CHICAGO -- The boos started before the first pitch.
By the end of the night, JJ Wetherholt had given Cubs fans even more reason to make that noise.
One day after the Cardinals hung 17 runs on their longtime rivals, the rookie second baseman wasted no time setting the tone again Saturday, crushing the first pitch of the game into the left-field basket before finishing with three hits in a 3-0 victory over the Cubs at Wrigley Field.
For Wetherholt, the performance was another reminder of the impact he has made atop the Cardinals' lineup. The rookie reached base in four of his five plate appearances, collecting his seventh three-hit game of the season.
His leadoff blast came on a 90.4 mph fastball from Shota Imanaga that leaked over the heart of the plate. Wetherholt stayed through it and drove it the other way for his fourth leadoff homer of the season, setting a Cardinals rookie record and immediately giving St. Louis the lead.
The Cardinals manufactured their second run in the third when Nathan Church and Wetherholt drew back-to-back walks before Iván Herrera lined an RBI single to center. It proved to be all the offense they needed.
Wetherholt wasn't finished. He ripped a two-out double to left in the fifth, then added another opposite-field single in the seventh, again staying on the ball and driving it to right field. All three hits came the other way, a reflection of the mature approach that has made the 23-year-old one of the National League's most complete rookies.
While Wetherholt supplied the offense, Kyle Leahy handled the rest. The right-hander delivered five scoreless innings, allowing three hits while striking out six to continue stabilizing a Cardinals pitching staff that got another efficient outing after Friday's offensive marathon.
The victory gave the Cardinals consecutive wins over the Cubs at Wrigley in dramatically different fashions. Twenty-four hours after overwhelming Chicago with 17 runs, St. Louis leaned on its rookie leadoff hitter and another strong pitching performance -- further proof that, regardless of the style, Wetherholt continues to find himself at the center of it.