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Aug 22, 2023

Cardinals rookie Luken Baker hits memorable 1st MLB home run

Cardinals rookie Luken Baker celebrates his solo home run during a game against the Phillies on Saturday, Aug. 26, 2023, in Philadelphia. His homer was the lone Cardinals run as the Phillies won 12-1.

Cardinals rookie Luken Baker celebrates his solo home run during a game against the Phillies on Saturday, Aug. 26, 2023, in Philadelphia. His homer was the lone Cardinals run as the Phillies won 12-1.

PHILADELPHIA — Cardinals rookie slugger Luken Baker mashed the fourth-most home runs in a single season in Memphis Redbirds history in just 84 games, but his first major-league home run eluded him until Saturday night.

Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Zack Wheeler mowed down the first seven Cardinals batters he faced Saturday night, and he’d struck out five in a row when Baker stepped in the batter’s box sporting a .200 batting average in his short time in the big leagues.

“Today was the first day — as good as Wheeler is — I really didn’t try to do too much,” Baker said. “I just tried to put together a good at-bat, and I got a good thing from it.”

Baker jumped on a 1-1 slider on the inside corner and pulled it around the left-field foul pole and into the seats for his first major-league home run, a 386-foot blast against the Phillies’ ace.

“Just trying to be on a fastball and hit a mistake,” Baker said of his approach. “He didn’t make very many mistakes tonight. Fortunately, I didn’t miss the one that he gave me.”

Baker led Minor League Baseball in home runs and total bases at the time he was recalled to the majors. This season in Triple-A, he has slashed .334/.439/.720 with 33 home runs, 98 RBIs, 59 walks and 76 strikeouts in 84 games.

Baker described hitting his first home run in the majors as a “monkey off the back.”

The fan who caught the home run threw the ball back onto the field at Citizens Bank Park, so the Cardinals were easily able to retrieve it for Baker.

Baker and his wife recently closed on their first house, so he joked that he already has the first decoration for their new home.

Outfielder Tyler O’Neill had been in the original starting lineup for Sunday’s series finale. He’d been slated to start in center field. However, O’Neill reported feeling left knee discomfort to the staff prior to the game, and he was scratched from the starting lineup and replaced by Richie Palacios.

O’Neill, who entered the day with a team-high five home runs since the start of August, had one of the team’s three hits in Saturday night’s loss to the Phillies. Nine of his last 14 hits had been for extra bases.

Knee tightness forced him out of the lineup earlier this month during a series against the Tampa Bay Rays on the road in St. Petersburg, Florida. The artificial turf at the indoor ballpark caused him discomfort in his knee after he went through the pregame workout in Tampa.

In Philadelphia, O’Neill played the first two games on the natural grass surface. He did make a sliding catch in the left-center field gap on Saturday night.

Cardinals relief pitcher Giovanny Gallegos allowed three hits, including a pair of home runs, as well as one walk and four runs in 1/3 inning Saturday night. He gave up a pair of three-run home runs, though the two men on base for the first home run were the responsibility of reliever Andre Pallante.

Gallegos had not pitched since Aug. 20. Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said he wanted to get Gallegos in the game, regardless of the score, to work on some things he’s been trying to refine.

“He’s just not getting the amount of swing and miss that we’ve seen in the past, specifically against left-handers,” Marmol said. “There’s been a high production of OPS and less swing and miss against that side of the plate. That’s something that we need to continue to work on because he’s an important part of the bullpen.”

Left-handed hitters have batted .320 with an OPS of .914 against Gallegos this season. For his career, Gallegos has held left-handed hitters to a .214 average and an OPS of .657.

The Cardinals placed right-handed relief pitcher Guillermo Zuniga on the 15-day injured list due to a right forearm strain. His IL stint is retroactive to Aug. 25. The club recalled right-hander James Naile from Triple-A Memphis to fill the open spot on the active roster and in the bullpen.

Other injury updates:

• Left-handed starting pitcher Matthew Liberatore is expected to go on a minor-league rehab assignment and pitch for Triple-A Memphis on Tuesday. He’s been sidelined with lower back tightness stemming from a weightlifting session following his most recent start.

•Closer Ryan Helsley pitched one inning of relief for Double-A Springfield on Sunday. He allowed two runs on three hits and struck out one batter. He threw 27 pitches. He resumed his minor-league rehab assignment as he works his way back from a forearm strain that forced him to miss 66 games. His rehab had been put on pause due to lingering soreness.

•Outfielder Lars Nootbaar (groin injury) has responded well to increased baseball activity pregame in recent days, including running and changing directions. He took batting practice on the field and ran Saturday. He went through base running work prior to Sunday’s game. He could be activated at some point during the upcoming homestand.

The Cardinals announced that they’ve partnered with non-partisan non-profit organization HeadCount to host an event to register voters at Busch Stadium on Aug. 28-30.

The voter registration event will take place during the Cardinals’ series against the San Diego Padres in St. Louis. HeadCount will have a table in the Ford Plaza from the time gates open until approximately one hour into the game where individuals can register, check their voter registration status, and sign-up to receive election alerts. Individuals can also enter to win a trip to the 2024 MLB All-Star Game.

In today’s 10 a.m. “Ten Hochman” video — brought to you by Siteman Cancer Center and Window Nation — Ben Hochman discusses the Cardinals’ reliever JoJo Romero. It appears he has decided to stop walking batters. Also, a happy birthday shoutout to Jeff Tweedy! And as always, Hochman picks a random St. Louis Cards card from the hat!

A nightly look at the day\'s top sports stories, and a first look at the topics St. Louis fans will be talking about tomorrow.

Cardinals reporter

The Cardinals begin a home series Monday against the Padres with first pitch set for 6:45 p.m. St. Louis time.