September 7, 1993: Hard Hittin Mark Whiten Hits 4 Bombs In Cincy

On September 7, 1993, in the second game of a doubleheader at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati, Hard Hittin Mark Whiten hit four home runs in a 15-2 beatdown of the Reds. The first game was a hard one to swallow, but it was a wild one. The two teams used a record 15 pitchers and 98 batters saw 350 pitches. There were 5 blown leads, 27 runs, 36 hits, and 13 walks scattered throughout. The seesaw battle went to the Reds by the score of 14-13 after Whiten mishandled a ball in right in the bottom of the ninth to give the Reds the lead. Whiten did score a run and pick up an rbi in that contest despite the fact he didn't get a hit. The Cardinals slugger who started the day off with 18 home runs would shake off  the last game in grand fashion, he started the first game off with a grand salami off of Larry Luebbers. After the first tilt no lead seemed safe and the Reds came back with two runs of their own in the bottom of the first off of Cardinals starter Bob Tewksbury. Tewks locked in after the rough inning and was lights out as he went the distance for the Whiten powered Redbirds. Whiten struck again in the sixth with his second home run of game, it was a 3 run bomb off of Reds rookie Mark Anderson who Whiten victimized in the seventh with his third bomb which was another 3 run shot. The historic fourth blast came in the ninth off of Rob Dibble, it was a two run shot deep to center that put Whiten in a very elite club as he was just the 12th man to hit four bombs in one game. At the end of the second game, Whiten had not only hit the four blasts, he had knocked in 12 RBIs which tied a 69 year old record set by another Cardinal Jim Bottomley who set the record in 1924. Whiten finished the day with 13 RBIs after picking one up one in the first game despite the fact that he went 0 for 4, the 13 ribbies tied the record for most RBIs in a doubleheader.  To date, Whiten is the only member of the St. Louis Cardinals to hit four blasts in one game.

Check out the box scores
The first crazy game: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CIN/CIN199309071.shtml
The Whiten 4 Bomb Game: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CIN/CIN199309072.shtml

MLB Network did a great piece on Whiten's 4 home run game, you can watch it here: http://wapc.mlb.com/play?content_id=11879407

September 6, 1988: Jose DeLeon Dominates The Expos at Busch

On September 6, 1988, Jose DeLeon outdueled Montreal's Dennis Martinez in a 1-0 win over the Expos at Busch. DeLeon scattered three hits, struck out twelve, and scored the lone run of the contest. The run came in the third inning after DeLeon doubled off of Martinez then was knocked in by Vince Coleman. Whitey Herzog pointed out two key defensive plays that kept the Expos from doing any damage, the first was a diving stop by second baseman Jose Oquendo in the seventh that kept a runner from scoring. Then catcher Tony Pena nailed Rex Hudler who was trying to steal a base in the eighth to stop any momentum the Montreal squad thought they had. It was a true duel at Busch as Martinez matched DeLeon by giving up only three hits, the Cardinals pitcher picked up two of those three. DeLeon's 12 strikeouts were the most for a Cardinals pitcher since Pete Vuckovich recorded the same amount in June of '79 and they brought his strikeout total to 178 on the season. DeLeon would finish the '88 campaign with a total of 208 K's, it was the first time a pitcher had reached the 200 strikeout mark since Bob Gibson struck out 208 men in 1972. DeLeon followed it up with 201 strikeouts in '89.

Check out the box score: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SLN/SLN198809060.shtml

September 5, 1935: Terry Moore Goes 6 for 6 Against the Braves In St. Louie

On September 5, 1935, Cardinals rookie Terry Moore went 6 for 6 in a 15-3 beatdown of the Boston Braves at Sportsman's Park. To date, Moore and Jim Bottomley are the only two players in the history of the Cardinals organization to pick up 6 hits in a ballgame. Bottomley did it twice, he first accomplished the feat in 1924 then again 1931 before he was joined by Moore in 1935.  While Moore just missed being a part of the World Series winning Gashouse Gang of '34, he had a very bright future with the Redbirds as he developed into one of the best center fielders in the history of the organization. He was a key member of the World Series Championship squads of  '42 and '46 as he not only held his own at the plate, but he played what would be considered Gold Glove defense in center, if the award existed he would have undoubtedly had a shelf full of them.

Check out the box score: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SLN/SLN193509050.shtml

September 4, 1983: Willie McGee's Ninth Inning RBI Propels The Birds To Victory

On September 4, 1983, Willie McGee knocked in the game winner in a 5-4 win over the Cincinnati Reds at Busch. The Cardinals organization honored the Reds catcher before the game as Bench was set to retire at the end of the season. The Cincy backstop erased a 4-1 lead with one swing of the bat in the eighth with a long ball off of the Cardinals closer Bruce Sutter. It was the 388th home run of Bench's career, he finished with 389. While the wind was knocked out of the team after Bench went yard, Willie and his teammates would put it behind them real quick after Lonnie Smith doubled to start off the bottom of the ninth, then was followed by an intentional to Ozzie Smith as the Reds were looking to setup the double play. McGee erased all hope for the double play with a shot up the middle that brought Lonnie into score the game winner to spoil Bench's day at the ole ballpark.

Check out the box score: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SLN/SLN198309040.shtml

September 3, 2001: Cardinals Rookie Bud Smith Tosses a No-No In San Diego

On September 3, 2001, Bud Smith struck out 7 and walked four men on his way to pitching the tenth no-hitter in the history of the Cardinals organization as the Birds sailed to a 4-0 win over the Padres in San Diego. The 21 year old Cardinals rookie had never pitched past the seventh inning at the major league level. However, this day was his. Albert Pujols put the Cardinals on the board with a 2 run shot in the first, J.D. Drew knocked in a run in the fifth, then Placido Polanco knocked in the fourth run in the seventh. Meanwhile Smith was literally pitching the game of his life. The kid sat next to Mark McGwire in the Cardinals dugout and talked hitting in the late innings to keep his mind off of the no-no. As Smith approached the ninth inning his pitch count was through the roof and pitching coach Dave Duncan admitted that he was hoping someone would get a hit to keep the young hurler from wearing down. Smith failed to grant Duncan's wish and 134 pitches after he tossed his first one over the plate Phil Nevin hit a hard comebacker that Smith fielded then tossed to Pujols at first to solidify himself a spot in the record books. It was the highlight of Smith's professional career, he posted a 6-3 record in his rookie season then struggled the following year. In July of 2002, Smith was a part of the package that brought Scott Rolen to The Gateway City from Philadelphia. He never did pitch a game for the Phillies or any other major league team after his days as a Cardinal came to an end. He did pitch in the minor leagues until he retired in 2007. To date, Smith is the last member of the Cardinals to throw an ever elusive no-hitter.

Here's the box score: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SDN/SDN200109030.shtml

September 2, 1945: 27 up 27 Down as Barrett Nails Down His 20th Win of The Season

On September 2, 1945, after dropping the first game of a doubleheader to the Cubs at Sportsman's Park, Red Barrett pitched an absolute gem in the second game as he faced the minimum 27 batters as the team rolled to a 4-0 victory.  The Cardinals hurler gave up just one hit, it was a leadoff single by Len Merullo who was promptly erased by Del Rice who gunned him down as he tried to steal second. From there Barrett was in control, he struck out just four men as the defense played solid ball behind him while the offense put the necessary runs on the board to make Barrett the first 20 game winner of the '45 campaign. The twin bill against the league leading Cubs brought the biggest crowd to Sportsman's since the Summer of '39, unfortunately the Birds would finish the season just 3 games behind the Cubbies despite posting a dominating 16-6 record against them during the regular season.

Checkout the box score: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SLN/SLN194509022.shtml

September 1, 1966: McCarver and the Boys Triple Their Way To Victory

On September 1, 1966, a 7-4 win over the Braves at Busch was highlighted with 3 triples by Lou Brock, Charley Smith, and Tim McCarver. The triple by McCarver was a league leading thirteenth three bagger for the Cardinals catcher, it was also his last triple of that '66 season. McCarver's thirteen stolen bases proved to be a major league best by season's end, making him the first catcher to lead the league in triples. The man who sat in second place in the category would have been the much more expected name as McCarver's teammate Lou Brock finished the season with 12 three baggers. The '66 campaign was a bit of an anomaly when it came to triples for McCarver, his next best total came in '63 with 7.

Check out the box score: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SLN/SLN196609010.shtml