In a stunning display of early aggression, the St. Louis Cardinals stormed through Pittsburgh, completing a four-game sweep with a decisive 10-5 victory on Thursday. The series finale was marked by a rare stumble from Pirates ace Paul Skenes, who struggled from the very first pitch.

JJ Wetherholt, a Pittsburgh-area native, set the tone immediately by launching a leadoff home run off Skenes' cutter, sending it into the right-field seats just three pitches into the game. That early jolt set the stage for a Cardinals offense that refused to let up, matching Skenes' entire April run total in the first inning alone. Jordan Walker followed with a sweeper that barely cleared the left-field wall, marking only the second time in Skenes' 62 career starts that he surrendered multiple homers in a single inning.

Skenes (4-2), the reigning NL Cy Young Award winner, finished his brilliant April with a dud, allowing five runs (four earned) over five innings. His record against the Cardinals now sits at 0-5, a surprising blemish for a pitcher who had allowed just three runs over his previous five starts. Pittsburgh's losing streak extended to five games, threatening to derail their promising start to the season.

Alec Burleson led the Cardinals' offensive charge with three hits and three RBIs, while Wetherholt, Walker, Nolan Gorman, and Pedro Pages each contributed two hits. Nathan Church added a crucial two-run double during a five-run eighth inning, giving St. Louis breathing room after the Pirates had cut a four-run deficit to one. Gordon Graceffo (2-0) earned the win in relief, stepping in for starter Hunter Dobbins, who didn't make it out of the fifth inning in his first start since returning from a knee injury sustained last summer.

For the Pirates, Bryan Reynolds drove in three runs with two hits, and Brandon Lowe hit his eighth home run of the season. But sloppy defense behind Skenes proved costly, as Pittsburgh heads into May with their early momentum slipping away. The Cardinals now return home to host the Los Angeles Dodgers over the weekend, while the Pirates welcome NL Central rival Cincinnati for a three-game series starting Friday.