Jun. 6—ARLINGTON, Texas — The Cardinals’ bats produced as many runs on Tuesday night as they had in their previous two games combined, and they hit three home runs in a game for the 13th time this season. None of it was enough to overcome the prodigious offensive attack of the Texas Rangers.

The Cardinals scored the first two runs and last two runs of the game, but still came out on the wrong end of a 6-4 loss to the Rangers in the second game of the three-game set at Globe Life Field on Tuesday night. The Rangers clinched the series with the win.

The Cardinals (25-37) have now lost five games in a row, including six consecutive road losses. They’ll try to avoid a winless road trip with a victory in the series finale on Wednesday night. The six consecutive road losses are their most since June 2021.

With the loss, the Cardinals are now tied for their seventh-most losses through 62 games — the most since the 1995 team went 25-37 to start the season.

Cardinals outfielder Brendan Donovan went 2-for-4 and collected two of the team’s seven hits. He snapped out of an 0-for-10 funk with a leadoff single in the first inning, the second time in his last four starts in the leadoff spot that he began the game with a hit.

Third baseman Nolan Arenado (1-for-4) homered and drove in half of the team’s runs.

Wilson Contreras (1-for-3) belted his seventh home run of the season. He has now homered in two of his last three games. For his career, he now has 26 home runs in June — the most of any calendar month.

Jordan Walker’s third major-league home run gave him his first extra-base hit and first RBI since April 21.

Liberatore put to the test

Cardinals rookie left-hander Matthew Liberatore faced his toughest test of the season in the incredibly productive Rangers lineup.

Liberatore, who made his third start of the season in the majors (fourth appearance), held his own the first time through the order against a Rangers club that entered the night having scored a Major League Baseball-best 380 runs, the most runs scored through 59 games in franchise history.

The Rangers had outscored opponents by 153 runs for the sixth-largest run differential through 59 games in the modern era (since 1901). They also entered play leading the majors in batting average (.278), on-base percentage (.345) and ranked third in slugging percentage (.460).

Liberatore (1-2) allowed one run in his first two innings. A second-inning two-out double to left field by Mitch Garver drove in the first run. That marked the first extra-base hit allowed by Liberatore and just the second hit of the day.

The Rangers tacked on a run in the third when Liberatore left a 1-0 fastball over the middle of the plate and Nathaniel Lowe mashed it to center field for a solo home run. The Cardinals had given Liberatore an early 2-0 edge, but Lowe’s homer tied the score 2-2. It was the first home run given up by Liberatore this season in the majors (13 2/3 innings).

In the fourth inning, the Rangers added three runs (two earned) with one out. After Liberatore got the first batter of the inning, Robbie Grossman, to fly out to center field, the next three batters reached on a walk, an infield single and a single to left field.

Then with the bases loaded, Rangers second baseman and leadoff hitter Marcus Semien drove a ball into the rightcenter field gap that one-hopped off the wall for a double. Right fielder Jordan Walker relayed the ball to second baseman Nolan Gorman, but Gorman’s throw to the plate went up the line and forced catcher Contreras to make a sliding attempt to stop it.

Two runs scored on the double, but the throwing error allowed the third runner to score and Semien to advance to third base. Semien also extended his career-best hitting streak to 25 games with the hit.

Liberatore threw 28 of his 85 pitches in that fourth inning. Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol turned to the bullpen to at the beginning of the fifth inning.

Liberatore gave up five runs (four earned), on seven hits and two walks in four innings. He also struck out two.

Arenado gets home run party started

The Cardinals jumped out to an early lead thanks to Arenado’s first-inning home run off of Rangers starter Dane Dunning (5-1). With Paul Goldschmidt on base via a fielder’s choice, Arenado blasted an 0-1 slider into bullpen just behind the left-center field wall for a two-run homer.

The 11th homer of the season for Arenado marked the first given up by Dunning. A right-hander who began the season in the bullpen, Dunning had the most innings (48) of any pitcher in the majors who had not given up a home run this season.

Arenado’s homer was the first of three hit by the Cardinals.

Contreras hit solo homer in the sixth inning, his second of the road trip. He’d gone 1-for-11 on the road trip entering coming into the game.

Later in the sixth inning with two outs, Walker hit his third home run in the majors. The towering 430-foot blast came on a 2-2 count.

All three homers came against Dunning. And home runs accounted for all four of the Cardinals’ runs.