CHICAGO (AP) — Despite a frustrating first two months of the season, Kyle Schwarber has focused on remaining upbeat.

“I always try to stay as positive and as mentally strong as possible because I know how crazy this game can be,” he said. “You have your highest highs, your lowest lows, but you have to stay the same person.”

Saturday was the highest of highs for the slumping slugger.

Schwarber hit his first career grand slam in the bottom of the seventh inning to rally the Chicago Cubs to a 5-3 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals.

Schwarber, who entered batting .163 and was dropped to the ninth spot in the lineup, hit the first pitch of the at-bat from St. Louis starter Mike Leake (5-4) deep into the bleachers in left-center.

“It was where we wanted to go, but it was slightly elevated and slightly over the plate too much for him,” Leake said.

Javier Baez also homered for Chicago, which has won two straight following a six-game losing streak.

Yadier Molina homered and Jose Martinez had two RBI for the Cardinals.

Hector Rondon (1-1) pitched a scoreless seventh to earn the win. Wade Davis got the final three outs for his 12th save.

Leake, who entered leading the National League with a 2.24 ERA, allowed five runs and six hits in 6 2/3 innings.

The Cardinals grabbed a 2-0 lead in the first inning off Cubs starter Jon Lester on a two-run broken bat single by Martinez.

Leake retired the first six batters before Baez led off the third with a long homer to straightaway center to trim the lead in half.

Molina got the run back in the sixth with a two-out solo shot to make it 3-1.

That’s where it stayed until the bottom of the seventh. Jason Heyward and Willson Contreras each singled to put runners on first and third with one out. Leake then struck out Baez with a slider well off the plate and appeared on the verge of getting out of the jam.

But he hit pinch hitter Jon Jay with a pitch to load the bases. St. Louis manager Mike Matheny had left-hander Kevin Siegrist warming in the bullpen, but opted to stay with Leake against Schwarber, who had grounded out and struck out in his previous at-bats.

“He had a five-pitch inning the inning before,” Matheny said of Leake. “He looked good. We made a decision to let him get that last out and it didn’t work.”

It worked out well for the Cubs. Any player hitting a slam to turn a game around would be excited — it was the first go-ahead slam in the seventh or later by the Cubs since 2012 — but Schwarber was especially pumped.

Manager Joe Maddon said his hand really hurt after a high five.

“Yeah, I gave him a little extra,” Schwarber said. “It was an exciting moment, it was a big moment. To put us ahead in that spot and hold those guys off for the win was big.”

PICKOFF ARTIST

Since joining the Cubs in 2015, Lester has become infamous for his reluctance to throw to first base. Runners have taken advantage by taking huge leads and essentially daring the left-hander to pick them off.

It happened in the fifth inning when Lester picked off Tommy Pham. Lester stepped off and lobbed a soft throw to first baseman Anthony Rizzo. Pham, who had a huge lead, hesitated and was easily tagged out.

It was Lester’s first pickoff since 2015.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Cubs: SS Addison Russell essentially was given a mental health day off. With Russell struggling at the plate — he entered batting .213 and was hitless in last three games — Maddon felt it was a good time to let him sit and watch.

UP NEXT

Cubs RHP Kyle Hendricks (4-3, 3.75 ERA) and Cardinals RHP Michael Wacha (2-3, 3.99) square off in the series finale on Sunday night. Both are looking to bounce back from rough starts. Hendricks gave up five runs in five innings against the Padres on May 29, snapping a streak of 48 starts giving up four runs or less. Wacha lasted just three innings against the Dodgers on May 30, allowing four runs (three earned).

— Associated Press —

CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago Cubs celebrated Anthony Rizzo’s engagement with a postgame cake. The All-Star first baseman dove right in.

Pretty sweet day.

Rizzo reached four times and scored the winning run on Jason Heyward’s sacrifice fly in the eighth inning, leading the Cubs to a 3-2 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday that snapped a six-game losing streak.

“It doesn’t matter if it was versus the Cardinals or versus a college team, we needed to win no matter what,” Rizzo said.

It was the second big win for Rizzo in less than a day. He proposed to girlfriend Emily Vakos on Thursday.

“We were on a boat on Lake Michigan, had some fireworks go off, and it was great,” Rizzo said. “She was totally surprised, so that’s what I wanted. Somehow kept that under wraps.”

Heyward also doubled in Rizzo in the sixth and Kris Bryant homered as the Cubs washed away some of the sting from a winless road trip against the Dodgers and Padres. John Lackey pitched seven solid innings, settling down after a shaky start.

“We just did enough,” manager Joe Maddon said.

Dexter Fowler homered for St. Louis in his first game at Wrigley Field since he signed with the Cardinals in the offseason. Rookie Magneuris Sierra had an RBI single, and Lance Lynn pitched 5 1/3 innings of two-hit ball.

“It was one of those days when I didn’t have my best stuff but I was able to kind of mix and match and move in and out,” Lynn said.

Rizzo led off the eighth with a double over the head of Sierra in left. He moved up on Ben Zobrist’s grounder to third and scampered home when Heyward hit a fly ball to center against Trevor Rosenthal (1-2).

Pedro Strop (1-2) struck out Yadier Molina with the bases loaded for the final out of the Cardinals eighth, and Wade Davis closed for his 11th save.

“We were in a good spot,” manager Mike Matheny said of the blown opportunity in the eighth. “We just weren’t able to get the hit we needed.”

Fowler received his World Series ring during a pregame ceremony, drawing loud cheers from the crowd of 41,051 on a picturesque day at the iconic neighborhood ballpark. He then posed for a picture with his former teammates, Maddon, president of baseball operations Theo Epstein, and general manager Jed Hoyer.

The 31-year-old Fowler got another loud ovation when he stepped to the plate in the first inning, and he hit a drive to the bleachers in right for his 23rd career leadoff homer. He clapped his hands as he approached home, and a fan threw the ball back on the field.

“I know John and John knows me,” Fowler said. “I know he’s going to come after me from the beginning. It’s just a matter of getting a good pitch to hit.”

St. Louis got another run in the second on Sierra’s one-out single, but that was the Cardinals’ last hit against Lackey. Bryant connected for his 12th homer in the third, and the Cubs tied it at 2 in the sixth.

Lynn departed after consecutive one-out walks, and Heyward followed with a towering fly ball to right against Tyler Lyons. Stephen Piscotty had trouble with the ball, and it landed on the warning track in front of the wall for an RBI double.

“As soon as it went up, when it got to the highest point I just lost it,” Piscotty said. “It was in the sun.”

The Cubs had the bases loaded when Matt Bowman got pinch hitter Jon Jay to bounce into an inning-ending double play. Maddon originally sent Albert Almora Jr. up to hit for slumping slugger Kyle Schwarber and then switched to Jay when Matheny brought in Bowman.

SIERRA RETURNS

Sierra was promoted from Double-A Springfield to replace infielder Jedd Gyorko, who was placed on paternity leave after Thursday’s 2-0 victory over the Dodgers. Gyorko’s wife, Karley, had a girl on Tuesday, named Brooklyn Ellee. Gyorko is expected to return to the team in time for Sunday night’s series finale.

The 21-year-old Sierra made his major league debut last month and hit .367 (11 for 30) in seven games.

“He’s a very even-keeled player,” Matheny said. “He understands what he brings to the table and has a great chance to build on that.”

UP NEXT

Cubs left-hander Jon Lester (3-3, 3.86 ERA) and Cardinals right-hander Mike Leake (5-3, 2.24 ERA) match up in the second game of the series on Saturday. Lester struggled in his last start, allowing six runs in 3 1/3 innings in a loss to the Dodgers, but he is 3-0 with a 1.80 ERA in six home starts this season. Leake went 2-2 with a 3.09 ERA in five May starts.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Adam Wainwright credits a more rigorous pregame warmup routine as part of the reason for his May rebound.

Wainwright hit a two-run homer off Brandon McCarthy and pitched six innings of four-hit ball, leading the St. Louis Cardinals over the Los Angeles Dodgers 2-0 on Thursday for a four-game split.

“Earlier in my career it was a little different when I took the mound, my first pitch of the game I was hot and I was ready to rock,” the 35-year-old Wainwright said. “I could still probably do that now, but I feel more prepared when I get a good warm up now.”

After finishing April 2/3 with a 6.11 ERA, Wainwright was 3-0 in May.

Wainwright (6-3) struck out six and walked two, pitching out of two-on, one-out jams in the fourth and fifth, and extending his scoreless streak to 16 1/3 innings. His ERA has dropped to 3.79.

Matt Bowman, Trevor Rosenthal and Seung Hwan Oh pitched an inning each to complete a five-hitter. Oh threw a one-hit ninth for his 13th save in 15 chances.

Wainwright followed Paul DeJong’s second-inning single with a drive over the left-field bullpen for his 10th career homer. Wainwright has six hits and seven RBI this season.

“He showed me the curveball before and kind of locked me up a little bit, but he threw it out of the same slot the next time and I was able to put a good swing on it,” Wainwright said.

McCarthy (5-2) gave up seven hits in four innings, struck out six and walked one, before leaving with a blister.

Adrian Gonzalez and Yasmani Grandal were ejected in the ninth by plate umpire Marty Foster. Gonzalez took a called third strike on the outside corner leading off and was tossed while arguing from the dugout as Grandal was being introduced as a pinch hitter with one out and one on, prompting Dodgers manager Dave Roberts to go to the plate for a discussion with Foster. Grandal swung past strike three, got into an argument with Foster — apparently over a called strike on the second pitch of the at-bat — and also was tossed. Austin Barnes then popped out.

“Once he threw me out, I might as well go out there and let him have a little more,” Gonzalez said. “The funniest thing is he told Dave afterwards that he’s been calling pitches off the plate all game, so he wasn’t going to change.”

POWER CHART

Wainwright needs two homers to tie Bob Forsch for second among Cardinals pitchers behind Bob Gibson (24).

“I think he’s lined up to arguably be the best hitting pitcher in the league,” Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said.

WEB GEMS1

Cardinals SS Aledmys Diaz made a diving stop up the middle on Barnes’ fourth-inning grounder with two on, transferred the ball to his right hand and made a backhand flip to DeJong at second for an inning-ending forceout on Chase Utley, saving a run. … Los Angeles LF Cody Bellinger made a sliding backhand catch on Diaz’s liner in the bottom half.

ANOTHER MISSED OPPORTUNITY

St. Louis advanced a runner to third without scoring for the second time in the series. With runners at second and third, no outs and the middle of the Dodgers infield playing back in the third, Yadier Molina grounded to a drawn-in third baseman Kike Hernandez, who threw to first for the out. Tommy Pham also grounded to Hernandez, who threw home and got Stephen Piscotty into a rundown, and Piscotty was tagged out by Barnes, the catcher, near third base as Jedd Gyorko advanced to third. DeJong then struck out.

“We left money on the table again,” Matheny said. “We left a couple of runs out there that need to come across. That’s a lot to put not only on our starters but our pen also.”

BREAKING THROUGH

Gyorko’s first-inning single off of McCarthy was his first hit in 16 career plate appearances against the right-hander.

TRAINING ROOM

Dodgers: LHP Adam Liberatore (left forearm tightness) was placed on the 10-day DL retroactive to Wednesday and LHP Grant Dayton was recalled from Triple-A Oklahoma City.

Cardinals: INF Gyorko will go on paternity leave when the team travels to Chicago for a weekend series against the Cubs.

UP NEXT

Dodgers: LHP Clayton Kershaw (7-2, 2.37) starts Friday at Milwaukee, where he is 4-0 with a 1.41 ERA in five starts.

Cardinals: RHP Lance Lynn (4-3, 2.93 ERA) will face RHP John Lackey (4-5, 5.18 ERA), a former teammate, on Friday.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Dexter Fowler hit tiebreaking homer in the eighth inning to back Carlos Martinez and give the St. Louis Cardinals a 2-1 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers Wednesday night.

Martinez (4-4) allowed one run on four hits while striking out nine as he pitched eight innings to help St. Louis snap a three-game losing streak.

Ross Stripling (0-3) lost for the first time since April 26 as he surrendered Fowler’s seventh home run of the season, a 429-foot shot to right-center field. The Dodgers saw their six-game winning streak end.

Seung-Hwan Oh pitched a scoreless ninth for his 12th save in 14 opportunities this season.

Hyun-Jin Ryu returned to the rotation in place of Alex Wood after earning the save last Wednesday, May 24 versus St. Louis in his first career relief appearance. Ryu allowed one run on three hits in six innings in his first start since May 11 at Colorado.

Cardinals rookie second baseman Paul DeJong drove in Tommy Pham in the second inning after Chris Taylor initially broke in on a ball that ultimately went over his head for a double. The run was St. Louis’ first with Martinez on the mound since May 13.

Los Angeles tied the game 1-1 in the sixth inning on Adrian Gonzalez’s sacrifice fly that drove in Corey Seager.

PISCOTTY RETURNS:

Cardinals RF Stephen Piscotty returned to the lineup after missing the previous five games to be back with his family in California after his mother was diagnosed with ALS.

FORTY-FIVE CANDLES:

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts celebrated his forty-fifth birthday. He said, “I got coffee and scouted the Cardinals,” to revel in the occasion.

PASS OUT THE CIGARS:

3B Jedd Gyorko was back with the club after his wife, Karley, gave birth to the couple’s first daughter, Brooklyn Ellee, at 7:46 p.m. on Tuesday. Gyorko will go on the paternity list and miss the club’s games Friday and Saturday in Chicago before returning to the team on Sunday.

TRAINER’S ROOM:

Dodgers: IF Justin Turner (strained right hamstring) took swings in the batting cage and ran at about 70 percent pregame. “When he’ll return, I still don’t know,” said Roberts. “We’re still for me, realistically, a week away for him to think about being back with us.”

Cardinals: Prior to the game the club released RHP Jonathan Broxton and recalled RHP John Gant from Triple-A Memphis. Gant opened the season on the 10-day disabled list with a strained right groin before being optioned to Memphis on May 16.

UP NEXT:

Dodgers: Brandon McCarthy (5-1, 3.28 ERA) is 0-0 with a 4.15 ERA in three career starts against St. Louis.

Cardinals: Adam Wainwright (5-3, 4.20 ERA) has not lost since April 16 and has gone 5-0 with a 3.21 ERA since then.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Chase Utley, Logan Forsythe and Chris Taylor combined to reach base 11 times and totaled six runs, helping the streaking Los Angeles Dodgers rally past the St. Louis Cardinals 9-4 on Tuesday night to move into first place in the NL West.

Utley finished a homer shy of the cycle as the Dodgers won their season-high sixth straight game. Forsythe reached five times, including three walks, and Taylor reached three times.

The Dodgers moved ahead of the Colorado Rockies, who lost 10-4 to the Seattle Mariners.

Adrian Gonzalez’s sacrifice fly and Utley’s RBI double started the Dodgers comeback in the third. Enrique Hernandez tied it at 3 with a single, and Paul DeJong’s throwing error on the same play scored Utley to give the Dodgers a 4-3 lead.

The Dodgers scored three more times behind one hit in the fifth as relievers Tyler Lyons and John Brebbia each walked in a run.

Kenta Maeda spotted the Cardinals three first-inning runs for the second straight start, but once again held them scoreless after that to give the Dodgers a chance to come back.

Brandon Morrow (1-0) led a parade of six Dodgers relievers. The Dodgers bullpen gave up one run in five innings, the third consecutive game Los Angeles relievers had to get more than nine outs.

The Cardinals, who’ve lost 10 out of their last 13 games, capitalized on a fortunate call and a couple of Dodgers errors to take a 3-0 lead in the first.

Dexter Fowler appeared to be thrown out trying to steal second following a strikeout, but umpire Mark Wegner called a close 3-2 pitch to Tommy Pham ball four. Matt Carpenter followed with a single, Taylor’s throwing error scored Fowler, and Pham and Carpenter took an extra base on Maeda’s throwing error on the same play. Yadier Molina drove them both home with a single.

Molina had three RBI, and his homer off Chris Hatcher in the eighth broke the Dodger bullpen’s scoreless innings streak at 24 2/3 innings.

Michael Wacha (2-3) needed 77 pitches to get through three innings, the shortest outing for a Cardinals starter this season. Three of the four runs he allowed were earned.

DODGERS BLUES

Wacha has blown 3-0 leads in consecutive starts against Los Angeles.

MAEDA LOSES GRIP

Maeda made throwing errors in the first and second innings. It is the first time Maeda has had two errors in a game and his first error since June 30, 2016.

TRAINING ROOM

Dodgers: 3B Justin Turner (hamstring) will go on a rehab assignment, but a beginning date has not been determined.

Cardinals: 2B Kolten Wong (left elbow strain) had an MRI on Monday that revealed no structural damage. OF Stephen Piscotty (personal) is expected back Wednesday.

UP NEXT

Dodgers: LHP Hyun-Jin Ryu (2-5, 4.28 ERA) starts in place of LHP Alex Wood (left shoulder inflammation). Ryu is 1-1 with a 1.50 ERA in three career appearances against St. Louis.

Cardinals: RHP Carlos Martinez (3-4, 3.32 ERA) has received zero run support in his last two starts. He is 2-2 with a 3.55 ERA in seven career games against Los Angeles.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — With every ball that sails over the fence, Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts gets a little more encouraged that his lineup is finding its groove.

Not that the rookie leading the charge seems to be feeling any pressure.

Cody Bellinger, Chase Utley and Logan Forsythe hit solo home runs, leading Rich Hill and the Dodgers over the St. Louis Cardinals 5-1 Monday for their fifth straight victory.

“We’re starting to hit the ball out of the ballpark,” Roberts said. “To see Logan get a homer, obviously Cody’s been doing it. Chase (Utley has had) really quality at-bats and starting to hit the ball out of the ballpark, but I think if you look at our lineup, there’s guys that are really grinding that aren’t swinging the way we’re capable of.”

Los Angeles is within a half-game of the Colorado Rockies for the NL West lead, and they’ve powered nearer to the top of the standings behind Bellinger’s early contributions.

Bellinger connected in the fourth — it was his ninth home run in May, tying Joc Pederson and James Loney for the Dodgers rookie record for home runs in a month. Bellinger leads the team with 11 home runs and 29 RBI, thriving in his first exposure in the major leagues.

“I just try to be consistent every day,” Bellinger said. “Sometimes in the outfield I kind of just look around, but, yeah, it’s real, and I just try to keep going.”

Hill (2-2) recovered from a bout of wildness in his last start to pitch five innings, giving up one run and two hits. In his previous outing, also against the Cardinals, he permitted five runs on four hits and seven walks in four innings.

Hill held the Cardinals hitless until Aledmys Diaz singled to lead off the fifth.

“We made some adjustments this week, mechanical adjustments, and proved to be successful and feel much more comfortable where I’m at now,” Hill said. “Getting my hand out of my glove, getting timing down, and all that stuff was huge.”

Mike Leake (5-3) entered the game leading the majors with a 1.91 ERA, but allowed a season-high four runs in 6 2/3 innings.

“He’s been terrific. Seven innings and six hits, he gives us a chance there,” Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. “We just couldn’t get anything going offensively. Those are the days we need to offensively pick him up because he’s been so shutdown.”

Los Angeles got all the offense it needed in the third as Utley opened with his third home run of the season and second against St. Louis. Corey Seager later drove in Yasiel Puig with a two-out single.

Puig’s sacrifice fly in the seventh snapped Leake’s streak of nine quality starts to open the season.

Paul DeJong got two hits in his first career major league start after making his debut Sunday for the Cardinals.

Brandon Morrow pitched a scoreless bottom of the ninth in his season debut for the Dodgers after having his contract purchased from Triple-A Oklahoma City.

FLORIDA BOUND

The Cardinals optioned OF Randal Grichuk to High-A Palm Beach before the game. He was batting .222 with four home runs and 19 RBI, and had just five hits in 37 at bats with 14 strikeouts in his last 11 games. He hit 24 homers for St. Louis last year. The Cardinals want him to work on his plate approach at a lower level, rather than at Triple-A.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Dodgers: LHP Alex Wood was put on the 10-day disabled list retroactive to May 27 with inflammation in a joint in his upper body.

Cardinals: LHP Zach Duke threw a side session in extended spring training as he continues to recover from elbow surgery in October. … OF Jose Martinez was activated from the disabled list prior to the game after missing 18 games with a left groin strain sustained on May 6 at Atlanta.

UP NEXT

Dodgers: RHP Kenta Maeda (4-2, 5.08 ERA) is scheduled to face the Cardinals for his second straight start. He is 2-0 with a 4.22 ERA in two career starts versus St. Louis.

Cardinals: RHP Michael Wacha (2-2, 3.66 ERA) is 2-0 with a 2.35 ERA in five starts at home this season.

— Associated Press —

DENVER (AP) — Boosted by a couple of stellar rookie pitchers, the Colorado Rockies are on top of the National League in the final days of May.

German Marquez pitched into the sixth inning, Gerardo Parra hit a three-run homer and the Rockies beat the St. Louis Cardinals 8-4 on Sunday.

Parra finished with three hits as the Rockies won a series for the 12th time this season. They have dropped two and split two others.

“That’s all we want to do, win series and keep going. It’s our mindset,” catcher Tony Wolters said. “We’re not just saying it, we’re doing it.”

Colorado’s longest winning streak this season is four games, a feat accomplished just twice this season. With Sunday’s victory, the Rockies have won six of eight largely behind a young staff that has grown up quickly.

Marquez (4-2) allowed two runs and eight hits in 5 2/3 innings. He went 4-1 in May to help the Rockies’ rookie starters finish 12-3 for the month for the most wins by rookie starting pitchers since Oakland got 11 in September 2009, according to Elias Sports Bureau.

“We’ve been pretty steady on the mound, we’re playing sound and we have some guys that are hitting the ball,” manager Bud Black said.

The Rockies have done it against good teams, too. They have won series against two other division leaders as well as two of their closest competitors in the NL West.

“We’re on fire right now,” Parra said. “The big point is we’re getting great starting pitching.”

Colorado built a 4-0 lead on Alexi Amarista’s run-scoring groundout in the second and Parra’s drive in the fourth off Lance Lynn (4-3).

“The pitch to Parra didn’t move the way as much as I would like,” Lynn said. “It spun a little bit on me and he put a good swing on it.”

St. Louis got back into it on homers from Jedd Gyorko and Greg Garcia in the sixth. Tommy Pham’s solo shot to center off Chris Rusin in the seventh made it 4-3.

Colorado tacked on four runs in the eighth off Matt Bowman, two on Wolters’ single before John Brebbia got the final out in his major league debut.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Cardinals: 2B Kolten Wong was placed on the 10-day disabled list with a left elbow strain, retroactive to Saturday. Wong was a late scratch from Saturday’s lineup.

IMPRESSIVE DEBUT

Paul DeJong’s first swing in the major leagues was a memorable one. DeJong, called up to take Wong’s roster spot, hit a 1-0 pitch off Greg Holland into the seats in left field in the ninth with his parents in the stands.

He is the ninth player in St. Louis history to homer in his first career at-bat and the first since pitcher Mark Worrell did it on June 5, 2008.

“I was just looking for a fastball in after a first-pitch ball,” DeJong said. “He slipped me something down in an area I wanted and put a pretty good swing on it.”

ROAD TO RECOVERY

Rockies right-hander Jon Gray, on the disabled list since April 14 with a stress fracture in his left foot, threw for the first time without a boot. Black said Gray threw 30 to 35 pitches Sunday morning and will do more baseball activities this week.

“Most of the work he’s going to do is strengthening the leg,” Black said. “There’s been things he hasn’t been able to do because he’s in that boot, strength-training things that all players need.”

UP NEXT

Cardinals: RHP Mike Leake (5-2, 1.91 ERA) will make his second straight start against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Monday. Leake, who leads the NL in ERA, allowed one run in eight innings in a 6-1 win over the Dodgers on Wednesday night.

Rockies: RHP Tyler Chatwood (4-6, 4.50 ERA) will open a four-game, home-and-home series with Seattle on Monday. Chatwood has earned a decision in each of his 10 starts this season.

— Associated Press —

DENVER (AP) — Rookie Antonio Senzatela praised his defense. Manager Bud Black applauded his pitcher.

Charlie Blackmon went ahead and lauded everything.

Senzatela threw eight sharp innings to grab a share of the major league lead in wins, Blackmon had a homer and run-scoring single as part of an eight-run eighth and the Colorado Rockies beat the St. Louis Cardinals 10-0 on Friday night.

“We’re doing a little bit of everything and it’s adding up to some competitive baseball,” said Blackmon, whose team has the best record in the NL (32-18).

Fresh off a 7-3 road swing, the Rockies kept right on rolling behind Senzatela, who joins Clayton Kershaw, Dallas Keuchel and Ervin Santana with seven victories this season.

Senzatela (7-1) scattered five hits and showed plenty of poise as the 22-year-old escaped trouble courtesy of four double plays .

“He threw strikes with the fastball where I think in the previous couple (starts), the fastball was just a little bit off the plate,” Black said. “Today, he dialed it in.”

Carlos Martinez (3-4) took the loss despite a quality start in which he allowed three runs in 7 1/3 innings while striking out nine.

“I felt extremely good. I tried to stay positive and keep the game low on runs,” Martinez said through a translator.

The Rockies turned a 2-0 game into a rout with eight runs on nine hits in the eighth. Blackmon had a chance to finish off the cycle in his second at-bat of the inning, needing only a double. He hit a sharp single to center, with the crowd urging him to stretch it. He took a wide turn and retreated back to first.

“You have to have some respect for the game,” Blackmon explained. “That to me is not a situation where you try to stretch something into a double, just for the sake of getting a double.”

Mark Reynolds had a big game against his former team with an RBI single and a two-run homer.

The defense came up big behind Senzatela with left fielder Ian Desmond making a diving catch in the seventh. Nolan Arenado made a quick-reacting play at third in the eighth to rob Yadier Molina of a hit.

Senzatela was certainly impressed with the leather.

“That’s really big, because they make good plays and I feel like, `OK, they got me. I need to throw a good game for them,” Senzatela said.

Senzatela finished with 15 groundball outs. None was bigger than in the sixth with a runner on third and two outs. Dexter Fowler hit a roller to Reynolds, who flipped the ball to Senzatela covering first to get the speedy Fowler.

“They made plays when they had to,” Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Cardinals: OF Stephen Piscotty was sent home to “take care of things on a personal level,” Matheny said. … INF Jose Martinez (groin) was sent to Single-A Palm Beach for a rehab assignment.

Rockies: RHP Jon Gray (stress fracture in left foot) is out of his boot and will throw about 50 pitches in a bullpen session Sunday. He’s hopeful he will be allowed to throw the session without stepping back into the boot.

BIG AUDIENCE

There were 40,312 fans in attendance with the Rockies playing well and the Cardinals in town.

“It’s always fun to play in front of a packed house,” Reynolds said. “It gives us energy, brings excitement to the daily grind of playing.”

THIS & THAT

The Rockies are 13-3 in the first game of a series this season. … Arenado had two doubles. … The only position player in the lineup without a hit was OF Carlos Gonzalez. … Pinch-hitter Gerardo Parra batted twice in the eighth, including a two-run double. … Molina extended his hitting streak to 15 games with a single in the second.

UP NEXT

Cardinals: RHP Adam Wainwright (4-3, 4.81 ERA) makes his 330th career appearance for the Cardinals on Saturday. That will tie him with Larry Jackson (1955-62) for 10th on the team’s all-time list. Wainwright is 9-1 with a 1.70 ERA in 14 career appearances against Colorado.

Rockies: Another rookie takes the mound for Colorado. This time, it’s LHP Kyle Freeland (5-2, 3.31 ERA), who is 2-2 with a 3.80 ERA at Coors Field.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Adam Wainwright tried his best to keep up with Cardinals teammates Carlos Martinez and Michael Wacha. The veteran right-hander simply came up short.

Matt Carpenter homered and Wainwright turned in his second successive strong outing to lead St. Louis over the San Francisco Giants 8-3 on Sunday, snapping a four-game skid.

Wainwright (4-3) allowed one run and five hits in 6 1/3 innings. Martinez threw nine shutout innings Saturday, and Wacha pitched six scoreless innings Friday.

“I blew it,” Wainwright joked.

But he was plenty effective.

Wainwright set down the side in order three times and retired seven in a row during one stretch. He struck out six, walked three and even hit an RBI double in the sixth.

“I’ve just been feeding off our other starters,” Wainwright said. “I wanted to keep that momentum going.”

Randal Grichuk drove in four runs for St. Louis, which handed San Francisco only its second loss in nine games.

Wainwright tossed seven sharp innings in a 5-0 win over the Chicago Cubs last Sunday. Before that, he had given up four earned runs in each of his previous three starts.

“I’ve made good adjustments and I feel like I’m in a good place,” said Wainwright, who has permitted one run in his last 13 1/3 innings.

He improved to 28-14 in May, his most wins in any month.

“I feel like he’s back to normal,” Grichuk said. “He looks great out there and the numbers the last few games really show it.”

Carpenter hit a two-run homer off Matt Cain (3-2) in the fifth. Cain gave up seven runs and nine hits in 5 1/3 innings. He is 0-4 in six regular-season starts at Busch Stadium.

“I’ve got all kinds of answers that would be funny,” Cain said. “But there’s no real reason that my record looks like that here. I just don’t know why.”

Cain is 3-0 with a 1.19 ERA at home this season, but 0-2 with an 8.28 mark on the road.

San Francisco manager Bruce Bochy was surprised to see Cain struggle. Cain had given up two earned runs or fewer in six of his last seven starts.

“He was just behind more than he’s normally been this year,” Bochy said. “You could see, he wasn’t as sharp today.”

Grichuk slammed a three-run double in the second to highlight a four-run outburst. He doubled home another run in the eighth.

“I feel like I’ve had a bunch of balls that have flown out at the track the last couple weeks,” Grichuk said. “It was good to see them fall for a change.”

Brandon Crawford and Eduardo Nunez hit back-to-back homers in the eighth for the Giants, who were looking for their first three-game sweep on the road this season.

The Cardinals lost five of eight games on their homestand, including three one-run defeats and a 3-1 setback in 13 innings.

“It certainly could have been much better,” manager Mike Matheny said. “Some late lapses really hurt us.”

YADI ON A ROLL

St. Louis catcher Yadier Molina extended his hitting streak to 11 games with a single in the third. He has reached safely in his last 16 games.

JHONNY IS BACK

Cardinals INF Jhonny Peralta is 4 for 5 since returning from the disabled list Friday. He missed 26 games with an upper respiratory ailment. Peralta singled twice and walked in his first three trips to the plate Sunday.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Giants: C Buster Posey was given the day off after catching all 13 innings of a 3-1 win over St. Louis on Saturday.

Cardinals: 2B Kolten Wong did not start due to a stiff elbow. He is day to day.

UP NEXT

Giants: LHP Ty Blach (1-2, 4.15 ERA) faces Chicago Cubs RHP John Lackey (4-3, 4.37) on Monday night in the opener of a four-game series at Wrigley Field. Blach has replaced injured ace Madison Bumgarner in the rotation.

Cardinals: RHP Lance Lynn (4-2, 2.78 ERA) opposes Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw (7-2, 2.15) in the first of a three-game set Tuesday night at Los Angeles. Lynn has given up two runs or fewer in five of eight starts this season.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Mookie Betts hasn’t felt great about his performances lately, even if the results for the Boston Red Sox right fielder look just fine.

Betts homered and drove in two runs to back six quality innings by Eduardo Rodriguez and the Red Sox beat the St. Louis Cardinals 6-3 on Tuesday night in the opener of a two-game interleague series.

“I feel OK,” Betts said. “I had a good first at-bat and then not really another good one after that. So I’m just trying to put it all together.”

Betts went 1 for 5 and is batting .371 (13 for 35) with five homers and five doubles over his last eight games. He won AL player of the week Monday, but still says he is searching for better rhythm.

“I just feel like I’m not really consistent yet,” Betts said. “I have a good game and then a couple bad ones. That’s part of the game. It’s going to take a while.”

Jackie Bradley Jr. had two of Boston’s six hits, including a home run, and Rodriguez (2-1) allowed three runs and five hits. Rodriguez walked two, struck out five and threw a season-high 110 pitches.

“Overall he was solid,” Red Sox manager John Farrell said. “We played a strong game, I think, in every phase here tonight. Particularly some very good defensive plays.”

St. Louis made three errors and lost for just the second time in 10 games. Lance Lynn (4-2) gave up four runs, two earned, and three hits in six innings, striking out four and walking one.

“I gave up two early with the homers and the team fought back and gave me a lead and I gave it away,” Lynn said. “They gave me a chance to win and I didn’t get it done.”

Betts began the game with his seventh homer and 10th career leadoff shot, tying Jacoby Ellsbury for the franchise record. Bradley added a solo homer in the second for a 2-0 lead.

Craig Kimbrel pitched a scoreless ninth for his 12th save in 13 chances.

In the third inning, St. Louis’ Dexter Fowler smacked an RBI double off the left field wall, and Tommy Pham and Matt Carpenter followed with sacrifice flies.

The Red Sox scored twice in the fifth after a leadoff walk and an error. Bradley scored on an RBI groundout by Betts. Deven Marrero, who reached on an error by Jedd Gyorko, scored on Dustin Pedroia’s single to center to make it 4-3.

Boston scored twice in the eighth, on Christian Vazquez’s sac fly and then a dropped fly ball by Pham that was the third Cardinals error.

VELAZQUEZ TO START THURSDAY

Farrell said right-hander Hector Velazquez will be called up from Triple-A to start Thursday at Oakland. Velazquez, whose contract was purchased from the Mexican League in February, is 2-1 with a 1.55 ERA in five starts at Pawtucket.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Red Sox: LHP Drew Pomeranz, who left his start Sunday because of tightness in his left triceps, is scheduled to throw a bullpen session Wednesday. … INF Pablo Sandoval (knee sprain) could begin a rehab assignment Friday. … LHP David Price (left elbow strain) will make a rehab start for Pawtucket on Friday.

Cardinals: General manager John Mozeliak said INF Jhonny Peralta (upper respiratory) could be activated Friday and RF Stephen Piscotty (right hamstring) sometime over the weekend. … LHP Tyler Lyons (right intercostal strain) is expected to make one more rehab start. … RHP John Gant (groin) has been activated from the DL and optioned to Triple-A Memphis.

UP NEXT

Red Sox: RHP Rick Porcello (2-5, 4.01) is 1-1 with a 1.80 ERA in three road starts this season.

Cardinals: RHP Mike Leake (4-2, 1.94) is coming off a 3-2 loss to the Cubs in which he allowed two runs on five hits in six innings.

— Associated Press —