Realmuto, Nola spark Phillies to 4-3 win over the Cardinals

ST. LOUIS (AP) — J.T. Realmuto had two hits and scored two runs and Aaron Nola pitched six innings, leading the Philadelphia Phillies to a 4-3 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday.

Realmuto was back in the starting lineup, hitting cleanup. He left Tuesday’s game after he was hit in the throat area on a Zack Wheeler wild pitch in the seventh inning.

“Going to bed last night, I wasn’t sure if the headache was going to continue through the night or if it was going to go away,” Realmuto said. “I woke up and felt fine. Just a sore throat today. My head felt fine.”

Seeing Realmuto play did not surprise Nola.

“That guy is a gamer,” Nola said. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen J.T. come out of a game. For him to come out, it must have caught him good.”

Brandon Marsh and Nick Castellanos each drove in a run in the sixth to break a 2-2 tie.

The Phillies won the series to close a sixgame road trip and even their record to 6-6. The Cardinals fell to 6-7.

The game began in a light rain as it was not raining hard enough for a delay. The grounds crew worked on the field after each side had batted.

“I’m sure they are going to be tired tonight,”

Nola said about the grounds crew. “They were busting their butts. They were in our tunnel right there and they were on top of it. They did a good job every single inning.”

Nola, who signed a seven-year deal worth $172 million in the offseason, improved to 2-1. He allowed two solo home runs along with a single. Nola walked three and struck out three and threw 93 pitches.

“I battled through it,” Nola said. “It was a grind for sure. We got through it and it was a good win. We’ve got a lot of ball left.”

Nola impressed Realmuto.

“You knew today was going to be tough with these conditions,” Realmuto said. “He had to grind. He did a good job of making pitches when he had to without his best stuff.”

Jeff Hoffman, the fifth Philadelphia pitcher, earned his first save in three opportunities by pitching the ninth.

“He got it done,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said about Hoffman. “It will give him confidence. He knows I have confidence in him.”

Reliever Andre Pallante (0-1) faced four batters in the sixth and retired none to take the loss.

Starter Lance Lynn pitched five innings, allowing just one hit and two unearned runs on 94 pitches. He struck out six and walked four.