The St. Louis Cardinals saw a performance for the ages on Sunday, from rookie JJ Wetherholt. Wetherholt hit two home runs as St. Louis went on to defeat the Kansas City Royals, 12-10. His epic performance puts him in some elite company.
“JJ Wetherholt recorded his second career multi-HR game today against the Royals. He’s the third Cardinals rookie with two multi-HR games prior to July, joining Albert Pujols in 2001 and Ken Boyer in 1955,” the X account OptaSTATS posted to X, formerly Twitter.
Wetherholt wasted no time on Sunday getting things going. He hit a home run in the first inning of the game against Kansas City. Then, he followed that up with another home run in the second inning of the game.
The young slugger became the first Cardinals player to homer in back-to-back innings since Paul Goldschmidt accomplished that feat in 2022, MLB.com reported.
St. Louis is in second place this season in the National League Central. Following Sunday’s win, the team is now 41-34 on the campaign.
It’s been a surprisingly strong season for the Cardinals. Before the campaign started, St. Louis parted ways with veterans Sonny Gray, Brendan Donovan and Nolan Arenado. Most MLB insiders wrote this team off as a rebuilding club with no chance to make the postseason.
St. Louis is proving those doubters wrong. The Cardinals, guided by Wetherholt and a core of young players, are pushing the Milwaukee Brewers for first in the NL Central.
Wetherholt is on fire in recent days. He is batting at a .400 average over his last seven games. This season, the young infielder has 12 home runs and 34 RBIs.
The win on Sunday snapped a three-game losing streak for the Cardinals. St. Louis next starts a series against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Monday.
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