John Lackey (photo/MLB)
The Cincinnati Reds sent eight batters to the plate in the bottom of the first inning, cranking out five hits and jumping on Cardinals starter John Lackey for three runs. After that, Lackey settled in, but the Cardinals came up short in their 3-2 loss in the series opener on Tuesday night.
Jay Bruce had an RBI double, a pitch that Lackey thought he executed well, and Marlon Byrd followed with another double. After the 30-pitch inning, Lackey settled in and allowed only an infield single through the next five innings, retiring the last 14 batters he faced.
Randal Grichuk tripled off the wall in center field and Matt Carpenter hit his 14th homer in the third inning, cutting the deficit to 3-2. It was Carpenter’s fourth homer in the last five games. For the most part, they were shut down again by Anthony DeSclafani, who beat the Cardinals for the second time in a week, finishing with a career high nine strikeouts.
After winning 14 of 17 series against the Reds, a loss tonight would give Cincy their second series win a row. They took two out of three from the Cardinals last week at Busch Stadium, their first since 2001 in St. Louis.
