Cardinals explode for 9 runs in 8th inning against Cubs
The Chicago Cubs may want to target elite relief pitchers on the trade market next.
After taking a 3-2 lead into the eighth inning of Friday's game against the St. Louis Cardinals, the Cubs needed three relievers to retire the side. In fact, it took until the third pitcher of the inning for the Cubs to record the first Cardinals out - 11 batters in. Here's how it went down:
Cardinals hitter | Outcome | Cubs pitcher | Score |
---|---|---|---|
Matt Carpenter | Double | Carl Edwards Jr. | 3-2 |
Tommy Pham | Walk | Carl Edwards Jr. | 3-2 |
Dexter Fowler | Walk | Carl Edwards Jr. | 3-2 |
Jedd Gyorko | Walk | Hector Rondon | 3-3 |
Paul DeJong | Double | Hector Rondon | 5-3 |
Kolten Wong | Walk | Hector Rondon | 5-3 |
Randal Grichuk | Single | Hector Rondon | 6-3 |
Carson Kelly | Double | Justin Grimm | 8-3 |
Luke Voit | Walk | Justin Grimm | 8-3 |
Matt Carpenter | Single | Justin Grimm | 9-3 |
Tommy Pham | Single | Justin Grimm | 11-3 |
Dexter Fowler | GIDP | Justin Grimm | 11-3 |
Jedd Gyorko | Walk | Justin Grimm | 11-3 |
Paul DeJong | Strikeout | Justin Grimm | 11-3 |
Remarkably, the Cardinals put up nine runs in an inning without the help of a single home run.
It was such a horrendous inning that Carl Edwards Jr.'s season ERA climbed from 2.11 to 2.82 and Hector Rondon's went from 3.58 to 4.54 after facing just four batters.
With the victory, the Cardinals snapped a two-game losing streak and ended the Cubs' six-game win streak. Only four games separate the first-place Milwaukee Brewers from the fourth-place Cardinals in the hotly contested National League Central.