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Cardinals ride late rally to win over Diamondbacks

Jul 5, 2007 - 5:00 AM ST. LOUIS (Ticker) -- The St. Louis Cardinals did not want to wait until after the game to stage a fireworks display.

Chris Duncan and rookie Brendan Ryan each homered to stage a late four-run rally as the Cardinals downed the Arizona Diamondbacks, 5-4, on Wednesday.

Duncan led off the seventh with a solo shot for St. Louis, which struggled through six innings against Arizona starter Livan Hernandez - tallying just one extra-base hit - but were finally able to solve the righthander in the seventh.

"The first six innings we had chances and did a good job of creating opportunities," Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said. "We just couldn't break through. We never gave up and that was very impressive."

"I was just kind of looking out over the plate," Duncan said. "I was just trying to drive something the other way. He (Hernandez) has a lot of good stuff. You just have to be real patient and stay back."

After Duncan's blast pulled the Cardinals within 4-2, Ryan hit a solo homer two batters later that hit the top of the fence in left and bounced over, trimming the deficit to 4-3.

"I don't know where these homers are coming from," said Ryan of his second career home run. "Most importantly, we came back and won a big game tonight."

"I wasn't tired," Hernandez said. "I felt really good. The only pitches that were hanging too much were the sliders. It was a couple of pitches outside. They hit them out out. It happens sometimes."

Diamondbacks reliever Brandon Lyon (5-3) relieved Hernandez in the eighth and promptly surrendered the first of three consecutive hits, a single by Albert Pujols. Juan Encarnacion followed with two-run double to right center to tie the game at 4-4.

"(It was) a cutter," Lyon said. "I just left it over the plate. (Encarnacion) did a good job of going with the pitch and going the other way."

Scott Rolen capped the comeback with a liner to right field that skidded off the glove of right fielder Eric Byrnes and went several feet past him, allowing Encarnacion to cross the plate for the go-ahead run.

"I just didn't make the play," Byrnes said. "I should have made it. It was my fault, no excuses. It's really not that difficult of a play. It's a play I expect to make and I didn't. It cost us the game and it's my fault."

"I just didn't make quality pitches today," Lyon said. "I left some over the plate. They found some gaps. When you're finding gaps, you can run the bases pretty good. I didn't get the job done."

Ryan Franklin (3-0) surrendered two hits in the eighth to get the decision before giving way to closer Jason Isringhausen, who worked around a leadoff ground-rule double to Stephen Drew to notch his 16th save in 18 chances.

"The thing about Izzy is he got some outs with his curveball," La Russa said. "He also got some big strikes with his cutter. He has a nice sinker to the other side of the plate. He has a lot of weapons."

With the victory, St. Louis won its eighth straight Independence Day contest, with its last setback coming in 1999 against the Diamondbacks.

Hernandez and rookie Miguel Montero hit two-run home runs for the Diamondbacks, who have dropped four of their last five contests. Arizona lost for just the third time in 41 games in which it led after seven innings.

"We just didn't execute," Diamondbacks manager Bob Melvin said. "We had a lead late in the game, we don't end up executing. If we end up executing, we have a much better chance of winning the game. That's what it came down to."