We just got our ass beat by Drexl. But by the end of the season, we'll be enjoying ourselves with Alabama Worley while the Cardinals sit there with a corkscrew in their foot and their face on fire.
Joe Nuxhall Memorial Honorary Star of the Game
Colby Rasmus. After giving up a grand slam to Skip Schumaker, it was only appropriate that the other most annoyingly named Cardinal got one too. Rasmus went 2-5 with two runs scored and four RBI. Honorable mentions go to Skip Schumaker and Jon Jay.
Key Plays
- Bronson Arroyo did well through 4.2 innings before giving up a two out double to the pesky Jon Jay. The Reds fatefully decided to walk Albert Pujols (who would be hitless on the day) rather than let him beat them. But then Arroyo walked Matt Holliday on four pitches and faced Colby Rasmus with the bases loaded. Rasmus lofted a fly ball to left field that seemed catchable, but Jonny Gomes let it drop foul. Then Rasmus turned on a changeup and deposited it into centerfield. Cardinals lead, 4-0.
- The normally reliable Jordan Smith pitched the seventh inning, and he gave the Cardinals an opening by walking Matt Holliday with one out. Colby Rasmus singled on a soft liner to center, and then Yadier Molina and Skip Schumaker both singled on grounders that were juuuuust out of the reach of our infielders. Holliday and Rasmus scored. Cardinals lead, 6-0.
- After a rain delay, the Reds faced Mitchell Boggs in the eighth. With two outs, Brandon Phillips singled. Paul Janish hit a single, too, and Phillips went to third when the ball landed in a puddle. Tony La Russa brought in Trever Miller to face Joey Votto, and Votto singled as well, driving in Phillips for the only Reds run of the game. Cardinals win, 6-1.
Other Notes
- The Cardinals had not swept the Reds in Cincinnati since 2005.
- The Cardinals aligned their rotation to get their three best pitchers going in this series. Their starters pitched 7, 5.1, and 7 innings. Cincinnati's starters went 3.2, 5.1, and 5.
- The Cardinals had twice as many hits as the Reds in the series, 36 to 18. Of those 18 hits, only three were for extra bases and two of those came from Ramon Hernandez.