ST. LOUIS (AP) — The St. Louis Cardinals needed a big hit, and Dexter Fowler delivered — again.

Fowler hit a three-run homer and Adam Wainwright tossed five solid innings, leading St. Louis to a 6-5 win over the Philadelphia Phillies on Sunday.

The Cardinals have won three in a row since a season-high seven-game losing streak.

Daniel Nava homered for the Phillies, who have dropped five in a row.

Philadelphia led 2-0 before Fowler connected against Aaron Nola (3-4) in the fifth inning. Eight of Fowler’s nine homers in his first season with St. Louis have given his team the lead.

“I could have kissed him,” Wainwright said. “That was such a big hit for us as a team, but also for me.”

Tommy Pham, who had two hits, scored twice and drove in a run for St. Louis, said Fowler’s homer served as a perfect pick-me-up.

“A big momentum-shifter right there,” Pham said. “He’s a clutch player.”

Wainwright (7-4) gave up six hits, struck out four and walked two, bouncing back nicely from a rough start at Cincinnati on Tuesday. Seung Hwan Oh pitched a rocky ninth inning for his 15th save.

Wainwright needed 50 pitches to get through the first two innings, but allowed just one hit over his final three frames.

“I had very, very average stuff,” Wainwright said. “It wasn’t coming out great. But we found a way to win.”

Nola gave up just four hits, but needed 93 pitches to get through five innings on a 90-degree afternoon.

“I just didn’t execute the pitch where I wanted it,” Nola said of the Fowler home run.

Pham and Eric Fryer added run-scoring singles in the sixth, and Kolten Wong’s RBI double made it 6-3 Cardinals in the eighth. Wong’s hit took on added importance when Oh faltered in the ninth.

Philadelphia pulled within one on RBI singles by Odubel Herrera and Howie Kendrick. Oh then got Tommy Joseph to fly to right with two runners on, ending the game.

“It was good to see us score off their closer in the ninth inning,” Philadelphia manager Pete Mackanin said. “We just fell short again.”

WORTH NOTING

Herrera went 3 for 5 with two RBI, extending his hitting streak to 10 games.

BUSCH DOMINATION

The Cardinals have won 11 of their last 13 games at home against Philadelphia and have captured the last five series between the teams in St. Louis.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Phillies: INF Cesar Hernandez was placed on the 10-day disabled list with a left oblique strain. He suffered the injury making a throw on Friday. … RHP Joaquin Benoit was activated from the disabled list and got two outs, allowing two runs and three hits. He had been on the DL since June 3 with a left knee strain.

Cardinals: C Yadier Molina was held out of the lineup for the third straight game with lower back stiffness. He is expected to return to the lineup on Tuesday, according to manager Mike Matheny.

UP NEXT

Phillies: RHP Jerad Eickhoff (0-7, 5.15 ERA) will face Boston RHP Rick Porcello (3-8, 4.46 ERA) in the first of a two-games series against the Red Sox on Monday. The teams meet for two games in Philadelphia on Wednesday and Thursday.

Cardinals: RHP Lance Lynn (4-3, 2.88 ERA) will pitch on Tuesday afternoon against Milwaukee in the first game of a day-night doubleheader. LHP Marco Gonzales will make his season debut for St. Louis in the nightcap.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Carlos Martinez has been waiting for this moment.

The St. Louis Cardinals’ ace right-hander struck out 11 and beat the Philadelphia Phillies 7-0 on Saturday, the first shutout and first complete game of his career.

“All I can really say is I’m living out my dream,” Martinez said through an interpreter. “This was one of my goals, one of my dreams. The next one is to pitch a perfect game. And I just feel so happy with my performance. I was completely focused today. All of my pitches were perfect, in my opinion. The location, they were perfect. I’m just really happy.”

Jedd Gyorko drove in three runs for the Cardinals, who have won two straight against the Phillies after their seven-game skid on their recent trip.

“I think it kind of gets everyone feeling good,” Cardinals catcher Eric Fryer said. “Obviously the road trip was a rough one. Coming here, getting the win, breaking the streak, was obviously what we wanted to accomplish. Then coming out here and Carlos putting his foot down and just saying let’s get going, it’s pretty nice.”

Martinez (5-5) allowed four hits and walked one. Martinez’s 101st pitch of the game was a 100 mph fastball that struck out Howie Kendrick for the second out in the ninth.

The young righty has turned in some impressive performances in his four-year career — including tossing nine shutout innings in a 13-inning game last month — but Saturday’s start may go down as the best of them.

“I think he would tell you it was his best,” Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. “I don’t think we could disagree. What more would you want? He had the strikeouts when he wanted them. He pitched to contact at other times. He had the live fastball and wanted to show it off late because he still had it. Just did a little bit of everything. I thought he had a real nice rhythm too.”

“He threw all his pitches for strikes and changed speeds and had that velocity late in the game,” Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said.

Martinez survived a scare in the seventh inning when he was hit by a pitch on his pitching hand from Phillies reliever Jeanmar Gomez. He was down on the ground briefly but got up and stayed in the game. He later scored from third base on a sacrifice fly by Gyorko.

“Thank God it wasn’t anything major,” Martinez said. “I saw the ball. I thought it was coming right to my face. That’s why I reacted so quickly and moved out of the way. It only got my hand and nothing major.”

The Cardinals gave Martinez all the run support he would need with a four-run fourth, which tied their season high for runs in an inning, and then three runs in the seventh.

Gyorko opened the scoring with a two-run double off the wall in right-center, after a leadoff walk by Dexter Fowler and a double by Stephen Piscotty. Gyorko scored on a balk by Nick Pivetta. Fryer made it 4-0 with an RBI single.

Pivetta (1-3), making his sixth career start, allowed four runs and four hits in five innings, with four walks and two strikeouts.

St. Louis added three runs in the seventh on Matt Carpenter’s two-run double and Gyorko’s sacrifice fly. The Cardinals finished with six hits.

GETTING PICKY

Pivetta, the Phillies’ starter, picked off Fowler and Tommy Pham to end the first and second innings.

BALK THIS WAY

Pivetta’s fourth-inning balk was the Phillies’ seventh of the season. The seven balks have come from seven pitchers.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Phillies: 2B Cesar Hernandez was not in the lineup Saturday after experiencing tightness in his side during Friday’s game.

Cardinals: C Yadier Molina was scratched from the lineup for the second straight game with lower back stiffness.

UP NEXT

Phillies: RHP Aaron Nola (3-3, 4.28) tossed seven shutout innings, allowing just two hits, in his only previous start against the Cardinals.

Cardinals: RHP Adam Wainwright (6-4, 4.82) is 6-2 with a 2.85 ERA in 15 appearances (13 starts) against the Phillies. He is 3-0 with a 0.47 ERA in three day game starts this season.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Getting back in the win column was big for Michael Wacha and the St. Louis Cardinals.

Aledmys Diaz hit a solo home run and Wacha pitched six strong innings as the Cardinals snapped a seven-game losing streak with a 3-2 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday night.

Earlier Friday, the Cardinals, who had lost 17 of their last 22 games, reassigned some members of the coaching staff and released veteran infielder Jhonny Peralta.

“This definitely feels good,” Wacha said. “We have the music blaring in here after a win. It’s been awhile so it’s good to get back in that win column.”

Seung Hwan Oh pitched the ninth, earning his 14th save in 16 chances. He gave up a leadoff double to Odubel Herrera, who went to third on a ground out. But Oh got a strikeout and left fielder Tommy Pham made a diving catch on a line drive by Freddy Galvis to pick up the save.

“As soon as I saw Tommy running, I knew he had it,” Oh said through translator Eugene Koo. “We got the job done and I’m happy with the results.”

The bullpen had surrendered 11 runs in the previous 8 1/3 innings. Against the Phillies, the bullpen had three scoreless innings.

Wacha (3-3) went six innings before being lifted for a pinch hitter. He allowed five hits and two runs.

“I felt like I had pretty good command of mostly everything,” Wacha said. “Overall, my stuff felt really good.”

It was the first quality start in any of the past seven games for a St. Louis starter. Wacha had not able to finish five innings in each of his last three starts.

Jeremy Hellickson (5-4) took the loss. He pitched six innings, allowing 10 hits but just three runs. It was the 14th start of six innings or longer this season for the Phillies.

“Hellickson dodged bullets all night,” Philadelphia manager Pete Mackanin said. “He gave up a lot of hits but beared down when he had to. He pitched well enough to win and he pitched well enough to lose. We just couldn’t score.”

Diaz gave the Cardinals a 3-2 lead when he hit a two-out homer in the fifth inning.

“You never go to home plate expecting to hit a homer but I think when you put a good swing on it, you get a chance to hit a homer,” Diaz said.

It was Diaz’s first home run since May 1.

“I’ve got to keep the ball in the yard,” Hellickson said.

The Phillies scored two in the second with two outs. Howie Kendrick doubled and scored on a single by Tommy Joseph. Aaron Altherr then tripled off the wall in right.

The Cardinals answered with two runs in the third to tie.

“Those two runs got us back after being down two,” St. Louis manager Mike Matheny said. “The offense was putting some pressure on right away and got us right back in the game.”

Matt Carpenter singled and went to third on Dexter Fowler’s double. A sacrifice by Stephen Piscotty scored Carpenter and Jed Gyorko’s single drove in Fowler. St. Louis loaded the bases but Hellickson struck out Eric Fryer.

“I just didn’t execute that inning,” Hellickson said. “They took advantage of my mistakes.”

Philadelphia lost its third straight game. The lack of a big hit was a factor in this loss to St. Louis.

“We had a couple of chances with a guy on third and less than two outs and we didn’t get it done,” Mackanin said.

CHANGES:

Phillies: Philadelphia traded INF Taylor Featherston, who was at Triple-A Lehigh Valley, to the Tampa Bay Rays for cash considerations. He joined the Rays’ for their Friday game against Oakland.

Cardinals: Before the game, John Mozeliak, the Cardinals general manager announced some coaching moves. Mike Shildt is the new third base coach and will handle outfield defense. Coach Chris Maloney, in his second year as third-base coach, will be reassigned to a new role in the organization. Assistant hitting coach Bill Mueller is taking a leave of absence. Mark Budaska will join the club to take his spot. Also, Ron Warner will join the Cardinals to assist the coaching staff.

TRAINER’S ROOM:

Phillies: RHP Joaquin Benoit is expected to be activated from the 10-day DL on Sunday. He strained his left knee walking down the steps last weekend at Citizens Bank Park.
Cardinals: C Yadier Molina was scratched from starting lineup with lower back spasms. … St. Louis activated INF Kolten Wong from the DL. Wong missed 13 games with a left elbow strain.

UP NEXT

Phillies: RHP Nick Pivetta (1-2, 5.18) is coming off his first major league victory, an 11-4 win over Atlanta. The rookie went five innings, allowing three runs, six hits and three walks along with four strikeouts. This will be his first ever appearance against St. Louis.

Cardinals: RHP Carlos Martinez (4-5, 3.25) is 2-0 against the Phillies in five appearances. He has pitched six or more innings in his last eight starts.

— Associated Press —

CINCINNATI (AP) — Joey Votto had one of those frequent days when he hits everything hard — the last thing the St. Louis Cardinals needed at this point.

Votto had a two-run homer among his four hits, Adam Duvall had three hits off Mike Leake — his counterpart in one of Cincinnati’s rebuilding trades — and the Reds beat the Cardinals 5-2 on Thursday to complete a four-game sweep.

“Joey Votto is something else,” Reds starter Scott Feldman said. “I get a big kick out of watching his approach at the plate. You have to see him every day to appreciate how good he is. When he’s hot, there’s nobody better.”

The Reds hadn’t swept the Cardinals in four games since 2003 in Cincinnati, during the first season at Great American Ball Park. St. Louis has lost seven in a row overall for the first time since 2013.

“We’ve got a lot of guys who have been through runs like this,” Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. “This is baseball. It’s heavy right now, there’s no doubt about it. In the long run, we’re going to snap out of this. It’s just hard finding what that key is.”

Feldman (5-4) limited the Cardinals’ slumping lineup to four singles in seven shutout innings. Matt Carpenter hit a two-run homer in the eighth off Austin Brice. Raisel Iglesias got his 12th save.

The Reds traded Leake (5-5) to the Giants for Duvall in 2015, and the right-hander signed with the Cardinals after that season. Leake has yet to beat his former team, going 0-4 in seven starts with a 4.79 ERA. The Cardinals have lost all seven games.

Leake figures that the Reds’ familiarity with him — Votto is one of their holdovers from 2015 — helps them.

“I’m sure he’s a voice in their meetings, might speak up to kind of help other guys,” Leake said. “But I feel I’ve done a pretty decent job with Joey up to this point. Today he went 3 for 3, but he hasn’t really killed me.”

Duvall had an RBI double in the fifth, Scooter Gennett followed with an RBI single and Yadier Molina’s throwing error let in another run. Votto connected off left-hander Tyler Lyons for his 16th homer an inning later, giving the Reds all the room they needed to finish the sweep.

“Obviously, it’s phenomenal,” manager Bryan Price said. “That was an all-around great ballgame and a great series.”

The series highlight was Gennett becoming the 17th major leaguer to homer four times in a game during the Reds’ 13-1 win on Tuesday night. In his next two games, he went 3 for 8 with three singles and an RBI.

NICE PLAY

Leake escaped harm in the fourth when the Reds loaded the bases with no outs. Feldman struck out, and Billy Hamilton hit into an unusual double play: Carpenter fielded his grounder, stepped on first, and threw to Molina, who tagged Gennett at the plate.

STATS

The Reds have won 11 of their last 16 games against St. Louis. They outscored the Cardinals 28-9 during the sweep. … Votto’s four hits matched his career high. He’s done it 22 times. … Duvall has hits in six straight plate appearances against Leake. He’s 11 for 22 career off him. … Leake allowed a season-high 10 hits in five innings. … Zack Cozart has reached safely in 30 straight games, the longest on-base streak by a Reds shortstop since Barry Larkin’s 31-game streak in 1991.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Cardinals: Dexter Fowler was back after getting a day out of the starting lineup to rest. He went 0 for 4.

Reds: RHP Anthony DeSclafani is behind schedule in recovering from a strained elbow that has sidelined him since spring training. Manager Bryan Price said Thursday that he’s probably not going to be ready until August. … LHP Brandon Finnegan will make a rehab appearance for Double-A Pensacola on Sunday and could be back by the end of the month. Finnegan has been sidelined since mid-April by a sore left shoulder.

UP NEXT

Cardinals: Michael Wacha (2-3) faces the Phillies’ Jeremy Hellickson (5-3) as the Cardinals open a seven-game homestand. Wacha allowed six runs in 4 1/3 innings of a 7-6 loss at Wrigley Field on Sunday.

Reds: LHP Amir Garrett (3-4) makes his second start since returning from a hip injury, facing LHP Rich Hill (2-2) as the Reds open a series in Los Angeles. The Reds have lost their last six games and their last five series at Dodger Stadium.

— Associated Press —