ST. LOUIS _ Veteran right-hander Jordan Lyles and four Pittsburgh relievers limited the Cardinals to just one two hits Saturday in a rain-delayed 2-1 victory before an announced crowd of 43,011 at Busch Stadium.
The hit off Lyles was an opposite-field Paul DeJong run-scoring double off the glove of right fielder Gregory Polanco in the third inning.
Pittsburgh came right back in the top of the fourth, getting three consecutive hits to score the runs it needed to beat Cardinals starter and tough-luck loser Miles Mikolas.
Lyles also walked three, but retired the last 10 Redbird hitters he faced.
The Pirates, who outhit the Cardinals 4-2 in the game, managed three consecutive hits in the top of the fourth to plate their three runs. After Starling Marte singled, Gregory Polanco plugged the gap in right-center for a run-scoring triple. Josh Bell followed with a run-scoring single to right center. The only other baserunner allowed by Mikolas (4-3) through seven innings was a two-out walk in the second to Colin Moran.
Mikolas retired 10 of the first 11 he faced and then _ after giving up three consecutive hits in the fourth _ set down the last 12 Pirate hitters to come to the plate against him.
Pittsburgh turned to relievers Richard Rodriquez, Francisco Liriano, Kyle Crick and Felipe Vasquez, who pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his 12th save of the season.
The Cardinals, who stranded six in the game, loaded the bases in the eighth, getting a leadoff walk from Kolten Wong, a two-out bloop single from Paul Goldschmidt and a two-out walk from DeJong. But Crick got cleanup hitter Marcell Ozuna on a grounder to first to end the threat.
The Cardinals broke on top with two outs in the third inning when DeJong followed up on Goldschmidt's two-out walk with an opposite-field double to right field.
Goldschmidt also walked with one out in the first and Dexter Fowler walked with two outs in the second.
Pittsburgh's only baserunner through three innings was Colin Moran, who walked with two outs in the second.
