ST. LOUIS – It was small ball vs. the long ball at Busch Stadium on Thursday.
Advantage, long ball.
The Cincinnati Reds weren’t as fundamentally sound as the St. Louis Cardinals to open their four-game series, but it didn’t matter. Jesse Winker crushed a go-ahead, two-homer in the second inning against Adam Wainwright and it was enough for the Reds in a 4-2 victory.
It was one of those games where the Reds couldn’t pull away despite outhitting the Cardinals, 10-6. They stranded 10 runners and were 0-for-10 with runners in scoring position. There was an out at the plate. A wasted leadoff double.
The Cardinals kept hanging around inning after inning. They added tension in the ninth inning when the first two batters reached base through a bloop single and a bunt single. José Rondón tried to bunt the two runners into scoring position, another small ball gamble, but he dropped the ball straight in front of the plate and catcher Tucker Barnhart pounced to begin a double play.
