Walker Blasts Another Home Run But Cardinals Culled By Boston Bats

Jordan Walker's seventh homer not enough as St. Louis falls to Red Sox 9-3

Apr. 13, 2026 at 6:41pm

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A cubist, geometric painting depicting the action of a baseball game, with the batter and pitcher as the central focus, surrounded by abstracted shapes and planes of color representing the players, field, and crowd.Jordan Walker's home run heroics are not enough as the Cardinals' offense sputters against the Red Sox pitching.Boston Today

Jordan Walker hit his MLB-leading seventh home run of the season, but the St. Louis Cardinals fell to the Boston Red Sox 9-3 on Sunday. Former Cardinal Willson Contreras hit a two-run homer for Boston, and they added runs in the second, fourth, and ninth innings to hand the Cardinals their seventh loss of the season.

Why it matters

The loss drops the Cardinals to 8-7 on the season, as they continue to struggle to find consistency at the plate and on the mound. Walker's hot start has been a bright spot, but the team needs more production from the rest of the lineup to compete in the NL Central.

The details

Walker's home run in the bottom of the second put the Cardinals on the board, making him the fourth player in franchise history to hit at least seven home runs in the first 15 games of the season. However, the Red Sox jumped out to an early lead with Contreras' two-run shot in the first and added runs in the second, fourth, and ninth innings to pull away. Contreras went four-for-five, accounting for a third of Boston's hits. Cardinals starter Andre Pallante lasted five innings, allowing seven runs on ten hits and one walk.

  • The game was played on Sunday, April 12, 2026.
  • Walker's home run came in the bottom of the second inning.
  • Contreras' two-run homer came in the top of the first inning.

The players

Jordan Walker

A young Cardinals slugger who is off to a hot start this season, leading the MLB with seven home runs through the first 15 games.

Willson Contreras

A former Cardinals catcher who is now playing for the Boston Red Sox, hitting a two-run homer in the first inning against his former team.

Andre Pallante

The Cardinals starting pitcher, who lasted five innings and allowed seven runs on ten hits in the loss.

Brayan Bello

The Red Sox starting pitcher, who earned his first win of the season by allowing two runs over nearly seven innings of work.

Nolan Gorman

The Cardinals infielder who hit a sacrifice fly in the sixth inning to drive in one of the team's three runs.

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What they’re saying

“We just couldn't get anything going against their pitching today. Hats off to Bello, he kept us off balance all game.”

— Nolan Arenado, Cardinals Third Baseman

What’s next

The Cardinals will look to bounce back when they welcome the Cleveland Guardians for a three-game series starting on Monday, April 13. Matthew Liberatore is scheduled to start for St. Louis, while Gavin Williams will take the mound for Cleveland.

The takeaway

Despite Jordan Walker's continued power surge, the Cardinals offense struggled to produce against the Red Sox pitching staff. The loss drops St. Louis to 8-7 on the season, and they'll need to find more consistency at the plate if they want to keep pace in the competitive NL Central race.