The St. Louis Cardinals responded emphatically after a difficult stretch, defeating the Milwaukee Brewers 5-1 on Wednesday night to halt a four-game losing streak and prevent the National League Central leaders from extending their dominance in the series. After being swept in a doubleheader by Milwaukee a day earlier, the Cardinals produced one of their most complete performances of the season, combining timely hitting, outstanding pitching and reliable bullpen work.
Right-hander Michael McGreevy turned in arguably the finest start of his young major league career on his 26th birthday, silencing one of baseball’s hottest offenses. The Cardinals starter retired 15 consecutive batters after navigating early traffic in the opening inning, allowing just two hits before exiting in the seventh inning after 6 1/3 impressive innings. He kept Milwaukee’s hitters off balance throughout the night and laid the foundation for St. Louis’ much-needed victory.
The Brewers threatened immediately in the first inning when Christian Yelich singled, Jake Bauers drew a walk and Garrett Mitchell reached on an infield hit to load the bases with one out. McGreevy, however, escaped the jam without allowing a run, a turning point that shifted momentum firmly toward the Cardinals.
St. Louis wasted little time taking advantage. Masyn Winn opened the bottom of the first with a double before Jordan Walker drove him home with another double. Alec Burleson followed with an RBI double to give the Cardinals a quick 2-0 advantage against Milwaukee left-hander Kyle Harrison.
Harrison struggled to consistently keep the Cardinals off the bases. Jose Fermin extended the lead to 3-0 with a solo home run in the fourth inning, while Burleson delivered the knockout blow in the sixth. Facing another left-handed pitcher out of the Brewers bullpen, Burleson crushed a towering two-run homer that traveled 443 feet off the bat at 109 mph, pushing the Cardinals’ lead to 5-0 and capping an outstanding offensive night.
McGreevy carried his shutout bid into the seventh inning before Garrett Mitchell doubled to end his streak of retired batters. Rookie reliever Luis Gastelum then made his Major League debut, inheriting runners on the corners. Milwaukee managed to score its lone run on a sacrifice fly, but Gastelum escaped further trouble to preserve the comfortable lead.
The Cardinals bullpen continued the strong pitching display. JoJo Romero worked a scoreless eighth inning despite issuing a leadoff walk, striking out two batters before inducing a groundout. Ryan Helsley closed out the ninth, allowing only a two-out single before sealing the victory.
The win was a timely response for St. Louis after consecutive losses had allowed Milwaukee to widen the gap in the division standings. It also showcased the Cardinals’ ability to bounce back through strong starting pitching and clutch hitting after being outplayed for much of the previous two games.
Milwaukee starter Kyle Harrison suffered the loss after surrendering three earned runs before exiting, while the Brewers’ offense never found sustained rhythm against McGreevy and the Cardinals’ bullpen. Despite entering the game with momentum after sweeping Tuesday’s doubleheader, Milwaukee was limited to just one run as its winning run was halted.
The Cardinals will now look to build on the victory and earn a split of the series in Thursday night’s finale, while the Brewers aim to quickly regain momentum as they continue their push atop the National League Central standings.
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