Wainwright more than all right in Cardinals' 5-0 win
ST. LOUIS -- Once again, it looked like the old Adam Wainwright on the mound, as opposed to an old Adam Wainwright.
The veteran ace of the St. Louis Cardinals delivered his third straight dominant start on Saturday night, three-hitting the Miami Marlins in a 5-0 decision at sold-out Busch Stadium.
Wainwright (9-5) didn't permit a hit until Adeiny Hechavarria led off the sixth inning with a double to left-center field, prompting an ovation from the crowd of 44,840. Hechavarria reached third with one out but was stranded on a comebacker and a grounder.
That was as close as Miami (48-42) came to scoring against Wainwright, who walked two and struck out five in the 10th shutout of his career and the 22nd complete game of his career. Wainwright has won his last three starts, allowing only one run in 23 innings, and has lowered his ERA to 4.15.
Tom Koehler (6-8) lasted only four innings in taking the loss, allowing seven hits and four runs with three walks and four strikeouts. The result snapped a four-game winning streak for the Marlins, which fell a half-game behind the New York Mets for the National League's second wild-card berth.
St. Louis (47-43) received two hits each from Tommy Pham and Stephen Piscotty. Hechavarria had two of the Marlins' three hits.
St. Louis broke the scoring seal in the bottom of the third with four runs. Piscotty laced a two-strike, two-run double down the left-field line, plating Pham and Aledmys Diaz. Randal Grichuk followed with an RBI double to right and Matt Adams capped the rally with a run-scoring single to center.
Jhonny Peralta added to the margin in the fifth, crushing a 438-foot homer halfway up the bleachers in left-center field for his fifth home run of the year.
NOTES: St. Louis LF Matt Holliday didn't start after going 0-for-4 on Friday night, dropping his home average to .130 since April 30. He should be back in the lineup on Sunday when Miami starts LHP Adam Conley. ... The Marlins' 7-6 win on Friday night improved them to 14-4 against NL Central teams, the best winning percentage (.778) of any team against any division. ... 1B/OF Brandon Moss (ankle), St. Louis' top home run hitter with 17, isn't expected to return from his injury until the end of July. He was disabled July 5.