Marlins' Sandy Alcantara continues mastery of Cardinals

Sandy Alcantara pitched seven strong innings against the franchise that signed him as the host Miami Marlins defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 6-2 on Wednesday night.

Alcantara (7-11), who signed with the Cardinals out of the Dominican Republic at age 17, allowed two runs (one earned) on five hits and one walk while registering a season-high nine strikeouts. He threw 114 pitches, his largest workload since undergoing elbow surgery late in the 2023 season that cost him all of 2024.

Wednesday was one of the few times this year Alcantara (6.04 ERA) has lived up to his Cy Young Award form of 2022. Perhaps all Alcantara needed was to face his old team. In eight career starts against the Cardinals, Alcantara owns a 1.66 ERA.

Marlins rookie shortstop Maximo Acosta -- who had been hitless in his first eight MLB at-bats -- broke that streak with a 418-foot homer to center in the sixth. Heriberto Hernandez, another Marlins rookie, went 3-for-4 with two RBIs.

Andre Pallante (6-11) took the loss, allowing eight hits, three walks and five runs with four strikeouts.

Miami's Joey Wiemer made his first start of the season in right field and, in the first inning, robbed Ivan Herrera of extra bases with a running catch on the warning track.

In the second, Miami loaded the bases with no outs as Hernandez and Wiemer singled and Troy Johnston walked. Hernandez scored when Javier Sanoja bounced into a double play.

Miami made it 3-0 in the third as Jakob Marsee singled, Agustin Ramirez was hit by a pitch and Hernandez drove them in with a single.

St. Louis got on the board in the fifth as Yohel Pozo struck out yet reached on a Ramirez passed ball. After a Jordan Walker single, Pozo scored on Lars Nootbaar's double.

Miami got that run back in the fifth as Liam Hicks walked, moved up a base on Hernandez's hit and scored on Johnston's single.

St. Louis closed its deficit to 4-2 in the sixth on Willson Contreras' 414-foot bomb to left-center.

But in the bottom of the sixth, Miami again matched St. Louis -- this time on Acosta's homer.

Miami closed the scoring in the eighth with Marsee's bases-loaded walk.

--Field Level Media