PHILADELPHIA – Their stirring nine-game winning streak a thing of the past following a gritty Game 1 loss earlier in the day, the Cardinals could have easily shut off the ignition of their offense early on Wednesday night after falling into a four-run hole, Alec Burleson admitted.
However, that’s simply not how this Cardinals team is wired, especially with them quickly shifting their sights to starting another winning streak of significance in the days ahead.
Hours after seeing their longest winning streak in four years disintegrate and falling behind early in Game 2 against the powerful Phillies, the Cardinals jump-started their offense into high gear and left a slew of club highs for 2025 in their wake at rainy Citizens Bank Park. The Cardinals hammered out a season-best 19 hits -- three of them momentum-turning home runs -- and throttled the Phillies, 14-7, to potentially set the stage for another winning spree.
“It could have been easy to kind of lay down and say after losing a tough one in the first [game] … and maybe everybody is trying to get to the off-day tomorrow, but nobody was doing that at all,” said Burleson, who had two singles, a two-run homer and a season-high four RBIs in the Cardinals’ response to a 2-1 loss in the opening game of the doubleheader. “Yeah, we’re resilient. Everybody made a statement, for sure.”
The Cardinals got homers from Lars Nootbaar, Masyn Winn and Burleson to wipe out a 5-1 deficit after the first inning. Burleson’s two-run shot in the third gave St. Louis a somewhat shocking 6-5 lead.
Six Cardinals had at least one RBI, five players had multiple hits and all nine starters contributed at least one hit. Willson Contreras (1-for-4, two RBIs) extended his on-base streak to an MLB-best 26 games, while Nootbaar (2-for-5, two RBIs) extended his hitting streak to seven games. Winn finished 4-for-5 with 3 RBIs and three runs scored, while Brendan Donovan, Iván Herrera and Burleson each had three-hit games.
“Obviously it sucks going down four [runs], but with this offense, we just showed that we can go out there and put up a lot,” said Winn, following the first four-hit game of his MLB career. “Five runs early [by the Phillies], it’s never safe with this team.”
The Cards lost Game 1, 2-1, to see their longest winning streak since 2021 end. Winn said the offense felt like it was the culprit for allowing MLB’s longest winning streak of 2025 end a game shy of double digits. However, responding the way they did, winning another series against the Phillies and racking up 10 games in an 11-game stretch – shows the Cardinals’ potential, Winn said.
“That [second] game was great, so hopefully, we’ll go on another little streak when we go to [Kansas City] and back home,” said Winn, the home run hero of Monday’s 3-2 victory over the Phillies. “During this stretch, we showed a little bit of everything. This pitching has been amazing, the hitting has been great and timely. We’re winning close games, and we’re blowing teams out. We’re showing a little bit of everything, and it’s been fun.”
Given three consecutive days off near the end of April to address his plate discipline and his struggles in driving the baseball, Burleson has responded much the same way he did during a breakout season in 2024. He became more selective with the pitches he pounced on, choosing primarily only the ones he could do damage on. As it turns out, fewer swings have led to more extra-base damage.
After producing just two doubles, no homers and four RBIs in 23 games in April, Burleson has responded with a double, three homers and nine RBIs in 11 games in May. Of Burleson’s 33 career home runs, 22 have come with the game tied or the Cardinals trailing.
“It was more of a swing-mechanic thing for me personally to allow myself to be in a good spot to do what I want to do,” Burleson said. “I lined out in my first at bat, but that was probably one of my favorite swings over the last couple of weeks because two weeks ago, I might have rolled that over and hit into a double play. But I stayed through it. I was trying to do different things to see if it would work, and my body didn’t adapt to it. Now, I’ve gotten back to what I do, and I’m seeing some great benefits from it.”
Manager Oliver Marmol said St. Louis continues to benefit from the relentless approach it has used to win 10 of its past 11.
“I love this team,” Marmol marveled. “They’re doing a nice job of not giving in regardless of what’s going on and they’ve done it all year.”