Andre Pallante got the ball for St. Louis looking to build off a rough last outing against Miami, while David Peterson took the mound for Chicago just his second start since coming over from the Mets in a late-June trade. One of those two had a night to forget, and it wasn't the guy with the worse ERA on paper.
Peterson's Cubs tenure hit a wall fast. He lasted only 3.2 innings, and the fact that Chicago had won 5 straight coming in made the collapse sting even more. Alex Bregman was the only Cub to actually drive in a run all afternoon, doing it with a 7th-inning double that barely dented the scoreboard.
St. Louis put this one away early and never let up. Masyn Winn and Nathan Church both went deep for 3-run homers, and Winn and Alec Burleson each finished with 2 hits and 4 RBIs. The Cardinals piled up 17 hits as a team and built a 17-0 lead before Chicago finally got on the board — St. Louis's biggest blowout margin over an opponent in years.
- Day-To-DayDustin May SP — May (ankle) will not be placed on the injured list prior to Friday's game against the Cubs, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
- 60-Day-ILRamon Urias 3B — Urias (elbow) returned to St. Louis to undergo an examination on his left elbow, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.
- 10-Day-ILMatt Shaw RF — The Cubs placed Shaw on the 10-day injured list Monday due to a sprained left hand, Jesse Rogers of ESPN.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILEdward Cabrera SP — Cubs manager Craig Counsell said Wednesday that the goal is for Cabrera (hamstring) to be throwing bullpen sessions before the All-Star break, Casey Drottar of MLB.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILJameson Taillon SP — Taillon (hamstring) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Iowa on Sunday, Taylor McGregor of Marquee Sports Network reports.
- 15-Day-ILEthan Roberts RP — The Cubs placed Roberts on the 15-day injured list Monday due to right forearm inflammation.
- 15-Day-ILDaniel Palencia RP — Palencia (elbow) is progressing in his rehab from elbow tendinitis, but he won't be activated from the injured list until after the All-Star break, Bruce Levine of 670TheScore.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILHoby Milner RP — Milner (abdomen) will be sidelined 4-to-6 weeks after undergoing emergency appendectomy surgery on Friday, Bruce Levine of 670TheScore.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILPhil Maton RP — The Cubs placed Maton (knee) on the 15-day injured list Friday with a right knee injury, Taylor McGregor of Marquee Sports Network reports.
- 15-Day-ILBen Brown RP — Cubs manager Craig Counsell said Thursday that Brown has been diagnosed with a stress reaction in his neck and will have limited activity for the next month, 104.3 The Score reports.
Chicago's pitching staff is running thin, and it showed. With Jameson Taillon and Edward Cabrera both still working back from injury and the bullpen missing several key arms, Peterson was supposed to be a stabilizing veteran presence in the rotation. Instead he turned in a career-worst line, and there wasn't much margin for error behind him given how banged up the pitching depth already is.
Pallante, meanwhile, did just enough on the mound and then watched his lineup do the rest. It's the kind of laugher that flips a series narrative overnight — the Cardinals now have the offensive momentum, and the Cubs have to figure out fast whether Peterson's disaster start was a fluke or a real problem.