Stuck out! Ball clings to Molina, Cubs rally past Cards
ST. LOUIS >> Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina and most everyone else at Busch Stadium laughed at the bizarre sight — a ball somehow stuck to his chest protector , in plain view of everybody except him.
But the St. Louis star didn’t think it was so funny when asked if a foreign substance helped the thing cling.
“Did I put anything on my chest protector to stick?” Molina said. “That’s a dumb question.”
Whatever happened, it sure made for strange situation at Busch Stadium. And it was the key play that sent the Chicago Cubs past St. Louis 6-4 Thursday.
The Cardinals led 4-2 in the seventh inning when things turned kooky. Pinch hitter Matt Szczur of Villanova led off by striking out on a pitch from Brett Cecil that skipped in the dirt. The ball bounced into Molina’s protector and smack, it stayed there.
As Molina frantically looked for the ball, Szczur headed toward first base. “I just took off running,” Szczur said. “My first base coach told me it was stuck to his stomach. I thought, ‘What?’”
By the time Molina looked down and discovered the ball, it was too late, Szczur was safe. The Gold Glove catcher could only smile and fans in sellout crowd roared — really, who’d ever seen such a thing?
Molina was certain about one thing.
“That play changed everything,” he said. “If we get that first out, everything changes.”
Once Szczur reached on what was scored as a wild pitch, the Cardinals lost their grip on this game. After a walk, Kyle Schwarber hit go-ahead, three-run homer. The a Cubs added another run later in the inning against Cecil (0-1). METS 6, BRAVES 2 >> Matt Harvey dominated with a fastball in the mid-90 mph range and uncommon efficiency in his return from major surgery, beating Atlanta and giving New York hope his injury woes are behind him.
Travis d’Arnaud hit a two-run double and Wilmer Flores a tworun homer against Jaime Garcia (0-1), who made his Atlanta debut after eight seasons with St. Louis. DODGERS 10, PADRES 2 >> Yasiel Puig homered twice to help Los Angeles rout San Diego. Puig was 2 for 3 with two walks, two runs, four RBIs and a stolen base. TWINS 5, ROYALS 3 >> Jason Castro and Jorge Polanco hit consecutive RBI doubles in the seventh inning, and Minnesota dented Kansas City’s bullpen again to sweep the season-opening series. MARLINS 4, NATIONALS 3 >> Justin Bour doubled in the go-ahead run with two outs in the 10th inning after the Marlins erased two leads against a shaky Nationals bullpen, and Miami earned its first win of the season. BLUE JAYS 5, RAYS 2 >> Kendrys Morales hit his fourth career grand slam, Marcus Stroman pitched 6 1/3 effective innings and Toronto beat Tampa Bay.
Morales homered off Blake Snell (0-1) in the third. Stroman (1-0), the MVP of last month’s World Baseball Classic, allowed one run and six hits in his 2017 debut. ROCKIES 2, BREWERS 1 >> Nolan Arenado and Mark Reynolds homered and Antonio Senzatela pitched five strong innings in his major league debut to help Colorado beat Milwaukee. WHITE SOX 11, TIGERS 2 >> Matt Davidson had his first career triple and first home run with Chicago and Geovany Soto added his first two home runs for Chicago to help give Rick Renteria his first victory as the team’s manager. ATHLETICS 5, ANGELS 1 >> Andrew Triggs pitched into the sixth inning for his second major league win, Ryon Healy homered to cap a four-run third and Oakland beat Los Angeles for an opening fourgame split.
Triggs (1-0) allowed an unearned run, four hits and three walks in 5.2 innings.