Cards' Victory Busts Bad Streaks
Stephenson pitches seven strong innings
By Matthew Leach / MLB.com
May 15, 2003
ST. LOUIS -- While Edgar Renteria was talking to reporters after the Cardinals' 6-3 win over the Reds, Fernando Vina was busily scribbling. Vina marked a big "S" on a sheet of paper, reached around his friend and teammate from behind and held the sheet on Renteria's chest.
"Superman," Vina explained.
You can see why he'd think so.
Renteria came up with the big hit his team desperately needed, doubling home Scott Rolen for the go-ahead run as St. Louis won for the first time in four games. It was the Cards' second victory in their past nine games and first in seven tries against the Reds this year.
"I was ready to go," he said. "They'd been pitching me inside so I had to turn the ball to left field. And I did."
Renteria, the league's leading hitter at .367, went 2-for-4 for his 20th multi-hit game of the year. He has hit in eight consecutive games and 21 of his past 23. His double sparked a three-run rally that made a winner of Garrett Stephenson.
The right-hander pitched effectively and efficiently for his third victory of the year. Stephenson allowed one run on two hits, and it was the third time in Stephenson's past four starts he has held an opponent to one run. He got through seven innings on 88 pitches.
"I'm still going out there and trying to be consistent," Stephenson said. "That's all I'm trying to do. Today, my fastball, I knew where it was going, both sides of the plate. And I used my other pitches when I had to."
But as strong as Stephenson was, the story was the Cardinals bats, which had been in a deep slumber for some time. St. Louis had tallied four runs over its previous three games.
"I think we played the game the right way today," said Jim Edmonds, who went 34 at-bats without an RBI before an eighth-inning homer. "We moved the runner over. We got a couple opposite-field hits. It's nice to get a win."
Cincinnati took an early lead the way it always seems to against St. Louis, via the longball. Adam Dunn crushed a solo shot over the Cardinals bullpen in the second, but it turned out that was all the Reds would get against Stephenson.
Still, it seemed like it might be enough. The Cardinals' recent offensive woes spilled over into the early part of the contest. With a runner on second and one out in the first inning, Albert Pujols grounded out, then Edmonds did the same. Rolen and Renteria both reached base to lead off the second, but a fly out and a double play ended the threat.
Pujols smacked a leadoff double in the fourth, but Edmonds grounded out and it looked like it might be more of the same. However, Rolen -- one of the few Cardinals to hit well in recent days -- slapped an RBI single up the middle and the game was tied.
"It was big when Albert hit the double," Renteria said. "And Jimmy hit the ground ball to second base, (then) we tied the game. At that moment, I knew we could win the game."
Stephenson and Reds starter John Riedling kept up a tight duel through the sixth, but Riedling made a mistake -- and paid for it -- in the seventh. He hit Rolen with a pitch to lead off the inning. Renteria smoked a double down the left-field line, scoring Rolen, and took third base on the throw home.
"That's come clutch swinging," manager Tony La Russa said. "Edgar got a big hit. That's a huge hit."
With the lead in hand, St. Louis seemed energized. Tino Martinez snapped a drought of nearly three weeks without an RBI when he singled home Renteria. Three batters later, Fernando Vina drove in Martinez with a single. Edmonds crushed a two-run homer to dead center off of Felix Heredia in the eighth for some insurance.
Even then, it wasn't over. The Cardinals already let one five-run ninth-inning lead get away this year, and they threatened to do it again Thursday.
Cincinnati loaded the bases with none out in the ninth, rapping three singles against Jeff Fassero. That got Fassero yanked, and gave Cal Eldred a chance at his first career save. Eldred induced a fly out from Aaron Boone and a sac fly from Adam Dunn before Ken Griffey Jr. laced an RBI single, but struck out Juan Castro to deliver the win.
"Usually Jeff cruises through those situations," Eldred said. "I was down there really thinking I was gonna put my ball back in the bag and walk in when he finished the game. But today was a day when I could be of some help."
The win gets the Cardinals back to .500 and keeps them within four games of the first-place Cubs. Chicago and St. Louis have a four-game series at Busch Stadium starting Friday.
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