This season’s Division Series slate got off to a bang on Thursday evening in Atlanta, as the Cardinals and Braves battled in a wild NLDS Game 1 that St. Louis was able to hang on to win by a 7-6 final score.
The Cardinals rallied late to take a 7-3 lead in the ninth inning after being 3-1 down in the eighth inning before overcoming a pair of home runs from Ronald Acuña Jr. and Freddie Freeman in the bottom half of the frame to hold on to win.
The game had the look of a pitchers’ duel to start off, as starting pitchers Miles Mikolas of the Cardinals and Dallas Keuchel of the Braves combined to allow only one run apiece in the first five innings.
Things changed late, however. The Braves scored a pair of runs in the 6th on an infield single by Dansby Swanson to take the lead. It wouldn’t last, however.
St. Louis got a home run from Paul Goldschmidt and an RBI single from Matt Carpenter in the eighth to tie the game against an Atlanta bullpen that looked extremely shaky. Then, in the ninth, they took a lead that they would not relinquish on the back of two-run doubles by Marcell Ozuna and Kolten Wong.
The Cardinals will look to commanding 2-0 series lead in Game 2 with team ace Jack Flaherty on the mound.
