St. Louis Cardinals at Los Angeles Dodgers: Final Score & Recap
Line Score
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| STL | 0 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 13 | 13 | 1 |
| LAD | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 9 | 1 |
The Story
The St. Louis Cardinals erased a sizable home-field advantage and pulled away for a 13-8 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers at UNIQLO Field at Dodger Stadium on September 1, 2026. The DiamondIQ model's estimate had Los Angeles entering with a 64 percent win probability, but that figure collapsed to zero by the final out as the Cardinals piled up 13 runs on 13 hits and took command early. St. Louis struck for two runs in the second, erupted for five more in the third, and added two in the fourth to build a lead the Dodgers could never fully close, despite a three-run ninth that proved cosmetic.
The game turned on a sequence of high-leverage moments in the middle innings. In the bottom of the second, Kyle Tucker's lineout off Michael McGreevy represented the single most damaging swing in win probability, costing Los Angeles 9.2 percent on a play that stranded a potential threat and kept the Cardinals' momentum intact. Mookie Betts answered in the bottom of the third with a double off McGreevy that added 8.5 percent to the Dodgers' win probability and briefly made it a game, but Jordan Walker responded emphatically in the top of the fourth with a home run off Seth Halvorsen that swung the needle 8.1 percent back toward St. Louis. Iván Herrera's single off Eric Lauer in the top of the third, worth 7.8 percent, and Nathan Church's groundout in the second, adding 6.7 percent from a run-producing context, were also pivotal contributions in the Cardinals' decisive early surge.
Walker finished as the top Cardinals batter by WPA at plus-9.9 percent with an RE24 of plus-1.8, while Thomas Saggese posted the game's highest RE24 at plus-2.7 to go with a plus-9.4 percent WPA mark. Church added plus-8.7 percent WPA on the night. On the mound, McGreevy was the standout, contributing plus-9.4 percent WPA despite allowing Betts's double, as his ability to limit further damage in the third and secure the out from Tucker proved decisive. Luis Gastelum added plus-1.2 percent WPA in relief, and Kyle Hurt contributed plus-0.2 percent as the Cardinals bullpen collectively preserved the outcome.