Nolan Arenado spurred the Arizona Diamondbacks in the ninth inning in a 4-3 win against the host St. Louis Cardinals on Tuesday.
The game was scoreless through eight innings before Arizona finally broke through against reliever Matt Svanson (2-2). Gabriel Moreno knocked a single to right, and Pavin Smith walked before he was replaced by pinch runner Ildemaro Vargas.
Arenado, the former Cardinal, then stepped up for a double to left that drove in Moreno, and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. followed with a single to score Vargas and Arenado to make it 3-0.
Jorge Barrosa, pinch-running for Gurriel, added another run on a passed ball by catcher Jimmy Crooks with Geraldo Perdomo at the plate.
With two on and one out in the bottom of the ninth, Alec Burleson connected for a hard-hit double to right off closer Paul Sewald that scored Lars Nootbaar to cut it to 4-1. Blaze Jordan narrowed it to 4-2 on a sacrifice fly, and Crooks pulled the Cardinals within one with a single that drove in Burleson.
Brandyn Garcia took over for Sewald and got JJ Wetherholt swinging to end the game.
Arizona starting pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez held St. Louis to three hits in 6 2/3 innings. Kevin Ginkel (3-2) got the hosts out in order in the eighth to earn the win for the Diamondbacks, who snapped a three-game losing streak.
Cardinals starter Kyle Leahy went 6 1/3 innings, also allowing just three hits.
St. Louis threatened in the sixth. Ivan Herrera drew a one-out walk to extend his on-base streak to 19 games. Jordan Walker followed with a single to right field before Nootbaar then walked to load the bases. But the trio was stranded, with Nelson Velazquez flying out to Perdomo, who turned the double play with a strike to the plate to get Herrera out.
The Diamondbacks had the only two hits for either side through the first three innings.
The Cardinals didn’t get their first baserunner until Pedro Pages walked in the bottom of the third. They notched their first two hits in the next inning, with Walker and Nootbaar each connecting for a single in consecutive at-bats.
