Cardinals Hand Braves 11-6 Beating, Flipping the Script on Atlanta
ATLANTA — In a stunning turn of events, the St. Louis Cardinals handed the Atlanta Braves an 11-6 beating at Truist Park, flipping the script on the team with the most victories in MLB and the league’s best offense.
The Braves, who have dominated much of the season, leading all of baseball with a .275 average, 263 home runs, and 768 RBIs, were no match for the Cardinals’ explosive offense on Wednesday night.
This turnaround was unexpected considering the Braves swept the Cardinals in a three-game series back in April. Atlanta outscored the Cardinals 17-7 in that series, hitting six home runs and leaving the Cardinals in disarray.
But six months later, the Cardinals exacted their revenge. Following a 10-1 victory the previous night, St. Louis came out swinging, pummeling NL Cy Young Award candidate Spencer Strider for six early runs and hitting four home runs throughout the game.
Cardinals’ first baseman Paul Goldschmidt, who smacked a two-run home run just seven pitches into the game, praised the Braves’ formidable offense but emphasized their success in containing their opponents’ scoring.
“Our offense is probably the best in the league and maybe the best we’ve seen in years or decades,” Goldschmidt said. “But we’ve been able to limit the damage against them. They’re going to score runs, but we haven’t given them free passes, extra outs, or extra baserunners. It’s led to a couple of victories. Hopefully, we can do it again tomorrow.”
The Cardinals’ offensive display was particularly impressive given Spencer Strider’s bid to become the first 17-game winner in the league. St. Louis managed to score 10-plus runs in consecutive games for the first time since September 2019, facing a strong Atlanta lineup.
Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol commended his team for their approach at the plate and their ability to maintain focus, knowing the Braves were capable of mounting a comeback.
“That’s a really good club across the way, and even when you have a five-run lead, you don’t feel good about it,” Marmol said. “Our guys had a really good approach from the very beginning against their starter. One-through-nine, we did a really, really good job.”
While the Braves managed to gather momentum and narrow the gap to 7-5, the Cardinals’ resilient pitching and defense prevented further damage. Journeyman reliever Casey Lawrence induced a crucial inning-ending double play against NL MVP candidate Ronald Acuña Jr.
The Cardinals continued to answer each Braves rally with home runs of their own, solidifying their lead. Willson Contreras smashed his 17th home run in the seventh inning, and slugger Nolan Gorman contributed his 27th home run of the season, taking over as the team leader in homers.
With this victory, the Cardinals showcased their ability to compete against the league’s top teams and demonstrated the power-hitting prowess that has driven their success. The Braves, on the other hand, experienced a rare setback as their offense was eclipsed by the Cardinals’ dominant performance.
As the season progresses, both teams will look to build upon this game and use it as motivation for their upcoming matchups.
“It’s super cool what our offense is doing,” said Cardinals’ rookie shortstop Masyn Winn, who hit his first MLB home run in the game. “Putting up runs like we have has been great for us, especially when we’ve been struggling lately. These last couple of games, we’ve been getting hot.”
The Cardinals’ victory against the Braves serves as a reminder that in baseball, anything can happen on any given day.