St. Louis Cardinals at Athletics: Final Score & Recap

The Athletics defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 6-2 on May 13, 2026, at Sutter Health Park, turning what the DiamondIQ model opened as a near coin flip at 49 percent home win probability into a certainty by game's end. Oakland's offense was held scoreless through the first four innings, but a four-run fifth inning broke the game open decisively, with the model's estimate climbing sharply on the strength of that frame. St. Louis finished the night with 13 hits but left too many stranded, converting little of that contact into runs against an Athletics pitching staff that held firm when it mattered most.

The single biggest swing of the game came in the bottom of the fifth, when first baseman Nick Kurtz connected on a home run off Matthew Liberatore, a play that added 30.1 percent to Oakland's win probability and effectively served as the turning point. Liberatore had already survived a damaging moment in the third when Shea Langeliers grounded into a double play, a swing of negative 14.4 percent for the Cardinals that erased a potential threat. Langeliers then contributed positively in the fifth with a walk that added 10.7 percent to Oakland's chances before Kurtz delivered the decisive blow. On the St. Louis side, Nathan Church's single in the top of the fourth added 13.4 percent to the Cardinals' win probability, but Victor Scott II's strikeout moments later, costing 11.7 percent, snuffed out the rally.

Kurtz led all position players with a WPA of plus-30.7 percent and an RE24 of plus-3.0, making him the clear offensive catalyst for Oakland. Nathan Church paced St. Louis with plus-13.3 percent WPA and plus-1.3 RE24, while Darell Hernaiz added plus-8.1 percent WPA for the Athletics. On the mound, J.T. Ginn was Oakland's standout, posting plus-14.9 percent WPA in his work against a Cardinals lineup that managed 13 hits but could not string together consistent damage.