McGreevy's 8-inning gem helps Cards finish 2024 strong

SAN FRANCISCO -- Having already impressed the Cardinals with his baseball smarts and his moxie in big moments, Michael McGreevy elevated how he’s seen within the organization with another heady decision during an eight-inning gem on Sunday afternoon at Oracle Park.

Not only did McGreevy repeatedly pounce off the mound to field slow rollers in front of him, but in the seventh inning, he had the mental wherewithal to pull back his glove on a comebacker hit just to the left of him. Rather than having the ball potentially hit off his glove or risk a throw from the slope of the mound, McGreevy let second baseman Brendan Donovan field the ball, step on second and complete an inning-ending double play that got him out of the only real jam he faced all day.

“That’s the stuff we’ve been talking about with him,” Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol marveled following their 6-1 victory over the Giants in the season finale. “The game is slow to him, and that’s going to help him out a ton. He could have easily fielded that and thrown it away or have it hit off his glove. He’s aware of little things like that.”

McGreevy’s awareness in that moment was just one highlight on a day when he limited the Giants to five hits and one run over eight innings in his third MLB start (fourth appearance). In addition to his stellar defense, his efficiency was eye-catching, as he threw just 91 pitches.

The outing, one that came with 35 family members and friends in the crowd, might as well have been jet fuel being injected straight into his veins because of how it will fuel his engine to work all offseason to be ready for 2025, McGreevy said.

“It’s a huge confidence booster, because you never want to go into the offseason on a bad foot, and this will do so much for my confidence heading into the offseason,” said McGreevy, who struck out six while walking none. “No matter what game it is -- first game of the season, middle of the season, the dog days of summer or the last game of the season -- you always want to know that you can go long and end the year strong. I didn’t know my pitch count, but I knew we were moving along, and I thought, ‘I can go deeper in this thing.’”

McGreevy got all the run support he needed from Donovan and Alec Burleson. Donovan, the Cardinals' steadiest hitter and fielder all season, smashed his career-best 14th home run in the third inning to start the scoring off Giants starter Hayden Birdsong, who struck out 11 over 4 1/3 innings. Burleson capped his breakout year with run-scoring singles in the fifth and sixth innings that gave the Cards a 6-0 lead. Donovan finished the year hitting .278 with 14 home runs and 73 RBIs in 153 games.

“I’ve made some adjustments, and I’ve learned a lot this year -- as a person and as a baseball player -- and you’re constantly learning in the game and trying to get better,” Donovan said. “Have I gotten better this year? Yes, but there are a lot of areas I want to clean up, and I’ve already got a game plan in place.”

Added Burleson: “It was a good year overall. I’ve got to get better producing down the stretch. But overall, I’m happy about it. This allows me to focus on certain things and hone in on some skills. In the past, I’ve gone into Spring Training and just tried to make the team, so this will allow me to take the offseason and focus on things that will allow me to be good again next season.”

The Cardinals have high hopes that McGreevy can be good next year in what will likely be a full rookie season. If they lean in to a full-on rebuild around their young core of Masyn Winn, Jordan Walker, No. 4 prospect Thomas Saggese, Andre Pallante, Matthew Liberatore, Ryan Fernandez, Donovan and Burleson, McGreevy could be one of the fixtures within the rotation for 2025.

The 2021 first-round pick showed off his massive potential to the Cardinals in his MLB debut on July 31 when he limited the Rangers to five hits and one run over seven innings. On Tuesday, McGreevy held firm in a taxing start at Denver’s Coors Field -- always a scary proposition for a pitcher -- and then capped off his first MLB season with Sunday’s gem.

“The debut was an out-of-body experience, but here was, ‘Hey, this isn’t our first rodeo anymore,’ and about staying grounded,” he said. “So in my third start, I wanted to take every pitch for what it was worth and execute the best I could.”