The Cardinals had already been knocked out of the race by the time Sunday’s finale against the Nationals arrived at Busch Stadium, but the clubhouse still found a reason to make some noise. Iván Herrera and rookie Leo Bernal supplied it in the eighth inning, turning a one-run hole into a 5-3 comeback victory with a pair of home runs.
Herrera drove the day from behind the plate, belting his 17th and 18th homers of the season. His second shot, a solo drive in the bottom of the eighth, brought St. Louis level and set the stage for Bernal, who had entered the game as a defensive replacement.
The rookie catcher has been producing from the moment he joined the Cardinals at the start of September, and he delivered another big swing Sunday. Bernal launched a two-run homer, his fourth in the majors, to put St. Louis ahead by two.
That blast pushed Bernal to 17 RBIs in September, tied for fourth among National League hitters. It also gave him 17 RBIs through his first 18 big-league games, the third-highest total by a Cardinal in that span since RBIs became an official statistic in 1920. Only Tom Alston, with 20 in 1954, and Chick Hafey, with 18 in 1924, began their St. Louis careers with more.
Quinn Mathews gave the bullpen room to work, turning in the longest start of his rookie season. The left-hander held the Nationals to three runs over seven innings before the late rally changed the shape of the afternoon.
Riley O’Brien handled the ninth for his National League-leading 38th save, though he received help from another late defensive addition. Victor Scott II covered plenty of ground for a sprawling catch in the outfield, helping close the door on a win that carried no postseason implications but still offered a glimpse of the club’s young catching depth.
