KANSAS CITY -- The road trip didn’t end with a bang. But despite a 2-1 loss to the Royals on Sunday afternoon at Kauffman Stadium, the Cardinals headed home extremely pleased with how much noise they made during a three-city swing through Washington, Philadelphia and Kansas City.
St. Louis went 7-2 on the extended trip and the only losses were one-run pitching duels that could have gone the other way with just a timely hit here or there. The formula for success has been established and now manager Oliver Marmol just wants to see his club build on the traits that have catapulted the Cards into a solid position in the National League Central.
Left-hander Matthew Liberatore gave six effective innings on Sunday, allowing just one run. But St. Louis left 13 on base and Maikel Garcia snapped a 1-1 tie in the seventh with an RBI single off Chris Roycroft.
“We had a lot of opportunities, but just didn’t come through,” Marmol said after the road trip finale. “We didn’t get the big hit and that’s what it came down to.”
The Cardinals had 12 hits and there were numerous chances to provide Liberatore with a significant cushion.
“Overall, I thought [Liberatore] did a really nice job,” Marmol said. “I don’t think he had his best stuff, but was still able to hold them to one [run].”
Liberatore lowered his ERA to 2.92 and he was able to use his curveball effectively when other pitches weren’t quite as sharp.
“The velo wasn’t as high as it has been and I felt like the command wasn’t quite as good,” Liberatore said. “But the curveball came into play today and ended up being a real weapon to keep guys off the other stuff.”
The only Cardinals’ run was scored in the fourth when Alec Burleson, drawing a start in left field, launched a solo homer off Royals starter Michael Wacha.
“I put a good swing on the slider,” Burleson said. “Didn’t think it was going off the bat, but I spun it well and the wind kind of helped it.”
Burleson said he is focused on making the most of his playing opportunities.
“I want to be an everyday guy, that’s my goal,” Burleson said. “Obviously, they have to do what they have to do to get guys in. But I’m going to just take advantage of my opportunities and let it work itself out.”
The Cardinals hope they can look back at their 7-2 road trip as one that helped change the trajectory of the season. For a team that started the year 1-10 on the road, the pieces now seem to be fitting quite nicely.
When Marmol thinks about the highlights of the long trip, he quickly thinks about the defensive identity that the Cards have been building.
“Obviously, our defense,” Marmol said. “The pitching has been really good, the bullpen has been nails and offensively, I feel really good about where we are. We’re taking very competitive at-bats from No. 1 through No. 9.
“Today was a tough game. We faced some good arms. But I like the way we’re going about it.”