Fastball

Nolan Arenado Moves Up St. Louis Cardinals, MLB Leaderboards With Walk-Off Grand Slam

St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado delivered a walk-off grand slam in the 10th inning against the Milwaukee Brewers on Wednesday, becoming the seventh player in franchise history to achieve the feat.
Sam Connon|
Aug 21, 2024; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado (28) is doused with water by shortstop Masyn Winn (0) and center fielder Lars Nootbaar (21) after hitting a walk-off grand slam against the Milwaukee Brewers during the tenth inning at Busch Stadium.
Aug 21, 2024; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado (28) is doused with water by shortstop Masyn Winn (0) and center fielder Lars Nootbaar (21) after hitting a walk-off grand slam against the Milwaukee Brewers during the tenth inning at Busch Stadium. | Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports

In this story:

St. Louis CardinalsMilwaukee Brewers

Nolan Arenado, in the midst of one of his least productive seasons as a pro, came through in a major way on Wednesday.

The St. Louis Cardinals third baseman had already drawn a walk, hit a double, scored a run and notched a single by the time he stepped up to the plate with the game tied in the bottom of the 10th inning. While Arenado struck out with two men on in the bottom of the ninth, St. Louis still managed to plate two runs and force extras against the Milwaukee Brewers, giving Arenado a shot at redemption one frame later.

This time, the bases were loaded for Arenado. After going down 0-2, Arenado took ball one, then saw a pitch he liked and capitalized on it.

Arenado jumped on the 85 mile-per-hour knuckle curve down the middle, curling it around the left field foul pole for a walk-off grand slam.

According to TSN's StatsCentre, it marked the seventh extra-inning, walk-off grand slam in Cardinals franchise history. Paul Goldschmidt hit one in 2023 and Matt Carpenter hit one in 2017, but before them, it hadn't been accomplished since Tom Herr in 1987.

Arenado is now batting .272 with 14 home runs, 59 RBI, a .732 OPS and a 2.2 WAR so far this season.

The 33-year-old was not named an All-Star earlier this summer, snapping his streak of eight consecutive appearances in the Midsummer Classic. Arenado also failed to win a Gold Glove in 2023, marking an end to his 10-year streak of securing the honor.

Even with his numbers falling off heading into his mid-30s, Arenado still boasts quite the lifetime resume.

Arenado is a .285 hitter with an .861 OPS for his career. He has racked up 1,792 hits, 339 home runs, 1,120 RBI and a 56.4 WAR since making his MLB debut with the Colorado Rockies in 2013.

Thanks to his clutch grand slam on Wednesday, Arenado now has 35 games with four-plus RBI. Per StatsCentre, that is tied with Vinny Castilla for the seventh-most four-RBI efforts by a third baseman in National League history.

Of the six players above Arenado on that list, four are Hall of Famers. Matt Williams and Aramis Ramirez – the all-time leader – are the only ones who are not in Cooperstown.

Arenado and the Cardinals, who are still clinging onto an outside shot at an NL Wild Card bid, are set to close out their series with the Brewers at 2:15 p.m. ET on Thursday.

Follow Fastball On SI on social media

Continue to follow our Fastball On SI coverage on social media by liking us on Facebook and by following us on Twitter @FastballFN.

You can also follow Sam Connon on Twitter @SamConnon.

Published
Sam Connon
SAM CONNON

Sam Connon is a staff writer covering baseball for “Fastball on SI.’’ He previously covered UCLA Athletics for On SI’s All Bruins site, and is a UCLA graduate, with his work there as a sports columnist receiving awards from the College Media Association and Society of Professional Journalists. Connon also wrote for On SI’s New England Patriots site, Patriots Country, and he was on the Patriots and Boston Red Sox beats at Prime Time Sports Talk. Sam lives in Boston.

Share on XFollow SamConnon
Home/History