Derek Holland threw 8 1/3 shutout innings, and Mike Napoli hit a three run homer as the Rangers beat the Cardinals 4-0 to even their World Series matchup at two games apiece.
The big story of the game was Holland, who was dominant. He only allowed two hits, both to Lance Berkman, and walked two batters, one of which was in the ninth inning. He struck out seven, and got 13 ground ball outs. A night after its pitching staff was decimated, the outing was huge for the Rangers. Neftali Feliz finished the game off, but made it interesting by walking Allen Craig and taking Matt Holliday to a three ball count before striking him out to end the game.
Texas didn’t exactly blow the doors off of the Cardinals offensively. They only had six hits on the day, and only scored four runs despite eight St Louis walks. Nelson Cruz had a hit and walked twice, and Elvis Andrus had a pair of hits. In fact, Andrus scored the first run of the game in the first inning, scoring on a double by Josh Hamilton. But the huge blow for the Rangers came in the sixth, when Napoli, who had already walked once in the game, homered to left field after Mitchell Boggs came in to replace Cardinals starter Edwin Jackson.
Jackson didn’t have his best stuff on Sunday. He only allowed three hits and three runs, but walked seven in 5 1/3 innings. It was a start that was atypical of Jackson’s career, as the walks once again spiraled out of control.
Game five will be tomorrow in Texas. It’ll be a battle of the aces, with Chra Carpenter taking on CJ Wilson. Game time is 8:05 PM.
