CHICAGO -- By nature, the concept of a four-strikeout inning will always involve some annoying circumstances for a pitcher. One of those K’s doesn’t happen without some sort of misfortune allowing a batter to get on base.
But for Cardinals’ lefty Steven Matz, perhaps the company he joined when he pulled off a four-K frame on Thursday afternoon at Rate Field will help ease some of the frustration he endured while logging MLB's first since Tyler Glasnow on July 7, 2023.
In the sixth inning of St. Louis’ 5-4 win over the White Sox in the first game of a doubleheader, Matz struck out Lenyn Sosa, Austin Slater, Mike Tauchman and Chase Meidroth. Though the southpaw also allowed a two-run homer to Michael A. Taylor during the frame, Matz became just the second pitcher in Cardinals history to record a four-strikeout inning.
The only other St. Louis hurler to do so on record? Hall of Famer and franchise legend Bob Gibson on June 7, 1966.
“When I heard that, that’s pretty cool,” Matz said. “Obviously he’s one of the best to pitch in this uniform, so just to do that is cool. ... That’s a good thing, it’s a positive takeaway from an inning that got away from me there.”
Matz’s quirky frame opened on a strong note, or so it seemed. He whiffed Sosa on three straight pitches, wrapping the at-bat by getting him to chase a changeup in the dirt. The only problem was the offering also got away from catcher Iván Herrera, which allowed Sosa to make it to first on a wild pitch.
Matz regrouped to shut down Slater on just four pitches, freezing him with a sinker right in the heart of the plate. It initially looked as though Taylor met a similar fate, as Matz’s 1-2 sinker appeared to catch the outside of the strike zone. But home-plate umpire Carlos Torres called it a ball, and Taylor homered on the ensuing offering.
Tauchman fell victim to whatever frustration Matz was feeling with the potential missed call, as the White Sox right fielder was put away on three pitches at the top of the zone. When Meidroth followed by whiffing on a fifth-pitch sinker high and away, Matz completed an inning that was equal parts irritating and historic.
Thankfully, his teammates strung together a late rally, putting up a three-run surge to complete the first of their two wins in the twin-bill.
“That was huge,” Matz said. “For the offense to stick around, they’ve been doing that all year, and that’s why we are where we are. … The offense is ready to erupt at any point.”
The Cardinals’ bats doing so in the eighth also ensured Matz will forever have something to brag about to go along with the Cardinals’ win.
“When we’re all done playing, it’ll be fun to look back on,” Game 1 starter Erick Fedde said. "It’s one of those fun things to say. Like, ‘Yeah, I struck out four people in an inning.’ So it’s cool to do that at this level.”