Cardinals sweep Twins to open season: 3 takeaways from 3 wins

New York Times

31-03-2025

ST. LOUIS — By the time evening arrived in downtown St. Louis, four undefeated teams remained in Major League Baseball: the Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees, San Diego Padres and St. Louis Cardinals.
Just like we all predicted, right?
The Cardinals wrapped up their opening-series sweep with a 9-2 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Sunday afternoon, locking up career win No. 250 for manager Oli Marmol in the process. They slugged their way to three wins, banging out 19 runs and 30 hits. But what impressed Marmol most about his club was the intensity with which it played.
Advertisement
'We did a lot of things positive,' Marmol said. 'We hit the ball all over the park. We pitched it well. Our pen has gotten ahead of just about everybody. Our defense has been very smooth.
'But we're convicted about playing the game the right way and playing it hard. And that's what's been consistent throughout every inning of these three games.'
The @Cardinals hit 3 home runs to complete the sweep! pic.twitter.com/GwmyP0tHMG
— MLB (@MLB) March 30, 2025
The offense is worth focusing on, especially given how poorly the club fared in that department last season. In 2024, St. Louis had the worst average (.212) and OPS (.645) with runners in scoring position in the National League and hit the fewest home runs (27). Coming into the new season, the bats were the primary concern.
Three games in is hardly a sample size, but so far, so good.
Let's break down three things from three wins during a fun weekend at Busch Stadium.
That's a popular phrase from new hitting coach Brant Brown and the Cardinals showed they can do both. Five players — Lars Nootbaar, Nolan Arenado, Victor Scott II, Pedro Pagés and Nolan Gorman — homered in the series, and St. Louis also proved clutch in several situational hitting opportunities.
Nolan Gorman launches his first home run of 2025! 💣 pic.twitter.com/YNSZUpbLMH
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) March 30, 2025
'Every at-bat is a damn dog fight,' Marmol said. 'Every pitch is important. Every inning is its own game within a game, and you can see it. We score a couple of runs, and the next inning we're just starting from scratch.'
Cardinals hitters have described their at-bats as contagious and filled with high energy. Their play has matched that vibe. The team approach was noticeably different from the first inning of the season. Nootbaar led off Thursday's home opener with a sharp single to right and Brendan Donovan chopped at an outside pitch, shooting it past second base for an RBI single. The next inning, Nootbaar golfed a low changeup well below the zone from Pablo López and sent it out of the park for a solo homer.
Advertisement
On Sunday, the Cardinals used a pair of three-run homers to throttle the Twins. Gorman singled to lead off the second inning, and Pagés followed with a ground-rule double to put two runners in scoring position for Scott. He ambushed Twins starter Bailey Ober's first-pitch fastball and sent it into the Cardinals' bullpen for his first home run of the year.
The following inning, the Cardinals used a similar strategy. Donovan singled to lead off the inning, Arenado doubled him to third and Alec Burleson hammered a double off the base of the right-center wall, scoring both runners. Gorman kept the rally going with a single, putting runners on the corners for Pagés. He worked Ober to a 2-1 count before pummeling a slider in the heart of the zone into the Twins' bullpen for the second three-run homer of the day.
PEDRO POWER! ⚡️ pic.twitter.com/ZnPpfHmgB3
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) March 30, 2025
'Everybody knows their role and everybody's executing it,' Scott II said.
The Cardinals won't be reliant on the long ball, though they certainly showed they can do damage.
'You always want to slug and do the best you can, but sometimes it is about being a hit collector at times, being unselfish and taking it where you can,' Nootbaar said. 'So far, I think this team has done a really good job with that.'
Not only have Cardinal hitters praised Brown's new approach, but they've also commended Marmol's lineup construction.
To maximize his team's offensive production, Marmol broke his lineup into three sections. The first three hitters — Nootbaar, Willson Contreras and Donovan — are high on-base hitters who work deep counts. The middle of the order will feature Arenado in the cleanup spot and some variation of Alec Burleson, Gorman, Jordan Walker and Iván Herrera to follow. These hitters provide the thump in the heart of the lineup, which then gives way to contact and speed with Scott, who stole three bases in the series, and Masyn Winn as the No. 8 and 9 hitters.
Advertisement
'(Nootbaar) works at-bats, sees a lot of pitches. Then we have Willson, who does the same thing, and Donovan. After that, we have guys that swing it,' Arenado said. 'I love the way our lineup works.'
'With speed at the bottom of the lineup and those guys being able to turn the lineup over to the guys that are getting on base, it's a recipe for success,' added Gorman (who went 3-for-4 on Sunday with a solo homer in his first start of the season).
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT!!! pic.twitter.com/BKnRvmqYUI
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) March 29, 2025
While the lineup has clicked, there's something to be said regarding Nootbaar at the top of the order. He's always profiled as a hitter who works deep counts and gets on base, two traits of a successful leadoff hitter. After three games, Nootbaar could hardly be off to a better start. He reached base eight times in the series. He tallied four hits — including the team's first home run on Opening Day — and walked three times. He's been a catalyst for the offense, and his teammates have taken notice.
'You guys that are getting on base for us early on in games, and then the guys that can bang a little bit, they do their job and drive those guys in,' Gorman said. 'It's a snowball effect, starting with Nootbaar.'
Nootbaar has batted leadoff semi-often throughout his big-league career (he did so 88 times from 2021 through 2024) but has never held the role consistently. That looks to be changing this year, and he's embracing the responsibility. Nootball is just as encouraged by the rest of the lineup.
'What's cool to see is Herrera grinding out at-bats late, Walker grinding out at-bats late,' Nootbaar added. 'For the guys to be able to stay focused and take really good at-bats, it's impressive to watch.'
There will likely be some tinkering with the lineup over the next series against the Los Angeles Angels. The Cardinals are scheduled to face two lefties — Tyler Anderson and Yusei Kikuchi — which means Marmol will lean toward his right-handed hitters more heavily (for example, expect Luken Baker to see a start). But expect Nootbaar (who is not an overly splitty hitter anyway) to remain a staple at the top of the lineup, regardless of handedness.
Advertisement
The Cardinals' bullpen — their biggest strength last season — looks to be picking up right where it left off.
All eight relievers appeared in the Cardinals' opening series. They combined to allow just one earned run over 11 innings. Closer Ryan Helsley picked up his first save on Thursday, striking out three batters in the ninth and hitting 102 mph on the radar gun. Newcomer Phil Maton posted two scoreless innings with two strikeouts in two appearances. Steven Matz, who will assume a long-relief role until the Cardinals switch to a six-man rotation in mid-April, scattered one hit over four scoreless innings in relief of Andre Pallante and earned his first career save.
'I'm pretty happy with what we saw on the pitching side,' Marmol said.
After a long and inactive offseason, Cardinals fans are probably pretty happy with what they saw from their favorite ballclub as well.
(Top photo of Pedro Pagés and Alec Burleson: Tim Vizer / Imagn Images)