ST. LOUIS _ The Cardinals hit five home runs, including a grand slam by Aledmys Diaz, to back struggling starting pitcher Adam Wainwright and post a 12-5 win over Cincinnati on Tuesday night at Busch Stadium.
The Cardinals scored their first 11 runs via homers, all of which came in a four-inning span after the Reds jumped to a 2-0 lead.
The Cardinals started the night 1 { games behind the New York Mets and one behind San Francisco in the wild-card race. The Mets won and the Giants were playing a late game against Colorado.
Matt Carpenter started the Cardinals' scoring with a solo home run in the third inning. Diaz hit his first career grand slam in the fourth inning and Jhonny Peralta followed with a three-run homer in the fifth. Matt Adams had a two-run shot to center field in the sixth for the team's 16th pinch-hit homer of the season, and Randal Grichuk added a solo homer later in the inning.
Wainwright (13-9) picked up the win after working 5 2/3 innings, allowing five runs on 10 hits on 103 pitches. He avoided danger in the second and third innings, when the Reds left five runners, to keep the game close for the Cards' sluggers.
