​ST. LOUIS (AP) — Ozzie Albies doubled and came home on Masyn Winn’s throwing error in the ninth inning, lifting the Atlanta Braves to a 4-3 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Sunday and preventing a sweep. The decisive run came moments after Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol was ejected for disputing a call that was ruled in favor of the Braves when JoJo Romero (1-3) hit Michael Harris II with a two-strike pitch with two outs.
With Marmol’s 23rd career ejection, he moved into a tie for second place among Cardinals managers, matching Whitey Herzog and Roger Bresnahan, and just behind Tony La Russa’s 39. The miscue came as Mauricio Dubón hit a routine grounder to short, but Winn’s throw to first was wild, allowing Albies to score the winning run.
Raisel Iglesias locked down the save in the ninth for his 19th, pitching a perfect frame. Tyler Kinley (5-3) earned the win for Atlanta. Earlier, Brewer Hicklen had given the Braves a 3-1 edge in the sixth with his first major league RBI and an extra-base hit, lining a double to left-center. The Cardinals tied it later in the frame when José Fermín delivered a two-out, two-run single.
There was also a controversial moment in the fourth inning when an overturned call at home plate gave Atlanta its first lead of the game. Austin Riley sprinted home from second on Drake Baldwin’s two-out single to right field, just beating the tag from catcher Jimmy Crooks as his left hand touched the plate.
Cardinals starter Dustin May struggled with control, walking four in four innings while allowing two runs and two hits. The Braves’ first run came on May’s wild pitch after he walked the bases loaded in the second. The sequence followed an earlier scoring moment when opener Danny Young yielded Alec Burleson’s RBI double in the first.
In relief, Braves rookie J.R. Ritchie spun 4 1/3 hitless innings after opening, before allowing Jordan Walker’s leadoff single that sparked St. Louis’ trouble in the sixth.
Looking ahead, the Braves will host Texas on Friday night to begin a seven-game homestand. The Cardinals head out on a six-game road trip beginning Friday at Arizona.
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