ATLANTA _ Manager Mike Shildt almost always looks for a positive spin he can put on a Cardinals defeat, if there is one. And there have been plenty lately, 11 losses in 14 games, which would test even college graduate Shildt's ample vocabulary.
There was little upside apparent to the naked eye Thursday night, for instance. Poor starting pitching. Equally as unsteady relief pitching. Scant offense. A couple of grounders that could have scooted by for run-scoring singles.
There was that jumping catch that center fielder Harrison Bader made near the wall to end the eighth. But most of the aforementioned amounted to a 10-2 loss to the Atlanta Braves and a fourth consecutive series loss for the Cardinals, something that didn't come close to happening last year.
Cardinals starter Adam Wainwright walked five in four innings. Two of the walks were intentional but two others were leadoff walks and both scored, one each in the second and third.
Veteran reliever Luke Gregerson was cuffed for four singles in a span of five hitters in a three-run sixth. Dominic Leone allowed two more runs, including Freddie Freeman's homer.
The offense consisted of Marcell Ozuna's 13th homer in the sixth and Matt Carpenter's fifth homer in the eighth.
And the Cardinals were on their way to Arlington, Texas, for an interleague matchup with the Texas Rangers where one or two runs probably aren't going to be enough.
.jpg?w=600)
