The offense that had gone with might on Friday and a mix on Saturday had trouble stirring anything consistent by Sunday.
Quieted early by Pittsburgh starter Mitch Keller and caught in a gust of strikeouts late, the Cardinals lost, 5-1, to the Pirates in the series finale at Busch Stadium. The Cardinals won the series by taking the opener with three homers and Saturday's game with a late gush of runs, but on Sunday they had to steal a run with speed and then couldn't connect with other opportunities.
Six of the final 10 Cardinals who came to the plate struck out, including all three in the ninth inning against reliever Nick Burdi.