Cardinals top Phillies on Grichuk's RBI in 11th

[August 20, 2016]  PHILADELPHIA -- Jedd Gyorko said it quite simply following his team's 4-3 win Friday night at Citizens Bank Park.

"I'm a big believer that hitting is contagious," he said.

Whatever Gyorko's got, his teammates caught.

Randal Grichuk's double knocked in the go-ahead run in the top of the 11th inning, giving the St. Louis Cardinals a victory over the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday night.

Jhonny Peralta led off the 11th inning with a double and he scored easily when Grichuk launched a Frank Herrmann pitch over the head of Phillies center fielder Odubel Herrera.

Grichuk's heroics were made possible thanks to a ninth-inning comeback capped off by Gyorko.

The Cardinals trailed 3-1 in the top of the ninth before Gyorko fouled off four pitches from Phillies closer Jeanmar Gomez. On the eighth pitch of the at-bat, Gyorko unloaded on a 2-2 splitter and tied the game at three with one out, handing Gomez his first blown save since July 18.

"He hung a split... it was center-cut," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. "He's been so good for us the whole year... I can't fault him."

Cardinals reliever Alex Reyes picked up his first career save, inducing an Odubel Herrera groundout to first base with two runners on to end the game.

Seung-hwan Oh, who pitched two scoreless innings, got the win for the Cardinals.
 

Herrera and Freddy Galvis, the top two in Philadelphia's batting order, provided back-to-back home runs off Cardinals starter Adam Wainwright to lead off the bottom of the sixth. The homers broke a 1-1 tie and gave the Phillies a 3-1 lead they would hold onto until the ninth.

The home runs came just moments after Wainwright called the grounds crew out to the wet pitcher's mound after slipping when throwing a first-pitch ball to Herrera.

"You know, I think subconsciously it did (affect me)," Wainwright said. "I certainly slipped on that one pitch pretty good. When something like that happens and you don't really trust it after that, it can bother you a little bit."

The Philadelphia lead was enough to put Adam Morgan in line for a much-needed win. Mackanin said pregame that Morgan had to "do something" to prove he belonged at the big-league level, and he lowered his ERA to 6.21. He allowed one run on five hits, walking a pair while striking out three in six-plus innings of work.

Morgan got off to a rocky start, needing 20 pitches to get through the first inning. But he settled in over the middle innings despite the Cardinals smacking three hard outs in the fourth. His night ended in the top of the seventh after 91 pitches when Gyorko led off with a single.

 Cardinals center fielder Randal Grichuk (15) hits the game winning RBI double during the eleventh inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. The St. Louis Cardinals won 4-3 in the eleventh inning. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

Morgan's only blemish came on Grichuk's second-inning home run that tied the score at one apiece. But that coast Morgan his first win since May 10.

"What a tough loss," Mackanin said. "One of the few bright spots about the game tonight was Morgan. He pitched extremely well, used a ton of changeups, located extremely well, made a mistake to Grichuk early in the game."

Wainwright allowed three runs on five hits in six innings. He struck out five and walked two.

"Adam was better today," Matheny said. "Just a couple of those solo home runs put us in a hole."

Herrera and Galvis also combined on the Phillies' first run of the night. Herrera, back in the leadoff spot with Cesar Hernandez out for the second straight game with a foot injury, led off the bottom of the first with a single and quickly rounded the bases on Galvis' RBI double to the gap in right-center.

NOTES: Phillies INF/OF Emmanuel Burriss, who started at second base and batted eighth, was recalled Friday from Triple-A Lehigh Valley while INF Taylor Featherston was optioned. To make room for Burriss on the 40-man roster, the Phillies transferred RHP Zach Eflin to the 60-day disabled list Friday. Eflin underwent surgery to repair the patellar tendon in his right knee Friday and will not pitch again in 2016. ... St. Louis 1B/OF Brandon Moss (illness) was scratched from Friday's lineup after originally being part of it. Kolten Wong was inserted at second base while Matt Carpenter moved to first base. Moss was used as a pinch-hitter in the top of the 11th inning.

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