JUPITER, Fla. — Steven Matz was introduced to Cardinals television audiences on Saturday. His first game with two scoreless innings was against Washington. His second game against fellow tenants of Roger Dean Stadium in Miami bore no resemblance.
The left-hander was bullied by a couple of groundball singles and a bloop. He was also bullied by Jesus Aguilar from a triple homer to dead center. Matz threw 33 pitches in the inning but not enough to finish the inning as he won two outs but gave up six runs. Spring training rules allowed him to come back for the second inning, and he was a lot better, fanning two including Aguilar as he got through the second inning with just 21 pitches.
Although Paul Goldschmidt hit his second homer of the spring, the Cardinals never really recovered. Johan Oviedo was touched up for three runs in the next two innings after a perfect third place finish and the Cardinals fell 9-2 to the Marlins.
Relief ace Giovanny Gallegos made his first appearance for the Cardinals, throwing three flyball outs in the seventh inning. Kodi Whitley hit two in a scoreless eighth and Jake Walsh, after being hammered in his previous game, fanned out two in a scoreless ninth Marlins. Cardinals pitchers hit at least one batter in each inning, 12 total for the game.
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Yepez, serving as the designated batsman, drove a line to the left in a run in seventh place for the Cardinals.