KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Jon Lester’s first impression wasn’t a very dazzling one for the Cardinals. Of the first seven Atlanta Braves he faced in his debut after coming over in trade from Washington, all seven reached base and five scored.
But it got better that night over the next four innings in which the 37-year-old lefthander Lester allowed just one more run. And, in his next start, this past Sunday against Kansas City, he allowed five runs but that was spaced over 5 1/3 innings.
On Saturday night, it got much better.
Lester limited the Royals to seven singles in 5 2/3 innings and permitted just one run as he posted career win No. 197 in a 9-4 victory, which was the Cardinals’ fifth in succession, all on this two-city trip to Pittsburgh and Kauffman Stadium.
A huge crowd of 35,704, laced heavily with Cardinals fans, viewed a pitchers’ duel until the seventh when Nolan Arenado’s 24th homer of the season was the capper to a four-run inning that stretched the Cardinals’ lead from one run to five.
Edmundo Sosa, a late replacement for shortstop Paul DeJong, who had lower back tightness, had the third of his career-high four hits (all singles) to start the inning against Brad Keller. Tommy Edman, who had knocked in the Cardinals’ first two runs with a single, stroked his second single and Paul Goldschmidt greeted reliever Josh Staumont with a run-scoring hit.
Arenado then bent his second homer in two nights not far inside the left-field foul pole.
Arenado drove in his third and fourth runs in the ninth with a two-run double off former Cardinal Greg Holland, who was tagged for three runs.
Lester, taking his fourth shot at No. 197, blanked the Royals for the first three innings, as he did this past Sunday in St. Louis. Lester had a little traffic in each of those innings but got a double play started by Sosa in the second and he retired Carlos Santana on a grounder with a man at second and two outs in the third.
The Cardinals, meanwhile, had two walks and Sosa’s first single over the first four innings but also didn’t mark. Royals catcher Salvador Perez threw out Edman trying to steal second in the third inning as Goldschmidt struck out
Kansas City struck first with a run in the fourth as Perez singled to right and both Hunter Dozier and Michael A. Taylor singled to center. But third baseman Arenado spared Lester further damage by grabbing Emmanuel Rivera’s chopper, running to the bag for the forceout and throwing to first to nip Rivera for the inning-ending double play.
Taylor’s hit scored Andrew Benintendi, who had reached base as he grounded into a forceout on a ball he hit to the mound where Lester, not strong at throwing to bases, ducked as the ball went over his head. For the second time in the game in such a situation, second baseman Edman made a sliding stop behind second but could only get the force.
Edman, however, gave the Cardinals the lead in the fifth when the Royals’ infield defense sprang a leak. First, third baseman Rivera threw wildly to first on a ground ball hit by Molina, who barely was running.
Lars Nootbaar singled to left and, after Harrison Bader fanned, Sosa hit a slow grounder which scooted under the glove of shortstop Nicky Lopez and went to second baseman Hanser Alberto, who tried to make the reception and hold his foot on the bag. But he couldn’t pull it off and the bases were loaded.
Edman drove in Molina and Nootbaar with a ground single to left. It stayed 2-1 as Goldschmidt struck out and Arenado grounded out.
In his past two starts, Lester has given up only singles, save for a double by Dozier on Sunday in St. Louis. There were seven singles on Saturday, with three coming in the same inning, and only two walks. Three of the singles came by Taylor
Lester had two strikeouts so he lived on the ground-ball outs. There were 13 of those among his 17 outs, recorded on 90 pitches.
Righthanded reliever Ryan Helsley needed just one pitch to escape a two-on, two-out spot he inherited from Lester in the sixth. That was pinch hitter Ryan O’Hearn’s inning-ending liner to left fielder Tyler O’Neill.
Helsley walked a hitter and allowed a single in the seventh but he also struck out three hitters before yielding to Luis Garcia in the eighth. Garcia whiffed two more Royals in a perfect inning as he continued his solid pitching. The Royals awakened to rough up lefthander Andrew Miller for three runs in the ninth and lefthander Genesis Cabrera was summoned to gain the final two outs.
