Efforts of this pitcher helped Cardinals split series with Cubs in London, England

LONDON – Approximately seven miles northeast of London Stadium is the town of Woodford, a village that appeared in record-keeping as early as the 1086 Domesday Book, assembled at the behest of William the Conqueror.

The Cardinals, similarly, have a guy named Jake. And after years of waiting and meticulous planning, it was largely through his efforts that St. Louis’ hometown baseball team came across the Atlantic Ocean and narrowly avoided the worst weekend in the British capital for a group of Cardinals since Oliver Cromwell came to town.

After falling 9-1 in the first game of the series, the Cardinals trailed 4-0 before coming to bat Sunday. That would be the furthest they fell behind, coming back to take game two 7-5.

Saturday night felt like it could be a low. Adam Wainwright, a franchise legend in all ways a pitcher could be, was shelled to the tune of seven runs and 11 hits while recording nine outs. He called the start one of the worst of his career and took full blame for missing out on an opportunity to build a new fan base in one of the world’s grandest cities.

“I’m pretty sad about it, honestly,” he admitted. “I pitched terrible and I put our team in a bad spot, and we lost the game because of me.”

With first pitch coming Sunday just after 9 AM local time in St. Louis, the Cardinals were nearly buried alive before many of their fans even had a chance to get out of bed. Matt Liberatore was shifted into Sunday’s start after Jack Flaherty was unable to pitch through hip tightness, and with about a day’s notice, his defense rewarded his willingness to step up by committing two errors and allowing four unearned runs in the top of the first.

Paul DeJong muffed a grounder off the bat of leadoff hitter Nico Hoerner, and then Nolan Gorman was unable to reel in a throw down to second as Hoerner attempted to steal the bag. As he stopped and stared at the ball rolling lazily away on the dirt, Hoerner scampered off to third.

A chopper past Nolan Arenado at third by designated hitter Miguel Amaya was originally ruled an error and later changed to a double, sparing the Cardinals the ignominy of being the first team in the majors this year to commit three official miscues in the first inning.

Liberatore and Wainwright combined for just 5 ⅓ innings covered in the two games. A borderline total for one game became the Cardinals’ to carry for two, and the ball rolled down the bullpen hill from there, stopping on the doorstep of the village namesake.

“We know going into it we had enough in our pen to get through that game,” manager Oliver Marmol said. “If at all it got sideways early, it was gonna be a quick hook.”

Woodford (Jake, not Village of) pitched in both games of the series, allowing only one hit and one walk (both Sunday) in a combined four innings, coming just shy of the total handled by the two starters. Originally at risk of missing the trip, Ryan Helsley’s forearm tightness sent him to the injured list and Woodford back to the majors.

“MVP of the whole series,” Jordan Hicks said of Woodford, slotting into Helsley’s spot at closer and recording his first four saves since 2019 on this road trip. “He really locked it down, saved us there in the bullpen in the last game. And today, coming out with a couple good innings, sacrificed his arm for us. I called him MVP after the game. If he played every series in London, he might be the Cy Young or something.”

As he has since his debut in 2020, without much fanfare or seemingly much enthusiasm from those in a position of authority with the Cardinals, Woodford simply posted results, and in doing so did his part in helping his club mind the standings gap and keep hope alive.

He did not, however, know that the village exists.

“Even when we’re behind, our offense is so potent that you’re doing everything you can to keep us close, because it only takes one inning with our offense,” Woodford said. “I thought the whole bullpen did a great job today. We just kind of went out there, do your job, and just hand it off to the next guy and trust that we’re gonna get it done.”

In front of a combined crowd of more than 111,000 spread over the two days, the Cardinals wrapped up what was ultimately a 5-3 road trip after winning their series in New York and Washington. When they return home Tuesday to face the Houston Astros, they’ll still find themselves in last place, but they’ll be clinging to the possibility of momentum.

“We can’t think a week ahead,” president of baseball operations John Mozeliak said during Friday’s workout. “We have to think strictly about tomorrow and let that be something we try to build around.”

On the stage of London’s Globe Theatre more than 400 years ago, an actor playing Macbeth would for the first time have recited one of Shakespeare’s most famous soliloquies – “tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow creeps in this petty pace from day to day.”

That is true of life, but not necessarily baseball. This world moves without regard for preferred pace, and it’s to the actors on the field to find a slower gear when necessary.

All the world’s a stage, and a litany of fans were given the opportunity to see these particular players in abnormal and memorable scenery. The next act of this season comes quickly; it may yet be drama, tragedy, or farce.