ST. LOUIS (AP) — Starlin Castro and Anthony Rizzo homered and combined for seven RBI and the Chicago Cubs earned their fifth straight win, beating the St. Louis Cardinals 8-5 in the middle game of a three-game series on Tuesday night.

The Cardinals have the best record in the majors at 87-51, but have dropped five of six. Their lead over Pittsburgh in the NL Central slipped to 4 1/2 games. The Cubs are 6 1/2 back and are second in the NL wild card race behind the Pirates.

St. Louis was down 8-0 and had been outscored 24-1 over three games before pinch-hitter Randal Grichuk sparked a five-run seventh with a two-run homer estimated at 451 feet into Big Mac Land in the seventh. Grichuk was activated from the disabled list strictly to pinch run on Monday.

Pedro Strop struck out Grichuk with the bases loaded to end the threat, pumping his fist as he jumped off the mound. Hector Rondon earned his 27th save in 31 chances.

Rookie Stephen Piscotty had two hits and two RBI for St. Louis.

Jason Hammel (8-6) allowed three runs in six-plus innings for Chicago, which has won five in a row.

Michael Wacha (15-5) gave up six runs in four innings, his shortest outing of the season and on 10 days’ rest. Like Lance Lynn a day earlier, the 24-year-old right-hander got pushed back and it backfired.

Lynn, held back three days by a sprained ankle he claimed felt fine, was spanked for six runs in 2 1/3 innings on Monday in a 9-0 loss.

Wacha had been 4-0 with a 1.70 ERA in six career September starts.

HEAD TO HEAD

Rizzo’s two-run homer in the first was the 100th of his career, and he added an RBI single against Carlos Villanueva in the seventh. He’s 8 for 19 against Wacha with two homers and four RBI. Castro hit a three-run homer off Wacha (15-5) in the second. He’s 9 for 19 against the right-hander with two homers and six RBI.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Cubs: Kyle Schwarber (oblique/ribs) grounded out pinch hitting in the eighth and could return to the lineup Wednesday after missing five games.

Cardinals: Kolten Wong (calf tightness) missed his second straight start.

UP NEXT

Jon Lester (9-10, 3.59) is 1-2 but with a 1.96 ERA in three starts against St. Louis this season. Carlos Martinez (13-7, 3.04) is 1-0 with a 6.75 ERA against the Cubs.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — As a trade deadline addition, Dan Haren was unaware the Cubs had struggled in St. Louis. In the end, it was probably better he didn’t know about Chicago’s sorry 1-6 record at Busch Stadium.

“I didn’t know we had struggled here,” Haren said after working seven innings in a 9-0 victory over the Cardinals on Monday. “Everyone has struggled against the Cardinals this year; they’re the best team record-wise.”

The NL Central-leading Cardinals maintained a 5 1/2-game lead over Pittsburgh, which lost 3-1 to Cincinnati. The Cubs are 7 1/2 games back.

Dexter Fowler had a leadoff home run and two-run double in the first two innings.

Before the game, manager Joe Maddon said he told Fowler: “You go, we go. He gets up there and makes us go.”

Fowler matched his season best for RBI and became the Cubs’ first switch-hitter to score 90 runs since Brian McRae scored 111 in 1996.

“I’m seeing the ball well, barreling balls well,” Fowler said. “The team camaraderie is awesome right now, even with the new guys coming in.”

Addison Russell’s three-run homer capped a five-run third that made it 8-0. The Cubs have won four in a row and got an 11-game trip off to a rocking start.

“We’ve got to beat them here, that’s really important regarding our development,” Maddon said. “So, it’s a nice first step, but let’s have another one-game winning streak tomorrow.”

Haren (9-9) had five strikeouts and two walks. He also contributed a single and sacrifice fly.

Lance Lynn (11-9) surrendered six runs in 2 1/3 innings on nine days’ rest after getting extra time to recover from a sprained ankle in his last start. The ankle wasn’t the issue.

“Just didn’t have any command,” Lynn said. “The ball was all over the place, and when I started making pitches they were already locked in.”

He wasn’t happy about getting the bonus time off.

“When you’re in a rhythm and a creature of habit, the extra time is never wanted,” Lynn said.

The Cardinals are 3-4 on this homestand with two games to go. They’re a major league-best 49-24 at Busch Stadium, but this was their most lopsided setback at home. They’ve been outscored 16-1 the last two games.

“I think we’ve been so accustomed to seeing that starting pitching so locked down that when we don’t see it, it looks extremely odd,” manager Mike Matheny said. “Today was one of those days.”

Fowler’s leadoff homer was his fifth this season and the 14th of his career.

The Cubs are 36-29 on the road, second best in the NL behind the Cardinals’ 38-27.

NO FREE PASSES

Cubs starting pitchers have walked three or fewer in 65 consecutive games, the longest active streak in the majors.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Cubs: Kyle Schwarber (rib/oblique) took swings indoors and manager Joe Maddon didn’t rule out the rookie for later in the series.

Cardinals: 2B Kolten Wong (calf tightness) was a late lineup scratch. He struck out pinch hitting and reached first in the ninth. Randal Grichuk (elbow) pinch ran in the ninth after being activated off the DL, but has not been cleared for hitting or throwing.

UP NEXT

Michael Wacha (15-4, 2.69) pitches for the first time since Aug. 28. He’s 4-0 with a 2.88 ERA in nine career starts with six-or-more days rest. Jason Hammel (7-6, 3.55) faces the Cardinals for the third time this season. He’s 1/3 with a 6.31 ERA record for his career against St. Louis.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — J.A. Happ is happy to be back in the National League and pitching in a pennant race.

Happ pitched seven scoreless innings and Starling Marte drove in three runs to lead the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 9-3 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday night.

Happ (4-1) allowed only three singles and won for the fourth time in six starts since being acquired from Seattle at the July 31 trade deadline. He retired 15 straight batters in one stretch, matched his season-high with eight strikeouts and walked none. He lowered his ERA with the Pirates to 1.57.

“It’s been a good transition,” Happ said. “(There’s) definitely some excitement on this team and possibilities for it.”

Happ was 4-6 with a 4.64 ERA before the trade.

“Sometimes a change of scenery can give a guy a shot in the arm,” Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said. “You don’t want to be a weak link and you re-acquire your focus knowing you’re being counted on. He’s showed up well.”

After being swept at last-place Milwaukee, Pittsburgh cut St. Louis’ lead in the NL Central to 5 1/2 games with its first win since Happ beat the Colorado Rockies last Saturday. It was the Pirates’ fourth win in their last 17 games at Busch Stadium.

“Happ was doing whatever he wanted,” Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. “He was on. That’s all there really was to it.”

Brandon Moss, who was traded from Cleveland to St. Louis at the deadline, had seen plenty of Happ when the left-hander spent the past three years in the American League.

“He had the velocity but he was a little more erratic with his command,” Moss said. “He kept the ball down really well and didn’t miss over the middle of the plate. It always seemed like he was ahead and they were quality pitches.”

Carlos Martinez (13-7), pitching for the first time in eight days, gave up four runs and seven hits and three walks in five innings. The 23-year-old was given extra rest because of a tight back and to monitor a workload that has reached 159 2/3 innings.

He allowed two runs in a 36-pitch first inning when the Pirates scored on a bloop single by Jung Ho Kang and a broken-bat single by Marte.

“We know giving him extra rest anytime we can get is the right thing to do,” Matheny said. “If the results don’t look right in the back end, so be it. That’s what we have to do to keep these guys healthy and hopefully strong.”

Andrew McCutchen had two hits and scored three runs in his return to the lineup after sitting out Thursday night.

“We weren’t swinging at his pitches,” McCutchen said of Martinez. “When we wait on our pitch and are ready to hit it, good things happen.”

Marte added a two-out, two-run double in the fifth for his first three-RBI game since June 5.

The Pirates scored four runs in the ninth on five hits and finished with 17 hits, their most against the Cardinals since June 29, 2012.

Rookie Stephen Piscotty drove in the Cardinals’ first run with an eighth-inning double. Piscotty had two hits and extended his hitting streak to 11 games.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Pirates: RHP A.J. Burnett (elbow) threw a simulated game before batting practice. “Another step forward,” Hurdle said. Burnett, who last pitched July 30, is hoping to return before the end of the regular season.

Cardinals: CF Jon Jay (left wrist) was activated from the disabled list after missing the past 57 games. He entered in the sixth and went 0 for 2.

UP NEXT

Pirates: RHP Charlie Morton (8-6, 4.22) is 2-10 with a 5.58 ERA in 16 meetings against the Cardinals.

Cardinals: LHP Jaime Garcia (7-4, 2.03) will make his first start against the Pirates in three years. He gave up four earned runs at San Francisco last Sunday, the first time he allowed that many this season.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS — Max Scherzer and the Washington Nationals’ bullpen got plenty of big outs. Ryan Zimmerman took care of the offense.

Zimmerman homered twice, then doubled home the tiebreaking run in the eighth inning as the Nationals ended their nine-game losing streak at St. Louis, beating the Cardinals 4-3 Wednesday night.

“We played well the first two games of the series but they’re a tough team to close out,” Zimmerman said. “They’re not 40 games over .500 for no reason.”

Zimmerman reached 200 career home runs with his second shot. Jayson Werth also homered for the Nationals.

“It’s hard to think about things like that when you’re still playing,” Zimmerman said. “But it’s not too bad for a guy who’s supposed to be a defensive specialist.”

Scherzer struck out 11, gave up 11 hits and left with a 3-2 lead after the sixth. Walking none was a big help.

“They grinded out a bunch of hits against me but I was always able to find a way to make a big pitch in a big situation, keep them at bay,” Scherzer said. “I was constantly on the attack.”

Johnathon Papelbon earned his 23rd save in 23 chances, escaping a first-and-third, one-out jam in the ninth. Rafael Martin (1-0) got one out for his first career victory.

Johnathan Broxton (1-4) took the loss. The Cardinals had a base open with one out in the eighth but elected to pitch to Zimmerman and see if he would expand his zone with two strikes.

“Zimmerman has issues this year with the right-handers, hitting under .200,” manager Mike Matheny said. “It didn’t work this time.”

Brandon Moss hit a 454-foot homer for St. Louis, which leads the Pirates by six games with 29 to play in the NL Central.

Kolten Wong had three hits for the Cardinals in their second loss in 11 games.

“Today, we just couldn’t pull it off,” manager Mike Matheny said.

Moss ended Wednesday night’s game in the ninth with a three-run homer. He led the second against Scherzer with the longest home run by a left-hander at 10-year-old Busch Stadium and the fifth-longest overall.

The Nationals answered with homers by Werth in the third and drives by Zimmerman in the fourth and sixth.

Zimmerman has 16 homers in an injury-abbreviated season, four in this series.

The Cardinals opted to give 15-game winner Michael Wacha some rest and fill-in starter Tyler Lyons allowed three runs in six innings. Lyons struck out six the first time through the order.

MICRO MANAGING

Nationals manager Matt Williams used four pitchers to escape the seventh when the Cardinals tied it on Wong’s RBI single but stranded two.

“We’re trying to get to the eighth,” Williams said. “We can’t run through the bullpen like this every night but we wanted to make sure we got one at least.”

BIG PLAY

Scherzer bounced a slider on strike three to Stephen Piscotty and the ball got away with two outs and a man on second in the sixth. Catcher Wilson Ramos quickly recovered it and made a perfect throw to first that was just in time.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Nationals: Bryce Harper (left glute tightness) was removed before the bottom of the fourth after going 0 for 2. … Tanner Roark will replace Stephen Strasburg (back) in the rotation Friday against Atlanta. Strasburg is scheduled for a bullpen session Thursday and could pitch as soon as Saturday. … OF Michael Taylor (right knee soreness) was a late lineup scratch.

Cardinals: OF Jon Jay (wrist) is close to returning to a now-crowded outfield.

UP NEXT

Nationals: Jordan Zimmermann (11-8, 3.45) has won his last three starts and faces the Braves at home.

Cardinals: Carlos Martinez (13-6, 2.91) faces the Pirates Friday to begin a weekend series with two extra days of rest. He’s 2-1 with a 4.35 ERA against Pittsburgh, much better than Lance Lynn, 0-2 and 6.94. Lynn (ankle) is getting extra time.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — This is what the St. Louis Cardinals had in mind when they acquired Brandon Moss at the non-waiver trade deadline.

“That’s a long way to go,” manager Mike Matheny said after Moss hit a three-run walk-off home run with two outs in the ninth inning for an 8-5 win over the Washington Nationals on Tuesday night.

“I know he’s been pressing a bit to show what he can do — and I think we’re seeing it.”

The NL Central-leading Cardinals have won nine of 10 and lead the division by six games. They’ve won nine in a row over Washington, coming from behind the last two nights.

After a very slow start since coming from Cleveland, Moss is starting to put things together. All three homers with St. Louis have come in the last six games, and his drive off Casey Janssen (1-4) was his fifth career walk-off.

“I’ve hit some good ones, but this one definitely is up there just because of where I’m at and how hard it’s been to get one here, and the timing of it,” Moss said. “Definitely up there.”

Moss, who struck out with the bases loaded to end the third, homered to straightaway center on a 1-0 count. Janssen said it was supposed to be a cutter inside and “I left it up and it was terrible.”

Janssen took the loss on Monday, allowing four runs in two-thirds of an inning.

Mitch Harris (2-1) worked the last two innings, allowing two hits. He was among three minor league call-ups Monday.

“Everybody wants to be in this position,” Harris said. “It’s great to be a part of it.”

Ryan Zimmerman homered and Anthony Rendon had a two-run double in a four-run third for Washington.

The Cardinals scored three runs on one hit in the bottom of the third and tied it with two runs on one hit with an error in the eighth.

Both starters lasted just 2 2/3 innings. Nationals rookie Joe Ross gave up one hit but had a season-high six walks and was charged with three runs. Cardinals call-up Marco Gonzales allowed four runs on seven hits with lots of solid contact.

Washington manager Matt Williams said Ross had trouble with his grip.

“He had problems feeling it and throwing it over the plate,” Williams said. “No issues physically, he just couldn’t command it.”

Gonzales, who was 1-4 with a 5.20 ERA for Triple-A Memphis, started in place of Carlos Martinez, who was scratched with back soreness but is expected to make his next turn.

“It’s been an up and down year for me as everybody knows,” said Gonzales, who was an effective rookie on the Cardinals’ NL championship series team last fall but has been slowed by injuries this season. “It’s a learning experience, for sure.”

Carlos Villanueva replaced Gonzales and restored order, allowing one hit in 3 1/3 innings with a season-high six strikeouts.

“He’s done that all season,” Matheny said. “He helps Marco get out of that inning and then he sails.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Nationals: Stephen Strasburg, limited to four innings by upper back tightness in his last start, played catch without problems. If he feels well, he’ll be scheduled for a bullpen session that would keep him on track to go Friday against Atlanta.

Cardinals: Matt Holliday took batting practice at Busch Stadium for the first time since straining his right quadriceps muscle and lined several homers. Lefty Tim Cooney will be shut down after three weeks of inactivity following an appendectomy.

UP NEXT

Max Scherzer (11-11, 2.88) tries to shake off a forgettable August in which he was 0-3 with a 6.43 ERA and surrendered seven homers in five starts. Michael Wacha seeks his 16th victory and was 3-0 with a 1.13 ERA in August.

HOT ROOKIE

Stephen Piscotty had two hits and is 16 for 38 (.421) during a nine-game hitting streak. He has 12 multi-hit games in 38 games.

— Associated Press —

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — It’s coming together for Brandon Moss at the plate, and that’s helping the National League’s best team playing as well as ever.

Moss, Matt Carpenter and Mark Reynolds all hit home runs, Yadier Molina drove in two and the St. Louis Cardinals beat the San Francisco Giants 7-5 on Sunday.

“My at-bats continue to feel a lot better than they were,” Moss said. “I feel like I’m squaring it up more often and if I can do that, the results will come.”

Jason Heyward added three hits and drove in a run for the Cardinals, who won for the seventh time in eight games. Greg Garcia also drove in a run.

“It’s coming together right now,” Heyward said. “Hitting-wise, we’ve kept our heads up and kept plugging away.”

Jaime Garcia (7-4) allowed season highs in hits (10) and runs (four) but was effective enough to improve to 4-0 over his past six starts. He did not walk a batter and struck out one, a season low.

“I made a few mistakes but I continued to battle,” Garcia said. “I got some big outs when I needed them and that kept us in it.”

Marlon Byrd celebrated his 38th birthday with a pair of doubles, a triple and four RBI. Kelby Tomlinson also drove in a run for the Giants, who ended a 3-3 homestand.

Byrd might have collected a couple more RBI if not for Moss’ diving catch in the third, stranding a pair of runners.

“It wasn’t the best read and I knew I had to dive to try and catch it,” Moss said. “I broke back the way it came off the bat.”

Chris Heston (11-8) returned to the rotation for the first time in two weeks. He was optioned to Triple-A Sacramento but did not pitch in a game, instead throwing two bullpen sessions.

“I don’t think that affected me,” Heston said. “I felt fresh. I just got some balls up and they hit them hard.”

Heston gave up five runs on nine hits in his 3 2/3 innings of work. He did not walk a batter and struck out one, matching his season low.

Brandon Belt had four hits and Buster Posey collected three hits for the Giants. Nori Aoki had two.

Kevin Seigrist pitched the ninth for his sixth save.

Carpenter hit the second pitch of the game for a home run as the first four Cardinals reached base safely. Stephen Piscotty singled, Heyward tripled and Molina singled.

The Giants got two runs back in the first on Byrd’s first double, but the Cardinals tacked on runs in the third, fourth and sixth.

“We added a few runs we really needed,” Moss said.

Byrd, who doubled in a run in the sixth and tripled in another in the eighth, has 11 RBI in his last four games.

Heyward was a home run shy of the cycle for the second straight Sunday. Piscotty finished the series 7 for 12 and with a seven-game hitting streak.

TRAINER’S ROOM:

Cardinals: Right-hander Lance Lynn reported no problems with his right ankle, which he injured during Saturday’s game. He expects to make his next start.

Giants: Infielders Brandon Crawford (tight oblique) and Joe Panik (lower back inflammation) both took grounders Sunday. Crawford is expected to play Monday night against the Dodgers.

UP NEXT:

Cardinals: RHP John Lackey (11-8, 2.92) starts the series opener against the Nationals and LHP Gio Gonzalez (9-7, 4.11) on Monday night.

Giants: RHP Jake Peavy (4-6, 4.21) gets the call Monday night as the Giants open an important NL West series against the Dodgers and LHP Brett Anderson (8-8, 3.36) in Los Angeles.

— Associated Press —

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Somehow, Lance Lynn stayed on his feet long enough to finally beat the San Francisco Giants.

Once, he caught his spikes and nearly topped down the dugout steps. Twice, his right knee buckled. And in the most scary scene of all, the St. Louis pitcher twisted his right ankle making a play and was forced to leave Saturday.

Lynn still wound up with his first career win over the Giants, sending the NL Central-leading Cardinals to a 6-0 victory.

Later in the clubhouse, Lynn pulled his tried-and-true cowboy boots over the tender ankle and vowed to take his next turn in the rotation.

“As long as I can get up and walk, I’ll be able to pitch next time out, so I’m not worried about it,” he said.

Lynn (11-8) pitched neatly into the eighth inning before leaving with a mild ankle sprain that’s not considered serious.

“Maybe I should file my cleats down a little more,” he quipped.

It sure had manager Mike Matheny worried.

Lynn awkwardly came off the mound to field Juan Perez’s leadoff chopper in the eighth and twisted his ankle trying to throw to first. That was Lynn’s final batter, and he’ll be reevaluated Sunday.

“Just sick when you see him go down like that because he’s a tough guy. He has a high pain tolerance,” Matheny said. “I never thought he was going to be walking off the field. That was huge.:

“He’s in there joking around about his non-athleticism right now. Good to hear. We don’t know what that means except it’s not a lot of the worst-case scenarios that were going through our minds,” he said.

Lynn gave up six hits, struck out two and walked two. He had been 0-4 with a 6.33 ERA in his previous four regular-season starts against San Francisco and 0-1 in three postseason outings.

The right-hander outpitched Ryan Vogelsong (9-10) after losing to him 2-0 on Aug. 18 at Busch Stadium.

The Cardinals broke open a scoreless game with four runs in the fifth.

“The big inning killed us there. We couldn’t stop them,” Giants manager Bruce Bochy said.

Brandon Moss led off with a triple and Matt Carpenter singled with one out. A single by Stephen Piscotty and a walk to Jason Heyward loaded the bases.

Reliever George Kontos’ second pitch was wild, allowing another run to score. Yadier Molina followed with a two-run single.

Piscotty later had an RBI triple, a day after the Cardinals’ five-game winning streak was stopped by the Giants.

San Francisco began the day 2 1/2 games back of first-place Los Angeles in the NL West.

Vogelsong, who twice beat the Cardinals during the Giants’ 2012 postseason run to the World Series championship, failed to reach five innings for the second straight start. He allowed four runs on seven hits and three walks in 4 2/3 innings.

The right-hander had been 2-0 with a 2.70 ERA over his previous three starts at AT&T Park. His defense gave him inning-ending double plays in the first and third before he ran into trouble in the fifth.

“Everybody knows we’re banged up, but I’ll take the ball with whoever is behind me,” Vogelsong said.

Cardinals reliever Sam Tuivailala, recalled from Triple-A Memphis on Friday, struck out three in the ninth and allowed two runners.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Cardinals: OF Matt Holliday, sidelined since July 30 with a strained right quadriceps muscle, was reevaluated in St. Louis. … Reliever Jordan Walden, out since April 29 with a strained right biceps, also has been seen again by team doctors. … Closer Trevor Rosenthal, put on the paternity leave list Friday, is set to rejoin the team Monday at home against Washington. He and his wife welcomed a baby girl Friday night.

Giants: C Buster Posey rested after being hit by a pitch in the left elbow Friday. … 2B Joe Panik, out since Aug. 2 with low back inflammation, did some running and hit in the indoor cage. He will take live BP on the field Sunday and is set to begin a rehab assignment Tuesday with Triple-A Sacramento. “It’s been a little while,” he said. “It’s nice to be wearing baseball pants again.”

UP NEXT

Cardinals: LHP Jaime Garcia (6-4) tries to win his fourth straight decision and complete an unbeaten August. He is 9-3 with a 1.64 ERA over his last 14 road starts dating to Sept. 15, 2012.

Giants: RHP Chris Heston (11-7) makes his first start since Aug. 17 at St. Louis and is 0-2 over his last four starts, going fewer than five innings in three of those. He was given an extended break in the minors.

— Associated Press —

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Rookie Kelby Tomlinson has been called upon out of necessity for the injury-plagued Giants, and he keeps delivering. Veteran Marlon Byrd has been called upon for big moments like this down the stretch, and is doing his part since coming to San Francisco this month in a trade from the Cincinnati Reds.

Tomlinson lined a bases-loaded single up the middle with one out in the ninth against previously unbeaten Kevin Siegrist, and the Giants topped the Cardinals 5-4 on Friday night to snap St. Louis’ five-game winning streak.

“He just seems comfortable here,” Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. “He’s hit everywhere he’s gone, Double-A, Triple-A and he’s continuing to do that.”

Left fielder Brandon Moss grabbed another glove from the dugout and moved in to make a five-man infield, then Tomlinson found a hole against Siegrist (5-1).

Byrd hit a grand slam off 15-game winner Michael Wacha in the third inning for the Giants, who kept pace 2 1-2 games behind NL West-leading Los Angeles.

Javier Lopez (1-0) got Moss to line out to second in the ninth and Tomlinson quickly fired to first to double up Stephen Piscotty, who was off the bag.

Byrd’s eighth career grand slam gave the Giants eight for the season, a franchise record. Byrd last hit one on July 9, 2013, while with the Mets facing the Giants at AT&T Park.

“This one’s a lot bigger,” Byrd said. “It’s a pennant race and the Dodgers already won. We needed this win tonight to stay on pace.”

The scoreboard went out for about four minutes and the ballpark lights briefly flickered twice.

Byrd, previously 0 for 17 against Wacha, sent the first pitch he saw in the third over the wall in center field moments after Buster Posey was hit on the left elbow to load the bases against the team with baseball’s best record.

“I’ve had a tough time against Wacha,” Byrd said. “That’s my only hit in my career, a lot of strikeouts. He’s tough. I got one pitch to do something with and put a good swing on it.”

Wacha surrendered an even more memorable shot more than 10 months ago.

Travis Ishikawa’s improbable walkoff three-run homer clinched the NL pennant for the Giants with a 6-3 Game 5 win against the Cardinals in the NLCS at AT&T Park last October.

Mike Leake retired the first nine batters in order but is still missing his first win after three starts since joining the Giants in a trade from Cincinnati on July 30.

Josh Osich relieved Leake with runners on first and second and one out in the seventh, then retired pinch-hitter Jason Heyward and Matt Carpenter.

Cardinals rookie Piscotty, who played at Stanford and grew up in nearby Pleasanton, hit a two-run double in the fourth as St. Louis pulled back within 4-3. The right fielder robbed Matt Duffy in the sixth with a diving catch that took him over the bullpen mound.

“Let’s not overlook, too, the fact we were down four in this game,” Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. “It was a great job of getting us back into this. Just couldn’t get a whole lot going.”

The Cardinals tied it on Leake’s wild pitch in the top of the sixth.

St. Louis, which turned nine double plays in its recent four-game sweep at Arizona, committed two errors in the Giants’ big third that made all four runs unearned.

Center fielder Gregor Blanco returned to the Giants’ lineup after missing two games with a left hip strain.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Cardinals: Matt Belisle, on the DL since June 26 with right elbow inflammation, threw a bullpen session. … OF Matt Holliday (strained right quadriceps muscle) is scheduled to be re-evaluated this weekend in St. Louis. … Closer Trevor Rosenthal was placed on the paternity leave list and recalled RHP Sam Tuivailala from Triple-A Memphis.

Giants: RHP Matt Cain went on the 15-day DL with irritation in his pitching elbow and received a cortisone injection to help it calm down. RHP Chris Heston was recalled from his rest period at Triple-A Sacramento and will pitch Sunday’s series finale. … SS Brandon Crawford missed his third straight game with tightness in his left oblique, and is unlikely to play the rest of the weekend. “It’s not something you want to rush,” Crawford said. “Obliques are one of the most re-injured.”

UP NEXT

Cardinals: RHP Lance Lynn (10-8) tries again for his first career regular-season victory against the Giants after beginning 0-4 with a 6.33 ERA in his previous four starts — and 0-1 in three postseason starts. The Cardinals managed only two hits in his start last week at Busch Stadium, a 2-0 loss. He has never pitched at AT&T Park in the regular season.

Giants: RHP Ryan Vogelsong (9-9) looks to bounce back from a start of 3 1/3 innings his last time out at Pittsburgh. He pitched opposite Lynn on Aug. 18, tossing six shutout innings to improve to 3-6 in the regular season vs. St. Louis.

— Associated Press —

PHOENIX (AP) — John Lackey pitched seven strong innings and the St. Louis Cardinals beat Arizona 3-1 on Wednesday night, their seventh straight win over the Diamondbacks.

The Cardinals scored four first-inning runs off Robbie Ray on Tuesday, but had to wait a little longer Wednesday with Patrick Corbin limiting them to Mark Reynolds’ homer in six innings.

St. Louis quickly took advantage after Corbin left, scoring twice off David Hernandez (1-4) in the seventh. Kolten Wong had an RBI double and Matt Carpenter a run-scoring single in the inning.

Lackey (11-8) bounced back from a shaky start, giving up a solo homer to Paul Goldschmidt in the first inning and little else. Trevor Rosenthal worked around a walk in the ninth for his 40th save.

St. Louis moved to 36 games over .500 (81-45), its highest since finishing the 2005 season plus-38. The Cardinals have won 12 of 13 against Arizona.

Lackey had a streak of 12 straight quality starts snapped his last time out, allowing five runs and nine hits in six innings of a loss to San Diego.

The right-hander was back on track against the Diamondbacks, getting them to chase breaking balls out of the strike zone for most of the game.

Goldschmidt got a good piece of a ball in the strike zone in the first inning, hitting a 471-foot solo homer, his 25th of the season. It was the 108th of his career, matching Justin Upton for fifth on Arizona’s all-time list.

Lackey limited the damage after that with some defensive help from his teammates.

Centerfielder Tommy Pham robbed Aaron Hill of extra bases in the fourth inning by diving to snare a line drive in the gap. Wong made a nifty backhanded stop in the fifth to start an inning-ending double play.

Lackey gave up a run and seven hits, the 11th time in 13 starts he allowed two runs or less.

Corbin lasted six outs his last start, allowing four runs and eight hits against Cincinnati in a no-decision.

The left-hander was sharp against the Cardinals, giving up two hits — one by Lackey — until Reynolds lined a solo homer over the wall in left in the fifth inning. The homer, which tied the game 1-all, was Reynolds’ 11th of the season.

Corbin allowed the run and three hits and struck out seven in his 10th start since returning from Tommy John surgery.

UP NEXT

Cardinals: RHP Carlos Martinez has a 2.15 ERA since May 20 heading into Thursday’s series final against the Diamondbacks.

Diamondbacks: RHP Rubby De La Rosa, Thursday’s starter, is 5-0 with a 2.54 ERA and 26 strikeouts in his last seven starts.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Cardinals: OF Jon Jay, who’s been bothered by a sore wrist, took an extended round of batting practice before the game.

Diamondbacks: LF David Peralta fouled a ball into the dirt that bounced back up and hit him in the nose, but he stayed in the game after being attended to by the team trainer.

— Associated Press —

PHOENIX (AP) — Jaime Garcia knew when he came to the plate to bat in the first inning that it looked like another good night for the St. Louis Cardinals.

And it was.

The Cardinals batted around in a four-run first and went on to rout the Arizona Diamondbacks 9-1 on Tuesday night.

“It’s a good feeling when you have to get up to hit in the first inning,” Garcia said. “It means something good is happening.”

Tommy Pham had his second career three-hit game and Garcia pitched six strong innings for the Cardinals.

Three days after his first three-hit game, Pham singled twice and got his second career triple. He scored three times.

Six players had RBI for the Cardinals, two apiece for Jhonny Peralta, Jason Heyward and Yadier Molina. The Cardinals’ Peter Bourjos’ got his first career pinch-hit home run.

Garcia (6-4) allowed a run and four hits, striking out six and walking one. His ERA dropped to 1.77.

The Cardinals earned their MLB-best 80th victory and are 35 games above .500.

“We keep track of that but we’re right in the middle of a dogfight in our division,” St. Louis manager Mike Matheny said. “I think it’s good for us to be honest with you, just keep pressing and make sure we’re not backing off. There’s no time for that.”

The Cardinals lengthened their lead to five games over second-place Pittsburgh in the NL Central.

“We just keep playing a good game every single day and demand that it should look a certain way,” Matheny said. “I think that’s something these guys do. They have a responsibility to themselves, this organization, our fan base. I think they’re representing themselves well.”

Robbie Ray (3-10) lasted three innings plus two batters. He allowed six runs and five hits. Ray walked five, hit a batter and struck out one.

“They jumped on him,” Arizona manager Chip Hale said. “They got the runs obviously. That is easy to see but we made some mistakes again behind him, with the defense. We let them get some extra bases, the throws from the outfield. It happened a couple of times. You just can’t do that with a team like this.”

With Ray having control issues, the Cardinals jumped on the young left-hander for four runs in the first.

Matt Carpenter started it with a leadoff walk. Heyward had a two-run single and Molina an RBI double. Kolten Wong snapped an 0-for-8 skid with an RBI single. Molina, not the fastest base runner to say the least, stole third in the inning.

Ray faced two batters in the fourth without getting an out. He hit Carpenter with a pitch and gave up a single to Pham. The runners scored on sacrifice flies by Peralta and Molina.

Bourjos’ homer to left came on the first pitch he saw from Randall Delgado in the seventh inning.

The Diamondbacks lost their second straight to the Cardinals after returning home one game above .500 following a four-game sweep of Cincinnati. Arizona fell 6 1-2 games behind the NL West-leading Los Angeles Dodgers.

EMOTIONAL VISIT

Reliever Evan Marshall visited Chase Field for the first time since he was struck in the head by a line drive while pitching for the Diamondbacks’ Triple-A Reno affiliate in El Paso three weeks ago. Marshall’s jaw was fractured and he had bleeding in his brain. Speaking publicly for the first time, Marshall said he had only minutes to live and wouldn’t have survived had doctors not acted so quickly. His wife Ani called it a “terrifying” experience but says she can’t wait to see her husband back on the mound.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Cardinals: Carpenter was hit in the elbow by a pitch in the fourth and left the game in the seventh. However, Matheny said Carpenter was not hurt.

Diamondbacks: RHP Archie Bradley (shoulder) was activated from the 15-day DL and assigned him to Reno.

UP NEXT

Cardinals: RHP John Lackey (8-8, 2.99 ERA) makes his team-leading 26th start of the season as the Cardinals try to clinch the four-game series.

Diamondbacks: LHP Patrick Corbin (3-3, 4.30) makes his 10th start since coming back from Tommy John surgery.

— Associated Press —