Arizona Erupts for Four in Ninth, Survives STL Comeback
Every single run in this game scored in the ninth inning — all seven of them. Arizona built a 4-0 lead, watched St. Louis claw back to within one, and held on for a 4-3 win on June 23.
For eight innings, Eduardo Rodriguez and Kyle Leahy turned this into a pitching showcase neither offense could crack. Rodriguez went 6.2 innings, allowing 3 hits and 0 earned runs while striking out 5. Leahy matched him nearly pitch for pitch: 6.1 innings, 3 hits, 0 earned runs, 3 strikeouts. Maxwel Rajcic came on in relief for St. Louis and was equally stingy — 1.2 innings, no hits, no earned runs. Through eight frames, the scoreboard read 0-0, and it looked like whoever blinked first in the ninth would decide everything.
Arizona blinked — in the best possible way. Nolan Arenado doubled to left, scoring Moreno and sending Vargas to third. That one swing moved St. Louis's win probability from 46% to 12%, a 34-point collapse in a single at-bat. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. then singled to center, scoring both Vargas and Arenado to make it 3-0. The chaos wasn't done: a passed ball by Jimmy Crooks allowed Barrosa to score, with Marte and Troy also advancing on the miscue, pushing Arizona to 4-0. Gurriel Jr. finished 2-for-4 with 2 RBI; Arenado went 1-for-4 with 1 RBI and 1 run scored. The story of the night was Arizona's ability to pile on once the door cracked open.
St. Louis made it uncomfortable in a hurry. Alec Burleson doubled to right, scoring Nootbaar to cut it to 4-1. A sacrifice fly made it 4-2. Then Crooks — the same catcher whose passed ball had gifted Arizona its fourth run — singled to right to score Burleson and pull the Cardinals within one at 4-3. It appears the Cardinals have the kind of lineup that never fully goes away, but Arizona's Kevin Ginkel slammed the door: 1.0 inning, no hits, no earned runs, 1 strikeout. Jordan Walker went 2-for-4 for St. Louis and Lars Nootbaar went 2-for-3 with a run, but it wasn't enough. With the MLB season approaching its halfway point, Arizona looks like a team that can manufacture a crooked number when the moment demands it — even if it takes until the final three outs to do it.