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Cardinals let late lead slip, fall to Angels on walk-off hit-by-pitch
St. Louis carried a 2–1 lead into the ninth before Los Angeles pushed across the winner on a walk-off hit-by-pitch, capping a night that started well behind a sturdy Kyle Leahy outing and early offense from the heart of the order [1][2].Leahy gave the club exactly what it needed on the road: six innings, three hits, no walks and four strikeouts, with the lone blemish a solo homer to Jo Adell that trimmed the advantage to one [1]. The Cards built that edge on a Jordan Walker double and a run-scoring knock from Lars Nootbaar, putting Anaheim on the back foot for most of the night [1][2].The ninth swung on a razor’s edge. After St. Louis couldn’t add insurance despite a two-out walk and stolen base from Walker in the top half, the Angels rallied late. Reliever Riley O’Brien punched out Mike Trout to open the frame, but traffic followed, and the game ended when a bases-loaded pitch clipped Adell to force in the decisive run [1][2].The setback underscores a recurring theme for the Birds: slim margins late and the importance of tacking on in the final frames as the season grind continues [3].