Inside Pitch
Knowing that he had been pitching
poorly and that injured Kyle Lohse was making a rehab start on the same night,
Todd Wellemeyer responded to the challenge with one of his best games of the
season Thursday.
Wellemeyer blanked San Francisco for seven
innings before allowing a two-run homer to Aaron Rowand in the eighth inning.
Showing some renewed focus, Wellemeyer threw 65 strikes out of 99
pitches.
In his last start, Wellemeyer had
wrapped up a dismal June (1-3, 6.89 ERA) by working only 2 1/3 innings against
Minnesota, his
shortest outing of the season.
Wellemeyer had a 30-minute
conversation with pitching coaches Dave Duncan and Marty Mason and watched film.
He discovered an issue with his balance.
"When you figure it out, it feels
good," Wellemeyer said. "Now it's just a matter of continuing it. It's the best
I've felt all year."
Wellemeyer (7-7) appears to be
bouncing back, as does Ryan Ludwick, who knocked in two runs and had his third
multiple-hit game in the last five.
Meanwhile, Ryan Franklin appears
on course for an All-Star selection. A perfect ninth inning netted Franklin his 19th save in
20 tries.
CARDINALS 5, GIANTS 2: The
Cardinals finished their homestand at 3-4 by winning their last two games
against San
Francisco. RHP Todd Wellemeyer, who was 1-3 in June,
worked seven scoreless innings before weakening a bit in the eighth. RHPs Kyle McClellan and Ryan Franklin got the final five outs.