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The at-bat was too pivotal to not be picky.

In the fourth inning late Saturday night at Petco Park, the Cardinals trailed by four runs early, nibbled into the Padres鈥� lead to begin the fourth and put two on with one out for Pages. The starting catcher had gone nearly five weeks since his last home run, felt his batting average drain to .201, and here he was behind in the count with his team behind in the game. He was going to make sure he got the bat of his choice.

And then he got the pitch of his hopes.

A curveball.

Hanging.

The Cardinals鈥� comeback for an 8-5 victory against the Padres included a resolute start by Michael McGreevy near his hometown, a scoreless turn by two relievers trying to hold their first lead for a post-Ryan Helsley bullpen and a 422-foot launch of that pitch by Pages to tie the game. The win spun around three curveballs 鈥� two that Pages called and one that he crushed.

McGreevy froze a hitter with one in a pivotal moment. Kyle Leahy challenged a future Hall of Famer with one to own the eighth with a two-run lead. And Pages sent one to a second-story balcony overlooking left field.

鈥淐urveballs were big today,鈥� he said.

Here鈥檚 how they bent the game in the Cardinals鈥� direction:

Curve 1: 4th inning, 80.8 mph, 51-inch drop

Padres starter Randy Vazquez got a ground out out from Pages in their first meeting Saturday, and the right-hander got ahead on Pages in the fourth inning with a sinker he took for a strike and two sweeping sliders he nicked for foul balls.

Following the second-inning ground out, Pages鈥� batting average for the season teetered at dipping below .200. Since his most recent home run on June 27, Pages hit .148 with only singles in 61 at-bats. The Cardinals rely on him as the starter because of how he handles pitchers behind the plate. Aware Pages鈥� frustrations were percolating at the plate, manager Oliver Marmol gave the catcher a few days off over the past week.

Pages didn鈥檛 want the struggles or the break to make him defensive at the plate.

With teammates on base, he wanted to remain aggressive to get a ball in play. Hence going after the sweepers even to just clip them for a foul ball.

Willson Contreras sparked the fourth inning with a leadoff double. He scored on Nolan Gorman鈥檚 single 鈥� the second of back-to-back singles ahead of Pages. With Masyn Winn at second and Gorman at first, Pages was the potential tying run at the plate. The new bat came just as he faced a decisive moment in the inning. He was behind, and Vazquez had plenty of options to try to spin Pages out of the at-bat.

Vazquez went to the curveball and did not land it.

He gave away the curve out of his hand, and it stayed high with the horizontal movement to meet Pages鈥� barrel.

鈥淚t was in the zone that I wanted,鈥� he said.

And he did not miss.

The curve that left Vazquez鈥檚 fingers at 80.8 mph jumped off Pages鈥� new bat at 103.2 mph. It traveled 422 feet 鈥� his longest homer of the season 鈥� and it gave him seven for the year, tying his career high. The three-run bolt tied the game 4-4, and Winn would give the Cardinals the lead with a two-run double in the top of the fifth.

Guess the type of pitch that helped the Cardinals hold that lead.

Curve 2: 5th inning, 80.3 mph, 57-inch drop

What changed for McGreevy between the end of the third inning and the beginning of his three scoreless innings was more than just how he mixed his pitches.

鈥淭here was a difference in how he was coming out of the dugout and coming back into the dugout,鈥� Marmol said. 鈥淰ery clear from an overall mentality standpoint.鈥�

At the ballpark he grew up watching on TV and visiting to see his beloved Padres, McGreevy made his first career appearance in Petco Park. Many members of his family made the hour drive south from San Clemente, California, to see McGreevy鈥檚 San Diego debut. He admitted feeling nervous throughout the morning鈥� and then seeing that familiar backdrop he knew from TV, but this time it was from the actual mound, not his sofa.

The Padres greeted him rudely.

Three batters into the game, Manny Machado had an RBI single and the Padres took a 1-0 lead. Thirteen batters into the game, Jackson Merrill powered a four-seam fastball for a home run that put the Padres ahead 4-0. Merrill鈥檚 homer to dead center field traveled 415 feet and over the reach of center fielder Victor Scott II. That was the last run McGreevy allowed.

鈥淵ou could just tell it switched over from a mentality standpoint,鈥� Marmol said. 鈥淗e had a lot more edge to him in the last three innings, just the way he was approaching hitters. He didn鈥檛 care who was in the box. He needs to continue to take that type of mindset from the very beginning of the game.鈥�

Ground outs got him out of the third, through the fourth and into the fifth with two outs and no one on base when Merrill鈥檚 turn came back around.

McGreevy showed him a mix of everything. In the first pitches of the at-bat, Merrill saw pitches at 92 mph, 88 mph, and 79 mph.

Merrill, a rookie sensation a year ago, dropped into a 2-2 count when he fouled off a change-up that drifted low and away from him. His new teammate, trade deadline acquisition Ryan O鈥橦earn, would strike out on the same change-up in the sixth inning, and McGreevy referred to that as 鈥減robably the best change-up I鈥檝e thrown all my life.鈥� The change-up to Merrill in the fifth served to open up the strike zone to set up the curve.

鈥淲e hadn鈥檛 used it yet to that extent, especially to finish,鈥� Pages said. 鈥淢errill covers the curveball pretty well usually. But it鈥檚 something if you execute it well and go about setting it up with the heaters up, the cutters up 鈥� well then that back door is open.鈥�

McGreevy spun his 2-2 curveball to the outer edge of home plate.

It appeared to clip the strike zone as is dived down to Pages鈥� mitt.

The 57-inch drop on the pitch was the most of any pitch in the game, and Merrill admired it without flinching. The called-strike curve finished the inning 鈥� and McGreevy (3-2) would not allow another Padre to reach base to close out his six innings.

鈥淗igh chase guy who hit the homer, and you don鈥檛 have to be perfect,鈥� McGreevy said. 鈥淵ou don鈥檛 have to (dot) the four-seam there. You can miss up and away. Put this (stuff) where he cannot hit it, and that was a good spot. That curveball felt great.

鈥淟ooking back it was perfect clipping the edge.鈥�

After the game, McGreevy glanced at his phone to see a text message from an unfamiliar number but a number definitely was glad to have.

The text came from noted curveball wizard Adam Wainwright.

Curve 3: 8th inning, 84.0 mph, 52-inch drop

In his office after the win with one of his coaches, Marmol marveled at the breaking ball Leahy threw to Machado. One of the best and most balanced hitters in the majors, Machado can drive a ball to right field with authority and pull a pitch into the left field seats.

It took confidence in the curve for Leahy to challenge him with it.

It also came with a confession.

鈥淚 kind of did leave it not in the best spot,鈥� Leahy said.

The Cardinals鈥� rising right-handed setup man, Leahy got five outs from five batters on 16 pitches to hold what was a two-run lead with him in the game. But it was his strikeout of Machado in the eighth inning that set up teammate JoJo Romero to carry the game through the ninth for his first save of the season. Marmol stayed with Leahy entering the eighth because Machado loomed on deck following former batting champion Luis Arraez.

If Arraez slipped a grounder through for a base hit, Machado would be the potential tying run. Arraez grounded out. Machado still proved a threat to trim the lead. And Pages knew just the pitch of Leahy鈥檚 six or seven that the right-hander would want to set up.

The curve.

鈥淚t鈥檚 something he loves to use and I love to call,鈥� Pages said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a nasty pitch. If you set it up right, even if it鈥檚 in the zone, it鈥檚 hard to hit because he rips it.鈥�

The setup was a 96.5 mph four-seam fastball up over the plate. Machado fouled it back. Leahy came back with a sweeper that veered away from Machado and got a swing and a miss. Leahy then spiked an 86 mph curveball to see if Machado would chase. He did not.

Pages and Leahy successfully extended the area Machado had to cover up with the fastball and out with the slider.

The curve had more room to operate 鈥� even if it caught too much of the plate.

Machado swung and missed it.

鈥淭hat is a big pitch,鈥� Marmol said. 鈥淵ou look at Leahy鈥檚 sweeper and you look at the curveball and the shape of them is very different and they can be some nasty pitches. We鈥檝e seen an uptick in how he鈥檚 been using his stuff. He went through that lull 鈥� but that鈥檚 changing a little bit. It鈥檚 to his credit how he鈥檚 using his stuff. That curveball was gross.鈥�

Leahy credited Pages for priming the at-bat for a curve.

Just as McGreevy complimented Pages for the timing of the curve.

But even as they shaped the game and secured the Cardinals鈥� win, neither of those were his favorite curves of the game.

鈥淚鈥檒l say the one I hit 420, right now, honestly,鈥� Pages said. 鈥淚 needed that one a lot.鈥�