On Friday, the Chicago Cubs put an end to the St. Louis Cardinals’ six-game winning streak with a 4-3 victory. Cody Bellinger was the star of the game, hitting a two-run homer and finishing with three hits. Bellinger’s strong performance at the plate continues, as he has been on a tear recently, going 10 for 20 in his last five games. Since returning from a bruised knee on June 15, Bellinger has been batting an impressive .381 with six home runs.
The Cubs’ Justin Steele (10-3) also had a standout performance, striking out a season-high nine batters in 6 1/3 innings. He allowed only two runs and six hits, bouncing back from a previous lackluster performance against the Boston Red Sox.
St. Louis’ starter Jack Flaherty (7-6) was charged with four runs and eight hits over six innings. The Cardinals tried to mount a comeback in the seventh inning when Nolan Arenado hit a two-run single against Julian Merryweather, but it wasn’t enough to secure the win.
The Cardinals had a chance to tie the game in the eighth inning when they loaded the bases with one out. However, pinch-hitter Alec Burleson ended up bouncing into an inning-ending double play and was ejected for arguing with the plate umpire about the expanded strike zone.
The Cubs held on to their lead, and Adbert Alzolay closed out the game with his eighth save. The Cardinals’ right fielder, Seiya Suzuki, also made a crucial running catch in the ninth to secure the victory for Chicago.
In addition to the game, the Cardinals made a trade, sending reliever Génesis Cabrera to the Toronto Blue Jays for minor league catcher Sammy Hernandez.
On the injury front, the Cardinals’ RHP Drew VerHagen is nearing a return, and INF/OF Brendan Donovan expects to continue with DH duties due to a sore throwing arm. For the Cubs, SS Dansby Swanson ran the bases before the game, and INF Nick Madrigal was set to make a rehab appearance at Triple-A Iowa.
In the upcoming game, the Cardinals’ RHP Miles Mikolas will take the mound against the Cubs’ RHP Michael Fulmer.
Here is the MLB scoreboard for Friday, July 21, 2023:
San Diego 5, Detroit 4
New York (NL) 4, Boston 3 (SUSPENDED)
Cleveland 6, Philadelphia 5
Los Angeles (NL) 11, Texas 5
Los Angeles (AL) 8, Pittsburgh 5
Tampa Bay 3, Baltimore 0
New York (AL) 5, Kansas City 4
Houston 6, Oakland 4
Seattle 3, Toronto 2
Chicago (NL) 4, St. Louis 3
Colorado 6, Miami 1
Washington 5, San Francisco 3
Cincinnati 9, Arizona 6
Atlanta 6, Milwaukee 4
