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Miles Mikolas spins gem, leads Cardinals over Pirates

By Alex Butler
St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Miles Mikolas lowered his season ERA from 4.53 to 4.15 after shutting out the Pittsburgh Pirates Monday in St. Louis. Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI
St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Miles Mikolas lowered his season ERA from 4.53 to 4.15 after shutting out the Pittsburgh Pirates Monday in St. Louis. Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI | License Photo

July 16 (UPI) -- St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Miles Mikolas allowed eight hits and threw three strikeouts on 100 pitches in a shutout performance against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The right-handed starter also did not issue a walk in the dominant showing Monday at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, leading the Cardinals to a 7-0 win.

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Cardinals left fielder Tyler O'Neill led the bat brigade. O'Neil was 3-for-4 with four RBIs, two runs scored and two home runs out of the cleanup spot.

O'Neal was at the plate during the game's first run as Paul Goldschmidt scored on a fielding error. Goldschmidt brought in the Cardinals' second run with an RBI double in the third frame. Dexter Fowler scored Goldschmidt with a sacrifice fly in the same inning.

Then O'Neill put the Pirates away. The Cardinals outfielder settled in for another at-bat in the bottom of the fifth inning. Pirates starter Joe Musgrove tossed in a 91.6 mph fastball for his only offering of the exchange. O'Neill smashed the pitch to center field for his third home run of the season. The 414-foot two-run blast had an exit velocity of 105 mph and left the field in 5.5 seconds, according to Statcast.

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O'Neill returned to the plate in the bottom of the seventh inning for another two-run shot against Pirates reliever Kyle Crick. The right-handed pitcher worked a 2-2 count against O'Neill before throwing in a 95.2 mph fastball. O'Neill smacked the pitch over the center field fence for a 433-foot bomb. That homer had an exit velocity of 107 mph and left Busch Stadium in 5.7 seconds.

The Cardinals and Pirates resume their National League Central series at 8:15 p.m. Tuesday in St. Louis.

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