Cardinals 4, Marlins 1
ST. LOUIS -- Miles Mikolas was prepared to change jerseys -- but he was pitching too well to pull the trigger.
The Cardinals right-hander had four uniform tops waiting to replace the one he knew would be drenched in sweat as the heat index approached 100 degrees on Thursday.
"I was ready," Mikolas said. "But the first jersey, it was really working for me. So I stuck with it -- a little superstition involved."
Mikolas (7-1) continued his hot start in the steamy conditions, allowing an unearned run in seven innings to lead St. Louis past the Miami Marlins 4-1. He struck out 5 and walked 1, lowering his ERA to 2.27, as the Cardinals salvaged the series finale after two losses.
Mikolas, coming off a 4-0 loss to Pittsburgh, has pitched at least 6 innings in 10 of 12 starts this season.
Jordan Hicks pitched around a walk and a hit in the eighth, topping 100 mph on nine of 18 pitches, and Bud Norris finished the four-hitter with a perfect ninth for his 12th save in 13 chances.
Jose Martinez hit a two-run home run in the first, giving him a team-high 35 RBI.
Luke Voit added a pinch-hit home run leading off the seventh to push the lead to 4-1.
Trevor Richards (0-3), who grew up in Aviston, Ill., 50 miles from St. Louis, gave up 3 runs on 7 hits in 5-plus innings.
Mikolas, who improved to 4-0 in day games, retired 14 successive batters before right fielder Dexter Fowler dropped Starlin Castro's fly ball in the sixth.
"When he's in that zone, he's pretty impressive," St. Louis Manager Mike Matheny said. "He was clean all the way through, putting pitches where he wanted to on both sides."
Mikolas signed with the Cardinals as a free agent on Dec. 5, 2017, after three seasons with the Yomiuri Giants of the Japanese Central League.
He has exceeded even his own expectations.
"I had all the confidence that I could be successful at this level," Mikolas said. "But it's still a bit of a surprise."
Miami Manager Don Mattingly said Mikolas controlled the game.
"He can move the ball the other way and then he elevated," Mattingly said. "That breaking ball he throws, it's big."
Justin Bour cut the lead with an opposite-field RBI double in the sixth after Fowler's error.
Marcell Ozuna hit an RBI single in the bottom of the sixth.
Richards was making his first appearance at Busch Stadium since pitching in a high school all-star game in 2011.
"I felt pretty good. I command the fastball pretty well," Richards said. "There's obviously a couple I would like back. But I was very excited just to be back in St. Louis."
The Cardinals lost the first two games of the series by a combined 18-7.
"We needed this one," Martinez said. "You never want to get into a habit of losing."
REDS 7, ROCKIES 5 (13) Jesse Winker hit a two-run home run in the 13th inning, completing host Cincinnati's late rally that averted a sweep by Colorado. Left-hander Chris Rusin hit Joey Votto with a pitch to open the 13th. Winker connected on his first game-ending home run, finishing the longest game for both teams this season.
CUBS 4, PHILLIES 3 Anthony Rizzo hit a solo home run and added a second RBI with a sacrifice fly to lead Chicago past visiting Philadelphia. The Cubs won for the fifth time in six games to close to a half-game behind idle first-place Milwaukee in the National League Central. Tommy LaStella and Kris Bryant had RBI singles in Chicago's decisive three-run fifth inning. Rizzo's sacrifice fly to left capped the rally after a video review determined Phillies catcher Andrew Knapp had illegally blocked the plate with his left leg as Albert Almora tried to score from third.
DODGERS 8, PIRATES 7 Joc Pederson went deep twice, Cody Bellinger hit his third home run in as many games and visiting Los Angeles used nine pitchers to hold off Pittsburgh. Pederson led off the game with a solo home run off Jameson Taillon and added a two-run shot in the eighth off Michael Feliz for his second multi-home run game in a week.
AMERICAN LEAGUE
TWINS 7, WHITE SOX 2 Jose Berrios pitched a six-hitter for his second complete game this season and host Minnesota hit three home runs against James Shields in a victory over Chicago. Berrios (7-5) retired the first 14 batters he faced before Omar Navarez's double. He struck out 10 and didn't give up a walk to win for the fourth time in five starts.
TIGERS 7, RED SOX 2 Former Arkansas Razorbacks pitcher Jalen Beeks was roughed up in his major-league debut, allowing 6 earned runs on 7 hits, including a 2-run home run by Leonys Martin, as host Boston saw its four-game winning streak end with a loss to Detroit.
MARINERS 5, RAYS 4 Mike Leake allowed 2 runs on 8 hits with 1 walk and 3 strikeouts over 8 innings to lead visiting Seattle over Tampa Bay. BLUE JAYS 5, ORIOLES 4 (10) Aledmys Diaz hit a game-winning single in the 10th inning and host Toronto rallied from a three-run deficit in the ninth to beat Baltimore.
ASTROS 5, RANGERS 2 Evan Gattis hit a two-run home run and an RBI single, and Gerrit Cole allowed one run over six innings as visiting Houston beat Texas.
ATHLETICS 4, ROYALS 1 Matt Chapman doubled in the go-ahead run in the sixth inning to make a winner of Paul Blackburn in his first start of the season, and host Oakland beat Kansas City.
Sports on 06/08/2018