*Photo from AP News*
Offense has been king in London over both years MLB has played there. Brendan Donovan drove in two runs, Lars Nootbaar drove in the winning run, and the St. Louis Cardinals defeated the Chicago Cubs with a 7-5 victory on Sunday in London.
After losing the first game convincingly, the Cardinals were in a similar hole to start game two, down 4 runs early. This time, they dug out of the hole and put the Cubs in the hole, outscoring Chicago 7-1 from that point on to end the two game London Series with a split.
Nootbaar said of the crowd in London that "For a lot of us, this is our first time in Europe and baseball isn’t the main sport here, so for us to have big crowds and get the crowd excited, it’s good for the game. Hopefully the fans leave today and we inspired some kids to go out and buy a glove, buy a bat and go in the backyard and play a little bit."
Dansby Swanson gave the Cubs a 1-0 lead in the first inning with an RBI single. Trey Mancini then brought in two runs with a double to center field, making the lead 3-0. Miguel Amaya then hit an RBI double to make it a 4-0 game. In the second inning, Willson Contreras scored on an error to get the Cardinals on the board and make it 4-1. Donovan then hit a two run single to cut the deficit to 4-3.
Jordan Walker then tied the game 4-4 in the 3rd inning with an RBI single. Paul Goldschmidt put the Cardinals ahead 5-4 with an RBI single that scored Tommy Edman. Donovan then scored on a sac fly from Nootbaar to make it a 6-4 game. In the 5th, Nolan Gorman hit an RBI single to make it 7-4. It stayed that way until Nico Hoerner drove in a run in the 9th with a sac fly, making it a 7-5 final.
Contreras said after the game that "When we lost last night, it was a tough game for us, but today we came with a different mindset even though we started down 4-0. We never gave up, and the mindset was different. We were having good at-bats and putting the ball in play, and the results came. The bullpen shut everything down, and it was good for us to win a game coming from behind."
Matthew Liberatore allowed 4 runs in 2 1/3 innings in his start for the Cardinals, being pulled quickly. Jake Woodford got the win with 2 1/3 scoreless innings out of the bullpen. Genesis Cabrera then pitched 1 1/3 innings before Giovanny Gallegos, Andre Pallante, and Jordan Hicks closed out the win.
Marcus Stroman got hit hard in his start for the Cubs, allowing 6 runs on 8 hits and a walk in 3 1/3 innings. Michael Fulmer then pitched 1 2/3 innings, allowing one run. Mark Leiter Jr, Hayden Wesneski, and Adbert Alzolay also pitched in relief, all with scoreless appearances.
Cubs infielder Trey Mancini said of dropping the second London game that "It stinks to end on this note. Because, I mean, it's been just one of the coolest experiences of my life. And I think a lot of other guys would say the same thing."
Both teams have Monday off before playing at home on Tuesday. The Cardinals play the Houston Astros, with Jordan Montgomery starting. Jameson Taillon is expected to start for the Cubs as they face the Philadelphia Phillies.
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