Wong’s walk-off HR lifts St. Louis past Chicago, 8-6
Kolten Wong hit a two-run homer in the 10th inning, capping the St. Louis Cardinals rally and giving them an 8-6 win over the Chicago Cubs on Saturday.
The win is the fourth in a row for the Cardinals, and it came after they rallied from two runs down in the ninth inning off Chicago closer Brandon Morrow.
Wong's game-ending home run is the third of his career, his first since a victory over Pittsburgh on May 3, 2015. It came after Paul DeJong walked and then Wong sent the 1-1 pitch from Luke Farrell (1-1) into the right field seats for the game winner.
Marcell Ozuna tied the game in the ninth inning with a two-run double off Morrow, who allowed his first runs of the season. Tyler Lyons (1-0) earned the win in relief after Bud Norris exited with an injury in the top of the 10th inning.
Anthony Rizzo homered for the third time in four games for the Cubs, who lost for a season-high fourth time in a row despite scoring more than three runs in a game for the first time since April 24th.
Javier Baez added his eighth home run for Chicago in the loss.
INJURED CARDINALS
Center fielder Tommy Pham, catcher Yadier Molina and Norris were all taken out of Saturday's game with injuries. Pham, who is hitting .327 and has scored 24 runs this season, was taken out in the second inning with right groin tightness. Molina was lifted in the eighth inning after being hit in the groin by a tipped 102-mph pitch from reliever Jordan Hicks, and Norris had to exit after getting the first two outs of the 10th.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Cubs: Chicago manager Joe Maddon said there was no updated on the progress of reliever Eddie Butler, who has been on the disabled list since April 20th with a right groin strain. Butler is 0-1 with a 4.30 ERA in six games this season.
Cardinals: St. Louis manager Mike Matheny said reliever Dominic Leone is likely headed to the disabled list after exiting Friday night's game during warmups with cramping in his right biceps. Matheny said Leone's arm is "structurally" healthy, and that the Cardinals wanted to wait a day before making a roster move to see how Leone responded. Leone is 1-2 with a 4.15 ERA in 15 appearances this season.
UP NEXT
Cubs: Jon Lester (3-2, 2.73 ERA) didn't allow an earned run 5 2/3 innings in his last start, a Chicago win over Colorado. The left-hander will try and continue his resurgent season when the Cubs close out their series against St. Louis on Sunday night.
Cardinals: Michael Wacha has allowed two or fewer runs in four of his last five starts, and he'll get the start for St. Louis against the Cubs on Sunday night. The right-hander is 4-1 with a 3.62 ERA this season.