Rookie pitcher allows one hit in Philadelphia’s win.
ST. LOUIS — Pinch-runner Marlon Byrd scored on an infield grounder to snap a tie in the ninth and rookie Ryan Madson threw four innings of one-hit relief, giving the Philadelphia Phillies a 6-3 victory against the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday night.
Edgar Renteria had two RBIs for the Cardinals, who fell to 3-9 at home. That’s their worst start since they were 3-9 in 1990.
The Phillies’ Pat Burrell had a two-run double, giving him five hits and five RBIs the first two games of the series. Jim Thome, a career .484 hitter against the Cardinals, was 3-for-5 with three RBIs. He added a two-run single in the ninth off Steve Kline for the final margin.
David Bell doubled to start the ninth against Mike Lincoln (2-2), working his third inning of relief. Bell moved up on Jimmy Rollins’ sacrifice and then was replaced by Byrd.
Byrd scored the winning run on a close play at the plate after second baseman Marlon Anderson went to his left to snare pinch-hitter Ricky Ledee’s sharp grounder, but then made a wide throw home to catcher Mike Matheny, whose sweeping tag arrived just as Byrd’s foot reached the plate.
Madson (1-1), working for the first time in a week, bailed out starter Brett Myers in the fifth when he got three straight outs with runners on first and second to keep the game tied at 3. Madson allowed only an infield hit to Reggie Sanders to open the sixth in four innings.
Billy Wagner worked the ninth for his sixth save in seven attempts.
Myers, who won 14 games last year, has struggled in all three starts. He was chased after giving up three straight singles, including the game-tying hit to Albert Pujols to start the fifth. In four innings, Myers allowed three runs and eight hits.
Cardinals starter Jason Marquis worked around early control difficulty. He walked five and threw 113 pitches in six innings, allowing three runs – two earned – on five hits.
Marquis walked Doug Glanville and Placido Polanco to open the game, and nine of his first 11 pitches were balls. Thome’s one-out RBI single put the Phillies ahead.
The Cardinals answered with Renteria’s seeing-eye two-run single in the bottom of the first. With two outs and the bases loaded, Renteria hit a weak grounder up the middle and second baseman Polanco swerved to avoid a collision with Scott Rolen, running from first, as the ball rolled through.
Burrell’s two-run double in the fifth put the Phillies ahead 3-2.