The St. Louis Cardinals delivered a powerful offensive performance to defeat the San Diego Padres 9-7 on July 24, 2025, at Busch Stadium. The victory marked manager Oliver Marmol’s 300th career win and kicked off the four-game series with a statement, as St. Louis improved its home record to 30-20 and moved closer to the .500 mark overall.
The Cardinals’ bats came alive early, with Willson Contreras opening the scoring in the first inning with an RBI double. The highlight came in the bottom of the second, when Contreras and Brendan Donovan each launched three-run home runs in a six-run frame—a feat not seen by St. Louis since 2003. Iván Herrera also contributed with three hits, including a solo home run, and two RBIs. Victor Scott II provided a spark from the bottom of the lineup, drawing two walks and scoring twice.
Padres starter Yu Darvish struggled against the Cardinals’ offense, surrendering eight earned runs—his highest total in ten career starts versus St. Louis. Despite Darvish’s recent dominance over the Cardinals, he was unable to make it past the fifth inning in this matchup, dropping his ERA to 3.18 for the season and moving into 84th place on the all-time strikeouts list.
For the Padres, Fernando Tatis Jr. recorded a leadoff single and scored twice, while Luis Arraez and Jackson Merrill each contributed RBIs to keep San Diego within striking distance. Manny Machado added a home run and an RBI, but the Padres ultimately fell short despite a late surge.
On the mound for the Cardinals, Sonny Gray fought through five innings to secure his team-leading 10th win of the season. The St. Louis bullpen held off the Padres’ attempts to rally, sealing the victory in front of the home crowd.
From a betting perspective, the Cardinals entered the contest as 1.5-run favorites at +138 odds, with the moneyline at -158. The Padres were underdogs at +133. The total was set at 8 runs, and with a combined 16 runs scored, the over comfortably hit for bettors.
Looking ahead, the Cardinals will aim to carry their offensive momentum through the remainder of the series, while the Padres seek to rebound and improve their road record. With both teams in the playoff hunt, every game in this series could prove crucial down the stretch.