ST. LOUIS _ Dakota Hudson allowed his first homer of August in his final of six outings in August. But he also pitched 7 2/3 innings for the first time in his big league career as the Cardinals got a start on their four-games-in-two-days marathon by holding off Cincinnati, 10-6, Saturday afternoon before a paid house of 44,738 at Busch Stadium.
Hudson, the top ground-ball pitcher in the majors, netted just six ground-ball outs out of the 23 he recorded although he had a career-best eight strikeouts. But, after giving up Eugenio Suarez's two-run homer, the 24-year-old right-hander allowed only two more hits _ four for the game _ as he recorded his 14th victory in 20 decisions and his 12th in his past 15 verdicts.
Over his past five starts in which he is 4-0, Hudson has permitted just 17 hits and six runs in 30 2/3 innings. He didn't issue his two walks until back-to-back in the eighth inning when he was replaced after 112 pitches.
Describing the home run he allowed to Suarez, Hudson said, "Hanging breaking ball. He was able to get a good swing on it and he pretty much hits the moon."
The rest of the way, Hudson pretty much was pumping first-pitch strikes. "Getting ahead is huge for me," he said. "The sooner they want to swing, the better off for me.
"I knew we had two doubleheaders coming up. I was trying to get as deep into the game as I could."
The Cardinals' win was their seventh in their past eight games and moved them two games ahead of Chicago in the National League Central Division race and three on the loss side.
Yadier Molina, who already had extended his hitting streak to seven games with a run-scoring double in a four-run first inning, blasted his fourth homer in his past four games when he sent a 426-foot shot to left center in the third inning. Molina's eighth of the season came off Cincinnati's Trevor Bauer.
Molina, beset by a thumb injury since the end of May, had only four homers in his first 83 games this season.
"I think he smells playoffs," Hudson said.
Besides Molina, Paul DeJong, who excelled defensively with two highlight-reel plays at shortstop, also doubled in a run in the first. Dexter Fowler, who had three hits, homered with one out in the second against Bauer and Molina connected with one out in the third.
The Cardinals then added a run in the sixth, courtesy of a balk called on Cincinnati rookie pitcher R.J. Alaniz and another in the seventh on Kolten Wong's single, his 19th stolen base and a single by Paul Goldschmidt, who had two hits and a walk besides lining out.
Tucker Barnhart's bases-emptying double highlighted a four-run Cincinnati eighth against Hudson, John Brebbia and Giovanny Gallegos, the last of whom allowed three inherited runners to score, matching his previous total (three of 38) for the season.
But Wong, on the 10th pitch of his at-bat, doubled to deep center to get two of those runs back in the bottom the eighth.
Fowler and Wong (two walks, two hits) were on base seven times as the top two hitters in the lineup.
"Dex, great at-bats. Kolten, great at-bats. We're looking at great at-bats throughout the lineup but starting at the top definitely helps," said manager Mike Shildt.
"We're just trying to get on base," Fowler said. "There's guys out there _ Ozo (Marcell Ozuna) and Goldy (Paul Goldschmidt) _ it's their job to drive in runs. We're just trying to get them in the right place."
Fowler actually leads the club in RBIs in August with 20. Since Aug. 11, he has knocked in 18, all but two from the leadoff spot.
It was the sixth time recently that Fowler had hit first and Wong second. The Cardinals are 4-2 in those games and Shildt said, "I think we'll keep going with it."
Wong has been on base seven times in the past two games, with five hits and two walks as he has bumped his average to .283.
The two-run double came after both pinch hitter Tyler O'Neill and Fowler had failed to move runners off second and third.
"My man (Wong) picked me up," said Fowler.
