MILWAUKEE (AP) — Matt Holliday hit a solo homer with two outs in the top of the ninth inning off Brewers closer Francisco Rodriguez, completing the St. Louis’ Cardinals comeback from a six-run deficit for a 7-6 win Friday night over Milwaukee.

Milwaukee has lost six straight and 10 of 11 games.

Holliday sent the first-pitch changeup from Rodriguez (3-3) into the left-field seats to break the tie. The Cardinals hit four homers and cut the sliding Brewers’ lead in the NL Central to one game.

Trevor Rosenthal wrapped up six shutout innings for the St. Louis bullpen with his 28th save, getting two strikeouts after allowing a leadoff single to Aramis Ramirez in the bottom of the ninth. All-Star setup man Pat Neshek (4-0) tossed 1 1/3 scoreless innings for the win.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Edinson Volquez tossed a complete game six-hitter to win his fourth straight start and the Pittsburgh Pirates downed the St. Louis Cardinals 9-1 on Thursday night.

Neil Walker, Josh Harrison, Russell Martin and Andrew McCutchen all drove in two runs for Pittsburgh, which avoided being swept in the four-game series.

Volquez (8-6) has a 0.90 ERA in winning four consecutive starts for the first time in his career. He struck out five and walked two.

Shelby Miller (7-8) allowed four runs in five innings. He walked four and struck out one.

Walker extended his hitting streak to a season-high 12 games with a two-run double in the fifth that extended the Pirates lead to 4-1. McCutchen started the three-run uprising with a run-scoring single that broke a 1-all tie.

McCutchen drove in a run in the sixth with a sacrifice fly. Harrison added a two-run double in the inning that made it 6-1.

Martin homered off Jason Motte in the ninth. Martin drove in his 500th career run in the first inning.

The Cardinals were playing without All-Star catcher Yadier Molina, who tore a ligament in his right thumb in Wednesday’s 5-2 win. Molina will undergo surgery on Friday and is expected to miss 8 to 12 weeks.

St. Louis tied it in the third on a sacrifice fly by Matt Carpenter. Kolten Wong began the inning with a single.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — St. Louis Cardinals All-Star catcher Yadier Molina will undergo surgery Friday to repair a torn ligament in his right thumb and could miss the rest of the season.

The team estimated Molina could be sidelined eight to 12 weeks. He’s hoping to make it back in seven or eight weeks.

”I almost cried,” Molina said before Thursday night’s game against the Pirates.

”Mentally, it’s so frustrating. You play hard for something to happen like that, it’s bad.”

Molina got the news Thursday morning, three days from his 32nd birthday. The Cardinals left Busch Stadium Wednesday night prepared for the worst news and minor league call-up Audry Perez was already on the way.

General manager John Mozeliak said he’d be on the lookout for a ”stopgap” solution.

For now, backup Tony Cruz is the starter for the defending National League champions who’ve had a rash of serious injuries recently.

Lefty Jaime Garcia also will undergo season-ending thoracic outlet surgery Friday to relieve nerve pain and numbness and right-hander Michael Wacha is on the 15-day disabled list indefinitely with a stress fracture in his pitching shoulder.

Manager Mike Matheny said it’s important for the players to just keep going. The first step, he said, would be to consider the series finale against the Pirates as a day off for Molina.

”I’m going to continue to scream at the top of my lungs that this is an opportunity for us to step up, all of us,” Matheny said. ”The great players, the great teams, take this stuff and figure out a way to get it done.”

Molina was injured Wednesday when he planted his hand for balance after sliding feet-first into third base in the second inning. He caught another half-inning before Cruz hit for him in the third.

The slide was the same as it’s always been, except for one critical difference.

”This time,” he said, ”my thumb got stuck in the dirt.”

Molina said it would take five weeks for the thumb to heal after surgery and then he’d begin a rehab program. Matheny said the team had to formulate a rehab plan.

Perez was recalled from Triple-A Memphis and will be the backup behind Cruz, who totaled 51 at-bats the first 92 games with a .255 average and eight RBIs and also is a strong defender.

”I’ve got 100 percent confidence, I have no doubt he can do it,” Molina said. ”Tony’s smart, he’s a good player, a good hitter, a good catcher.”

Molina was voted to his sixth straight NL All-Star team Sunday and is a starter for the fourth time. He was hitting .287 with seven homers and 30 RBIs and led the major leagues by throwing out 47 percent of attempted base stealers along with three pickoffs.

He has been extremely durable, averaging 135 games the past six seasons. He missed two weeks with a sprained knee last season.

Now, he’ll be an adviser and unofficial cheerleader for the defending National League champions.

”I will be in the dugout, I’ll be with the team,” Molina said. ”I’m part of the team.”

The 27-year-old Cruz has been a backup the past four years with 12 starts this season. He had 28 starts both in 2013 and 2012.

The 25-year-old Perez was batting .288 with two homers and 11 RBIs in 44 games at Memphis and threw out 29 percent of base stealers. He played in two major league games last season with one at-bat.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Lance Lynn reached double figures in wins before the All-Star break for the third straight year and the St. Louis Cardinals are charging hard in the NL Central.

Still, after they made it three straight over the Pittsburgh Pirates there was reason for some concern.

All-Star catcher Yadier Molina sprained his right thumb on a slide and was taken out for a pinch-hitter in the third inning. He was undergoing an MRI as the Cardinals finished their 5-2 victory Wednesday night.

“I hope everything’s all right,” Lynn said. “You definitely don’t want something to happen.”

Results of the MRI were not available after the game and manager Mike Matheny said the team would re-evaluate the injury on Thursday.

“He went through some tests and you could feel some irritation there, obviously,” Matheny said. “He was still trying, he got it taped up and was convinced he was going back in, but we had to get it looked at.”

Rookie Kolten Wong homered for the second straight game and Matt Adams had three hits and two RBIs. The Cardinals will go for a four-game sweep over the NL Central rival they beat in the division series last fall on Thursday.

“We’re getting great starting pitching, great pitching out of the bullpen and our offense is swinging it like we know how to,” Adams said.

The defending National League champions are two games behind the Central-leading Brewers.

“I would say September is when you really start paying attention to what’s going on,” Lynn said. “But it’s always good to be right there, no matter what time it is.”

Neil Walker homered and doubled for Pittsburgh, which had won 12 of 15 entering the series and dropped the first two on game-winning, ninth-inning homers by Adams and Wong.

“We’ve been playing good baseball,” catcher Russell Martin said. “The Cardinals are just playing a little better.”

Rookie Brandon Cumpton (3-3) started in place of injured Gerrit Cole and was charged with four runs and nine hits in 3 1/3 innings.

“He wasn’t sharp, fell behind in counts and the fastball was up more than down,” manager Clint Hurdle said. “He wasn’t living on the edges with the fastball as he normally does.”

Lynn (10-6) allowed two runs and six hits in 6 2/3 innings and has 32 wins before the All-Star break his first three seasons in the rotation. The right-hander is tied for most pre-All-Star wins with Detroit’s Max Scherzer over that stretch and is the first Cardinals pitcher to do it in three straight seasons since Hall of Famer Bob Gibson totaled 34 wins from 1968-70.

“That’s pretty awesome to be in the same sentence,” Lynn said. “He was a great pitcher.”

Walker’s 12th homer leading off the second was the first allowed by Lynn at home this season.

Adams’ two-run double in the first put the Cardinals ahead to stay and he added two singles to give him 12 in the last six games. Wong hit his fourth homer off Justin Wilson in the eighth.

Molina was voted to his sixth straight All-Star team Sunday and is a starter for the fourth time. He slid feet-first into third base advancing on a groundout in the second and came up shaking the right hand after planting it a bit for balance.

Matt Holliday had two hits, two walks and an RBI and Jhonny Peralta had an RBI double for St. Louis.

Cumpton was in constant trouble and the Cardinals missed a chance to bust it open by stranding nine runners the first four innings.

Trevor Rosenthal worked the ninth for his 27th save in 31 chances. Peter Bourjos made a leaping catch for the final out at the wall in center field with a man on to rob Martin of extra bases.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS — Kolten Wong was sitting on a fastball, hoping for extra bases to get something going in the ninth inning.

The rookie downplayed his power after giving the St. Louis Cardinals their second straight game-winning, ninth-inning home run on a two-out, full-count drive that soared well beyond the right field wall.

“I’m definitely not the kind of guy to hit a home run,” Wong said after the 5-4 victory stunned the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday night. “Usually, I’m always that guy there getting ready to jump on someone coming home.

“For me to be switches places with someone, that was awesome.”

A night earlier, Wong was part of the joyous celebration at the plate after Matt Adams hit his first career game-winning homer. He was just about to douse “Big City” with two cups of water before catcher Yadier Molina tackled him.

This time, it was Wong getting mobbed. He said his last game-winning homer came in college at Hawaii against Louisiana Tech.

“It was a little scary, I saw those big guys and I didn’t know if I was going to get beat up or what,” Wong said. “It was awesome, seeing those guys and how excited they were. This is a huge win for us.”

Ernesto Frieri (1-1) got two routine outs before Wong, batting eighth, hit his third homer on a full count.

“I give him credit,” Frieri said. “That was a really good at-bat. I didn’t want to walk him, I don’t want to put the winning run on base.”

The drive over the right-field wall was estimated at 420 feet. On Monday night, Matt hit his first winner off Justin Wilson in a 2-0 victory.

“It’s not the first time we’ve had two tough losses and it probably isn’t going to be the last time this year,” Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said. “That’s what makes the season so interesting.

“Great crowd, exciting games, one swing of the bat at the end changed the game, and shower up and get ready to play again tomorrow.”

The Cardinals last had consecutive game-winning homers when Albert Pujols twice beat the Cubs on June 4 and 5, 2011. They have four game-winners this season overall.

Wong also gave the Cardinals the early lead with a two-run double in the second.

Trevor Rosenthal (1-4) struck out Starling Marte on three pitches with two on to end the ninth.

Pedro Alvarez and Andrew McCutchen hit two-run homers off Carlos Martinez, in the fourth and fifth innings, respectively, and McCutchen’s 14th of the season put them up 4-2. Alvarez has 100 career homers with 14 homers and 47 RBIs against St. Louis, most of any opponent.

Matt Holliday had been 2 for 14 on the homestand before tying it with a two-run double off Vance Worley in the fifth. He batted second the previous 14 games while battling a slump and manager Mike Matheny put him back in his usual third slot Wednesday with Jon Jay batting second to give the top of the lineup more flexibility to bunt and hit and run.

Holliday took a called third strike and bounced out before the double for his first multi-RBI game since June 15.

Martinez allowed four runs in six innings, the longest of his five starts this season. Worley lasted five innings, the shortest of his five starts this season with Pittsburgh, and the four runs was the most he’s allowed.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — After beating the team he grew up rooting for with his first career game-winning hit, Matt Adams couldn’t resist a celebratory fist pump just a few steps out of the batter’s box.

“This is unbelievable,” Adams said after his two-run home run in the bottom of the ninth inning gave the St. Louis Cardinals a 2-0 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Monday night in the opener of a four-game series with the NL Central rival they beat in the division series last fall. “I don’t even know what to say.”

Adams is from Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania, and starred at Slippery Rock College, but the Pirates never showed any interest. He joked that the only people in western Pennsylvania that were happy were “probably a handful of family members.”

“I don’t think I touched the dirt the whole way around (the bases),” Adams said.

Matt Carpenter drew his third walk leading off the ninth and Matt Holliday flied out before Adams hit his 10th homer on an 0-1 hanging breaking ball from Justin Wilson (2-1). It was the Cardinals’ first game-winning homer since Skip Schumaker connected against the Kansas City Royals on June 19, 2011.

“As soon as I made contact I knew it was gone,” Adams said. “It felt good off the bat.”

Adams entered the game batting just .190 against lefties but has been the Cardinals’ top threat lately with six hits the last two games. He foiled the Pirates’ shift in the first lining an opposite field double to left.

“He’s a dad-gum good hitter, man,” Cardinals starter Adam Wainwright said. “I think we’re just breaking the ice of the surface of what this guy can do.”

Wilson said simply: “Bad pitch, good hitting. Probably the worst time to hang a breaking ball there.”

Wainwright, the Cardinals’ 11-game winner, scattered seven hits in seven scoreless innings without consistent location on his fastball.

“I felt like I had the command of an A-ball pitcher,” Wainwright said. “I should be good for the next start, I got plenty of work out of the stretch.”

Pat Neshek (3-0) worked a perfect ninth against the top of the order for St. Louis.

The game lasted 2 hours and 37 minutes but was extended by two rain delays totaling 58 minutes.

Morton remained 2-10 for his career against the Cardinals although he reduced his ERA to 5.58. He was lifted in the eighth when the Pirates loaded the bases with two outs. Sam Freeman struck out rookie pinch-hitter Gregory Polanco.

“It might not be logical to you, it was kind of logical to me,” manager Clint Hurdle said. “I thought our better opportunity was to send somebody up other than Charlie.”

The Cardinals squandered a chance in the eighth when Jon Jay was doubled off second after pinch-hitter Oscar Taveras lined out to right.

The Pirates had runners in scoring position five times against Wainwright, who has thrown 14 2/3 scoreless innings his last two outings. He was particularly tough on fellow Al-Star Andrew McCutchen, who tapped out to end the fifth to waste Starling Marte’s triple and flied out with two on to end the seventh.

Right fielder Josh Harrison, chosen by Cardinals manager Mike Matheny as an All-Star reserve on Sunday, made an outstanding diving catch to rob Jhonny Peralta of a hit in the second.

Rain — or the threat of it — was a dominant factor early with the grounds crew ever on alert. The start was delayed 47 minutes with the tarp down in anticipation of a storm and ominous clouds looming but no precipitation,

It was halted 11 minutes by heavy rain after the Pirates stranded two in the first. Some Pittsburgh players began running off the field when a second brief storm hit just before the game resumed and crew chief Joe West appeared ready to call another halt before dropping his arms and retreating to first base.

Plate umpire Alan Porter made a rarely seen call in the first after Russell Martin was plunked in the arm, ruling that Martin hadn’t made an attempt to get out of the way. Instead of loading the bases with two outs, the pitch was simply ball three for a full count and Martin flied out.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Not long after Jose Fernandez was lost for the season with an elbow injury, the Miami Marlins found a new ace.

They’ve won a franchise-record 10 in a row when Henderson Alvarez takes the ball.

“He’s been really good for us, especially since Jose went down,” cleanup hitter Casey McGehee said Sunday after Alvarez (6-3) worked seven stingy innings and started the key rally with the first of his career-best three hits in an 8-4 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals.

“He pretty much did today what he’s done all year for us. We love having him out on the mound.”

McGehee extended his hitting streak to a career-high 13 games with an RBI single in the first. Marcell Ozuna had a two-run single in a three-run sixth that made it 4-0, and Jarrod Saltalamacchia’s three-run homer off Jason Motte put Miami up 8-1 in the eighth.

The Marlins had lost four of six before taking two of three from their spring training partners. The first two games of the series were decided by one run.

“This group is special,” manager Mike Redmond said. “We’ve bounced back all year.”

The Marlins easily took the series finale despite stranding 14 runners, largely because of Alvarez. He’s 4-0 with a 1.04 ERA since May 16, allowing two or fewer runs in each of his last nine games.

“I’ve always wanted to be a leader,” the 24-year-old right-hander said through a translator. “I’m just focused on being a pitcher.”

Kolten Wong, just off the 15-day disabled list, had two hits and homered in the seventh for the lone run against Alvarez. Matt Adams had a career-best four hits, including an RBI double.

“All we can do is stick with our approach and go up there and get the barrel on the balls, and that’s what we’re doing,” Adams said. “We’re just hitting it right at people right now.”

Cardinals rookie Marco Gonzalez (0-2) allowed a run in 4 2/3 innings despite giving up seven hits and walking five in his third career start since being recalled from Double-A Springfield. He yielded five runs in each of his first two starts.

“You look at the bottom line, obviously it wasn’t as efficient as he wanted to be and we had to get him out early,” manager Mike Matheny said. “He kept us in there and made good pitches when he had to.”

Alvarez struck out to end the second and then had a hit in three consecutive at-bats, the biggest a leadoff bloop single in the sixth. He topped his previous best of two hits, done twice, and raised his average this season to .250.

Obviously, that’s a bonus.

“I’m glad he’s on our side, especially since he’s been lights out,” Redmond said. “I think we all feel so confident when he takes the ball.”

The three-day weekend series drew 133,736 fans, with the first two games sold out and the finale just shy at 42,160. It was 84 degrees at game time and temperatures were unseasonably mild throughout.

Redmond, a former catcher, remembers St. Louis and Kansas City as the hottest cities in the majors, with triple-digit temperatures this time of year and “just roasting out there.”

“It’s gorgeous,” Matheny said before the finale. “Yesterday, I didn’t realize it during the game but it was a beautiful day.”

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Casey McGehee didn’t have to wait long to get another shot against Cardinals closer Trevor Rosenthal with a game on the line. Just a few hours.

The Miami Marlins cleanup hitter grounded into a game-ending double play in a one-run loss Friday night. He wasn’t thinking about instant redemption before getting the key two-out hit in a ninth-inning rally of a 6-5 victory on Saturday.

“A lot of times you don’t ever get it,” McGehee said. “You’ve got to be OK with the fact that those guys, they’re going to get you some times — more times than not.

“You can’t go up there with that in your mind, but when you are able to get a hit like that it definitely feels good.”

Rosenthal called it a “tough at-bat against a good hitter, and he won the battle.”

McGehee fouled off five full-count pitches before lining a long game-tying single. He took second on the throw home, then beat the relay to the plate on pinch hitter Jeff Baker’s go-ahead hit off Sam Freeman.

“I was going, I had to take a chance right there,” McGehee said. “I’m not blessed with the greatest speed in the world. I was just trying to get there as quick as I could.”

Donovan Solano was running from first on McGehee’s hit and just beat a relay that catcher Yadier Molina couldn’t quite handle.

The Marlins also scored two runs off Rosenthal in the series opener but fell short in a 3-2 loss. Christian Yelich’s three-run homer off Seth Maness in the sixth began Miami’s comeback from a four-run deficit that snapped the Cardinals’ three-game winning streak.

“You always feel bad letting down the team, but it’s part of the game,” Rosenthal said. “No one’s perfect. So I’ll go out there again and try to do my best.”

Mike Dunn (6-4) worked a scoreless eighth and Steve Cishek finished for his 19th save in 21 chances.

Allen Craig and Jhonny Peralta homered on consecutive at-bats against Andrew Heaney in a four-run fourth inning that put the Cardinals up 5-1. Rosenthal has four blown saves in 30 chances.

The Cardinals entered with 49 homers, tied with the cross-state Royals for fewest in the majors, and hit back-to-back homers for the first time this season. Craig’s two-run shot was his first since May 29 and came after two days on the bench, and two pitches later Peralta hit his team-leading 13th just inside the foul pole in left.

Shelby Miller needed 107 pitches to work 5 1/3 innings and was charged with three runs on nine hits. Miller saved a run that kept it tied at 1 in the fourth, bare-handing Heaney’s two-out safety squeeze bunt and diving as he flipped the ball to the plate in time to tag Marcell Ozuna.

Crew chief Tim Welke denied the Marlins’ appeals that Ozuna had been safe and that there had been obstruction at plate.

Heaney gave up five runs on eight hits in 3 2/3 innings, the worst of his four career starts. He faced 23 hitters and 12 reached safely.

The Marlins nicked Miller for a run on three singles in the first with McGehee getting the RBI and extending his hitting streak to 12 games, a career best. The Cardinals tied it on a hit batter, walk and Molina’s single in the bottom half.

St. Louis stranded two in the first when Jon Jay took a called third strike and Allen Craig, making his first start in three games, grounded out with the bases loaded to end the second.

After the game the Marlins activated shortstop Adeiny Hechavvia (triceps strain) from the 15-day disabled list after the game and manager Mike Redmond anticipated he’d play in the series finale Sunday. Heaney and outfielder Jake Marisnick were optioned to Triple-A New Orleans and Tom Koehler was activated from paternity leave ahead of Monday’s scheduled start at Arizona.

The Marlins had discussed skipping Heaney’s next turn and Redmond noted the lefty was at Class A last year.

“We want to make sure he’s confident and right,” Redmond said. “Your game has got to be tight.”

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Yadier Molina has lined into so many hard outs, the St. Louis Cardinals figured he was overdue.

Molina and Oscar Taveras placed consecutive two-out RBI doubles just out of right fielder Giancarlo Stanton’s reach in a three-run sixth inning in a 3-2 victory over the Miami Marlins on Friday night.

“Both were hit pretty well, too. Not like they were pop-ups that were dropped,” manager Mike Matheny said. “We’ve seen Yaddy hit a lot of balls that way that don’t find the grass and he finally found one that did.”

Lance Lynn bounced back from his worst start of the season with 6 2/3 scoreless innings and the Cardinals won their third straight.

Stanton, who entered with an NL-leading 21 homers and 61 RBIs, was 0 for 4. He punched the padded wall in frustration after his glove failed him for the second time, and Marlins starter Nathan Eovaldi (5-4) also showed frustration when he slammed his glove into the dugout on his way off the field after the inning.

Manager Mike Redmond didn’t blame Stanton, who left without speaking to reporters. He thought Molina’s drive ticked off the bottom of Stanton’s glove.

“I thought he had a good bead on it, he just came up a little short,” Stanton said. “He ran a long ways for both of those balls.”

The first four Marlins reached safely in the ninth before Trevor Rosenthal earned his 26th save in 29 chances. Christian Yelich’s RBI single eluded a sliding Matt Holliday in left and Stanton walked with the bases loaded before Casey McGehee grounded into a game-ending double play.

Earlier in the inning, Matheny unsuccessfully appealed that the Marlins’ Donovan Solano had passed teammate Reed Johnson tagging up at second when he had thought Holliday had made the catch. He wasn’t trying to buy time for his closer.

“We get an out there, it’s a great trade for a delay,” Matheny said. “We haven’t had many of those — hardly any — go our way.”

Matt Carpenter doubled off the top of the wall in center field to open the sixth, missing a home run by inches and circling his fingers as he arrived at second base. The Cardinals lost a crew chief appeal that lasted just 53 seconds, but Carpenter scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch and Molina and Oscar Taveras drove in a run apiece.

Lynn (9-6) allowed five hits with six strikeouts and three walks. He is 4-4 on the road and in his previous outing lasted two innings and surrendered a season-worst seven runs, six earned, while also troubled by a blister on the middle finger of his pitching hand in a loss to the Dodgers.

Lynn said the problem had been losing the callous on the finger, not the blister. In any case, he had no finger issues.

“It’s just part of pitching,” Lynn said. “When it was all said and done, I had a really good sinker. When I have that, we’re going to use it.”

Eovaldi allowed two singles and two walks in the first five innings. He gave up three runs on four hits in the sixth.

Attendance of 46,131 to begin a seven-game home stand was the Cardinals’ 24th sellout in 41 games.

— Associated Press —

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Jhonny Peralta knew he hit it well. He didn’t know how well until the ball landed in the seats.

Peralta’s two-run homer produced the first runs scored by St. Louis in its first at-bat since June 18, a span of 14 games, leading the Cardinals past the reeling San Francisco Giants 7-2 on Thursday.

“I’d heard from the guys that you need to hit it hard to get it out here,” Peralta said.

Carlos Martinez (2-3) earned his second win as a starter and added a two-run single for the Cardinals, who won their second straight after losing three in a row. Martinez allowed a run and five hits in five innings. He walked one and struck out six.

“We’ve had our struggles at the plate,” Peralta said. “It was good to start it off in the first inning.”

Madison Bumgarner (9-6) fell to 0-3 over his past four home starts after allowing five runs — four earned — and six hits over five innings. He walked three and struck out six.

Bumgarner also drove in a run for the Giants, who have lost 17 of 22 and fell out of first place in the NL West.

“You always want to play at home and I haven’t pitched very good here all year,” Bumgarner said. “I don’t know what it is. You can’t give in, you have to keep grinding.”

Help could be on the way. The Giants optioned first baseman Adam Duvall to Triple-A Fresno after the game in anticipation of recalling Brandon Belt in time for Friday’s game in San Diego.

“He’s somebody we like having out there,” Bumgarner said. “It’s not going to do anything but help us.”

Angel Pagan may return to the Giants lineup early next week, giving them some semblance of order at the top of the lineup.

Matt Carpenter continued ripping Giants pitching, extending his hitting streak against them to 11 games with a 2-for-4 effort. He has a .519 (28 for 54) career average against the Giants and has hit safely in 18 of his 20 games, including the postseason, against them.

“It’s one of those crazy things,” Carpenter said. “Luck has been on my side so far I guess.”

Yadier Molina added three hits and Oscar Tavares, John Jay and Shane Robinson each drove in a run for the Cardinals.

Peralta’s first-inning home run, after Carpenter drew a walk, put St. Louis ahead to stay.

“I was able to work the walk and Jhonny hit the home run,” Carpenter said. “That kind of set the tone and we found a way to pile it on.”

Bumgarner drove in a run for the Giants in the third, but then gave up three runs in the fourth — two on a single from Martinez.

Robinson, pinch hitting for Martinez in the sixth, tripled home a run. Tavares added an RBI in the seventh.

The Giants loaded the bases with two outs in the fifth, but Martinez got Buster Posey on a swinging strike three to end the threat.

In the sixth, Tyler Colvin walked, Adam Duvall singled and Brandon Crawford punched a single into right field. An error allowed Colvin to score.

Sam Freeman, Seth Maness and Jason Motte combined to keep the Giants at bay.

— Associated Press —