CINCINNATI — To open a series the Cardinals need to assert their place, still, in the thick of the National League wild-card race, they got the kind of start they wanted from Jon Lester.
The veteran lefty, back in the familiar haunt of Great American Ball Park, had as many hits (one) as he allowed through a strong 6 1/3 innings that carried the Cardinals toward a win – and an immediate test of their new approach to the late innings. An early gust of runs, highlighted by Paul Goldschmidt’s 22nd home run of the season, fed to a late look at Giovanny Gallegos, this time recast as closer.
Gallegos retired the Reds in order to cement the 3-1 victory for his third save of the season at the end of a peppy, well-paced and well-played game.
The Cardinals trail the Reds by 2 1/2 games for the second wild card.
The one hit Lester (5-6) allowed was a leadoff homer in the second inning to Kyle Farmer. The Cardinals’ lefty then retired 16 consecutive Reds.
He did not allow a Red to reach base until a walk to 22nd and final batter faced.
Lester mixed in five strikeouts, bookending two around a fly out in the fourth inning that was caught by a sliding Dylan Carlson in right field. Lester utilized the Cardinals’ defense for the rest. He tested the bounds of the comfy Great American Ball Park, but Harrison Bader was there to snag some liners on the run, and once put his back near the center-field wall to haul in an out. Edmundo Sosa had a diving, barehand play in the same inning to keep Lester’s streak going through 6 1/3 innings.
The Cardinals had a two-run lead for Lester before starter Luis Castillo got an out. Tommy Edman, a few hours removed from winning the NL’s player of the week award, opened the game with a walk, and then strolled home on Goldschmidt’s home run. In the sixth, snazzy baserunning by Carlson allowed the Cardinals to widen their lead again. Carlson doubled into the right-field corner. When Nolan Arenado hit a hard grounder to third base, Carlson paused at second, waited for the throw across the diamond, and then hard-charged into third, ahead of the return throw.
That 90 feet Carlson took proved essential.
He was able to score on Tyler O’Neill’s infield single.
That reclaimed the two-run for Lester and gave the lefty additional room to pitch into the seventh on only 86 pitches before the bullpen took over.
Lester had a tight rope to walk in the seventh inning as he faced the middle of the order and did so with a clear understanding that he would only get as far as he kept the bases empty.
He was not going to face the potential tying run.
When Joey Votto drew a one-out walk from Lester, out came the bullpen – and the new late-inning machinations that manager Mike Shildt said won’t always lead to closer Alex Reyes. T. J. McFarland, a lefty like Lester, got the assignment with a runner on base and a sinker the Cardinals call on to get groundouts, preferably in pairs. The first batter McFarland faced hit a ground-rule double to send Votto to third and put the tying run in scoring position. McFarland kept after the Reds with his grounder and got a lot of help from the defense.
Votto was breaking from third on contact when Eugenio Suarez chopped a grounder to Nolan Arenado at third. The eight-time Gold Glove winner threw home to get Votto by three strides. Farmer did not advance from second. The Cardinals went from having one out and runners at third and second to having two outs with runners at first and second. They got no farther. McFarland caught outfielder Tyler Naquin looking at a called strike three.
That cleaned up the inning, giving Lester the same line he earned.
Farmer’s homer was the only blemish on Lester's line.
