Nelson Velazquez, Ivan Herrera homer to lift Cardinals past Cubs

Field Level Media|published: Fri 29th May, 22:12 2026

May 29, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals designated hitter Nelson Velazquez (38) celebrates with right fielder Jordan Walker (18) after hitting a three run home run against the Chicago Cubs during the first inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

Ivan Herrera belted a go-ahead solo homer in the fifth inning, fueling the host St. Louis Cardinals to a 6-5 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Friday.

St. Louis' Nelson Velazquez celebrated his call-up from Triple-A Memphis on Friday by launching a three-run homer in the first inning.

Thomas Saggese crushed a solo shot in the fourth inning and Jose Fermin had an RBI single in the eighth for the Cardinals, who snapped a season high-tying four-game losing streak. They also lost four in a row from April 22-26.

St. Louis used seven pitchers to subdue Chicago, with Gordon Graceffo (4-1) retiring the side in order in the fifth during his lone inning of work.

Pete Crow-Armstrong led off the ninth with a double and came around to score following a pair of outs. Riley O'Brien induced Alex Bregman to ground out to secure his 14th save of the season.

Chicago's Ian Happ went deep for the third straight game by belting a three-run homer in the first inning.

Michael Busch had an RBI single and joined Seiya Suzuki with three hits for the Cubs, who have lost 11 of their last 13 games.

Shota Imanaga (4-6) surrendered three homers in his second consecutive outing. He lost his fourth straight start after permitting five runs on five hits in 5 1/3 innings.

Saggese forged a 4-4 tie after depositing a 2-2 fastball from Imanaga over the wall in left-center field for his first homer of the season. The Cardinals claimed their first lead in the fifth inning after Herrera sent a 0-1 splitter from Imanaga 409 feet to left-center.

Busch and Bregman each had a two-out single to center field before Happ deposited an 0-1 fastball from Andre Pallante over the wall in right-center. Happ's homer was his team-leading 13th of the season.

Velazquez erased Chicago's early 3-0 lead by sending a first-pitch fastball from Imanaga 411 feet to left-center.

Dansby Swanson regained the advantage for the Cubs in the second inning with a single and a stolen base before coming around to score on Busch's RBI single to left field.

--Field Level Media

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