Winn, Burleson proving to be dynamic duo atop Cards' lineup

ST. LOUIS -- In steadily blossoming rookie Masyn Winn and emerging slugger Alec Burleson, the Cardinals have found a potent one-two punch at the top of their lineup that could be in place for years to come.

When the season began on March 28, with the Cardinals opening in Los Angeles, Burleson was thrust into the starting lineup only because of various injuries to other outfielders. Meanwhile, Winn was slotted in at the bottom of the lineup, with the Cardinals merely hoping he could hit enough to justify his promotion to the big league level following a rocky cameo at the end of 2023. Neither Burleson nor Winn had a hit in that opening loss to the Dodgers.

Fast forward to Saturday night, some four-and-a-half months after the two hitters were mired at the bottom of the order. Now, Winn is the Cardinals’ confident leadoff man, and Burleson is their most productive hitter from the No. 2 spot. Playing off each other’s fight during at-bats, Burleson had three hits, including a two-run, line-drive home run, and Winn homered for a second straight night for the first time in his career as the Cardinals toppled the Dodgers, 5-2, at Busch Stadium.

No, this wasn’t the plan from the start, but it certainly is now that Winn and Burleson have proven just how valuable they can be to the offense with their abilities to frustrate opposing pitchers.

“It’s not how we broke Spring [Training] with what it was going to look like, but they’ve both stepped into those roles and have done a really nice job of setting the table,” said manager Oliver Marmol, whose Cardinals broke a five-game losing streak. “A big part of it is about starting the game with two very difficult at-bats with two guys who have high bat-to-ball skills, and they aren’t going to punch out and they’re going to grind out every pitch. Both have done a nice job of driving the baseball. They’ve both emerged and really owned those [top] two spots.”

With Cardinals cornerstones Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt struggling most of the season, Burleson has been the team’s most consistent and productive hitter. As he’s shown the ability to drive the ball more into the gaps and over the wall, he’s worked his way up in the order to the spot usually reserved for a team’s top hitter.

On Saturday, he showed once again why he’s earned that distinction by tomahawking a 2-0 fastball from L.A. starter Bobby Miller into the seats in right for a two-run homer that gave the Cards a 3-1 lead. For Burleson, the smash that left his bat at 102.8 mph, per Statcast, was his career-best 21st home run of his breakout MLB season.

“This is kind of the guy I expected to be,” said Burleson, who is hitting .278 with a team-best 70 RBIs. “Obviously, we’ve got a long way to go, [and] there are some things I wish I could have done better this year. But I’m grateful for the season I’m having so far.”

Winn, who is using MLB Players’ Weekend to honor his family and friends back in Houston, hit a 410-foot shot in the fifth inning after Shohei Ohtani's 38th homer got the Dodgers back to within one run of the lead. Burleson delighted in seeing Winn go deep a second night in a row.

“With the way Masyn competes and fights in the box, I feed off that,” Burleson said. “I got too excited trying to go back to back with him after he hit the homer. But me and him have done a pretty good job at the top of the order, and we want to continue that.”

The power surge by Burleson and Winn helped make a winner out of Andre Pallante, who limited the Dodgers’ lineup to four hits and two earned runs -- one on Ohtani's 111.9 mph homer -- over seven innings. The victory was extra special considering that Pallante grew up south of Los Angeles in San Clemente, Calif., and played college baseball at UC Irvine.

“I had [a friend] from home tell me no matter what, it would be a win for him tonight -- either the Dodgers were going to win, or I would pitch well,” joked Pallante, who was proudest of his strikeout of Dodgers superstar Mookie Betts in the fifth. “That’s a good [Dodgers] lineup and it’s a little nerve-racking, but I was excited. I was talking to [a friend] today and they told me, ‘This is what you work so hard for!’ … That’s how I wanted to look at tonight. I’ve worked hard to get this opportunity, so I was happy to perform.”