• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers
• Game Tracker

Yankees hold off Cardinals

May 29, 2014 - 4:09 AM St. Louis, MO (SportsNetwork.com) - Jacoby Ellsbury singled three times and knocked in three runs to boost the New York Yankees to a 7-4 win over the St. Louis Cardinals in the rubber match of a three-game set at Busch Stadium.

John Ryan Murphy tacked on a two-run base hit as part of a four-run third inning. The Yankees added three more in the fourth for a 7-0 lead.

"We had some big nights from a lot of guys," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "Everyone contributed up and down the line."

That was plenty of offense to support Hiroki Kuroda (4-3), who notched his first road win since July 25, 2013 at Texas. Kuroda scattered nine hits and gave up three runs in 5 2/3 innings to help the Yankees win for the fourth time in five games.

New York used four relievers to hold down the Cardinals.

Shelby Miller (6-4) was pounded for nine hits and seven runs in five innings to lose his second straight start.

Kolten Wong set a career-high with four hits and drove in a run, but the Cardinals couldn't build on a 6-0 win Tuesday when Lance Lynn threw his first career complete game.

The Cardinals actually had the tying run at the plate with nobody out in the ninth after Allen Craig singled and Yadier Molina walked, but David Robertson struck out the next three hitters to end the game.

Ellsbury's line hit to right-center field plated Brett Gardner for the first run. The Yankees then filled the bases before Murphy lined a single to right- center. Ichiro Suzuki followed with an RBI fielder's choice.

Kuroda avoided trouble in the bottom of the third. He gave up a pair of singles and then hit Craig to fill the bases, but Molina popped out to cap the inning.

Ellsbury's base hit to center plated two more in the fourth. He stole second and scored on Brian McCann's single to right.

"They were just on everything. You just didn't see a lot of bad swings. The damage was done," Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. "I don't have a good explanation for it and I don't think he (Miller) does either."

Daniel Descalso grounder to left field scored Jon Jay in the bottom of the fourth and Wong came home on Craig's groundout in the fifth for a 7-2 margin.

Jhonny Peralta scored on Matt Carpenter's double to center in the sixth, but Dellin Betances escaped a 1st-and-3rd jam when Matt Holliday flied out to left to end the inning.

Peter Bourjos flied out to right to strand a runner at third in the home seventh.

Randy Choate got a double-play ball to avoid a bases-loaded jam in the top of the eighth, and Wong made it a three-run differential in the bottom portion with a single that scored Carpenter.

Game Notes

Holliday, who singled in the third, has reached base safely in each of the first 24 games at Busch Stadium this season ... The Cardinals outhit the Yankees, 13-12, but St. Louis left 13 men on base ... Mark Teixeira was held out of New York's lineup for a fourth straight game due to inflammation in his right wrist ... McCann made his major league debut at first base.