• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers
• Game Tracker

Dodgers pound Cards

Aug 8, 2013 - 6:27 AM St. Louis, MO (Sports Network) - Andre Ethier and Skip Schumaker each collected three hits and four RBI, as the Los Angeles Dodgers pounded out 18 hits in a 13-4 rout of the St. Louis Cardinals Wednesday in the third portion of a four-game series at Busch Stadium.

Carl Crawford finished 4-for-5 with an RBI and two runs scored, while Jerry Hairston plated a pair of runs to help the Dodgers bounce back from Tuesday's setback that snapped their franchise-record 15-game road winning streak.

Ricky Nolasco (8-9) earned the victory after giving up three unearned runs on seven hits over five frames.

Matt Carpenter and Daniel Descalso registered an RBI and scored a run apiece for the Cardinals, who have lost three of their last five games.

Jake Westbrook, who was slated to start Thursday's series finale, was forced into action after starter Shelby Miller was injured after just two pitches when he took a Crawford liner off his right elbow.

"I honestly thought he broke his arm," said Schumaker. "I've never seen a ball hit that flush on an elbow right there. Your first reaction is you want to find out if he's okay."

Westbrook (7-7) was tagged for nine runs on 13 hits over 4 2/3 innings to absorb the loss.

Crawford scorched Miller's second offering back up the middle, and as the right-hander tried to avoid the liner, the ball caught him flush on his pitching elbow.

Miller was immediately removed in favor of Michael Blazek, who escaped a bases-loaded jam unscathed later in the frame to keep the game scoreless.

Westbrook took the mound to start the second and the Dodgers pushed six runs across in the frame to take control.

Tim Federowicz and Dee Gordon smacked consecutive singles to start the frame before Nolasco's sacrifice bunt put runners on second and third.

After Crawford was intentionally walked, Hairston ripped a two-run single and Adrian Gonzalez followed with a run-scoring base hit to make it 3-0.

Yasiel Puig walked to reload the bases for Ethier, who laced a comebacker off Westbrook. The right-hander was able to recover in time to retire Ethier, but Hairston scored for a 4-0 edge.

Schumaker smacked a single to left to plate two more runs for a 6-0 cushion.

"You want to come in and do what you can and help the team out because you've had a decent amount of rest," said Westbrook. "You want to come in and do what you can but bottom line is I didn't do that."

Crawford's two-out single in the fifth scored Federowicz, but the Cardinals countered with three runs in the home half.

Descalso slapped a dribbler to the mound that Nolasco corralled, but his throw to first sailed, allowing Descalso to race around to third.

After Westbrook grounded out back to the mound, Carpenter singled to left to score Descalso and bring the Cards within 7-1. Jon Jay and Carlos Beltran followed with back-to-back singles to make it 7-2.

Matt Holliday then stroked a single off his own to score Jay, but Nolasco fanned David Freese to end the inning.

The Dodgers got a pair of runs back in the sixth, as Ethier ripped a two-out triple before Schumaker, Federowicz and Gordon stroked three consecutive singles to push the margin to 9-3.

Descalso's RBI single in the home half brought the Cardinals within five, but the Dodgers pushed four more runs across in the ninth.

Ethier clubbed a two-out, bases-loaded double that scored three runs before crossing the plate on Schumaker's single to left to account for the final margin.

Game Notes

The Dodgers are 33-8 in their last 41 games ... Miller left the game with a right elbow contusion ... LA is unbeaten the last four times Nolasco has started ... The Dodgers have not lost back-to-back games since June 20-21 at San Diego ... St. Louis went 4-for-12 with runners in scoring position and left eight on base ... LA finished 9-for-20 with RISP and stranded 13 baserunners.