​The Cardinals, fresh off a doubleheader sweep by the same Milwaukee Brewers and riding a four-game skid, faced another left-hander tonight in Kyle Harrison. He wasn’t at his best, giving up booming doubles to Jordan and Burleson that produced RBIs, plus a solo homer to Jose Fermin. On the other side, birthday boy Michael McGreevy, turning 26, delivered perhaps his best big-league start to date, looking particularly sharp. Alec Burleson contributed with a late two-run homer to push the lead to 5-0. The Brewers finally got a rally against Gastelum, but the Cardinals held on to win 5-1.
Harrison, the Brewers’ lefty, opposed a well-rested McGreevy on the mound. The lineup leaned right, with Winn leading off in place of JJW, followed by Herrera as the designated hitter, Walker, Velázquez in left, Burleson, Fermin at second, Jordan at third, and Nootbaar in center. It was an intriguing decision to deploy a defense that seemed sub-optimal in an attempt to squeeze out a little offense against a pitcher who relies on contact.
O’Brien, Soriano, and Gastelum were the bullpen pieces expected to be active, with Stanek still an unknown. Graceffo, Svanson, and Bruihl were likely to be used in a post-start rotation, while Romero was probably in the “prefer not to use” category due to only 16 pitches yesterday, though not necessarily ruled out.
In the first inning, Yelich singled, Bauers walked, and Mitchell chipped in an infield hit, but McGreevy worked through the early jam. Winn opened with a double, advanced by Ivan, and Walker followed with a double to bring him home. Burleson then quieted the “left-handed hitting slump” narrative with an RBI double, giving the Cardinals an early 2-0 edge.
The second inning saw Pratt single, but Pages threw him out trying to steal. Ortiz struck out, and Jones also went down on strikes, leaving the Cardinals to go quietly in the bottom of the frame. That bottom half did little to inspire confidence in the line-up’s depth, a reminder that the bottom of the order isn’t typically feared.
In the third, Yelich struck out, Chourio struck out, and Bauers grounded out. The Cardinals’ offense came up short in the bottom half as Winn lined out and Herrera also went down on a line-out. Harrison wasn’t fooling many hitters, with several balls leaving the infield at high velocity—McGreevy had already retired eight in a row.
The fourth inning saw Contreras fly out, Mitchell ground out, and Lara strike out. McGreevy had now set down eight consecutive batters, continuing his dominant stretch. Burleson, who had been struggling against lefties, grounded out in the bottom half, underscoring the ongoing challenge for left-handed pitching in this matchup. Fermin connected for a homer to extend the lead to 3-0, and Jordan lined out as Nootbaar grounded out to end the frame.
Pratt lined out, Ortiz grounded out, and Jones popped out in the fifth, capped by eleven straight retired cards. The seventh loomed, and Harrison left the game with Anderson entering to pitch for the Brewers. Pages struck out, Winn grounded out, and Herrera popped out in order.
In the sixth, Yelich grounded out, Chourio flew out, and Bauers grounded out, continuing McGreevy’s remarkable run of dominance as he retired fourteen straight. It seemed McGreevy intended to finish the seventh himself, effectively shutting down the Brewers’ hopes. In the bottom half, Jordan led off with an infield hit, but NV struck out, and Koen entered as a strategic consideration for the offense’s future.
Overall, McGreevy’s performance stood out as a masterclass on the mound, turning what could have been a tense late-game scenario into a comfortable win for the Cardinals. The early offense funded by Burleson’s and Fermin’s hits and the steady defense behind McGreevy gave St. Louis the cushion they needed to prevail 5-1, despite Harrison’s competitive tempo and the Brewers’ sporadic bursts of scoring.