KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Yadier Molina wasn’t going to let an illness that kept the Cardinals catcher out of the previous day’s lineup also keep him from walking onto the field with Adam Wainwright for the 310th time on Wednesday.
Nor was Molina going to take the rest of the day off after St. Louis jumped out to a big lead.
“He felt terrible (yesterday) and today felt terrible,” Wainwright said of his longtime teammate, who caught him for seven innings of one-hit ball in a 10-0 win over the Kansas City Royals on a cold, damp day at Kauffman Stadium.
“I told him if he just wanted to play five and leave, I’d understand. But he didn’t want to leave me out there.”
Rarely is one ever on the field without the other.
Wainwright and Molina, who went 1 for 5 at the plate, tied the Braves’ Warren Spahn and Del Crandall for the most team wins by starting battery mates with their 202nd together.
Now, Wainwright and Molina need just six more starts to match Spahn and Crandall for second in history behind Mickey Lolich and Bill Freehan of the Tigers.
“The battery mates is awesome,” Wainwright said, “but the winning is the cool part.”
Wainwright (3-3) allowed just a one-out single to Michael Taylor in the third against the weak-hitting Royals, whose only other baserunners against the 40-year-old right-hander came on a fielder’s choice, an error and a walk.
Meanwhile, the slumbering St. Louis offense came alive in a big way: Nolan Arenado hit a three-run homer and drove in five runs, Tyler O’Neill hit a two-run shot and drove in three, and Harrison Bader and Paul DeJong also drove in runs.
“We’ve just got to be better. I believe we’re better,” Arenado said. “Some guys just aren’t comfortable yet. That will come.”
The final scheduled…
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