CINCINNATI (AP) — Adam Wainwright became the National League’s first eight-game winner by dominating Cincinnati again, and the St. Louis Cardinals pulled away to a 4-0 victory Sunday night that completed another successful series against their division rival.

The Cardinals are 6-3 against the Reds this season. They’ve won 10 of their last 11 series together.

Overall, St. Louis has won nine of its last 11 games and moved to within 1 1-2 games of first-place Milwaukee in the NL Central.

Wainwright (8-2) beat Johnny Cueto and the Reds on opening day in Cincinnati, allowing only three hits during seven innings of a 1-0 victory. On Sunday, the right-hander gave up five hits in eight innings and matched his career high with 12 strikeouts.

He set the tone by striking out five of the first six batters on a total of 24 pitches. He got Brandon Phillips on three pitches that clocked 73, 91 and 93 mph.

Tony Cruz and Kolten Wong each had a pair of singles and drove in a run off Mike Leake (2-4). Wong also stole a pair of bases.
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The game drew 42,273 fans, the Reds’ third sellout crowd of the season. All three sellouts have come against the Cardinals.

Leake went six innings and continued his streak of solid pitching. The right-hander hasn’t allowed more than two runs in any of his last five starts, giving up a total of eight earned runs.

With Wainwright on his game again, it was two runs too much. Wainwright, the NL’s Cy Young runner-up last season, lowered his ERA to 1.67. In his last two starts, he has given up only six hits and no runs in 17 innings.

Cruz led off the third inning with a single and advanced on Wainwright’s sacrifice bunt. Wong singled up the middle with two outs for a run.

Matt Adams singled, Allen Craig walked and Cruz singled home a run with two outs in the sixth. The Cardinals added a pair of runs in the seventh with the help of two errors by the Reds, who lead the majors in fielding percentage.

Wainwright pitched out of Cincinnati’s best threat in the fifth, when the Reds got runners to second and third with two outs. He got Billy Hamilton on a called third strike to end the inning.

Hamilton struck out four times against Wainwright on opening day and three more times Sunday, leaving him 0 for 7 with seven strikeouts and a walk off the right-hander.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — After returning from Triple-A Memphis a day earlier, Shane Robinson didn’t take long to make his presence felt with the big club.

Robinson was given a start and made the most of it by going 3 for 4 with two RBIs and a run scored and the St. Louis Cardinals completed a three-game sweep of Arizona by beating the Diamondbacks 4-2 Thursday night.

“It was a good feeling to be able to get in there and help out the club and get a win tonight,” Robinson said. “I’m just feeling blessed to be up here.”

Allen Craig drove in the go-ahead run with a two-out double in the seventh inning. Craig was 2 for 4 and also scored a run.

The sweep was the first of a three-game series this season for St. Louis, which has won seven of eight.

Pat Neshek (1-0) pitched scoreless seventh and eighth innings to pick up his first win as a Cardinal.

“You try to throw strikes and keep the game within reach and maybe our hitters will score,” Neshek said. “Tonight, they did.”

Trevor Rosenthal retired Arizona in order in the ninth for his 14th save in 16 chances.

Arizona’s Paul Goldschmidt had an RBI single and Aaron Hill drove in a run with a sacrifice fly. Diamondbacks starter Wade Miley (3-5) lasted 6 2/3 innings and allowed three runs and seven hits and four walks with three strikeouts.

Miley seemed poised to get through seven innings as he retired Matt Carpenter and Peter Bourjos on groundouts to start that inning.

But he walked Matt Holiday, and Craig hit his next pitch into the gap in right-center to score Holliday and give St. Louis a 3-2 lead.

“He was trying to hit the ball the other way in that situation and get back on track,” Miley said of Craig. “I make a better pitch and it’s a different situation.”

Matt Carpenter gave the Cardinals some insurance with a two-out RBI single off Arizona reliever Joe Thatcher in the eighth.

Arizona manager Kirk Gibson credited the Cardinals for their ability to extend innings.

“They scored two-out runs on us this whole series,” Gibson said. “They’re very good at that.”

The Diamondbacks jumped on St. Louis starter Lance Lynn early.

Gerardo Parra led off the game with a single to right and went to second on a walk to Martin Prado. Goldschmidt singled to right to score Parra and move Prado to third. Hill then made Arizona’s first out, but it was a productive one as his sacrifice fly to right made it 2-0.

But those were all the runs that Lynn allowed. He lasted six innings and allowed seven hits and a walk while striking out six.

“I stopped throwing the ball down the middle,” Lynn said. “I left a few balls up in the first. I was able to regroup.”

St. Louis scored twice in the sixth to tie it at 2-2.

With one out, Craig reached on an infield single to second.

One out later, Craig moved to third on Jhonny Peralta’s double down the line in left. Robinson then scored both of them when he followed Peralta with a double to the gap in left-center to tie it 2-2.

“My swing feels pretty good right now,” Robinson said. “I had a chance to work on it down there (at Memphis) I think it helped getting in right away.”

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Adam Wainwright threw a one-hitter, facing one hitter over the minimum, and the St. Louis Cardinals ended an eight-game home run drought with long balls from Matt Adams and Jhonny Peralta in a 5-0 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday night.

Working on six days rest because of a rainout and day off, Wainwright (7-2) retired the first 11 batters before Paul Goldschmidt doubled off the wall in center with two outs in the fourth. He matched his season best with nine strikeouts, fanning A.J. Pollock twice.

Peralta hit his team-leading ninth of the season in the sixth and added one of the Cardinals’ five doubles for a second RBI against Bronson Arroyo (4-3). Arroyo had been 3-0 with an 0.39 ERA in May and hadn’t allowed a homer his last four starts. Arroyo gave up five runs in seven innings.

Adams’ two-run shot in the first was the Cardinals’ first since May 9 when Peralta and Craig homered at Pittsburgh. It was their first in nine home games since Adams and Craig connected against the Brewers on April 30.

The Cardinals entered with 23 homers, fewest in the National League and second fewest in the majors.

The one-hitter was a career best for Wainwright, who has thrown four two-hitters. He threw his second shutout of the season and the eighth of his career on a day Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said struggling closer Trevor Rosenthal would not be available. Rosenthal has two blown saves his last five appearances, the last coming when he pitched for the fourth straight game and took the loss against the Braves on Sunday.

The Diamondbacks arrived minus new chief baseball officer Tony La Russa, who managed the Cardinals for 16 seasons and retired in 2011 after leading them to a second World Series title. Manager Kirk Gibson said before the game he didn’t think it would have been a distraction.

“Having him around, we look at as a positive,” Gibson said. “I would say he’s probably a little better at making decisions than I am.”

Pollock made an outstanding running catch in center field a few steps from the wall to rob Molina of extra bases in the sixth.

The Diamondbacks’ first three hitters had been 15 for 28 with four homers and 11 RBIs the previous three games.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — The Atlanta Braves used a two-run rally in the ninth to end their road trip with a win.

Ryan Doumit scored on a wild pitch and the Braves got two runs in the ninth inning to rally past the St. Louis Cardinals for a 6-5 win.

The Braves have been held to two runs or fewer 19 times, but they managed to score twice off St. Louis closer Trevor Rosenthal (0-2) to take the game Sunday.

“We got a happy flight,” said Atlanta first baseman Freddie Freeman, who reached base four times. “We grinded all day and so did the offensive hitters. We never caved today and we gut one out in the ninth.”

Freeman started a ninth-inning rally with a leadoff single off St. Louis closer Trevor Rosenthal (0-2).

With two outs, Freeman went to third on pinch hitter Ryan Doumit’s double to right. Rosenthal intentionally walked pinch hitter Evan Gattis to load the bases and then walked Jordan Schafer to force in the tying run.

Carlos Martinez relieved Rosenthal and had a wild pitch while facing Ramiro Pena that scored Doumit to make it 6-5.

“A battle royal there at the end,” Atlanta manager Fredi Gonzalez said. “We just kept getting good at-bats and it’s nice to win this one. Maybe it will get us going in the right direction.”

St. Louis dropped a game it was close to winning.

“It would have been a big win, no question,” St. Louis manager Mike Matheny said. “They’re all tough, but to have a lead in the ninth, even a slim one, that a tough one to lose.”

Dan Carpenter (3-0) pitched 1 1/3 innings of scoreless relief for the win. Craig Kimbrel pitched a scoreless bottom of the ninth for his 11th save in 13 chances. The save was the 150th of Kimbrel’s career.

Cardinals starter Jaime Garcia pitched seven innings in his first outing in more than a year.

Garcia, who underwent surgery in May 2013 to repair a torn labrum and rotator cuff in his pitching shoulder, allowed four runs and five hits with five strikeouts. The outing was Garcia’s 100th appearance in the major leagues, but first since May 17, 2013.

“I made some good pitches, I made some mistakes,” Garcia said. “I had some butterflies going on in the first inning, but nothing different.”

Kolten Wong drove in three runs with a bases-loaded double in the second inning.

Freeman went 3-for-3, including a solo home run in the first and a two-run single in the sixth.

Justin Upton homered leading off the fourth for the Braves. The homer was the 10th for Upton, who also doubled and scored two runs.

“It’s big,” Freeman said. “I don’t know if you can say a must win, but it’s definitely nice to get one.”

The Braves failed twice to close out innings due to defensive miscues with two outs. That allowed the Cardinals to score four runs.

With two outs in the seventh and Yadier Molina on first, Jhonny Peralta hit a high fly ball to center field. Schaefer lost the ball in the sun and it fell just to his right side. Peralta was credited with a double and Molina scored to give the Cardinals a 5-4 lead.

In the second inning, Braves starter Gavin Floyd appeared headed for an easy second inning when he struck out Peter Bourjos for what would have been the third out.

But the ball got away from catcher Gerald Laird for a passed ball, allowing Bourjos to reach first. A hit by Garcia and a walk to Matt Carpenter loaded the bases and Wong cleared them with a double down the line in left to make it 3-1.

Atlanta rallied to tie the game 4-4 on Freeman’s two-run single with one out in the sixth.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — When Braves second baseman Tyler Pastornicky backpedaled into shallow right field to catch the popup and Jason Heyward didn’t arrive fast enough to take charge, Kolten Wong got the green light.

The rookie raced home with the tying run on surely the shortest sacrifice fly of Yadier Molina’s career, one of many big plays the St. Louis Cardinals made with their legs in a 4-1 victory over the slumping Atlanta Braves on Saturday.

“By the time I realized I could get there, it would have been tough to call him off,” Heyward said. “Heads up play on their part by sending the runner.”

Wong and Peter Bourjos each had a pair of bunt singles, three of them fueling rallies. Bourjos got picked off after beating out a bunt leading off the third, but squeezed home an insurance run in the seventh.

“I think today was probably one of the best representations of what speed can do for us,” manager Mike Matheny said. “A lot of guys made things happen, getting on base and creating havoc.”

Wong set up the tying run by beating out a bunt to lead off the fourth. He squared around for another hit in the sixth and drew a wild throw from catcher Evan Gattis while stealing second, producing the go-ahead run.

The Cardinals matched their season high with their fourth straight win.

Miller (6-2) allowed a run and five hits in seven innings, one inning longer than his previous high this season. He matched his season best with seven strikeouts, fanning B.J. Upton three times, and called it his best outing of the year “for sure.”

“I felt like we did a really good job of keeping the hitters off-balance and getting ahead in the count,” Miller said. “Just an all-around good day, but at the same time there’s still room for improvement.”

Trevor Rosenthal fanned two in the ninth inning, with Upton striking out a fourth time, to earn his 13th save in 14 chances. He has a save in three straight games for the second time in his career.

Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez was ejected in the fifth inning for arguing a call that led to a bunt double play. He could face a fine for charging out of the dugout a second time and thought the ball was “maybe 5, 6 inches foul.”

“That’s what I kept asking: Can we get some help from one of the guys on the line?” Gonzalez said. “What are you going to do? We still scored one run.

“But that would have been a nice opportunity to try again to advance a runner,” he added.

Andrelton Simmons had three hits for Atlanta, which lost its third in a row and scored fewer than three runs for the 19th time in 41 games this season.

Miller has won six straight decisions in seven starts after losing his first two of the season. The last three St. Louis starters have worked seven innings.

In the fifth, Harang stayed in the batter’s box after his attempt to sacrifice Simmons to third didn’t go far. Molina pounced on the ball and threw to third, with shortstop Jhonny Peralta covering, for a tag play. Peralta had an easy relay to first to finish with second baseman Wong covering for an unusual 2-6-4 double play.

“What stinks is sometimes it’s those little plays that change the tempo of the game,” Harang said. “If it’s called four, then I can get another one down. It’s tough, you know.”

The Braves capitalized on shoddy defense to take the early lead.

Simmons scored from first on Harang’s two-out single — the pitcher’s first hit of the year. Harang took third after left fielder Matt Holliday threw behind him, then trotted home after Wong’s wild throw from second.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Allen Craig had three hits, drove in a run and scored twice and Lance Lynn allowed two runs over seven innings to lead the St. Louis Cardinals to a 5-2 victory over the Atlanta Braves on Friday night.

Lynn (5-2) allowed seven hits walked two and struck out three. Carlos Martinez retired the Braves on four pitches in the eighth and Trevor Rosenthal set down the side in order for his 12th save in 13 opportunities.

Matt Carpenter and Kolten Wong had two hits each and scored a run for St. Louis. Matt Holiday, Matt Adams and Yadier Molina all drove in a run for the Cardinals.

St. Louis finished the game without manager Mike Matheny and center fielder Peter Bourjos, both of whom were ejected by home plate umpire Sean Barber at the end of the fourth inning for arguing balls and strikes.

The Braves’ Chris Johnson went 2 for 4 with a run scored. Johnson is batting .377 (20 for 53) in May.

While Johnson has been hot, his teammates have not. The Braves, who have lost 11 of 16, were held to two or fewer runs for the 18th time.

Ervin Santana (4-1) took his first loss as a member of the Braves. Santana lasted five innings and allowed five runs and 10 hits with one walk and three strikeouts.

St. Louis broke open a 2-2 tie by scoring three times in the fifth. With one out, Carpenter and Wong singled. Holliday followed with an RBI double down the right field line to score Carpenter. Wong scored on Craig’s single to left and Molina made it 5-2 with a sacrifice fly.

The Braves took a 1-0 lead in the second on a two-out RBI single by Tyler Pastornicky, but the Cardinals tied it in the bottom of the inning on Adams’ RBI double. After the Braves took a 2-1 lead in the fourth on Andrelton Simmons’ 6-4-3 double play ball, the Cardinals tied it in the bottom of the frame when Craig scored from third on Santana’s wild pitch with two outs.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — When it comes to being a hitter, St. Louis rookie Michael Wacha would rather talk about his pitching.

Wacha threw seven innings and drove in two runs with a single, helping the Cardinals to a 5-3 victory Thursday over the Chicago Cubs.

The 6-foot-6 Wacha (3-3) had lost his last three decisions since an April 13 win over the Cubs. The 22-year-old right-hander allowed seven hits, including a homer, but did not walk a batter. He struck out five.

“I was able to pound the strike zone down in the zone and it was pretty effective,” Wacha said. “I kept them off-balance, which means it’s a pretty good day. It’s definitely nice to go deep into a ballgame and get a win. It definitely gets your confidence going in the next start that’s for sure.”

Trevor Rosenthal pitched 1 2/3 innings for his 11th save. Rosenthal, who blew a save Tuesday, inherited a one-out, bases-loaded situation and gave up a sacrifice fly, but closed out the inning and retired the side in the ninth.

The Cubs have lost nine of their last 11 and are off to the worst start in 39 games (13-26) since 2002.

Jason Hammel (4-2) gave up five runs on five hits and two walks in 5 1/3 innings, raising his ERA to 3.06. Hammel had six strikeouts.

St. Louis scored four runs in the second inning on Wacha’s two-run single in between a run-scoring groundout by Yadier Molina and Matt Carpenter’s RBI double.

It was Wacha’s first hit and RBIs of the season.

“It’s nice to finally have a batting average,” Wacha said.

St. Louis manager Mike Matheny noted it was a timely hit.

“Mike was good and obviously getting that hit there to drive in a couple runs it was kind of a huge boost to us at that point,” Matheny said.

With two outs, Hammel might have escaped with little damage but he had to throw a strike on a 3-2 count to Wacha and the bases loaded.

“I got behind Wacha with two wild ones,” Hammel said. “I came in with a fastball and he hit it.”

Chicago got two runs back in the fourth on a home run just inside the left-field foul pole by Starlin Castro. He drove in No. 3 hitter Anthony Rizzo, who beat the St. Louis shift to the right side with his second bunt to the left side in two at-bats.

Rizzo has three career bunt singles with the Cubs with one coming in his previous 285 games.

“If they’re going to give me that, I might as well take it,” Rizzo said. “We were able to cash in once. I almost make them pay twice for it. Wacha is a great pitcher but you get him on the stretch and try to get him off his game a little bit.

“You know if teams are going to give me that, for the most part, I’m going to take it every time.”

When Rizzo came to bat in the fifth and seventh, St. Louis did not shift.

“Rizzo took advantage of the shift until they changed their defense on him,” Chicago manager Rick Renteria said. “That led to our first two runs when Starlin drove the ball out of the ballpark. He’s really looking at the game from a lot of different angles. Think about it, you’re down four runs and a solo home run is not going to do a whole lot for you.”

The Cardinals made it 5-2 when Molina lined a 3-2 pitch just inside the line in left for a one-out RBI single.

Junior Lake hit a sacrifice fly for a run in the eighth, but Rosenthal got out the jam.

St. Louis lost a challenge in the third when Matt Holliday was called out on a close play at first after hitting a grounder to shortstop. The time of the review was 2 minutes, 54 seconds.

— Associated Press —

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Shelby Miller won his fourth straight start and Trevor Rosenthal induced a bases-loaded double play to end the game as the St. Louis Cardinals held off the Pittsburgh Pirates 6-5 on Sunday night.

Allen Craig and Yadier Molina had two hits each, including RBI singles in a four-run first inning. Craig went 5-for-11 in the three-game series after entering with a .202 batting average. Molina was 0-for-12 in his previous four games.

Miller (5-2) walked four and allowed four hits in 5 1/3 innings, but held the Pirates to just two runs — which came on Jordy Mercer’s first home run of the season in the fourth inning.

Rosenthal gave up a run in the ninth that made it 5-4, but got Mercer to hit into a 1-2-3 double play to end it.

Charlie Morton (0-5) took the loss.

— Associated Press —

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Neil Walker wasn’t expecting to have a big offensive game Friday night, especially with Michael Wacha pitching for the St. Louis Cardinals.

The last time Wacha started at PNC Park was in the Game 4 of last year’s National League Division Series and he took a no-hitter into the eighth inning in beating the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Yet the hot-hitting Walker had three hits, including a go-ahead three-run home run in the seventh inning, and drove in four runs to help the Pirates beat the Cardinals 6-4.

“Wacha is so good, as we found out last year,” said Walker, who has reached base in 22 of his last 40 plate appearances. “He throws hard and you’ve got to shorten up your swing and put the ball in play. That’s the best way to approach him because you’re usually not going to do too much against him.”

While Walker’s first two hits were against Wacha, his seventh homer came off Carlos Martinez (0-2) and rallied the Pirates from a 4-3 deficit for their third straight victory. Jordy Mercer and pinch-hitter Gaby Sanchez led off the inning with singles and were bunted up a base by Jose Tabata before Walker hit a drive into the right-field stands.

“Martinez is as tough as Wacha, but he hung a slider and I was able to put a good swing on it,” Walker said. “I was surprised. The guy has such great stuff that you’re not thinking that you’re going to hit a home run in that situation. It was huge.”

Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said it didn’t appear that Martinez got the home run pitch “where he wanted it.”

Mercer had three of the Pirates’ 12 hits, while Ike Davis, who hit a two-run double in the first inning to open the scoring, and Tabata had two hits apiece. Pittsburgh beat St. Louis for the 10th time in 13 games at home.

Mercer’s performance was a welcome development for the Pirates and their shortstop, who is hitting just .187.

“I’ve been putting in a lot of time in the batting cage, trying to figure things out and it’s nice to have some results because I feel confident now when I step in the batter’s box,” Mercer said. “Confidence is such a big part of hitting.”

St. Louis had gone ahead earlier in the seventh on Jhonny Peralta’s solo home run, his eighth. Allen Craig’s three-run home run, his fourth, accounted for the Cardinals’ other runs.

Peralta and Craig had two hits apiece in the Cardinals’ second loss in five games.

Justin Wilson (1-0) struck out the only batter he faced, Matt Adams, to end the top of the seventh. Mark Melancon, filling as the closer for injured Jason Grilli, pitched a scoreless ninth for his third save.

Both starting pitchers worked five innings and had uneven performances. Pittsburgh’s Francisco Liriano allowed three runs, five hits and four walks while striking out five, while Wacha gave up three runs on seven hits with seven strikeouts and one walk.

Liriano has gone a career-long 11 regular-season starts without a win since beating the Texas Rangers last Sept. 10. Wacha is winless in his last five starts.

— Associated Press —

CHICAGO (AP) — Yadier Molina drove in two runs with a two-out single in the ninth inning and the St. Louis Cardinals snapped out of an offensive funk with a 5-4 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Sunday night.

The defending National League champions had lost four of five to fall a game below .500. The Cardinals scored all their runs with two outs.

Molina, moved into the No. 2 spot to jump start the lineup, was 0 for 4 before coming through in the ninth.

Kevin Siegrist (1-1) got the win in relief, while Trevor Rosenthal picked up his eighth save in as many opportunities despite a scare in the ninth inning.

Hector Randon (0-1) took the loss for the Cubs, who were attempting to win four straight games for the first time since July.

While Cardinals manager Mike Matheny had looked for Molina, one of his hottest hitters, to get the offense going, it was a couple of struggling batters at the bottom of the lineup that got things started early.

With two outs in the second inning and Jhonny Peralta on first base, Randal Grichuk drilled a triple into the right-center field gap for a 1-0 lead. Mark Ellis followed with a double to left-center to make it 2-0.

Both Grichuk (.167) and Ellis (.143) entered hitting well below .200.

St. Louis stretched the lead to 3-0 in the third. After the first two batters were retired, Matt Holiday walked and Matt Adams followed with a double into the gap in left-center to score Holiday.

The Cubs pulled within 3-2 in the fourth with some clutch two-out hitting. With one out, Ryan Kalish singled and John Baker walked. After a groundout moved the runners to second and third, Hammel singled to right to drive in both.

The Cubs tied the score in the seventh when Luis Valbuena tripled with two outs and scored on a wild pitch by reliever Carlos Martinez on the first pitch to Starlin Castro.

Molina’s go-ahead single to center came on the sixth 1-2 pitch of the at-bat from Randon.

Valbuena doubled in a run with two outs in the ninth to make it 5-4, but Rosenthal got Rizzo to ground out to end the game.

— Associated Press —