Cardinals 5, Cubs 3
ST. LOUIS -- A quick start gave the St. Louis Cardinals control of their homestand and series finale at Busch Stadium Wednesday against the Chicago Cubs.
Carlos Martinez made sure St. Louis stayed in control, checking Chicago on three hits over seven innings in a 5-3 Cardinals' victory that was interrupted for more than three hours in the seventh inning by rain.
In improving to 3-0, Martinez went the distance, issuing three walks and fanning five as the Cardinals (8-7) wrapped up their homestand at 5-4. They also avoided a sweep at the hands of Chicago (11-4), which still leads by three games in the NL Central.
St. Louis scored all its runs in the first two innings against Kyle Hendricks (1-2), starting with a two-run homer to left by Matt Holliday in the first after a Stephen Piscotty double. It was Holliday's third homer of the year and his third homer in 13 career at-bats against Hendricks.
In the second, Yadier Molina doubled off the left-center-field wall and jogged to third on a Kolten Wong single. Hendricks wild-pitched Molina home, and after an out, Martinez blooped a single down the right-field line for a 4-0 lead.
Anthony Rizzo accounted for the Cubs' first run with a long leadoff homer in the fourth, blasting Martinez's first pitch 431 feet deep into the lower bowl in right. Rizzo was robbed of a two-run shot to end the first when center fielder Randal Grichuk leaped above the wall in left-center to snag his towering fly ball.
Hendricks lasted 5 1/3 innings, yielding seven hits and four runs with two walks and five strikeouts. It marked the first time this season that a Chicago starter hadn't lasted at least six innings.
After a rain delay of 3 hours and 21 minutes before the bottom of the seventh, the Cubs rallied off reliever Seung Hwan Oh for a pair of runs in the eighth on an RBI single by Rizzo and a fielder's choice grounder by Kris Bryant.
Molina supplied an insurance run in the Cardinals' half of the eighth with a run-scoring single that plated Grichuk, who walked and moved to second on a wild pickoff throw by reliever Adam Warren.
Trevor Rosenthal fanned the side in the ninth for his fourth save of the year and his 100th career save.
NOTES: Dating back to Sept. 15, 2015, Chicago entered Wednesday's game having won 16 of its last 17 regular-season road games. ... St. Louis RHP Seung Hwan Oh is the second National League pitcher to start a season with no runs and at least one strikeout in his first seven games. The Dodgers' Kenley Jansen did it in 2014. . Cubs starting pitchers came into Wednesday's contest with 11 straight quality starts and 13 in their first 14 games.