PITTSBURGH _ An inning that tied a major-league record was followed soon after by a shortstop who set a club record as the Cardinals rallied, romped, and routed the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday night.
Paul DeJong became the first everyday shortstop in the 128 seasons of Cardinal baseball to hit three home runs in a single game.
DeJong's first homer keyed a nine-run inning that set all sorts of records and his final homer catapulted the Cardinals to a 14-8 victory at PNC Park. The Cardinals won for the 10th time in 12 games and remained a {-game back of the first-place Chicago Cubs. They have assured a series win in their fourth consecutive series since the All-Star break, and on Thursday they can go for a four-game sweep of the Bucs in Pittsburgh and try to complete a 7-1 road trip against division rivals.
DeJong had four hits and scored four runs.
His was the 22nd three-homer game in Cardinals history, and the first since Paul Goldschmidt had three homers earlier this season in Milwaukee. The only other Cardinal to play shortstop and have a three-homer game was Frank Shugart in 1894. He had the first official three-homer game for the club, and he played outfield mostly that season.
DeJong is the 13th player and second Paul in Cardinal history to have a three-homer game. His 14 total bases in a single game is also a rarity for shortstops.
The onrush of runs _ you can read about the record-setting inning below _ made a winner of Adam Wainwright. The righthander allowed four runs of vie hits and four walks through five innings. He fell behind 2-0 in the first inning before the Cardinals rumbled back with the nine-run second inning.,
Paul Goldschmidt hit a home run in his third consecutive game at PNC Park, tying a career long streak of homers. He took over the team lead with his 21st homer.
