LOS ANGELES — Ice Cube’s “It Was a Good Day” bumped from the speakers in the visiting clubhouse of Dodger Stadium late Saturday night as various members of the St. Louis Cardinals bobbed in and out, all in remarkably better moods than the past two days.
In a game that featured a five-run seventh inning, a bases-loaded balk, a blown save, a resilient response and the first rain delay in Los Angeles since 2017, the Cardinals battled and rallied their way to their first victory of the 2024 season, defeating the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-5 in 10 innings.
It’s not how they drew it up, but they’ll certainly take it.
“That was a scrappy win, and a fun one,” manager Oli Marmol said. “A lot of moving parts to that one. Guys stepped up and came through, no doubt. I loved every second of that one.”
Goodnight and THAT’S A WINNER!!#ForTheLou pic.twitter.com/DuAwBYEprN
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) March 31, 2024
Given all of the dramatics, it was fitting how the game eventually came to a close. Clinging to a one-run lead in the bottom of the 10th, the Cardinals turned to right-handed set-up man Giovanny Gallegos to shut down the three left-handed batters (James Outman, Jason Heyward and Gavin Lux) at the bottom of the Dodgers lineup. The problem? Left-handed hitters plagued Gallegos last year, hammering him for an .850 OPS. It wasn’t an ideal matchup, but after turning to the bullpen in the fifth inning after starting pitcher Lance Lynn’s start was shortened by rain, St. Louis didn’t have many options remaining.
So out came Gallegos, tasked to retire the side in order. If he didn’t, the Dodgers lineup would turn over to reveal baseball’s best one-two punch: Mookie Betts (who had sparked a game-tying rally in the bottom of the ninth with a solo shot off closer Ryan Helsley) and Shohei Ohtani.
Gallegos breezed through Outman and Heyward, striking out both on a combined 11 pitches. Six of those were sliders, the pitch that lefties feasted on last season. Yet Gallegos whiffed both batters on sliders outside of the zone, and looked to do the same with Lux. But Lux fouled off a couple of off-speed pitches before tapping a 60 mph groundball that he beat out for an infield single.
Brandon Crawford had the start at shortstop, with Marmol explaining he wanted to give rookie shortstop Masyn Winn a full day off, despite how tempting it was to put him in the game during the later innings. But Marmol was unsure if Winn would have even made a play on Lux’s slow roller, saying it would have taken something “beyond amazing.”
Betts strode to the plate trailing by one with two on and two out, and Dodger Stadium responded accordingly. The fans were eager for Betts to repeat his ninth-inning theatrics, and it seemed that momentum had swung the Dodgers’ way. That sentiment only grew when Gallegos bounced a full-count slider in the dirt, loading the bases for Ohtani.
Again, Gallegos turned to the slider, firing in two to baseball’s most feared hitter before throwing a fastball for a high ball. With a 2-1 count, Gallegos went with the fastball once more. Ohtani was ready for it, but swung under it and shot a high pop fly into the rain-spattered sky. Crawford corralled it in shallow center field, securing the ball with both hands while also securing a gritty, hard-earned, resilient win.
“I prepared a lot over the offseason,” Gallegos said. “I trust my stuff, and my confidence, I’m working on that.”
HOLY COW! Giovanny Gallegos gets Shohei Ohtani to pop up with a one-run lead and the bases loaded to end the game. #STLCards pic.twitter.com/WOauXHkwDZ
— Bally Sports Midwest (@BallySportsMW) March 31, 2024
It was an impressive and encouraging performance for Gallegos, who is coming off arguably the worst season of his career.
“It was a really tough spot for him,” Marmol said. “It’s one of those spots where you wouldn’t want to see him last year. … But he’s feeling good about where he’s at and being able to spin it.
“In this environment against that part of the lineup, him coming up there was huge.”
Key moments for the Cardinals included a clutch defensive play from Alec Burleson, who halted a Dodgers rally in the fifth by firing a dart from right field to nab Freddie Freeman at home plate, and a two-run double from Brendan Donovan that capped St. Louis’ five-run inning off Dodgers reliever Joe Kelly. But their eventual game-winning run came via small ball, with Victor Scott II, who began the top of the tenth as the automatic runner, racing home and scoring on a Paul Goldschmidt groundball, despite the Dodgers playing with the infield in.
It was difficult for Marmol to highlight one important moment over another.
“(Donovan’s) two-run double, Scott’s break on the groundball, Helsley punching out (Teoscar Hernández) in the ninth, he could have walked us off right there,” Marmol said, listing them off.
The Cardinals didn’t dominate the game, but their grit was just as impressive. After a stale second half last season and an extra-long offseason, St. Louis is back to playing meaningful baseball.
On Saturday night, they played like they had missed it.
(Photo of Iván Herrera tagging out Freddie Freeman at the plate in the fifth: Keith Birmingham / MediaNews Group / Pasadena Star-News via Getty Images)