Andre Pallante, Cardinals bullpen make lead hold up in 1-0 victory vs. Reds

Siani tagged up and scored on the play with De La Cruz’s throw to the plate off his back foot tailing slightly up the third base line before it ricocheted away from catcher Luke Maile. The errant throw allowed Contreras to advance to second base.

A potentially pivotal frame for Pallante

Pallante stranded the bases loaded to preserve the one-run lead in the fifth inning.

The Reds put two men on with one out after Will Benson walked and Stuart Fairchild swatted a bloop single into right field.

Pallante got Maile to fly out to shallow center field after Maile failed to get down a bunt attempt. That left two men on with two outs.

Reds leadoff hitter Jonathan India, who had hits in each of his previous two at-bats in the game against Pallante, drew a walk to load the bases. That set up a matchup between Pallante and the switch-hitting De La Cruz.

Pallante came into the night having held left-handed hitters to a .185 batting average this season. De La Cruz grounded to first baseman Paul Goldschmidt, who flipped to Pallante covering first base for the third out of the inning.

Fernandez and Donovan get assists in the sixth

Pallante put the first two batters of the sixth inning on base when he hit Spencer Steer with a pitch and then walked Nick Martini.

Pallante got the last batter he faced, Marte, to hit a soft fly ball down the left-field line that Brendan Donovan caught for the first out of the inning.

Rookie reliever Ryan Fernandez, who pitched in the ninth inning on Thursday night, then entered the game with two men on and one out.

The first batter Fernandez faced, Santiago Espinal, hit a deep drive to the warning track in left field. The ball tailed away from Donovan, but the former Gold Glove winner (as a utility player) made a leaping catch on the run just in front of the wall headed toward the left field corner.

Donovan’s catch was the second out of the inning, and Fernandez struck out Will Benson to strand both of the inherited runners on base and keep the one-run lead.