The Cubs got to Adam Wainwright early, putting up a three spot in the top of the first, but sometimes this year it feels like the early 3-0 lead has been the kiss of death. The Cardinals immediately got two back on a Paul Goldschmidt homer, and within a couple innings, it was a huge lead in their favor.
Drew Smyly deserves some grace for his first clunker in a long time. He didn’t have it, he left a mess on the bases, and his line for night is a disaster.
Jeremiah Estrada was thus summoned into a tough spot in the third inning, with the bases loaded and one out. Yadier Molina doubled to clear the bases, and then stole third base for good measure. Estrada then walked Paul DeJong, gave up a deep sac fly to Lars Nootbar, and then a very hard line out to right center by Tommy Edman. It was not a good outing by any stretch. We’ll see what the data says later, but the fastball didn’t seem to have that same eye-popping carry that we saw in Toronto. I wonder if something was off with his grip/release.
Mark Leiter Jr., Rowan Wick (dominant), Erich Uelmen, and Luke Farrell each made scoreless appearances from there, but the damage was done.