• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers
• Game Tracker

Cardinals pound Pirates

Jul 24, 2011 - 5:26 AM Pittsburgh, PA (Sports Network) - Yadier Molina went 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBI and Lance Berkman added a three-run homer, as the Cardinals knocked around All-Star Kevin Correia en route to a 9-1 win over the Pirates.

Jaime Garcia (10-4) tossed 7 1/3 innings to earn the win, with the lefty giving up only one run on eight hits for St. Louis, which has taken the first two meetings of this three-game series between NL Central contenders.

Correia (11-8) surrendered a season-high seven runs on eight hits in just 4 2/3 innings for the Pirates, losers of three straight after a brief stay in sole possession of first place in the division.

"They're a confident bunch obviously," Correia said of the Cardinals. "It's tough to get through those guys."

Pittsburgh's only run came in the form of Brandon Wood's RBI single in the second inning.

The Cardinals had taken a 2-0 lead in their turn of the second on run-scoring singles from Molina and Daniel Descalso, and extended the margin with a five- run fifth.

Three straight base hits opened the pivotal frame, with Albert Pujols' single scoring Skip Schumaker for a 3-1 cushion. Two batters later, Berkman hit one that landed in the grass cut-out beyond the center-field wall for his team- leading 27th home run.

Molina ended Correia's outing later in the frame with a solo blast off the left-field foul pole.

"We just had a bunch of good at-bats," Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said. "[It's nice] to get a crooked number like that."

Garcia stranded a runner on second in the sixth and induced one of his three double-play balls to end the seventh.

St. Louis went to the bullpen with two on and one out in the eighth, and Jason Motte got out of the inning unscathed. The visitors tacked on two runs off Jose Veras in the ninth on an RBI double by David Freese and pinch-hitter Gerald Laird's run-scoring groundout.

P.J. Walters tossed a 1-2-3 bottom half to seal the win.

Game Notes

Correia, who threw seven scoreless innings in a win at St. Louis on April 6, has a 6.62 earned run average at home this season as opposed to a 2.85 ERA on the road...Each Cardinals starting position player had a least one hit...Molina homered for the second straight game...Both teams wore Negro League jerseys as part of Heritage Weekend in Pittsburgh...The Cardinals go for the series sweep Sunday with Kyle Lohse throwing against Charlie Morton.