Meaningful games in September are a thing to behold.
Meaningless games are quite the opposite.
That was the case for yesterday’s series finale between the Toronto Blue Jays and St. Louis Cardinals, two teams without a playoff hope just playing out the string following disappointing efforts in the current campaign.
St Louis’ Miles Mikolas and Toronto’s Yariel Rodriguez kept it close early, neither starter getting past the first out of the seventh though the Cards’ hurler has the longer leash and went well past the 4 1/3 Toronto’s Rodriguez managed.
Even so neither were around for the decision, a 3-2 Jays win courtesy of a Nathan Lukes double down the left field line that drove home George Springer all the way from first with the eventual winning run.
It’s no secret neither the Jays nor the Cards have hit the ball the way they would like this year and that was plainly clear yesterday.
But credit the Jays with finishing off this winnable series in sweeping fashion taking all three games for its fifth sweep of the year, third at home.
Lukes was the hitting star with a pair of doubles from the lead-off spot including driving in the winning run. Davis Schneider continued his hot run of late as well with a two-run homer in the fourth just behind a Spencer Horwitz plunking.
Zach Pop picked up the win getting the final out of the Cards eighth before Springer and Lukes combined to push the eventual winner across in the bottom of the inning.
Chad Green picked up his 17th save with a bit of a nervous ninth.