before yielding in the sixth to Nick Wittgren. After a walk and a hit batter, left-hander Packy Naughton made his Cardinals debut and retired McNeil on a fly out.
Naughton, claimed on waivers from the Los Angeles Angels this spring, induced the Cardinals’ second double play, on Nimmo, in the seventh as the Mets remained only two runs ahead at that point.
Paul Goldschmidt, the hottest Cardinals swatsmith lately, singled off Bassitt with one out in the Cardinals’ first. This was no mean feat. Bassitt had given up just one hit in 26 at-bats to right-handed swingers this season. Bassitt also had issued only one walk to a right-handed hitter until he passed Nolan Arenado with two out. But Bassitt retired Dylan Carlson on a popup to end the inning.
The Cardinals had another runner reach scoring position in the third when Edman walked and stole second. But Goldschmidt fanned before the steal and O’Neill after it.
Arenado got the third hit by a right-handed batter off Bassitt this season but was trapped off first in the fourth as Smith speared Carlson’s line drive.
The Cardinals continued to be punchless. In their past six games, or since Arenado homered in the ninth inning to win a game in Miami last Wednesday, they have but five doubles and no home runs to show as extra-base knocks. Shortstop Paul DeJong, who did have a single to end a nothing-for-13 skid and a deep fly to left, struck out in each of his first two at-bats. That means either DeJong or backup Edmundo Sosa has had multi-strikeout contests in five of the past six Cardinals games, in which that position has accounted for 14 strikeouts.
Goldschmidt made a bid for his first homer of the season in the sixth but left fielder Mark Canha ran down a drive just in front of the wall. And O’Neill flied to Marte at the track in right.
The Cardinals’ losing streak reached three games. They have scored three runs in that time. Their three hits Tuesday were matched by their three hit batsmen.
The Cardinals have lost a series for the first time this season and for the first time to the Mets in six series since 2018.
