MILWAUKEE _ Aledmys Diaz was not in the St. Louis Cardinals' lineup at shortstop Saturday night because manager Mike Matheny feared Diaz wouldn't be moving well enough defensively because of back tightness and a sore left shoulder, the latter of which he sustained the night before. This anxiety apparently did not extend to Diaz's hitting.
Pinch hitting for Lance Lynn in the seventh inning of a 1-1 game, Diaz rocketed a Carlos Torres 92 mile an hour fastball over the left-center-field wall to give the Cardinals a 2-1 lead. Diaz's homer was his fourth of the season.
Jedd Gyorko then had a backyard, inside-the-park homer in the ninth when his two-out triple to right scored Matt Carpenter and, never stopping, Gyorko, waved on by third-base coach Chris Maloney, dived home himself as the Brewers bungled the transfer from the outfield.
The bullpen, with three scoreless innings of relief, preserved the 4-1 victory for Lynn, who allowed just three hits over six innings, for his second win of the season.
Yadier Molina singled with one out in the Cardinals' eighth for his third hit and Randal Grichuk doubled for his third hit. Kolten Wong grounded to second baseman Jonathan Villar, who fired home to Milwaukee catcher Jett Bandy. The Brewers' receiver had to cross the plate to his left to tag Molina, who thought he had got to the plate first.
Molina, however, was called out, and after a replay challenge lasting 2 minutes 42 seconds, he still was out. Pinch hitter Matt Adams then tapped to the mound, leaving the Cardinals nothing for 14 with men in scoring position.
Lefthander Brett Cecil, who has been brilliant after an awful first-week debut with the club, pitched out of his own bases-loaded spot in the Brewers' eighth by retiring lefthanded-hitting Travis Shaw on a popup. This came after the Cardinals pitched around righthanded-hitting Braun spotting him three balls and then walking him intentionally, a risky move in that it shoved the go-ahead run into scoring position.
Shaw had been one for three against Cecil when both were in the American League.
It appeared as if the Cardinals were about to leave another man in scoring territory in the fourth inning Saturday night. But Milwaukee left fielder Ryan Braun giveth after he had taketh away.
Randal Grichuk stroked the Cardinals' fourth double in four innings with one out. Braun made a belly-flopping catch of Wong's looper to left and, from his knees, fired to second to try to catch Grichuk before he returned. But the throw sailed over second baseman Villar and past first baseman Eric Thames, who was very close to second in a backup position.
The errant toss left the playing field and the Cardinals had taken advantage, despite being nothing for nine with men in scoring positon, tying the game at 1-1.
Milwaukee had a chance to snap that tie in the fifth but a suicide squeeze went horribly awry for the Brewers. After Lynn had set down 11 hitters in row, Keon Broxton singled off the glove of shortstop Greg Garcia. After Orlando Arcia struck out, Broxton stole second and went to third on Molina's on-hop throw.
But, with a 2-2 count and pitcher Chase Anderson, who did not appear to be a good bat handler at the plate, Anderson offered at and missed a pitch for a strikeout and Broxton was caught between third and home. He was elusive enough to survive five throws before Garcia tagged him out near the plate.
The Cardinals had three leadoff doubles in the first three innings Saturday at Miller Park. Two were by Garcia and the other by Molina. None of those two-base hits amounted to anything.
Succeeding batsmen managed to go nothing for eight with men in scoring position in that time,.
