The St. Louis Cardinals (3-0) completed a series sweep against the Minnesota Twins (0-3) with a dominant 9-2 victory on Sunday afternoon at Busch Stadium. Behind a strong outing from Andre Pallante, a five-run explosion in the third and a quality save from Steven Matz, the Cardinals cruised to their third straight win to open the season.
Game Recap
Pallante took the mound for St. Louis and got into early trouble, walking a batter in the first and allowing a single to Byron Buxton that drove in Matt Wallner, giving Minnesota a 1-0 lead.
Bailey Ober took the mound for the Twins, tossing 28 pitches in the first inning while allowing two walks. The Cardinals had a chance to strike but came up empty, as Nolan Arenado went down swinging and Alec Burleson fouled out to the catcher to end the frame.
Pallante quickly settled in, forcing three straight groundouts in the second. Meanwhile, the Cardinals’ bats came alive. Nolan Gorman singled to right, Pedro Pagés hit a ground-rule double, and Victor Scott II launched a 396-foot three-run homer to right-center, putting St. Louis up 3-1.
Great Scott! 💣 pic.twitter.com/XdsJthaCoQ
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) March 30, 2025
Pallante allowed a lone double to Matt Wallner in the third but escaped unscathed. In the bottom of the frame, the Cardinals exploded. Brendan Donovan singled, Arenado doubled, and Burleson followed with a two-run double. After a Gorman single, Pagés crushed a three-run homer to left-center, extending the lead to 8-1 and forcing Minnesota to call on Randy Dobnak from the bullpen.
PEDRO POWER! ⚡️ pic.twitter.com/ZnPpfHmgB3
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) March 30, 2025
Willi Castro hit a solo homer in the fourth to cut the deficit to 8-2, but that was the last real threat from the Twins. Dobnak managed to slow the Cardinals down briefly, inducing a double play in the bottom of the fourth.
Pallante continued his strong outing into the fifth, striking out two before a weather delay temporarily halted the game in the middle of the fifth. After the delay, Pagés singled, and Scott II stole a base, but St. Louis couldn’t add to the lead.
Closing It Out
Steven Matz entered in the sixth and dominated, retiring the Twins in order. Gorman then added insurance in the seventh, crushing a homer in his first game of the season, a 409-foot shot to right-center, making it 9-2.
Matz kept the Twins in check, continuing his streak of 1-2-3 innings through the eighth. Defensive changes in the ninth didn’t affect the outcome, as the Cardinals closed the game with another flawless inning, sealing the win for Pallante and a save for Matz.
Tim Vizer-Imagn Images
Mar 30, 2025; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals second base Nolan Gorman (16) is welcomed at home plate by teammates after scored a home run to right centerfield in the seventh inning against the Minnesota Twins at Busch Stadium.
Familiar Start?
The Cardinals start 3-0 for the first time since 2006, marking the 17th time in franchise history they’ve achieved the feat. They now sit atop the NL Central, two games ahead of the Cincinnati Reds.
Concerning Cards
Willson Contreras is off to a tough start, going 0-for-14, while Masyn Winn is 0-for-9, with both players striking out five times each to begin their seasons.
Jordan Walker was on the bench after a pitch struck him in the hand during an at-bat last game.
Cardinals ML (+105) cashed while the total score went OVER 8 (-118). It's still early, but sweeping the opening series as underdogs could be a sign of what's to come for this team.
What’s Next
The Cardinals kick off a three-game home series against the Los Angeles Angels on Monday, with RHP Miles Mikolas set to take the mound for the opener at 6:45 p.m. CST. Matthew Liberatore and Sonny Gray are scheduled to start the following games on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively.