LOUIS (AP) — John Woodford and three relievers shared the eight hits allowed against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday, while Norman Gorman drove in two runs in the St. Louis Cardinals’ 3-0 victory.
Woodford allowed seven hits in 5 1/3 innings, but only one went to extra-base hits, Austin Hedges’ double starting the eighth. He would then come out ahead retiring the next three batters.
Zach Thompson (1-0) pitched 1 1/3 innings with four strikeouts for the win. Drew VerHagen was perfect in the eighth, while Mexican Giovanny Gallegos did the same in the ninth, securing his first save.
Johan Oviedo (1-1) had an excellent start for the Pirates, allowing one run and striking out ten in seven innings. The Cuban made 19 starts in 33 games during his three seasons as a pitcher for the Cardinals before being traded to the Pirates for Colombian left-hander José Quintana last year before the trade deadline.
Nolan Arenado went 3 for 3, with a walk. With one out in the sixth, he singled, then scored on Gorman’s hit, ending the Cardinals’ 14-inning scoreless streak against the Pirates.
The Cardinals added two more runs off reliever Duane Underwood Jr in the eighth inning. Both runs came from singles connected by Willson Contreras, and Gorman finished the game with three hits in four at-bats.
For the Pirates, the Dominican Rodolfo Castro 3-1.
For the Cardinals, the Venezuelan Contreras 4-1 with an RBI.
