Elly De La Cruz scores game winner as Cincinnati Reds beat St. Louis Cardinals, win series
ST. LOUIS — And on the sixth day, Elly De La Cruz reached base four times.
The Cincinnati Reds’ rookie sensation beat pitcher Adam Wainwright to the bag on a grounder to first for a hit in the first inning, singled up the middle to drive in the tying run in the third, walked on the eighth pitch of the plate appearance against veteran Cardinals starter Adam Wainwright in the sixth, walked to lead off the eighth against triple-digit reliever Jordan Hicks and eventually scored from third on a ball hit sharply right at a drawn-in shortstop.
The ensuing throw to the plate was just wide to the first-base side as De La Cruz slid headfirst, and catcher Willson Contreras’ sweeping tag was not in time, losing the ball from his mitt along the way for good measure.
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That proved the game-winner in a 4-3 victory Sunday over the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium.
It also clinched a fourth series victory in the last five for a high-energy team that has a winning record since stumbling to a 7-15 start as it heads to Kansas City for the second leg of a long road trip that concludes in Houston.
Since that 22-game start, the Reds are 24-20, which is the only winning record in the National League Central over that span, by a lot.
The next-best team in the division since April 24 is the Pittsburgh Pirates at 18-23 after their win over the New York Mets on Sunday.
No wonder general manager Nick Krall said he’s “not ruling anything out” when it comes to the possibility of buying at the trade deadline for a playoff push.
The Reds won Sunday in the return to the rotation of rising ace Hunter Greene, who skipped a start because of a sore hip.
Greene pitched around enough trouble early to nurse a 3-3 game one out deep into the sixth before giving way to the bullpen.
He has a 2.08 ERA in his last three starts after an up-and-down start to his season through 10 starts.
