Cardinals beat Brewers, 6-3; Nelson takes liner off head

MILWAUKEE Along the way to a series sweep of Milwaukee and an enriching night for starter John Lackey, the Cardinals, like everyone else gathered Thursday at Miller Park for a ballgame, stood or winced in silence, unsure what they had just seen.

In the third inning of a game that was not yet the 6-3 victory the game became, rookie Tommy Pham drilled a pitch from Brewers starter Jimmy Nelson right back at the young pitcher.

The line drive drilled Nelson in the head.

The carom went far enough on the fly that Pham, hesitant to run at all, was able to reach second for what would be an RBI double. At second, he removed his batting helmet, squatted and put his head in his hands. Nelson was still face down on the mound as he did. It was a few moments before Nelson would roll into a seated position. A few more minutes and he left the field on his own power, collected enough to whip a towel in frustration as he reached the dugout.

Nelson was taken to a local hospital for a scan of his head and brain, and a Brewers official said that the pitcher remained “lucid.” Another update was not available at press time.

The shock of seeing a pitcher crumple as Nelson muted the rest of the game. Matt Carpenter would add a home run in the sixth inning for his third hit in four at-bats, and the leadoff hitter scored three of the Cardinals’ first six runs. Pham would strike out in each of his next two at-bats after launching the 104-mph liner that collided with Nelson. He finished the game with a single in the ninth for his second consecutive three-hit evening.

The series sweep in Milwaukee came at the same time the Cubs took three of four games from the Pittsburgh Pirates. That allowed the Cardinals to reclaim a five-game lead in the National League Central just three days after it had shrunk to its smallest in months. The surging third-place Cubs host the Cardinals this weekend for three days at Wrigley Field, looking not just to chomp into the Cardinals’ lead in the division but also leapfrog Pittsburgh in the chase for the National League wild card.

The Cardinals have won four consecutive.

The series sweep was their first since Arizona in late August but only their third since the All-Star break.

Lackey (11-9) halted a micro-skid for him with seven shutout innings and he surpassed a personal and financial milestone. Due to an unusual clause in his contract with the Boston Red Sox one that protected his former team against a season Lackey lost to elbow surgery Lackey has played this season on the major league minimum, of close to $507,000. The veteran agreed that he would honor the contract before the Cardinals made the trade for him last July, though he and the Cardinals were both upfront about a wish to rework the deal.

In late March, the Cardinals did, attaching a series of bonuses that would be worth nearly quadruple what his base salary was. With seven innings Thursday night, Lackey reached 200 innings and triggered another $400,000 bonus. He has reached $2 million in bonuses.

The right-hander completed his 25th quality start in 30 games on Wednesday. Two double plays helped him face the minimum through two innings, and by the time he left with the six-run lead he had limited the Brewers to five hits. Lackey struck out eight, including all three Brewers in the fifth inning. He needed just 88 pitches to get 21 outs.

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