*Photo from CBS Sports*
The second return of Albert Pujols to St.Louis wasn't as loud or rowdy as his first return in 2019, but it was still special, as he always loves to come back to the place that made him great. Pujols homered, Justin Turner homered twice, and the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the St.Louis Cardinals 7-2 on Tuesday night.
Pujols said of returning to St.Louis that "It’s always pretty special anytime you can come over here in St. Louis with the history that I have here with the fans. It was really a great moment, once again, and to be able to deliver like that in the first at-bat was huge. It was just a nice little moment there in the first inning and then my last three at-bats also. I really appreciated my time here; it was great memories and that’s something that I’ll always share with these fans and this city."
When he came up to bat in the first inning, Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina stepped out in front of home plate, allowing the home crowd their time to roar for Pujols, who got his rousing ovation from the Cardinals crowd. Pujols did say he got a little emotional in the moment, but he was ready to get back to baseball as soon as the moment was done.
In the first inning, after his rousing ovation, Pujols blasted a solo home run to left field, giving the Dodgers an early 1-0 lead. In the bottom of the first, Dylan Carlson scored on a sac fly to tie the game 1-1. In the 3rd, a Nolan Arenado RBI single put the Cardinals ahead 2-1. In the 4th inning, the Dodgers retook the lead by a score of 3-2, on an RBI double from Steven Souza Jr and an RBI groundout from Cody Bellinger.
When the 5th inning rolled around, Turner hit home run number one of the night, a solo shot to left field to make it a 4-2 lead. In the 6th, Will Smith hit a solo home run, and Turner added a two run home run in the 9th, making it a 7-2 ballgame and ending any chance of the Cardinals getting back into the game.
Turner said of the two homer night by Pujols that "Anytime he hits a homer, you’re watching history happen. For him to do it here in St. Louis, it’s extra special. St. Louis has a really special place in his heart and that was pretty cool for everyone in the stadium, not just Albert."
Alex Vesia got the win in relief for Los Angeles, getting one out in what was a bullpen game. Corey Knebel started and pitched one inning. Outside of that, Evan Phillips, Shane Greene, Phil Bickford, Brusdar Graterol, Joe Kelly, Blake Treinen, and Neftali Feliz pitched. Knebel and Phillips were responsible for the runs scored by the Cardinals.
JA Happ got the start and was hit with the loss, dropping to an 8-8 record this season. Happ allowed 4 runs on 7 hits, walking no one and striking out 3 hitters in 5 innings pitched. Alex Reyes pitched the 6th in relief, and was responsible for one run. Kwang Hyun-Kim was responsible for the other two runs at the end of the game. Kodi Whitley and Daniel Ponce De Leon also pitched in relief.
Cardinals OF Tyler O'Neill said of the loss that "We've just got to piece some stuff together, keep getting on base, keep playing defense right, attacking the strike zone, just keep doing the little things right, the things that make us the Cardinals. That’s a good team over there. They’re playing good baseball; beat us twice now. We’ve got to come out with a little fire under our butt tomorrow. That’s it."
The Dodgers and Cardinals continue their 4 game series on Wednesday afternoon, with Adam Wainwright taking the mound for the Cardinals, with no announced starter for the Dodgers.
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