Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Lifts homer in three-hit game
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Burleson went 3-for-5 with a two-run home run and two additional RBI in a 14-7 win over the Phillies in the second game of Wednesday's doubleheader.
Burleson sat for the first game, though he went 0-for-1 off the bench after avoiding left-handed starter Jesus Luzardo. The 26-year-old Burleson then made a big impact in the second game, which saw him deliver a go-ahead homer in the third inning and a two-run single in the fourth. Over 11 contests in May, he's gone 10-for-32 (.313) with three homers and nine RBI. Burleson struggled to tap into his power in April, but he's starting to come around now. He's batting .274 with a .705 OPS, three long balls, 15 RBI, 11 runs scored and three stolen bases over 125 plate appearances overall.
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Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Continues to heat up in win
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Burleson went 1-for-3 with a two-run double in Tuesday's 2-1 win over the Pirates.
After getting off to a very quiet start to the campaign, Burleson is starting to get back on track at the plate recently. The slugging first baseman is now riding a five-game hitting streak, during which he's batting .263 (5-for-19) with two home runs, one double and five RBI. The lefty-hitting Burleson should remain on the strong side of a platoon with Luken Baker going forward.
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Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Hits first homer of season
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Burleson went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in a 5-4 win over the Mets in the second game of Sunday's doubleheader.
Burleson opened the scoring with his blast off Tylor Megill in the second inning. Burleson sat for four straight games from April 25-28, but he's been a regular in the lineup versus right-handed pitchers since that stretch. He still needs to make some improvements with the bat -- he was limited to one hit in both games of Sunday's doubleheader and has gone seven contests without a multi-hit effort. He's at a .255/.305/.316 slash line, one homer, eight RBI, nine runs scored and two stolen bases over 105 plate appearances. There's more power in Burleson's bat, as he hit 21 homers over 152 games in 2024.
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Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Sitting out fourth straight game
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Burleson is absent from the lineup for Monday's game in Cincinnati.
It marks four games in a row that Burleson has been out of the lineup, with three of them coming against right-handed pitchers. The Cardinals are again going with Nolan Gorman at designated hitter and in the fifth spot in the batting order for Monday's series opener.
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Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Taking seat Friday
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Burleson is not in the lineup for Friday's contest against the Brewers.
The Cardinals plan to give Nolan Gorman -- who is at designated hitter Friday -- a run of playing time, and it could come mostly at the expense of Burleson. The 26-year-old Burleson is hitting .276 on the young season but has yet to homer.
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Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Sitting out against left-hander
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Burleson is not in the lineup for Friday's game against the Mets.
With lefty David Peterson on the bump for the Mets, Burleson will yield to Luken Baker in the designated hitter slot. Burleson has been absent from the lineup all six times the Cardinals have faced a southpaw this season.
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Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Not starting against lefty
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Burleson isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Phillies, John Denton of MLB.com reports.
Burleson is currently enjoying a five-game hitting streak, but the Cardinals will move him to the bench in preparation for a matchup against left-hander Cristopher Sanchez. Luken Baker steps in as St. Louis' designated hitter, batting second.
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Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Idle against lefty
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Burleson is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Angels.
Through the first six games of the season, the Cardinals have faced left-handed starting pitchers two times, and the lefty-hitting Burleson has checked out of the lineup on both occasions. The right-handed-hitting Luken Baker will replace Burleson as the Cardinals' designated hitter Wednesday while southpaw Yusei Kikuchi takes the hill for the Angels.
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Cardinals' Alec Burleson: In line to DH Opening Day
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Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said Monday that he plans to start Burleson at designated hitter and bat him fifth Opening Day against Twins right-hander Pablo Lopez, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
It's the spot Burleson is in for Monday's exhibition game versus Triple-A Memphis in what Marmol indicated is a preview of his Opening Day lineup. While Burleson is slated to serve as the primary DH against right-handed pitching, he will likely have to yield the spot to Nolan Gorman on occasion.
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Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Will split reps at first base/DH
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Burleson is in line to split playing time at first base and designated hitter with Willson Contreras, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
The downstream effect of Victor Scott winning the center field job will create a playing time crunch for Nolan Gorman, but it appears Burleson's at-bats, at least against right-handed pitching, are secure. Burleson slashed .292/.341/.464 versus right-handed pitching last season.
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Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Cranks third spring training homer
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Burleson popped a solo home run -- his third of the spring -- in Wednesday's Grapefruit League tilt versus the Nationals.
Drawing the start at first base, Burleson led off the bottom of the third inning with a long ball off of Jake Irvin. Although he's batting only .209 this spring, Burleson's three home runs trail only Luken Baker's four for the team lead. Burleson's playing time might be impacted if the Cardinals elect to go with Victor Scott or Michael Siani as their primary center fielder, as it would likely mean Nolan Gorman being used more at designated hitter. The left-handed hitting Burleson slashed .292/.341/.464 versus right-handed pitching last season but batted only .242/.306/.320 in the second half.
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Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Won't play outfield this spring
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Burleson is not expected to be used in the outfield this spring, Daniel Guerrero of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
Even with outfielder Jordan Walker (knee) slated to miss the next week of action with a knee issue, Burleson will stick to the designated-hitter spot and first base. The overwhelming majority of Burleson's starts at the major-league level to this point have come in the outfield, but he's slated to be the club's primary DH versus righties this season while also seeing some action at first base on days Willson Contreras serves as the DH.
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Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Getting rest against lefty
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Burleson isn't in the Cardinals' lineup for Saturday's game against the Guardians.
Burleson and his .509 OPS against left-handed pitchers will remain in the dugout to begin Saturday's contest while Cleveland sends Matthew Boyd to the hill. Luken Baker will serve as the Cards' designated hitter and bat second.
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Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Sitting versus lefty
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Burleson is not in the lineup for Wednesday's contest versus the Reds.
Southpaw Brandon Williamson is on the hill for the Reds, so the left-handed-hitting Burleson will begin the contest on the bench. Luken Baker will occupy the designated hitter slot for St. Louis.
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Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Records ninth steal
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Burleson went 1-for-4 with a walk, a stolen base and a run scored in Thursday's 4-1 win over the Padres.
Burleson is up to nine steals on 12 attempts this season. The speed is a relatively newfound part of his game -- prior to this year, he never had more than five steals across all levels in a full season. He's gone 7-for-18 (.389) during a five-game hitting streak, though he's also gone 11 games without a home run. Burleson is slashing .279/.317/.456 with 21 homers, 72 RBI, 62 runs scored and 18 doubles over 125 games this year. He's mostly been a strong-side platoon player in August, but he could reclaim a full-time role if another team claims Tommy Pham off waivers.
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Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Gets on base four times
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Burleson went 2-for-3 with two walks and a run scored in Thursday's 3-0 win over the Brewers.
Burleson has gone 14-for-46 (.304) over his last 12 contests, adding two home runs, two doubles, six RBI, one stolen base and seven runs scored in that span. He hasn't been known for patience at the plate lately -- he hadn't drawn a walk since Aug. 3 before getting two free passes Thursday. Despite a 4.6 percent walk rate this season, Burleson has been one of the Cardinals' top hitters with a .278/.313/.462 slash line, 21 home runs, 70 RBI, 59 runs scored and eight stolen bases over 461 plate appearances. That said, he's back to being a strong-side platoon player after earning an everyday role in mid-June. He has sat out against the last three southpaws the Cardinals have faced.
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Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Out against left-hander
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Burleson is not in the lineup for Friday's contest versus the Dodgers, John Denton of MLB.com reports.
The Dodgers are sending lefty Justin Wrobleski to the hill, so the left-handed hitting Burleson will begin this one on the bench. Tommy Pham and Jordan Walker are in the corner outfield spots for the Cardinals and Willson Contreras will be the designated hitter.
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Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Clubs 20th homer
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Burleson went 3-for-5 with a solo home run and an additional run scored in Friday's 8-5 win over the Royals.
Burleson reached the 20-homer mark for the first time in his career with his third-inning blast Friday. He's batting .242 with two homers, a double and four RBI over eight contests in August, though he remains in the No. 2 spot in the order. For the year, the slugger has a .278/.312/.466 slash line, 67 RBI, 54 runs scored, 15 doubles and seven stolen bases over 109 games.
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Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Knocks homer in win
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Burleson went 1-for-4 with a solo home run, a walk and an additional run scored in Saturday's 5-4 win over the Cubs.
Burleson had gone 10 games without a homer, batting just .150 (6-for-40) in that span. He put the power drought to rest with his first-inning blast, giving him 19 long balls on the year. The slugger has added a .278/.314/.468 slash line with 64 RBI, 51 runs scored, seven stolen bases and 14 doubles over 103 contests.
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Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Homers in Sunday's win
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Burleson went 2-for-5 with a solo home run and an additional RBI in Sunday's 6-2 win over Atlanta.
Burleson finished the three-game series in Atlanta having gone 6-for-14 (.429) with six RBI. He's posted four multi-hit efforts over his last six contests and has logged at least one RBI in each of those games. Overall, he's slashing .294/.324/.500 with 18 homers, 59 RBI, 43 runs scored and seven stolen bases through 353 plate appearances.
