Late Reds rally sinks Cards

Late Reds rally sinks Cards

Cards look to take series today

MLB.com ST. LOUIS — There would be no momentum sustained for the Cardinals a day after stealing one of their most improbable victories of the season. Instead it would be the Reds on Tuesday who pieced together a late-game rally to even the three-game series with a 7-4 victory at Busch Stadium.

Cardinals reliever Matt Bowman, who threw 27 pitches one night earlier, allowed three eighth-inning runs in an inning complicated by plays his defense did not make behind him. Back-to-back two-out doubles by Tucker Barnhart and Tyler Holt put the Reds back in front for the third time on the night. Singles by Billy Hamilton and Zack Cozart further padded that lead.

The loss dropped the Cardinals a game behind the Marlins in the race for the second National League Wild Card.

Reds starter Brandon Finnegan entered with a 12inning scoreless streak and exited with his third straight quality start. He served up solo homers to Yadier Molina and Matt Holliday, but worked effectively around the six walks and other four hits he allowed.

Mike Leake, who had been tagged for 19 earned runs over his last three starts, pitched much better against his former team this time. Adam Duvall's two-run single in the third stung the St. Louis starter, as did the stolen bases against Leake. The Reds swiped four bases in total, and all four resulted in runs.

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED Steals to runs: Hamilton, who is now 20-for-22 in stolen-base attempts against Molina, scored in the third, seventh and eighth innings after stealing second base off Leake, Kevin Siegrist and Bowman, respectively. Scott Schebler was hit by a pitch in the fourth, stole second, advanced to third on a flyout to center, then scored on Barnhart's groundout.

Gone streaking: Molina extended his on-base streak to 22 games with his second- inning home run and later beat out an infield single to help the Cardinals manufacture their second run of the night. Molina's on-base streak is the longest by a Cardinals catcher since Gene Tenace reached in 35 straight games from 1981-82. During his on-base streak, Molina has hit .372 (29-for-78).

Top prospect Alex Reyes joined the Cardinals on Tuesday afternoon and made his Major League debut in the ninth inning. He opened his big league career with a strikeout of Duvall, who swung through a fastball that registered 101.4 mph on the radar gun. Reyes then induced two ground-ball outs to close the inning on 11 pitches.

The Cardinals lost their challenge in the third on an unsuccessful attempt to have an out call at third base overturned. Matt Carpenter boldly tried to go from first to third on a groundout by Stephen Piscotty, and replays confirmed the out call made on the field.

By Nick Krueger and Jenifer Langosch