OAKLAND, Calif. — As the St. Louis Cardinals formed a victory line at the Oakland Coliseum for the second straight night, manager Oli Marmol couldn’t deny the sentimentality behind his club’s 3-2 victory over the Oakland Athletics.
It had been a somber day for the Cardinals, as the organization mourned the death of former manager, general manager and National Baseball Hall of Famer Whitey Herzog. Herzog, best remembered for the style of play eventually coined “Whiteyball” that once defined baseball in St. Louis, died Tuesday morning at the age of 92.
The Cardinals paid tribute by playing a ballgame that would have made Herzog proud. Utilizing strong defense, timely situational hitting and heads-up base running, the Cardinals backed up seven strong innings from starter Lance Lynn with Herzog’s small-ball style of baseball.
“I’d be lying if I said I didn’t think about it,” Marmol said after the game.
The entire Cardinals family is heartbroken to learn of the passing of Hall of Famer and World Series champion manager Whitey Herzog at the age of 92. pic.twitter.com/PLwAM6PV4V
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) April 16, 2024
Runs have been relatively hard to come by for the Cardinals this season. Tuesday’s game was no different, with the offense totaling just four hits — and none for extra bases. Despite the power outage, St. Louis was still able to manufacture runs, just like Herzog’s teams did in the 1980s.
Take the third inning, for example. After Oakland scored on an unearned run in the second inning, St. Louis clawed back and tied the score without a ball leaving the infield. Masyn Winn worked a leadoff walk against A’s starting pitcher JP Sears and promptly stole second. Jordan Walker followed with a free pass of his own, setting up an ideal sacrifice-bunt play for No. 9 hitter Michael Siani. Siani did just that, moving both runners into scoring position, with Winn scoring on a groundout to third on the next play.
Scoring a run the Whiteyball way! pic.twitter.com/OJvagBLUt6
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) April 17, 2024
Fast forward to the sixth, with the Cardinals trailing once more. Kyle McCann’s first career homer put the A’s up 2-1, but the heart of the Cardinals’ order was primed for another rally, this time against reliever Dany Jimenez. Nolan Arenado led off the frame with his second single of the game, and Iván Herrera and Lars Nootbaar walked to load the bases with no outs. Winn lofted a fly ball to center field, plenty deep to score Arenado, but Oakland left the middle of the infield empty, leaving no place for JJ Bleday’s cutoff throw to land. The ball scampered through the infield, and Herrera and Nootbaar advanced an extra 90 feet.
That blunder would prove costly, as Walker came through with a second sacrifice fly, scoring Herrera as the go-ahead run. It was all the insurance St. Louis would need.
“I just wanted to get something in the air to the outfield,” Winn said. “I wasn’t trying to swing out of my shoes or anything. I just wanted to put a good swing on the ball and give my guys a good chance. Credit to Iván and Nootbaar for moving up an extra base when they saw that throw. I mean, that changed the game. … I think that really was the game there.”
Lynn, who posted seven innings of two-run (one earned) ball, kept the A’s at bay in what was tied for the longest performance from a Cardinals starting pitcher this season. Lynn threw a season-high 101 pitches and left with his first win of the season and his first win in a Cardinals uniform since 2017. His lengthy outing allowed Marmol to bridge JoJo Romero, who notched a perfect eighth inning, to Ryan Helsley, who slammed the door in the ninth for his MLB-best seventh save.
The Cardinals had the lead in the later innings, which allowed Marmol to deploy his “hands team.” Victor Scott II entered the game at center field in the bottom of the seventh as a defensive replacement, and Siani slotted over to right field in place of Walker, as Marmol prioritized defense to hold the score. That choice paid off immediately, as Scott laid out for a terrific snag on a sinking liner off the bat of Lawrence Butler on the first pitch of the frame.
Victor Scott II enters the one-run game and immediately does this. #STLCards pic.twitter.com/cWAJrmIsfb
— Bally Sports Midwest (@BallySportsMW) April 17, 2024
The result was a series-capturing win, straight out of Herzog’s playbook. All that was missing was a squeeze play.
“Going into the game, I told Siani he may squeeze today,” Marmol said, smiling. “The situation almost came up. … Overall, it was a well-played game.”
Indeed it was. As traditional small ball falls to the wayside in favor of more modern trends such as hitting for power, the Cardinals showed that although capitalizing on the little things doesn’t often show up in the box score, it does show up in the final score.
“Little things like defense, bunting, getting the runner over — little things like that are what creates a winning baseball team throughout the season,” Winn said.
Spoken like a true Cardinal. It was that kind of belief that fueled Herzog throughout his tenure and will carry his legacy for generations to come.
“If you get good enough pitching and play defense day in and day out, you can win on the moon,” Herzog once said.
In a performance fit to honor one of baseball’s greats, the Cardinals did exactly that Tuesday night and won the game for a franchise legend.
(Photo of Lance Lynn: Lachlan Cunningham / Getty Images)
