DeJong hits 2 of Cardinals' 5 HRs in 12-5 win at Nationals

WASHINGTON (AP) — Paul DeJong hit two of the Cardinals' five homers, including a grand slam, Tommy Edman and Paul Goldschmidt went deep back-to-back and St. Louis offered Jack Flaherty his usual strong run support in a 12-5 victory Monday night over the Washington Nationals.

A day after St. Louis was shut out for the second time in four games, DeJong got the offense going by clanging a solo shot off the left-field foul pole in the second inning for the first run allowed by Joe Ross (1-1) in three games this season after he sat out 2020 because of COVID-19 concerns.

DeJong later ended the right-hander's evening with another drive to left, this one off a high fastball after Dylan Carlson was walked intentionally to load the bases, making it 10-2 in the fifth.

Edman, who hit a 3-0 pitch, and Goldschmidt homered in the third off Ross, whose season ERA went from 0.00 to 5.87 after he gave up 10 runs in 4 1/3 innings. Justin Williams added a shot off Ross' replacement, Kyle Finnegan.

Quite a quick turnaround from a 2-0 defeat at the Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday, which left St. Louis with a .221 team batting average for the season and six losses in its past eight games. The Cards' other recent blanking? A 6-0 setback against Ross and Washington last Wednesday.

When St. Louis manager Mike Shildt was asked before Monday’s game about facing Ross again so soon, he replied: “I feel good about our plan.”

Guess he was right.

Even Matt Carpenter, dropped to seventh in the order after coming in batting .069, got in on the act, providing an RBI single in the fourth (he was thrown out trying to stretch it into a double). Flaherty's sacrifice bunt pushed across another run for a 6-0 lead.

Flaherty (3-0) is used to that sort of cushion. The Cardinals are averaging 11 runs in...

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