For the second straight night, the St. Louis Cardinals delivered late-inning heroics, this time walking off their cross-state rivals in extra frames to claim a hard-fought 5-4 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Friday night.
The game, played before a sellout crowd at Busch Stadium, featured crisp pitching early, timely power from both sides, and a tense back-and-forth that showcased why interleague play between these Midwest clubs remains must-see baseball.
Dustin May started for the Cardinals and delivered six strong innings, allowing three runs on four hits with three strikeouts. Michael Wacha, making a return to Busch against his former club, went six innings for Kansas City, surrendering three runs, including a pair of homers.
Kansas City struck first in the fourth. Carter Jensen ripped an RBI double to plate Vinnie Pasquantino, and Isaac Collins followed with a sacrifice fly that scored Salvador Perez for a 2-0 lead.
St. Louis answered immediately in the bottom half. Jordan Walker crushed a two-run homer to center off Wacha — scoring Iván Herrera — to knot the score at 2-2. Pedro Pagés then went yard in the fifth with a solo shot for a 3-2 Cardinals edge.
The Royals refused to fade. Collins drove in another run with a groundout in the sixth to tie it at 3-3. The game remained deadlocked until the 10th, when Bobby Witt Jr. delivered an RBI double to put Kansas City ahead 4-3. Alec Burleson responded in the home half with a game-tying RBI single that scored pinch-runner Thomas Saggese.
In the 11th, the Cardinals manufactured the winner. With two outs and Nathan Church on third, pinch-hitter Yohel Pozo lined a clutch single to right off Steven Cruz, scoring Church for the walk-off victory. Gordon Graceffo earned the win after a scoreless top of the 11th.
Walker finished with three hits and two RBIs, fueling the offense once again. The Cardinals improved to 26-18, while the Royals fell to 19-26.
This win underscored St. Louis’ resilience in close contests and their growing penchant for walk-off magic — traits that could prove vital as the season progresses. The clubs meet again Saturday in what promises to be another spirited chapter of the I-70 Series.
