Burleson, Goldschmidt hit home runs in Cardinals' 6-2 win over Braves

ATLANTA (AP) — Paul Goldschmidt hit one of four Cardinals home runs after getting dropped in the order and St. Louis knocked off the Atlanta Braves 6-2 on Sunday to win the series.

Cardinals designated hitter Alec Burleson had a homer and two RBIs, giving him 21 in 16 games in July. He has an RBI in six straight games, which is one shy of the Cardinals record.

Lars Nootbaar and Willson Contreras also hit solo home runs.

Miles Mikolas (8-8) gave up two runs on seven hits in six innings. He struck out three and walked one for the Cardinals, who won the season series against the Braves for the first time since 2017.

“I located a little bit better,” Mikolas said. “We played good defense out there. They hit some hard balls on me, but we were positioned well.”

Seven-time All-Star Goldschmidt was 1 for 4 from the No. 7 spot, a place he had not hit from since 2012 when he was with the Diamondbacks. He entered the game hitting just .206 against right-handed pitching this season and has a career-low in OPS by 150 points.

“Always good to see him smile,” said Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol. “The looser he plays, the better he gets. Seeing him homer today was obviously fun. Hopefully he can build off of that. He’s a really good hitter.”

Braves rookie Spencer Schwellenbach (3-5) took the loss, his second against the Cardinals this season. He gave up four runs on seven hits, including three solo home runs. He struck out eight.

Jarred Kelenic hit a home run for the Braves.

Burleson’s home run came in the third inning and gave St. Louis a 2-0 lead. He turned on a 95-mph fastball and crushed a 435-foot home run onto the roof of the Chop House restaurant in right field.

“I’ve been seeing fastballs all series and I put a good swing on it,” Burleson said. “I was looking dead red, and I got it.”

His second RBI came in the fifth, when his single scored Michael Siani, who dove into home plate just ahead of the tag from Travis d’Arnaud.

Braves second baseman Ozzie Albies fractured his wrist in the ninth inning when he tried to field a throw at second on a stolen base attempt and bent his glove hand back when he collided with Siani.

The Braves announced after the game that X-rays showed a fractured wrist, and Albies is expected to miss eight weeks. The three-time All-Star is hitting .255 with eight home runs and 46 RBIs hitting almost exclusively from the No. 2 spot in the batting order.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Braves: The Braves placed All-Star LHP Max Fried on the 15-day IL retroactive to July 18 due to forearm neuritis. Fried felt discomfort getting loose before pitching one inning in the All-Star game. An MRI didn't reveal structural damage but he will not throw until he is asymptomatic. The Braves promoted LHP Dylan Dodd from Triple-A Gwinnett.

UP NEXT

Cardinals: RHP Andre Pallante (4-4, 4.21) will face Pirates RHP Mitch Keller (10-5, 3.46) in the opener of a three-game series in Pittsburgh on Monday.

Braves: RHP Reynaldo López (7-3, 1.88) takes on Reds RHP Hunter Greene (6-4, 3.34) in a matchup of All-Stars as the teams open a three-game series in Atlanta on Monday.

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