BOSTON ¨C The Cardinals lost Game 1 of their doubleheader in excruciating fashion, 5-4 in 10 innings, when All-Star closer Ryan Helsley uncharacteristically struggled with his control, and they were subsequently throttled 18-7 in the nightcap under a barrage of hard-hit balls by the Red Sox.
However, the biggest blow of the long day and night of baseball for the Cardinals came in a completely different manner.
Iv¨¢n Herrera, who made Cardinals¡¯ history when he became the first catcher to mash three home runs in a game on Wednesday, went down with a third-inning injury to his left knee that could cost him time. Herrera, whose knee appeared to buckle when he briefly broke from third base on a foul pop, needed help from trainers to get back to the third-base dugout.
Herrera briefly left Fenway Park to get more testing on the knee, but was moving around the clubhouse well later in the night and the club is hopeful that he might have avoided a serious injury, president of baseball operations John Mozeliak said. He was diagnosed with knee irritation, per the club, and is expected to go on the 10-day injured list on Monday.
To fill his place, the Cardinals will call up 27-year-old Yohel Pozo to join the team in Pittsburgh. Pozo, who came to the Cardinals on a Minor League contract in the offseason, last appeared in the big leagues for Texas in 2021.
¡°It sucks to see Iv¨¢n go down like that because he¡¯s been hitting so well and hopefully he¡¯ll be able to recover and be back for us pretty soon, maybe even [Monday] ¡ you never know,¡± said Cardinals starter Andre Pallante, who worked with Herrera through the early stages of Game 1. ¡°He was hitting the ball so well and you just hate to see him lose that [momentum] because of an injury.¡±
The injury comes at a time when the 24-year-old catcher from Panama appeared to be coming into his own as a high-level hitter for the Cardinals. His four homers and 11 RBI coming into Sunday were the second-most among NL players, and his 1.555 OPS led the league. Also, his .482 slugging and 143 wRC+ leads all catchers with at least 200 plate appearances since the start of the 2024 season.
¡°He¡¯s been impressive and if you look at his at-bats and it doesn¡¯t matter who¡¯s on the [mound], he is still taking a very professional at bat,¡± Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said. ¡°He¡¯s staying on the ball well. If you look at the homer he hit to right field [at Fenway Park on Friday] and then he pulled a couple at home, he¡¯s using the whole field. Overall, it¡¯s been a really impressive start.¡±
Later in the night, as the Cardinals were absorbing a Game 2 thumping, Marmol told ESPN that the team got good news on the Herrera front.
"Everything came back clean, which is good,¡± Marmol said. ¡°It could have been a lot worse. So, he'll miss some time, but we're definitely not looking at anything serious. He'll go on the IL, but it could have been a bad situation."
The good news for the Cardinals is that they can turn the majority of the catching duties over to Pedro Pagés, whose storybook run in big league baseball has been defined by him being ready and taking advantage of opportunities presented to him. He put on a clinic in that department in Game 1 on Sunday, by doubling twice and tying a career high with three RBIs.
Slightly more than a year ago, Pag¨¦s took an Uber to his big league debut when a flight between Indianapolis and St. Louis wouldn¡¯t have arrived in time for that day¡¯s game. In his second stint with the Cardinals ¨C an opportunity created by an arm injury to Willson Contreras ¨C he homered against the Cubs on Father¡¯s Day with his dad sitting behind home plate.
In the sixth inning of Game 1, Pag¨¦s blooped an 0-2 double into right to tie the game. In the eighth, Pag¨¦s turned on a 95.4 mph fastball on the inside corner and smashed the ball off the 37-foot Green Monster. The 383-foot smash left the bat at 103.6 mph, per Statcast projections.
¡°[Pag¨¦s] is a guy who takes pride in that [preparation], and even when he¡¯s not catching, he¡¯s prepared for the lineup and watches closely,¡± Marmol said.
Pag¨¦s¡¯ work helped the Cardinals take a 4-2 lead into the ninth inning in the opener, but that disappeared when Helsley walked four hitters and surrendered two earned runs for his first blown save of the season. A season ago, Helsley set a club record with 49 saves, and he needed just 53 opportunities to do so.