Cardinals 6, Brewers 3: Wainwright does it all
It hasn't been uncommon over the past decade for Adam Wainwright to beat the Milwaukee Brewers with his right arm.
Seeing him beat them with his bat like he did Friday night was a little tougher to take.
The salty veteran hit a two-run home run in the third inning to give the St. Louis Cardinals the early lead and then he put the game out of reach with a two-run single in the fourth as the slugging Brewers had the tables turned on them in a 6-3 loss at Miller Park.
Wainwright joined Baseball Hall of Famer Bob Gibson as the only St. Louis pitchers to have multiple games with four or more runs batted in. He also pitched like he usually does against the Brewers, allowing six hits and two runs (earned) while striking out nine over five innings. He ran his career record to 15-8 in 35 appearances (28 starts) against Milwaukee.
BOX SCORE: Cardinals 6, Brewers 3
NOTES: Brewers designate Nieuwenhuis for assignment
SCOREBOARD: Live MLB scores, box scores
Wainwright's counterpart, Wily Peralta, had been seeking to join Teddy Higuera as the only pitchers in franchise history to win their first four games of the season as a starter. Instead, he exited after four innings and 70 pitches. He allowed nine hits, six runs (earned) and a walk while failing to strike out a batter.
It represented a step back for the right-hander, who along with Chase Anderson and Jimmy Nelson had done a good job stabilizing a rotation thrown into flux early in the season by Junior Guerra's right calf injury and Zach Davies' struggles.
Peralta (3-1) actually was the first pitcher to do some damage with the bat in the game. After Keon Broxton snapped an 0-for-18 skid by rifling a triple into the right-field corner, Peralta hit a dribbler up the middle that made it through the infield and gave the Brewers a 1-0 lead.
It didn't last long. After Kolten Wong doubled with two outs in the third and falling behind 0-2, Wainwright hammered a 96-mph fastball way out to left. It was the eighth career homer for Wainwright, who hit .210 with two homers and 18 RBI in 2016.
St. Louis got to Peralta for four more runs in the fourth, and again it was Wainwright providing the big blow. This time he singled to left, driving in two more to make it 5-1. He became the fifth pitcher to drive in four runs against the Brewers and the first since St. Louis' Jake Westbrook on Aug. 31, 2011.
Wainwright was lifted after an even 100 pitches. He came into the night with an 0-3 record and 7.24 ERA.
Orlando Arcia's RBI double in the fourth and Ryan Braun's solo homer in the eighth accounted for the rest of Milwaukee's scoring. Braun's round-tripper extended the team's streak to 13 games with one and the team's major-league-leading total to 33.
Eric Thames went 0 for 5 with three strikeouts.
BEHIND THE BOX SCORE
• There was some discussion before the game about Jonathan Villar's excessive movement behind Davies during a Stephen Piscotty at-bat Thursday. Villar was in that spot due to a defensive shift and home-plate umpire Ted Barrett halted play, informing manager Craig Counsell the second baseman wasn't allowed to intentionally distract the batter.
"They thought he had moved around too much," Counsell said. "He can't intentionally distract the hitter. He can certainly move around; he just can't intentionally distract a hitter. I've seen it – not with us – but I've seen it in other games.
"It's a newer issue with all the shifting, for sure."
• The Brewers had an inning-ending 7-2 double play overturned in the fourth. Wong had been called out at home by Angel Hernandez, but after a replay of 2 minutes 49 seconds, it was determined catcher Manny Piña didn't tag Wong.
STAT SHEET
• Thanks to Peralta's first-inning RBI single, the Brewers have led at some point in 16 of their 18 games, including each of their last 11.
• Wainwright's homer gave the Cardinals at least one at Miller Park for 23 straight games.
TAKEAWAY
It was a not a good outing for Peralta, whose four-inning start was his shortest since his first in 2016 against the San Francisco Giants. That started a downward spiral for Peralta that ended with him landing at Class AAA Colorado Springs. He's shown enough since then to earn the benefit of the doubt, but his next outing needs to be much better.
RECORD
This year: 9-9 (3-6 home; 6-3 away)
Last year: 7-11
ATTENDANCE
Friday: 23,126
2017 total: 270,314 (30,035 avg.)
Last year: 249,840 (27,760 avg.)
NEXT GAME
Saturday: Brewers vs. Cardinals, 6:10 p.m. Milwaukee RHP Chase Anderson (2-0, 1.50) vs. St. Louis RHP Lance Lynn (1-1, 3.12). TV: FS1. Radio: 620-AM.
