Nathan Church brought home Thomas Saggese with a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the 10th inning as the host St. Louis Cardinals came from behind to beat the Cleveland Guardians 6-5 on Tuesday.
Cardinals rookie JJ Wetherholt hit a pair of home runs and drove in three runs to set up the rubber game of the series on Wednesday.
After the Cardinals tied the game in the bottom of the ninth with an unearned run, Saggese was the free runner at second to start the 10th.
He went to third on a wild pitch and scored on Church’s drive to right, beating Angel Martinez’s throw to the plate.
Riley O’Brien (2-0, 0.00 ERA) picked up the win after throwing a scoreless 10th.
Tim Herrin (0-1, 0.00 ERA) took the loss for Cleveland, which dropped to 10-8.
The Guardians took a 5-2 lead in the top of the eighth with four straight hits to bring home three runs.
After Jojo Romero retired Chase DeLauter, Ryne Stanek came on to face Jose Ramirez.
Ramirez and Kyle Manzardo promptly singled to put runners at first and third.
George Valera brought Ramirez home with a double and Angel Martinez brought in Manzardo and pinch-runner Juan Brito with a double to right to give Cleveland a three-run lead.
Wetherholt helped the Cardinals climb back in the game when he hit his second home run, a two-run opposite-field shot to left, in the bottom of the inning.
The Cardinals tied it in the ninth when Masyn Winn’s two-out grounder went through Brito’s legs.
Winn went to second on a wild pitch and scored on a double by Yohel Pozo.
Cardinals starter Michael McGreevy went five innings, giving up four hits and two earned runs.
The right-hander walked one and struck out two on 87 pitches.
Guardians starter Joey Cantillo went six innings. The southpaw gave up five hits and two earned runs.
He walked two and struck out four on 82 pitches.
The teams traded solo home runs in the early innings.
Ramirez hit one with two outs in the first and Daniel Schneemann hit one with two outs in the second.
The Cardinals matched them with Ivan Herrera hitting one in the first and Wetherholt hitting a two-out shot in the third.
Guardians starting lineup Tuesday
Guardians vs. Cardinals pitching matchup
The Guardians will send southpaw Joey Cantillo (1-0, 2.45) to the mound tonight. The 26-year-old is 8-7 lifetime with a 3.57 ERA in 46 games (24 starts) and hasn’t faced the Cardinals.
St. Louis counters with Michael McGreevy (1-1, 2.16 ERA). The 25-year-old right-hander is 12-5 lifetime with a 3.72 ERA in 24 games (22 starts) and has never faced Cleveland.
When do the Guardians play Tuesday night?
Cleveland opens the series vs. the Cardinals at 7:45 p.m. ET.
Where to watch the Guardians tonight?
Tonight’s Guardians-Cardinals game will be televised on Guardians TV.
Looking back at the Guardians game Monday night
The Guardians’ offense rocked four Cardinals pitchers for 11 hits and nine runs on Monday. Cleveland starting pulling away in the fourth inning with three runs when Daniel Schneemann singled to right field to drive in a pair.
The left-handed-swinging Schneemann is hitting .256 with no home runs and had just four RBI leading into Monday.
The Guardians have faced an unusual amount of southpaws in the early season, and Schneemann said he believes that has made his quality at-bats inconsistent.
The Guardians were able to get to Cardinals lefty starter Matthew Liberatore for six hits and four runs in five innings on Monday, however.
“I was just looking to come through and, luckily, that ball got through,” Schneemann said of his two-run single that was off the glove of Cardinals first baseman Alex Burleson. “I have to give big credit to our coaching staff. They have done a great job of getting us good at-bats during this stretch.”
Jordan Walker continues strong start for Cardinals
Cardinals fans didn’t have much to cheer about in the 9-3 loss to the Guardians on Monday.
However, in the seventh inning, the sparse crowd started chanting the name of the new hero in town, Jordan Walker. He had just hit his major-league-leading eighth home run, and the fans were showing their appreciation.
The 23-year-old will try to help the Cardinals beat the visiting Guardians on Tuesday night in the second contest of a three-game series.
Walker’s homer total after 16 games puts him in high Cardinals company with Scott Rolen in 2004, Mark McGwire in 1998 and Stan Musial in 1954, each of whom hit eight in their first 16 games in those seasons.
Albert Pujols is the only Cardinal with more homers in the first 16 games — 11 in 2006.
Walker, who is on a nine-game hitting streak, is batting .333 with 15 RBIs and 15 runs, and his 46 total bases lead the majors. After finishing 2025 with a .584 OPS, he has a 1.161 OPS to start 2026.
“A lot of thought is being put into his cage work and stuff on the field,” Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said. “But being on the field and being able to compete and just being free to do what he is doing out there is key to all this.
“His work has been good, but when you get out there in the box, it is you against the pitcher and just competing is important. He has done a great job with that.”
Walker hit .215 last season and drove in just 41 runs in 111 games. In 2024, he managed only 20 RBIs in 51 games after driving in 51 in his rookie season of 2023.
“You can just tell he is enjoying the game again,” Marmol said. “I like to see that. A really talented player who has gone through quite a bit. The couple of years he has had hold quite a bit of weight, so to be able to see him enjoy himself and have fun is really good to see.”
Guardians pitching rotation update
After securing the No. 5 spot in the Guardians Opening Day rotation, Parker Messick is off to a fantastic start to his 2026 season, allowing just one earned run in 17 2/3 innings. He has struck out 16 hitters compared to only five walks. Joey Cantillo and Gavin Williams have been strong as well. Tanner Bibee and Slade Cecconi have had the rockier starts to the season. On April 17, the Guardians are lined up to face former University of Akron pitcher Chris Bassitt, now with the Orioles.
Guardians at Cardinals pitching probable starters Wednesday
Guardians vs Orioles pitching probables
The Akron Beacon Journal sports department can be contacted via email at bjsports@thebeaconjournal.com.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Guardians score, recap vs. Cardinals. St. Louis rallies for win
Reporting by Field Level Media, Akron Beacon Journal / Akron Beacon Journal
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