MIAMI _ It wasn't necessarily John Gant's best game of the year. The Cardinals' right-hander had one-hit Cleveland for seven innings in a shutout win on June 25.
But Wednesday's outing against the Miami Marlins was a close second. Gant needed just 63 pitches, only 16 of them called balls, to traverse six innings in which he allowed only two hits and one run and retired the last 14 men he faced.
The bullpen finished the job and the Cardinals scored their fourth consecutive series victory by winning the rubber match of a three-game set, 7-1. Gant's win was his fourth of the season but just his second as a starter, the other coming in the aforementioned Cleveland game.
The go-ahead run scored in the sixth in familiar fashion. Matt Carpenter hit a solo home run. His National League-leading 31st homer of the season and 27th with nobody on base broke a 1-1 tie in the sixth.
Carpenter has five homers in his last six games.
Yadier Molina clubbed his 15th homer in the first inning and doubled in two runs in the ninth. Former Marlin Marcell Ozuna drove in a run with a double in the sixth and Paul DeJong knocked in two runs with a double in the eighth.
Left-hander Chasen Shreve retired the one hitter he faced in relief of Gant and Dakota Hudson got all five he opposed although he benefited from a diving stab by shortstop DeJong. Mike Mayers finished up as the Cardinals posted their 60th win and went five games above .500 for the first time since June 27.
