|
 "I was not happy with the way my day was going," said Carpenter, who
got the biggest of the Cardinals' seven hits after center fielder
Peter Bourjos drew a one-out walk.
"He (Bourjos) really had a good at-bat and it kind of rejuvenated
me. I knew I needed to follow with a good at-bat," said Carpenter,
whose home run snapped a streak of 17 innings without a run by the
Cardinals, who still won two of three games in Cleveland.
Indians right-hander Trevor Bauer pitched seven scoreless innings
and started the eighth inning by retiring shortstop Pete Kozma on a
flyout to left. Center fielder Bourjos drew a walk, and Cleveland
manager Terry Francona went to his bullpen.
Left-hander Marc Rzepczynski (1-1), a former Cardinal, was brought
in to face left-handed-hitting third baseman Carpenter. Carpenter,
who is hitting .314 vs. left-handers this season, pounded a 2-1
pitch over the wall in center field for his sixth home run -- a
two-run blast that gave the Cardinals a 2-1 lead.
"Carp really got into it, and he had to because the wind was really
blowing in," St. Louis manager Mike Matheny said.
"To tell you the truth," Carpenter said, "I thought I hit it way
out, but then I saw what the wind was doing and saw (center fielder
Michael) Bourn had a play on it, and he didn't miss it by much."
The home run was the first allowed by Rzepczynski to a left-handed
hitter since June 12, 2012, when he gave up one to Adam Dunn while
he was pitching for the Cardinals.
"That's the straightest ball I've thrown in a long time,"
Rzepczynski said. "It's frustrating. I face one hitter, give up a
home run, and we lose the game."
Left-hander Kevin Siegrist (2-0) pitched two scoreless innings on
one hit to get the win. Right-hander Trevor Rosenthal pitched 1 1/3
scoreless innings to pick up his 12th save.
Cleveland's only run came on a solo home run by left fielder Michael
Brantley off right-hander Michael Wacha in the sixth inning.
Less than 24 hours after right-hander Corey Kluber struck out 18 in
eight innings in a 2-0 win, Bauer struck out 10 in 7 1/3 innings in
his first career appearance vs. St. Louis. He gave up one run on
four hits and three walks. Bauer struck out each St. Louis starter
at least once, with the exception of designated hitter Matt Holliday
and second baseman Kolten Wong.
"He throws 95 (mph), with a sharp hook and good sink. You mix it all
together and you're going to have success," Matheny said.
[to top of second column] |
The Indians made Wacha work hard right out of the gate. Second
baseman Jason Kipnis, leading off the bottom of the first, ended a
12-pitch battle with Wacha by lining a double into the right-field
corner. Kipnis was left stranded, but the Indians sent five men to
the plate and forced Wacha to throw 35 pitches.
"We were 10 pitches away from taking him out in the first inning,"
Matheny said.
Wacha pitched five innings, throwing 105 pitches and giving up one
run on five hits. He struck out seven and walked two.
"We had some chances early but couldn't do anything with them,"
Cleveland manager Terry Francona said. "At least we got (Wacha's)
pitch count up. Then Brantley hits one out and we thought we could
make it stand, but it didn't work out."
NOTES: The Cardinals placed OF Jon Jay on the disabled list,
retroactive to May 10, with left wrist tendinitis. To replace Jay on
the roster, the Cardinals recalled INF Xavier Scruggs from Triple-A
Memphis. ... Cardinals OF Matt Holliday was not in the original
starting lineup Thursday after getting hit in the left elbow by a
pitch in Wednesday's game, but Holliday lobbied manager Mike Matheny
and was a late addition as designated hitter. ... On Wednesday, 2B
Jason Kipnis became the first Cleveland player to reach base via two
hit-by-pitches and a walk since Brian Giles on Aug. 9, 1998.
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
