ST. LOUIS (AP) - St. Louis Cardinals manager Mike Matheny didn’t sugarcoat his team’s effort Monday night.
“You never want to be embarrassed and that’s an embarrassing loss,” Matheny said after the Cardinals’ 15-2 loss to the Cincinnati Reds. “The preparation was right, guys were going about it the right way and you’re going to have those from time to time. The key is to let it go and get back in there and show a different product tomorrow.”
The problem for the Cardinals is they are running out of time as St. Louis fell one game behind the idle San Francisco Giants for the second wild card spot with six games to go.
Jaime Garcia (10-13) lasted just one inning in his shortest outing of his career and possibly last as a Cardinal.
Aside from giving up back-to-back solo homers to Joey Votto and Adam Duvall, the lefty gave up singles to Jose Peraza and Brandon Phillips, who combined to steal three bases and almost a fourth, but Peraza was thrown out at third.
Garcia drew boos from the 34,942 fans after Phillips easily swiped third base after it appeared Garcia didn’t bother to look him back. It was the first time in 240 regular season games that the Cardinals failed to drew at least 40,000, dating back to Sept. 24, 2013.
“There’s just something mechanically off right now,” Garcia said. “I’m a little too slow to the plate and I’m trying to be quicker and I’m not really being quicker, I’m just getting away from where I need to be.”
The Cardinals only offense came on a Yadier Molina sacrifice fly and a Jedd Gyorko RBI single.
Michael Wacha gave up seven runs and Luke Weaver gave up five runs in 3 1/3 innings of combined relief.
The 13-run loss was the worse of the season for the Cardinals, who will have a losing home record for the first time since 1999. Boos from an otherwise positive fan base were audible as the deficit mounted.
“None of us want to be booed,” Matheny said. “But people put their hard earned money into showing up here. That’s a freedom they have. We take it very seriously what kind of product we put out there and if it isn’t up to their standards, then it isn’t. Then we go about our business to fix it.”
Reds starter Tim Adleman (3-4) retired the first 10 Cardinals he faced and went a career-long seven innings. It was his first win since Aug. 19.
Duvall’s three-run homer in the fifth gave him a career-high five RBI and it gave him 100 RBI for the season. It was the third multi-homer game and his first four-hit game of his career.
Steve Selsky went 5-for-5 including a homer, four RBI and scored three runs. He’s the first Reds rookie to have five hits in a game since Wade Rowdon against the Mets on July 9, 1986.
Votto and Duvall combined for seven hits, six runs, three homers and six RBI.
The Reds sent 12 men to the plate in a seven-run fourth and 11 more in a four-run fifth.
Brandon Phillips had his 14th career four-hit game.
“This doesn’t happen often for anybody,” Reds manager Bryan Price said. “You don’t get 22 hits and 15 runs too often, so you relish them when they come.”
Matheny said there are some positives.
“You get (Molina) out as soon as you can and even the young guys like (Randal) Grichuk and (Stephen) Piscotty who have really been grinding and playing a lot lately, getting them off the field early and let some of the other guy’s play,” Matheny said.
TRAINERS ROOM
Cardinals: IF Matt Carpenter (right ring finger) was out of the lineup and it is uncertain if he will play tomorrow. … SS Aledmys Diaz left the club to join Jose Fernandez’ family in a private ceremony. Diaz and Fernandez, the Miami Marlins pitcher who died in a boating accident early Sunday morning, were boyhood friends.
UP NEXT
Reds: RHP Robert Stephenson (2-2, 5.59 ERA) gave up four runs in 3 2/3 innings to the Cubs last Wednesday. It is his first career appearance against St. Louis.
Cardinals: RHP Adam Wainwright (12-9, 4.57 ERA) has given up four runs while failing to get out of the fifth inning in each of his last two starts. He is 0-1 with a 6.06 ERA in three starts this season against Cincinnati.
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