Alec Burleson’s 2-run homer in the 7th inning lifts Cardinals to 7-6 victory over Angels

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ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Alec Burleson hit a two-run homer in the seventh inning, Pedro Pagés had a three-run double for his first MLB hit and the St. Louis Cardinals defeated the Los Angeles Angels 7-6 Tuesday night.

Burleson also had three hits as he homered for the fourth time in 16 games after not having one in his first 19. Nolan Arenado led off the seventh with a base hit before Burleson connected on Amir Garrett’s slider and drove it over the right-field wall to give the Cardinals their third straight victory.

“I think we put together good at-bats all day. We came out swinging and kind of hit a lull, but we just continued to string things together,” Burleson said.

Sonny Gray (5-2) struck out nine in six innings, but allowed five runs and eight hits. Ryan Helsley picked up his 13th save, which is tied for the MLB lead.

“I did a good job to strike out nine, but I didn’t do a good job consistently enough when I got to two-strike counts of putting guys away,” Gray said.

Kevin Pillar had three hits and Logan O’Hoppe had a three-run homer in the fourth inning as the Angels fell to 1-5 on their current homestand despite rallying from an early five-run deficit. The Halos are a major league-worst 5-16 at home.

Pillar drove in a run with a base hit in the seventh inning, giving him 13 RBIs in his first nine games with the Angels, which ties a franchise record. Pillar was signed on April 30 after Mike Trout went on the injured list due to a torn meniscus in his left knee.

The Angels had the bases loaded with one out in the eighth, but Zach Neto was caught stealing home on a suicide squeeze gone awry and Luis Guillorme struck out.

“A sinker ball left-hander, I didn’t want him to hit into a double play. He can handle the bat. He didn’t do the job, it wasn’t anything I did wrong. He didn’t get the bunt down,” manager Ron Washington said of the decision to have Guillorme bunt.

Hunter Strickland (1-1) took the loss.

St. Louis put up two runs in the second after the first two runners reached base. A wild pitch by Detmers brought in Dylan Carlson, and Nolan Gorman scored on Angels’ third baseman Cole Tucker’s errant throw home.

With the bases loaded and two out in the third, Pagés lined a curveball down the third base line and into the left field corner to make it 5-0. Pagés, the Cardinals’ sixth-round pick in the 2019 draft, was hitless in his first six at-bats.

“Pagés did an incredible job,” Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said of his rookie catcher. “The double was fun to see. The dugout loved that. But also navigating that lineup and the different arms we used today. He blocked a ton and some really tough ones to in key moments.”

Gray retired the first seven Angels’ hitters before Cole Tucker tripled to right-center and scored on Nolan Schanuel’s base hit.

O”Hoppe got Los Angeles within 5-4 in the fourth when he drove an elevated sinker from Gray into the rock pile in left-center.

The Halos tied it one inning later on Taylor Ward’s sacrifice fly.

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Cardinals: RHP Kenyan Middleton (right forearm flexor strain) threw only six pitches due to a rain delay in a rehab appearance with Double-A Springfield on Tuesday.

UP NEXT

St. Louis sends right-hander Lance Lynn (1-1, 3.79 ERA) up against Los Angeles’ RHP Griffin Canning (1-4, 5.75 ERA) in the series finale.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb