Cardinals vs Pirates Recap: Young arms shine in 11-7 win

The St. Louis Cardinals visited the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday, April 28, ready for a big showdown. St. Louis had just beaten Pittsburgh 4-2 the day before, so they were riding high with confidence. The Pirates brought their own weapon to the mound: Braxton Ashcraft took the ball for Pittsburgh. Kyle Leahy pitched for the Cardinals, eager to keep the momentum rolling. By the final out, St. Louis had dominated the game completely, winning 11-7 in a thrilling display of offensive power. The Cardinals' young arms had shown they could compete, and this victory stretched their winning streak to two games. Pirates fans watched their team fall short despite some late-inning fireworks that kept hope alive throughout the contest.

The early innings stayed quiet, but everything changed in the second inning when Gorman launched a massive home run to right field, traveling 413 feet with an exit velocity of 109 mph. Scott II kept the momentum going in the third inning with his own homer, also traveling over 415 feet. That same inning, Walker delivered a clutch single that scored another run. St. Louis built a 3-0 lead early, and the Pirates couldn't catch up. Then came the fifth inning—a Cardinals explosion that would decide the game. Burleson smacked a ground rule double, Walker followed with a sacrifice fly, and Gorman added another sac fly. Suddenly, St. Louis led 6-0, and Pittsburgh faced an impossible deficit to overcome.

Pittsburgh finally scored in the sixth inning when Cruz hit a powerful home run to center field, traveling 414 feet. O'Hearn followed with another two-run blast to right-center, making it 6-3. The Pirates showed resilience and refused to quit, scoring more runs in the eighth inning when O'Hearn singled and Gonzales drove in two runs with a single. In the ninth, Griffin launched a solo home run, bringing Pittsburgh within 11-7. However, the Cardinals' powerful earlier innings had built too large a lead. Despite Pittsburgh's strong rally in the late innings, St. Louis held firm and secured the victory. The Cardinals improved to 16-13, while the Pirates fell to 16-14 with three consecutive losses.