For five and a half innings Thursday night, it appeared the Tampa Bay Rays might ruin the Cardinals’ home opener at Busch Stadium. Then the bottom of the sixth arrived, and the Cardinals delivered one of the most memorable comebacks in recent franchise history.
Trailing 7-1, St. Louis sent 12 batters to the plate and scored eight runs before the inning ended, turning a near-disaster into a 9-7 victory and handing the Rays their first loss of the 2026 season.
St. Louis Cardinals on X (formerly Twitter): “First MLB hit ✅First MLB home run ✅First MLB curtain call ✅Welcome to St. Louis, JJ Wetherholt!! pic.twitter.com/sj61G1I1bV / X”
First MLB hit ✅First MLB home run ✅First MLB curtain call ✅Welcome to St. Louis, JJ Wetherholt!! pic.twitter.com/sj61G1I1bV
The rally was built on a relentless string of hits and clutch at-bats. Nolan Gorman opened the floodgates with a two-run single to center. Nathan Church followed with a two-run single of his own. JJ Wetherholt, who had already provided the Cardinals’ first run with a 425-foot solo home run in the third inning — his first in the major leagues — added a sacrifice fly. Ivan Herrera drove in another run, and Alec Burleson capped the outburst with a 432-foot two-run homer to right field that gave the Cardinals a lead they would not relinquish.
St. Louis Cardinals on X (formerly Twitter): “LONG GONE! 🤯💣 pic.twitter.com/XrQvm4WhN7 / X”
LONG GONE! 🤯💣 pic.twitter.com/XrQvm4WhN7
St. Louis finished with 14 hits and played error-free baseball. The Rays collected 17 hits but stranded 16 runners and committed two costly defensive miscues. The Cardinals’ bullpen retired 10 of the final 11 batters it faced, preserving the win in front of a sellout crowd on a warm, sunny evening.
Drew Rasmussen, who had been dominant early, took a no-decision after allowing one run on four hits over five innings. The Rays’ bullpen, however, could not contain the Cardinals’ lineup once the sixth inning began. Tampa Bay had taken a 7-1 lead with a six-run sixth of its own, but the Cardinals responded with a display of timely hitting that has defined successful teams in this ballpark for decades.
Wetherholt’s third-inning home run not only put the Cardinals on the board but also marked the start of what could be a promising rookie campaign. Burleson’s late blast and Church’s two-run single provided the decisive blows in a comeback that carried the unmistakable feel of vintage Cardinals resilience.
The Cardinals (1-0) open the season with a statement victory. The Rays (0-1) will look to rebound when the teams meet again Friday night.
