Cardinals Edge Diamondbacks 3-2 as Rookies Wetherholt and Church Deliver

The St. Louis Cardinals defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks 3-2 on Monday night, powered by standout performances from rookies JJ Wetherholt and Nathan Church, who each recorded two hits. The Cardinals' pitching was equally impressive, with Andre Pallante (9-4) earning the win after allowing six hits and one run over six innings. Pallante has now won his last four starts and has limited opponents to two runs or fewer in five of his last six outings, with St. Louis winning all five of those games. Closer Riley O'Brien secured his 19th save in 23 opportunities by pitching the ninth inning.

The Cardinals built their lead methodically. St. Louis took a 1-0 advantage in the third inning when Alec Burleson's one-out infield single drove in Nathan Church. The Cardinals then extended their lead to 3-0 in the fourth on Blaze Jordan's two-run sacrifice fly to deep center, which scored Jimmy Croocks, followed by Church's run-scoring single to shallow center that brought in Masyn Winn.

Arizona's Merrill Kelly (5-7) pitched six innings while allowing three runs on seven hits. The Diamondbacks mounted a late comeback, with Nolan Arenado—a five-year Cardinals veteran—driving in a run on a sixth-inning groundout to cut St. Louis' lead to 3-1. Arenado received a standing ovation before his first at-bat in the second inning following his January trade. The Diamondbacks added another run in the seventh when Tommy Troy hit a 440-foot home run to center off reliever Ryne Stanek, who was making his 500th career appearance. Ketel Marte and Corbin Carroll each contributed two hits for Arizona.

The series continues with a matchup between Arizona's left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez (6-2, 2.45 ERA) and St. Louis' right-hander Kyle Leahy (5-4, 4.63 ERA) in the second game of the four-game series.