The Cardinals defeat the first-place Orioles with the help of a strong start by Rom and a homer by Palacios.

BALTIMORE — Richie Palacios homered, rookie Drew Rom and four relievers combined on a three-hitter and the St. Louis Cardinals beat Baltimore 1-0 Wednesday night to trim the Orioles’ lead in the AL East to two games.

In the ninth inning, Gunnar Henderson hit a triple off Ryan Helsley with two outs, providing the Orioles an opportunity to tie the game. However, Aaron Hicks failed to capitalize as he popped out.

Baltimore is currently on a losing streak, having lost two consecutive games and three out of their last four. They are now preparing to face Tampa Bay in a four-game series, starting on Thursday night. Despite these recent losses, the Orioles have managed to maintain their first-place position since July 19. Their longest losing streak since then has only been two games.

However, Baltimore has only managed to score two runs in its previous two games, which is not the desired momentum they were expecting as they enter their most crucial series of the year.

Palacios was the sole contributor to the score in a game characterized by excellent pitching and solid defense. He hit a solo home run over the right-field scoreboard in the fourth inning against Kyle Gibson (14-9). This marked his fourth home run of the season and his third in the past two consecutive nights.

In his fifth appearance as a starting pitcher for the Cardinals after being traded from Baltimore on August 1st, Rom performed exceptionally well. He only allowed two hits in 5 1/3 innings and left the game with a 1-0 lead. Rom effectively varied his pitching speeds and utilized both sides of the plate, resulting in six strikeouts. It wasn’t until the fifth inning that Jorge Mateo managed to beat out a grounder for a hit with two outs.

Rom, selected in the fourth round of the 2018 draft by Baltimore, was part of the multi-player deal that send Jack Flaherty to the Orioles.

After Anthony Santander hit a double in the sixth inning, Rom managed to get one out before Casey Lawrence came in and got two more outs. Following that, Giovanny Gallegos and John King each pitched for one inning before Helsley closed the game with three outs, securing his ninth save of the season. This was his second save in two consecutive nights.

AL LEAST

The Cardinals achieved a positive record against each team in the AL East, which is the only division where every club has a winning record. St. Louis won 2 out of 3 games against Baltimore, Toronto, Tampa Bay, and New York, and won all 3 games against Boston.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Nolan Gorman, an outfielder for the Cardinals, has been placed on the injured list for 10 days due to a strained right hamstring. The team’s manager, Oliver Marmol, expressed hope that this injury would not end Gorman’s season. To fill the roster spot, the Cardinals have called up Juniel Querecuto, an infielder from Triple-A Memphis. Another outfielder, Dylan Carlson, has decided to undergo ankle surgery, effectively ending his season. Carlson has been dealing with discomfort in his left ankle for several months and believes that having surgery now will allow him to start the rehabilitation process earlier during the offseason. In the 76 games he played, Carlson had a batting average of .219, five home runs, and 27 RBIs. Willson Contreras, a catcher for the Cardinals, did not start in the following game due to a bruised right hand that he sustained during Tuesday night’s game. Marmol stated that Contreras’ condition is being evaluated on a day-to-day basis.

Orioles: 1B Ryan Mountcastle left in the third inning with a left shoulder discomfort.

UP NEXT

The Cardinals will face the Philadelphia Phillies with left-handed pitcher Zach Thompson (5-5, 4.06 ERA) after having a day off on Thursday.

Orioles: RH Kyle Bradish (11-6, 3.03) gets the start for Baltimore on Thursday night. He’s 1-2 with a 6.53 ERA in four career starts against the Rays.