In his first game back with the St. Louis Cardinals since being sent to the minors on May 29, Randal Grichuk homered and finished with two hits and Yadier Molina had three hits as the Cardinals beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 8-4 on Sunday night, avoiding the sweep.
The Cardinals tied the game in the sixth on Grichuk’s homer off Pirates starter Chad Kuhl.
Molina missed two games, but had three hits, scored three runs and drove in a run. Molina’s RBI single made it 5-4 in a four-run seventh inning. Later, Paul DeJong’s two-run single gave St. Louis an 8-4 lead.
Trevor Rosenthal (2-3) struck out the only batter he faced in the seventh to earn the win in relief for the Cardinals. Starter Mike Leake went six innings and allowed four runs — three earned — on six hits.
The two longest home runs at this Busch Stadium have come this season. Grichuk’s 478-foot homer was the longest by a Cardinals player and Milwaukee’s Keon Broxton holds the record with a 489-foot blast on June 15.