WASHINGTON — As long as the Cardinals continue to put him in the lineup and give him chances to snap loose from a persisting funk, the game insists on finding Matt Carpenter.
Deep into another nine-inning quest for runs, the Cardinals had something percolating in the chilly, windy evening Wednesday at Nationals Park. Nolan Arenado earned a two-out walk, and that was followed by a single and another walk to load the bases for … Carpenter. One of the best hitters in baseball history with the bases loaded, Carpenter has not been at his best. He got a ball in the air, saw it sag in the wind, and fall into a glove to end the inning, and the threat.
When that rally went poof, so did the game.
The Cardinals fell, 1-0, to Max Scherzer and Washington Nationals and return to St. Louis still looking for that second series victory of the season.
They’ve been shutout twice in the past four games and three times in the past week, including twice by the Nationals. The lack of run support undermined Carlos Martinez’s superb six innings and his best start of the year and perhaps in years. The right-hander finished his game with a 94-mph fastball for a strikeout, and he repeatedly sizzled pitches at 96 mph when needed to limit the Nats to the one run.
Scherzer (1-1) just slipped free of danger early and never faced it again before turning the one-run lead over to the bullpen.
In the eighth, Arenado got the walk from Daniel Hudson, and Paul DeJong followed with a two-strike single up the middle. That left Hudson and Washington with a decision. They could challenge rookie Dylan Carlson, or let him reach base and face Carpenter with the .091 batting average he brought into the game. Hudson put three pitches out of the zone to see if Carlson might try to force the at-bat. The rookie didn’t. He took a 3-0 fastball, fouled off a 3-1 pitch, and then graciously accepted the bases-loading walk Hudson intended.
The matchup he wanted was once a matchup rivals like the Cubs eagerly avoided. In his career, Carpenter started Wednesday as a .491 hitter with the bases loaded to go with a .754 slugging percentage and a 1.195 OPS. In 84 plate appearances with the bases loaded, Carpenter has 86 RBIs.
Carpenter took a 97-mph fastball for a ball.
He put the next pitch in play – right to the right field for the inning-ending, rally-squelching, and game-deciding flyout. The Cardinals can cling to the exit-velocity of 101 mph and the expected average of .700, but the box score will show as much of those things as runs for the Cardinals: zero.
In what arguably was his finest start since Mike Shildt took over as manager, Martinez held the Nationals to the one run on four hits through his six innings. The right-hander was coming off a game when he allowed nine consecutive batters he reach base in Philadelphia — and then retired 11 consecutive. Martinez did not allow any of the inning to mushroom on him. He teased trouble in the second inning after and infield single against the shift got the inning going and a double kept brought home a run.
He coolly walked the No. 8 hitter and got a grounder back to the mound from Scherzer to end the inning. He kept that cool in the third, too.
An error to start the inning didn’t sidetrack him.
A double play to end the inning kept the deficit at one.
Martinez’s six-inning start Wednesday was his first of more than five innings since July 7, 2018 — essentially a week before Shildt became manager. That was also Martinez’s last win as a starter, and he entered Wednesday’s game with an 0-3 record for the season.
The Cardinals had their cracks at Scherzer early — and never again.
The former Mizzou All-American and St. Louis native hit the leadoff batter of the game, allowed an infield single, and then walked another batter to load the bases with one out. Carlson, who had the game-tying RBI with a triple on Tuesday, worked Scherzer deep into the count, fouled off several pitches, and then swung over a cutter for the strikeout that gave Scherzer an exit plan. The right-hander struck out Carpenter on a foul tip to end the inning and leave three Cardinals stranded.
In the second inning, a leadoff single amounted to a double play when Justin Williams was caught stealing as Andrew Knizner struck out.
Martinez double for his first extra-base hit since that San Francisco game in July 2018, and he did get any farther than second base.
Scherzer retired the next 12 consecutive Cardinals.
He didn’t allow another runner to reach second.
When he struck out Williams to end the fourth inning, Scherzer vaulted ahead of Hall of Fame starter Mike Mussina into 21st all time. Williams was Scherzer’s 2,814th career strikeout. He finished the game with nine strikeouts, one shy of the 100th time in his career he had at least 10 strikeouts. The Cardinals didn’t let Scherzer’s exit end their flurry of whiffs. Reliever Todd Rainey, a day after botching a lead, struck out the side in seventh to hold the 1-0 lead.
