Brendan Donovan homers, hits RBI single as Cardinals beat Giants 6-1 in season finale

AP Baseball Writer

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Brendan Donovan hit a solo homer in the third and followed it up with an RBI single two innings later and Alec Burleson drove in three runs, leading the St. Louis Cardinals past the San Francisco Giants 6-1 on Sunday.

José Fermín hit an RBI single in the sixth as the Cardinals backed rookie righty Michael McGreevy (3-0), who stuck out six with no walks while allowing one run on five hits over eight impressive innings.

Manager Oliver Marmol considered giving the ninth to McGreevy, but he had reached 91 pitches.

“It feels a heck of a lot better just going into the offseason with more positivity,” Marmol said. “But the way we did it was fun. McGreevy was excellent, went out and gave us eight, mixed well.”

Giants rookie right-hander Hayden Birdsong (5-6) struck out 10 of the initial 15 Cardinals hitters and finished with 11 Ks in his 16th start for San Francisco — one off his career high. It marked Birdsong’s second career double-digit strikeout game after fanning 12 at Colorado on July 21.

He gave way to Taylor Rogers after back-to-back RBI singles by Donovan and Burleson in the fifth. Burleson also had a two-run single in the sixth.

San Francisco finished 80-82 — with one more win than last season’s 79 victories — in manager Bob Melvin’s first season and with a total home attendance of 2,647,736 over 80 home dates since the Giants hosted a doubleheader. The Giants won the NL West in 2021.

“Regardless of what our record was it was going to be disappointing based on what we felt like the team was all about to start the season,” Melvin said.

Brett Wisely’s seventh-inning RBI single got the Giants on the board.

San Francisco third baseman Matt Chapman exited to a warm ovation in the top of the third when replaced on defense by Casey Schmitt. Chapman, who earlier this month received a $151 million, six-year contract for 2025-30, started 153 games this year.

And right fielder Mike Yastrzemski exited to cheers when removed from his spot in the top of the sixth.

Both Chapman and pitcher Logan Webb spoke from the field afterward thanking the fans.

The Cardinals missed the playoffs for a second straight season after three consecutive wild-card defeats following an NL Championship Series berth in 2019. They finished 83-79, including 39-42 on the road while ending the season in San Francisco for the first time since 1960.

“I’ve learned a lot this year, as a person and as a baseball player,” Donovan said. “If you’re constantly learning in this game I think you can continue to get better.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Cardinals: 3B Nolan Arenado sat out a second straight day to end the year.

Giants: OF Mark Canha was placed on the 10-day injured list with a right thumb sprain after getting injured in the first inning of Saturday’s 6-5 win. … OF Heliot Ramos was held out of the lineup with a hamstring injury and plantar fasciitis.

ROSTER MOVES

The Giants recalled OF Luis Matos and RHP Trevor McDonald from Triple-A Sacramento and optioned RHP Landen Roupp to Sacramento.

McDonald, San Francisco’s 11th-round draft pick in 2019, made his major league debut at age 23 in the top of the seventh and pitched a 1-2-3 inning with three groundouts before staying in the next two frames.

UP NEXT

The Giants’ Cactus League opener is against former manager Bruce Bochy and the Texas Rangers on Feb. 22, 2025, in Surprise, Arizona.

St. Louis will face the Marlins on Feb. 22 in Jupiter, Florida.

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