Cubs vs Cardinals Recap: Late Rally Upset Bid Fizzles

The Cubs came to Busch Stadium ready to fight. St. Louis was struggling, sitting at 30-25, and Chicago wanted to climb above .500. The first inning exploded with action. With runners on base and two outs, Ian Happ stepped up against Andre Pallante. The Cardinals pitcher threw a 96 mph fastball right down the middle. Happ unleashed his swing and the ball rocketed into right-center field. It sailed 407 feet and cleared the wall. Michael Busch and Alex Bregman raced home. Cubs led 3-0. But the Cardinals answered right back. Nelson Velazquez smashed a 411-foot bomb to left-center off Shota Imanaga. Ivan Herrera and Jordan Walker scored. Game tied 3-3. Chicago 5, St. Louis 6 final, but we're just getting started.

The game stayed tight through the early innings. Michael Busch singled in the second inning, scoring Dansby Swanson to make it 4-3 Cubs. But the Cardinals came roaring back. In the fourth inning, Thomas Saggese crushed a 402-foot home run to left-center off Imanaga. The Cardinals grabbed a 4-4 tie. One inning later, Ivan Herrera blasted another bomb. His 409-foot shot also went to left-center. St. Louis took a 5-4 lead. The Cubs needed to respond. Shota Imanaga fought hard on the mound, giving Chicago 5.1 strong innings. But the Cardinals' bats kept working, kept swinging, kept finding barrels.

The eighth inning brought more drama. Jose Fermin singled off Phil Maton, scoring Nelson Velazquez. St. Louis stretched the lead to 6-4. Now the Cubs had to score fast. In the ninth inning, Michael Busch grounded out to third, but Pete Crow-Armstrong raced home. Score became 5-6. That was as close as Chicago could get. Riley O'Brien closed out the game for St. Louis. The Cardinals won 6-5 and improved to 30-26. The Cubs fell to 31-28 and dropped their second straight. It was a heartbreaker for Chicago, but Imanaga's rotation helped keep them fighting all night long.