Reds snap 4-game losing skid with 3-2 win over Cardinals
CINCINNATI (AP) — Josh VanMeter’s attempt to move the runner cleared the bases.
Yasiel Puig hit a game-tying double to end Miles Mikolas’ shutout bid, VanMeter followed with his first major league home run and the Cincinnati Reds snapped a four-game losing streak with a 3-2 win over the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday.
“Man on second nobody out — honestly, I was just trying to move the runner,” VanMeter said. “I got a pitch elevated and hit it out of the park, and did it feel good. It is a weight off my shoulders.
“The other cool part of it is, I knew I got it. Usually, I don’t show emotion. Emotions kind of took over. It was a lot of fun, a dream come true. You hit so many in Triple A, then you come up here and don’t hit one in 49 at-bats. You wonder if you’re ever going to hit one.”
VanMeter and Eugenio Suarez each had two hits for the Reds, who are in last place in the NL Central, a season-high nine games behind first-place Chicago.
“It was a good game,” St. Louis manager Mike Shildt said “They pitched well. We pitched well. They came out on top.
Mikolas hadn’t allowed a runner past first base before Suarez led off the seventh with a walk and scored from first on a double into the left-center field gap by Puig. Two pitches later, VanMeter homered into the Cincinnati bullpen down the right field line.
“We are really happy for Josh VanMeter,” Reds manager David Bell said. “It was a big home run, obviously. He can hit. He has a good approach at the plate. He takes good at-bats. His demeanor is calm. He’s competitive, but he is also very steady. It shows up in good atbats.”
“You never want to start an inning walking a guy,” Mikolas said. “There were a couple of close pitches.”
Mikolas (6-10) allowed six hits and three runs with two walks and four strikeouts. He also hit a batter.
Amir Garrett (4-1) pitched a perfect seventh in his first appearance since July 2 after coming off the disabled list on Saturday.
Matt Wieters led off the sixth with his seventh homer of the season for the Cardinals, who had won three straight and six of seven to move into second place in the division.