ST. LOUIS (AP) — The Chicago Cubs’ kids roughed up an All-Star reliever who has been close to untouchable.

Rookies Javier Baez and Jorge Soler had two RBIs apiece against Pat Neshek in a go-ahead eighth inning, leading the last-place Cubs to a 7-2 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday night.

“That’s baseball,” Neshek said. “This game’s not for the weak. You can’t beat yourself up too much.”

Soler, 22, homered twice and was 3-for-3 with three RBIs. He homered in his first career at-bat Wednesday and has seven hits in 11 at-bats over his first three games since being called up from Triple-A Iowa.

“I can’t expect that we’ll expect that every single day,” manager Rick Renteria said. “That would be impossible.”

Soler signed a nine-year contract in 2012 out of Cuba and began the year at Double-A Tennessee.

“I feel so happy,” Soler said through an interpreter. “I don’t know how to explain it. Everything is going so good right now.”

Baez had a tiebreaking two-run double in the eighth. He is batting .192 in 99 at-bats but has seven homers and 15 RBIs.

“I was just trying to make contact,” Baez said. “I think that’s my greatest at-bat since I came up.”

The Cardinals lost in the return of Yadier Molina. The All-Star catcher, who had been sidelined by a torn ligament in his right thumb, went 0-for-3 and was hit by a pitch in his first major league game since July 9.

The crowd at Busch Stadium gave Molina a standing ovation when he walked in from the bullpen after pregame warm-ups and another cheer before he batted in the first inning.

Neshek (6-1) led National League relievers with a sparkling 0.81 ERA entering the game. It was 2-all when he came in to begin the eighth, and he gave up hits to the first three batters.

“Everybody that’s watched this team all season long realizes that just hasn’t happened,” Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. “He’s been incredible.”

Chicago’s Neil Ramirez (2-1) allowed two hits in a scoreless seventh.

Cubs starter Kyle Hendricks worked six solid innings after a rough beginning in his bid to become the franchise’s first rookie to win five games in August.

“That first inning, I wasn’t throwing any pitches with conviction,” Hendricks said. “My stuff wasn’t like it was the rest of the game because I wasn’t throwing it.

“Luckily I was able to roll from there.”

Soler hit his second homer of the season on Shelby Miller’s first pitch of the seventh, tying it at 2. He then hit a two-run shot with two out in the eighth.

Luis Valbuena and Arismendy Alcantara also homered for the Cubs. They entered with 30 homers this month, tied for most in the NL.

Cubs reliever Justin Grimm struck out four in the ninth. One of the batters reached on Grimm’s wild pitch.

Matt Holliday and Jhonny Peralta had RBI singles in the St. Louis first. After Peralta’s hit, Hendricks retired 11 in a row.

— Associated Press —

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Ike Davis wasn’t able to play meaningful late-season games during his time with the New York Mets. He’s making the most of his chance with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

“It’s the first time he’s been involved in games that have this kind of significance this late in the season,” Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said Wednesday after Davis’ long home run keyed a 3-1 win over the St. Louis Cardinals. “He’s showing up to the ballpark ready contribute any way he can.”

Davis hit a two-run drive off a speaker above the seats in right-center field in the second inning. A day earlier, Davis had a pinch-hit, tiebreaking, three-run homer in the eighth inning of Pittsburgh’s 5-2 win.

Davis arrived in the major leagues with the New York Mets in 2010 and was traded to Pittsburgh in April. The Mets finished with losing records in all of his seasons in New York.

“It’s hard when you’re mathematically eliminated,’ Davis said. “You hit a home run and it’s a great feeling still, but it’s kind of like it didn’t really matter. If you’re still in it, it definitely feels a little sweeter.”

Davis hit his 10th homer after Adam Wainwright (15-9) plunked Russell Martin on the left elbow with a pitch that Martin barely tried to avoid. Davis sent an 88 mph cutter clanking off a speaker raised on a pole, about 15 feet above the seats, a drive estimated at about 433 feet.

“I just got the barrel on it,” Davis said. “It just carried out today.”

Wainwright knew he made a mistake when he saw where his pitch was headed.

“I threw it right into Ike’s swing path, and he made a good swing on it,” Wainwright said. “I wanted to get the pitch higher, but I got it and down and in, and that’s a left-handed hitter’s honey spot right there.”

Davis also had an inning-ending lineout that left the bases loaded in the fifth.

Pittsburgh took two of three from the defending NL champions and has won five of seven overall. St. Louis (71-61) leads the NL wild-card race, with San Francisco (69-62) trailing by 1 1/2 games and the Pirates (69-64) one game back of the Giants for the second wild-card berth.

Jeff Locke (6-3) allowed one run and six hits in 7 1/3 innings, giving up Matt Holliday’s third-inning homer. Locke also singled in the third and scored on Andrew McCutchen’s sacrifice fly, just the 11th hit for the pitcher in 98 career at-bats.

Mark Melancon pitched a one-hit ninth for his 24th save in 28 chances.

Locke escaped trouble in the third, stranding Daniel Descalso on third when Josh Harrison made a diving stop on Randal Grichuk’s two-out grounder down the line and threw to first

Wainwright allowed three runs and eight hits in six innings. He gave up five runs to Philadelphia on Aug. 22 and has gone winless in consecutive starts for just the second time this season.

“Yo’ure not going to be at your best all time,” Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. “Right now, he’s not at his best, but he showed some good signs today.”

— Associated Press —

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Ike Davis didn’t complain when the Pittsburgh Pirates told him they were going to eat into his playing time by experimenting with Pedro Alvarez at first base. Call it the byproduct of spending four-plus seasons with the New York Mets.

“You kind of get immune to stuff after a while,” Davis said. “Kind of my career has been starting, not starting, so I’m used to it.”

Davis is simply happy to be in a pennant race at the moment. He provided a needed jolt in a pinch-hit appearance Tuesday night, connecting for a tiebreaking three-run homer off St. Louis reliever Seth Maness in the eighth inning of a potentially costly 5-2 victory.

Pirates star Andrew McCutchen left in the fifth inning because of discomfort in his left ribs. Recently on the disabled list because of a rib problem, the center fielder ran into the wall earlier in the game.

“Today caught up to him in a couple of different ways,” Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said of the reigning National League MVP. “Tonight got to be a point where we didn’t think we needed to push any farther than he did.”

It’s uncertain whether McCutchen will be available Wednesday, but Pittsburgh survived for a few innings without the four-time All-Star thanks in large part to Davis. The Pirates squandered six brilliant innings by Gerrit Cole when Tony Watson (9-1) couldn’t get out of a two-on, no-out jam in the seventh that allowed the Cardinals to tie the game.

No matter. Watson recovered to get out of the jam and retired the side in the eighth, and the Pirates wasted little time getting to Maness in the bottom of the inning. Gaby Sanchez singled with one out, and Starling Marte followed with his second hit of the night.

The Cardinals decided to stick with Maness (5-3) after a brief conference. It didn’t work.

Davis shook off a called strike that appeared to be below his knees and delivered a towering shot to right-center that landed in the last row of seats.

“We got into a good count, had a couple real nice pitches and left one up in the middle,” St. Louis manager Mike Matheny said. “That’s not going to turn out well.”

Josh Harrison also homered for the Pirates, and Mark Melancon worked the ninth for his 23rd save.

Jon Jay and Randal Grichuk each drove in a run for the Cardinals. Lance Lynn gave up two runs over six innings in a bid for his fourth consecutive win.

Pittsburgh, trying desperately to stay in the hunt for a wild-card slot, appeared in danger of a second straight disheartening defeat after a brilliant effort by Cole vanished.

The 23-year-old overwhelmed the Cardinals for long stretches in his second start since returning from the disabled list after being sidelined by right lat soreness. St. Louis didn’t get a hit until a two-out double just inside the first-base bag by Kolten Wong in the sixth. Cole responded by fanning Matt Holliday for his ninth strikeout of the game.

Hurdle decided to send Cole back out for the seventh with a 2-0 lead even though he had thrown 102 pitches. Trouble soon followed.

Matt Adams led off with a double, and Jhonny Peralta followed with a single. Watson, who has slipped a bit over the past month following a dazzling first half, came on but couldn’t quell the rally.

Adams scored on a sacrifice fly by Jay, and Grichuk — called up earlier in the day after outfielder Shane Robinson was placed on the disabled list with a shoulder injury — slapped a single up the middle to tie the game.

— Associated Press —