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 To all three questions, John Lackey and the St. Louis Cardinals
supplied the right answers.
Working a season-high 7 2/3 innings and posting his first
10-strikeout game in nearly a year, Lackey led St. Louis to a 5-1
decision on Thursday over the Chicago Cubs at sold-out Busch
Stadium.
Lackey (2-1), who gave up just five hits, a run and a walk, left the
mound in style. His 109th and last pitch froze rookie Cubs third
baseman Kris Bryant for a called third strike, marking the 18th
double-digit strikeout game in Lackey's career.
"My slider was pretty good, and I happened to be locating my
fastball pretty good and getting ahead," Lackey said. "You're aware
of the situation. Every time you're out there, you want to finish it
off, go as deep as you can."
Normally reticent to give up the ball to anyone, even the man who
comes to lift him, Lackey offered little resistance when Cardinals
manager Mike Matheny asked for the ball after Bryant's third
strikeout of the day.
Matheny joked after the game that he was disappointed Lackey didn't
fight him for the ball.
"We needed that from him for sure," Matheny said of the 36-year-old
right-hander. "He did the bullpen a great favor. If you watch the
highlights, you see called strike threes on the inside and outside
corner. He had a great feel for his slider and where to start it."
Lackey also made a contribution with his bat. Foiling Chicago's
two-out intentional walk to center fielder Peter Bourjos in the
fourth, Lackey slapped the first pitch from Jake Arrieta (3-3) down
the right field line for an RBI double that scored right fielder
Jason Heyward. An error by right fielder Jorge Soler enabled Bourjos
to score, pushing St. Louis' lead to 4-0.
Arrieta, who entered the day 3-0 with an 0.74 ERA in six previous
outings against St. Louis, permitted nine hits and five runs in 5
1/3 innings with a walk and seven strikeouts.
"How many guys hit the ball hard? I thought he was a little bit
unfortunate," Cubs catcher Miguel Montero said of Arrieta. "But (St.
Louis) plays the game the right way. If you make any mistake against
them, they'll capitalize. They manufacture runs."
Heyward went 3-for-4 with three runs, giving him six in the last two
games, and also knocked in the Cardinals' first run with a single in
the second that scored third baseman Mark Reynolds. Bourjos drove in
Heyward one batter later with a triple down the left field line,
giving St. Louis all the runs it needed.
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Heyward capped the Cardinals' scoring in the sixth, racing home on a
two-out wild pitch by reliever Justin Grimm. St. Louis banged out 10
hits while resting the mainstays of its lineup, Carpenter and
Holliday, who are a combined 1-for-28 against Arrieta.
"We have a deep team," Lackey said of winning without Carpenter and
Holliday. "We have proven big league guys on our bench. We feel
confident with whoever's out there."
St. Louis (21-7) finished its 11-game homestand at 9-2, improving
its home record to 14-3, and owns a 6 1/2-game lead in the National
League Central over Chicago and Cincinnati.
Shortstop Starlin Castro drove in the Cubs' only run in the seventh
with an RBI single. Chicago (14-13) put the first two hitters aboard
in the ninth, but St. Louis closer Trevor Rosenthal retired the
three men he faced for his 10th save in 11 tries.
NOTES: St. Louis announced Thursday that LHP Tyler Lyons would start
Sunday in Pittsburgh. Lyons, starting in the spot vacated by RHP
Adam Wainwright (Achilles), lasted 4 1/3 innings Tuesday in a
no-decision. ... Chicago finishes a stretch of 19 straight games
against National League Central opponents this weekend with a
three-game series in Milwaukee. ... The Cardinals got six straight
wins from relief pitchers at the end of their eight-game winning
streak that was snapped Wednesday night. That represents the first
time in franchise history that has occurred.
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