ST. LOUIS — One out and one pitch away from authoring history this city hasn’t seen in decades by allowing no hits, Miles Mikolas saw the immortality of his excellent evening sail just over the reach of center fielder Harrison Bader’s glove.
On Mikolas’ 129th and final pitch of his start, Pittsburgh Cal Mitchell, who entered the game late, drove a ball to straight away center. Bader, his back to Mikolas, dove in an attempt to catch the liner, but it landed just beyond and bounded over the wall for a ground-rule double. Mikolas had retired 17 consecutive Pirates before Mitchell connected for the hit that denied Busch Stadium III its first no-hitter and St. Louis its first, by any pitcher, since 1983.
Mikolas’ superb 8 2/3 innings and dramatic finish punctuated a doubleheader sweep of the Pirates. The Cardinals held fast to a 3-1 win in Game 1 and then romped for a 9-1 victory in Game 2. The Cardinals had a seven-run lead by the end of the second inning to clear the way for Mikolas to breeze through the Pirates.
