Hermida makes history, but Cardinals hang on for win

MIAMI -- Florida's Jeremy Hermida became the second player to hit a grand slam in his first major-league at-bat and the first to do it as a pinch-hitter, connecting in the seventh inning off the St. Louis Cardinals' Al Reyes in the Marlins' 10-5 loss Wednesday night.

Only a few thousand people in the announced crowd of 20,656 remained to see the feat by Hermida, the Marlins' top pick in the 2002 amateur draft and the 11th pick overall.

Most of the night's other offensive fireworks came from the Cardinals.

Albert Pujols had a season-high three extra-base hits, scored twice and reached the 100-RBI mark for the fifth consecutive season. Hector Luna also had three extra-base hits.

The loss put the Marlins (70-63) one game behind Philadelphia -- a 8-2 winner over the Mets -- in the National League wild-card race.

David Eckstein stayed hot with three hits, including his seventh home run. Luna and Eckstein each finished with three RBIs.

Jeff Suppan (13-10) threw five scoreless innings, leaving after a 35-minute rain delay in the bottom of the fifth.

Luna, who managed only five extra-base hits in his first 41 games of the season, also scored three times for the NL Central leaders, who took two of three in the series.

Juan Pierre had two hits for Florida, which hadn't had a player other than Miguel Cabrera or Carlos Delgado homer since Aug. 5 -- until Hermida etched his name into baseball history.

The only other player with a grand slam in first major league at-bat was pitcher William "Frosty Bill" Duggleby, who did it for Philadelphia at home against the New York Giants in the second inning on April 21, 1898, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

Hermida, an outfielder whose contract was purchased from Class AA Carolina earlier in the day, was just the third player to hit a slam in his first game, joining Duggleby and San Francisco's Bobby Bonds. Hermida batted for pitcher Brian Moehler with Florida trailing 10-0 and connected on the third pitch he saw in the big leagues.

Pujols doubled off left fielder Cabrera's glove and scored in the third, when the Cardinals built a 2-0 lead. He drove in his 100th run of the year on a triple -- his second of the season and only the 11th in his career -- in the Cardinals' four-run fifth against Jason Vargas (5-2).

Pujols doubled again in the sixth.

Suppan allowed three hits, threw 61 of his 91 pitches for strikes and avoid what would have been a season-long three-game losing streak. Then again, the Cardinals simply haven't endured any long slides this season: They're now 41-8 after a loss.

Yadier Molina drove in two runs and So Taguchi had two hits for St. Louis, which dealt Vargas the toughest outing of his brief major-league career. He lasted five innings, gave up career-highs in runs (seven) and hits (10), and saw his ERA rise from 3.16 to 4.15.

The only other player with a grand slam in first major league at-bat was pitcher William "Frosty Bill" Duggleby, who did it for Philadelphia at home against the New York Giants in the second inning on April 21, 1898, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

Hermida, an outfielder whose contract was purchased from Class AA Carolina earlier in the day, was just the third player to hit a slam in his first game, joining Duggleby and San Francisco's Bobby Bonds. Hermida batted for pitcher Brian Moehler with Florida trailing 10-0 and connected on the third pitch he saw in the big leagues.

"I pretty much already made up my mind I was going to swing at the first pitch up there, just to get the jitters out," Hermida said. "After that, I was like, 'All right, sit back and trust yourself.' And he just happened to leave one over the middle a little bit."

The 21-year-old Hermida moved briskly around the bases after the homer, yet after returning to the dugout and slapping hands with several delighted teammates, he did not acknowledge long, loud cheers from the sparse crowd that remained -- missing the chance for his first career curtain call.

"Honestly, I didn't even see it. I don't even think I looked at it. I was just running," said Hermida, who received the ball after the game. The Marlins' bullpen traded two signed baseballs in a deal with the fan who caught the homer.

"As soon as I hit it, I had a pretty good idea it was going out," Hermida said. "It didn't really hit me until I crossed home plate."

Bonds, the father of seven-time MVP Barry Bonds, made his major league debut for San Francisco on June 25, 1968, and homered against Los Angeles, Elias said. Bonds grounded out in the third inning at Candlestick Park, was hit by a Claude Osteen pitch in the fifth, then homered off reliever John Purdin.

Only a few thousand people in the announced crowd of 20,656 remained to Hermida's hit. The Marlins' top pick in the 2002 amateur draft and the 11th pick overall, he remained in the game as Florida's left fielder to start the eighth inning.

Yet most of the night's other offensive fireworks came from the Cardinals. Albert Pujols had a season-high three extra-base hits, scored twice and reached the 100-RBI mark for the fifth consecutive season, and Hector Luna also had three extra-base hits.

The loss put the Marlins (70-63) one game behind Philadelphia -- a 8-2 winner in New York over the Mets -- in the wild-card race. Florida starts a stretch on Friday where 25 of its final 29 games will be against NL East foes; the remaining four games are at Houston, another wild-card hopeful, from Sept. 12-15.

David Eckstein stayed hot with three hits, including his seventh home run. Luna and Eckstein each finished with three RBIs. Jeff Suppan (13-10) threw five scoreless innings, leaving after a 35-minute rain delay in the bottom of the fifth.

Luna, who managed only five extra-base hits in his first 41 games of the season, also scored three times for the NL Central leaders, who took two of three in the series.

Juan Pierre had two hits for Florida, which hadn't had a player other than Miguel Cabrera or Carlos Delgado homer since Aug. 5 -- until Hermida etched his name into baseball history.

Pujols doubled off left fielder Cabrera's glove and scored in the third, then drove in his 100th run of the year on a triple -- his second of the season and only the 11th in his career -- in the Cardinals' four-run fifth against Jason Vargas (5-2). Pujols doubled again in the sixth.

Suppan allowed three hits, threw 61 of his 91 pitches for strikes and avoid what would have been a season-long three-game losing streak. Then again, the Cardinals simply haven't endured any long slides this season: They're now 41-8 after a loss.

Yadier Molina drove in two runs and So Taguchi had two hits for St. Louis, which dealt Vargas the toughest outing of his brief major-league career. He lasted five innings, gave up career-highs in runs (seven) and hits (10), and saw his ERA rise from 3.16 to 4.15.

Notes: The attendance didn't include 687 dogs in the latest edition of "Bark at the Park" night at Dolphins Stadium. ... The loss kept Marlins manager Jack McKeon two wins shy of 1,000 for his career. He's now 998-924. ... Rain appeared to stop five minutes after a delay was called in the fifth; the grounds crew began removing the tarp 16 minutes after applying it. ... The Cardinals -- who are now 44-24 away from home, and the only NL team with a winning road mark -- are 7-3 so far on their season-long 13-game road trip. ... The two homers were the first allowed by Vargas this season.