Duncan, Cardinals come alive late
Left fielder gets two key hits in St. Louis' comeback win
By Matthew Leach / MLB.com
SAN FRANCISCO -- Through six innings Saturday, Chris Duncan was slumping. His teammates were hitless on the afternoon. And the Cardinals were facing a daunting five-run deficit.
Four frames later, Duncan was a hero on a 3-for-3 hot streak, the rest of the lineup had chipped in six more hits, and St. Louis was celebrating a rollicking, hard-fought 8-7 win at AT&T Park. Duncan drove in the winning run with a 10th-inning single, but he was just one of a lengthy list of stars for the National League Central-leading Cardinals.
"He's been swinging better and better," manager Tony La Russa said. "He's getting closer and closer to himself. And when he does, he's a clutch guy. He's got a history of rising to the occasion."
Rarely quite like he did on Saturday, though. Following a sixth-inning strikeout, Duncan was 3-for-18 (.167) on the season with no extra-base hits and one RBI. In his final three at-bats, he added three hits, including a home run and a double, and two ribbies to his totals.
Duncan's solo home run in the eighth cut the Giants' lead to 5-3 and started a three-run, game-tying rally. He doubled in the ninth after Ryan Ludwick's homer put the Redbirds ahead, but his biggest hit may have been his shortest.
After the Cards took a 7-5 lead in the ninth, San Francisco tied it up against closer Jason Isringhausen. But St. Louis got two runners on base in the 10th, providing a chance for another lead. One of those runners was Jason LaRue, who was hit in the face as he tried to bunt. LaRue took only a glancing blow, and though he felt some pain, he said any injury was minor.
With left-hander Erick Threets on the mound, the Giants walked Ludwick to load the bases for Duncan, and the lefty-swinging Duncan poked a single into left field for the game-winner.
"It felt good to get an opportunity right there," Duncan said. "I was just trying to get the barrel on the ball, and it happened to fall in."
Through six innings, the Cardinals not only trailed by five, but they were hitless against Matt Cain. But Albert Pujols' double ended Cain's chance at history, and Adam Kennedy and Rico Washington hit RBI singles to get the Cardinals on the board. Duncan hit a solo homer and Rick Ankiel a two-run shot in the eighth, and Ludwick hit a go-ahead jack in the ninth.
However, Isringhausen had a rough ninth, suffering his first blown save of the season. Rich Aurilia hit an RBI single to cut a 7-5 lead in half, and Fred Lewis kept up his spectacular series with a game-tying double that caromed off Pujols' glove into right field.
Fortunately, the Cardinals not only had one more rally in them, but one more stop. After they took the 8-7 lead, Anthony Reyes got the final shutdown. Reyes, moved to the bullpen after competing for a starting job in Spring Training, struck out two batters in nailing down his first professional save.
"I'm having fun," said Reyes, who recorded a win with three excellent innings of relief in Houston on Tuesday. "I'm getting some opportunities to get in there in some good situations, and I'm enjoying it. I'm staying prepared and giving it my best whenever I get called in."
For the second straight outing, Todd Wellemeyer saw a brilliant beginning dwindle to a no-decision thanks to a rough final inning. Wellemeyer took a one-hit shutout into the sixth before Cain's solo homer keyed a big inning for the home team.
After Cain went deep, Lewis singled. Eugenio Velez popped up on a bunt attempt and Randy Winn flied out before Bengie Molina lofted a fly ball to right field. Skip Schumaker gloved the ball, but it squirted out, keeping the inning alive. Jose Castillo walked, setting up John Bowker, who was making his Major League debut.
Molina's ball was initially ruled an error on Schumaker, but in the next inning, the decision was overturned and Molina was awarded a base hit. That made all of the runs in the inning earned. Had the initial decision stood, Wellemeyer would have been charged with one earned run and four unearned.
"I thought he pitched really well, and then the guy jumped a first-pitch fastball, and I think it unsettled him a little bit," La Russa said. "But overall he was outstanding. That's part of it, just to keep concentrating no matter what. But that's really disturbing, to have the pitcher break a scoreless tie with a home run."
The Cardinals improved to 9-3 on the season and lead the National League Central by 1 1/2 games over Milwaukee, which beat the Mets. The comeback win was their biggest since overcoming a 6-0 deficit to beat the Brewers, 7-6, on July 28, 2007.
Matthew Leach is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
I was at USC yesterday for spring fest and my phone kept blowing up with run updates for this game; I am just glad the Cards ended up pulling this one off.
