St. Louis Cardinals win 7-6 over Washington Nationals
Thomas Saggese lined a 1-0 sweeper into center field in the 10th, and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Washington Nationals 7-6 on April 7, 2026. Matthew Liberatore allowed 4 runs over 5 innings.
By Gamebook Baseball Desk
Reporting date: . Published: .
With nobody out in the 10th, Thomas Saggese lined a 1-0 sweeper into center field off Cole Henry. The double made it 6-5, and St. Louis went on to win 7-6.
The road to extra innings
The Nationals trailed 2-1 when James Wood hit a home run in the 3rd, tying the game at 2-2.
The Washington Nationals did not score in 5 of 10 innings against the St. Louis Cardinals' staff. At bat, the St. Louis Cardinals scored in 4 of 10 innings; the 1st was the club's largest inning, at 2 runs. The St. Louis Cardinals won by 1 run.
The first turn for the St. Louis Cardinals
The Cardinals trailed 5-3 when Nathan Church hit a two-run home run in the 8th, tying the game at 5-5.
Batting lines
Thomas Saggese had 2 hits in 5 at-bats with 1 run, 1 double, and 1 RBI. Jordan Walker collected 1 hit across 5 at-bats with 1 run, 1 home run, and 2 RBIs. Nathan Church went 1-for-2 with 1 run, 1 home run, and 2 RBIs. Nolan Gorman finished 3-for-4 with 1 RBI and 1 walk. The St. Louis Cardinals got at least 1 hit from 6 batters and finished with 9 hits. They also drew 10 walks. 4 hits went for extra bases.
Saggese finished the game batting .240 for the season, with 0 home runs, 1 RBI and a .665 OPS. For the Washington Nationals, Curtis Mead had 3 hits in 4 at-bats with 1 run, 1 home run, and 2 RBIs.
The pitchers
Matthew Liberatore threw 92 pitches across 5 innings, allowing 9 hits and 4 runs, walking 2 and striking out 6. 4 pitchers combined for the St. Louis Cardinals' 10 innings on 163 pitches, allowing 10 hits and 4 walks with 13 strikeouts.
Nationals starter Cade Cavalli worked 4⅔ innings on 94 pitches, allowing 4 hits and 2 runs, walking 4 and striking out 3.
Season record
At the end of April 7, 2026, the St. Louis Cardinals had a 6-5 record and were 4th in the division and 2 games back. The Cardinals ranked 9th in the league with a .545 winning percentage.
Official sources
Team facts, standings, and players reflect the reporting date.