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April 8 (UPI) -- Veteran pitcher Adam Wainwright authored six shutout innings and outfielder Tyler O'Neill drove in five runs to lead the St. Louis Cardinals to a dominant victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates on opening day in St. Louis. O'Neill went 2 for 3 with a home run, in addition to his five RBIs, in the 9-0 victory Thursday at Busch Stadium. He is the first Cardinals player with at least five RBIs on opening day since Wally Roettger in 1928.
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"We are an offensive force," O'Neill told reporters. "That's just how we want to be."
Cardinals second baseman Tommy Edman and third baseman Nolan Arenado also homered in the shutout. First baseman Yoshi Tsutsugo totaled two of the Pirates' six hits.
Wainwright logged six strikeouts, allowed five hits and did not issue a walk.
"That was a perfect demonstration of what they are capable of doing," Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol told reporters.
Wainwright retired the Pirates in order to start the day. Cardinals right fielder Dylan Carlson led off the bottom of the inning with a double to left field. Brewers starter J.T. Brubaker issued a walk to Cardinals first baseman Paul Goldschmidt in the next exchange.
O'Neill stepped into the box for the next at-bat. The Cardinals left fielder smacked a 2-2 slider to second base for a single. The hit allowed Carlson to score from third.
Cardinals center fielder Harrison Bader led off the bottom of the second with a single. Edman and Carlson followed with a ground out and strikeout, respectively. Goldschmidt was walked for a second time in the fourth exchange of the half-inning, which put two runners on base for O'Neill.
The Cardinals outfielder smacked Brubaker's first offering of the exchange to left field for a 396-foot, three-run homer. The blast traveled 105-mph off O'Nell's bat, according to Statcast, and gave the Cardinals a 4-0 edge.
Carlson plated Bader for the Cardinals' fifth run in the bottom of the sixth. Edman swatted his first home run of the season in the second at-bat of the bottom of the eighth. That 368-foot solo shot traveled 113 mph and left the field in 3.8 seconds.
O'Neill plated the Cardinals' seventh run with a sacrifice fly three at-bats later. Arenado drove in the final runs of the game with a two-run homer in the next at-bat.
Arenado hit that 1-0 sinker an estimated 367 feet to left field.
Bader went 2 for 4 with two runs scored for the Cardinals. Goldschmidt went 1 for 1 with two runs scored and four walks. Arenado also reached base twice, going 1 for 4 with two RBIs, a run scored, a walk and a strikeout.
The Cardinals (1-0) host the Pirates (0-1) in the second game of the series at 2:15 p.m. EDT Saturday at Busch Stadium.
