Cardinals can't protect late-inning lead in 6-4 loss to Buccos
Carlos Martinez picked a bad time for the Cardinals to serve up his first home run of the season.
Called on to protect a 4-3 lead in the seventh, Martinez hung a slider to Neil Walker with two on and the Pirates' second baseman knocked into the right-field seats to lift his team to a 6-4 victory Friday night in Pittsburgh.
Martinez had thrown two 100 mph fastballs to Walker before mislocating a breaking pitch.
"It didn't look like it was where he wanted it," manager Mike Matheny said in a post-game presser on FOX Sports Midwest, adding that he did not fault the pitch selection.
"He spun a slider and it was in the middle of the plate," Walker said in a post-game interview on FOX Sports Midwest. "He left the pitch up and I was able to pull it into the seats."
The Cardinals had used a three-run homer from Allen Craig to take a 3-2 lead in the fourth. Jhonny Peralta made it 4-2 in the seventh with his team-leading eighth home run, putting him halfway to the franchise's single-season record for homers by a shortstop, set by Edgar Renteria in 2000.
Matheny talks Cardinals' pitching woes vs. Pirates. CLICK HERE to watch.
3 UP
-- Matt Carpenter. A hustle double to lead off the first gave him three two-base hits this week, which matched his total for the season coming into the week. It's been a strong week for Carpenter, who reached base nine times in three games against the Braves. He also has cut down on his strikeouts, with only two this week to go with three walks.
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-- Pat Neshek. With another three-up, three-down inning, a strong case can be made that the sidewinder has emerged as the most dependable member of the bullpen. Neshek has given up only three hits and hasn't allowed a run in his past 12 outings, covering 11 1/3 innings. His ERA is down to 1.15, best in the bullpen.
-- Defense. After a shaky start in the field, the Cardinals have settled down and played more like a team that was expected to be improved defensively. They have made only two errors in the past 13 games after making 20 in the first 35.
3 DOWN
-- Michael Wacha. Anyone who watched him last October would not have expected him to go five straight starts without a win. Not only has Wacha gone winless since April 13, so have the Cardinals whenever he's started. Wacha really hasn't pitched poorly, though. He hasn't allowed more than three runs in any of the five starts. The Cardinals, however, had not scored more than three in any of them, either, until Friday night.
-- Wacha's luck. A lack of run support isn't all that has cost the lanky right-hander. Wacha came within a borderline call of escaping a first-inning jam without giving up any runs. The bases were loaded, two were out and Wacha had Ike Davis down 1-2 in the count when a 96 mph fastball just missed the inside corner --- if it missed at all. The pitch was called a ball, though, and Davis delivered a two-run, ground-rule double on the next pitch.
-- Matt Adams. Big City has endured big struggles on his home turf. An 0 for 4 dropped Adams' batting average to .107 at PNC Park (3 for 28). The only place he has a lower average is San Diego, where he's 0 for 1. Adams twice came up with two on and less than two outs but was unable to even advance the runner.
You can follow Stan McNeal on Twitter at @stanmcneal or email him at stanmcneal@gmail.com.