Cardinals hold down Dodgers again, win in ninth inning 2-1

Pinch-hitter Nolan Arenado hit a game-ending RBI single in the bottom of the ninth inning to lift the St. Louis Cardinals to a 2-1 victory over the visiting Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday.
With runners on first and third and nobody out in the ninth, the Dodgers deployed a five-man infield, leaving just two outfielders. Arenado lifted a long fly ball into the left field corner against right-hander Ben Casparius.
Cardinals starter Erick Fedde blanked the Dodgers for 5 1/3 innings while allowing four hits and four walks and striking out two
St. Louis relievers Steven Matz and Kyle Leahy extended the shutout through the eighth inning. Ryan Helsley (3-0) allowed a run in the ninth inning on a wild pitch for a blown save but earned the win on Arenado’s hit.
Dodgers starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto went six scoreless innings. Allowing four hits while striking out nine and walking two. Casparius (4-1) took over in the eighth and gave up five hits in one-plus innings.
Los Angeles went 0-for-12 with runners in scoring position, leaving them 1-for-25 with RISP in their two losses in St. Louis. The lone hit Friday did not bring home a run.
The Dodgers had multiple scoring chances. In the fifth inning, Hyeseong Kim had a leadoff single and stole second base, but Fedde retired Shohei Othani, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman on a line out and two ground outs.
In the seventh. Kim and Betts had singled before Freeman hit into a double play to end that threat.
The Cardinals took a 1-0 lead in the eighth. Masyn Winn and Brendan Donovan hit one-out singles, then Winn scored after Alec Burleson’s beat out an infield single.
The Dodgers tied the game 1-0 in the ninth. Ohtani singled, moved to third on Betts’ single and scored on a wild pitch as Freeman struck out.
Gorman hit a leadoff double in the bottom of the ninth. Pages bunted pinch-runner Jose Barrero to third and reached on an error. That led to Arenado’s heroics on a hit into the left-field corner.