ST. LOUIS _ Longtime ace Adam Wainwright gave the Cardinals exactly what they needed Sunday night.
Wainwright, in his second start after nearly four months on the disabled list with elbow trouble, allowed just two hits and three walks while striking out nine over six innings as the Cardinals beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 5-0, before 45,217 at Busch Stadium.
The victory, following 9-7, 3-0 and 17-4 Dodger wins in the series, allowed the Cardinals to snap a four-game losing streak and move back into a tie for the second NL wild-card spot.
The Cardinals open a three-game trip in Atlanta on Monday.
Wainwright (2-3) pitched around an opposite-field double from Justin Turner with one out in the first, getting Manny Machado on a flyball and Max Muncy on a called third strike.
The Cardinals jumped on top 1-0 when Marcell Ozuna led off the second inning with a solo blast on a 3-2 pitch. It was the 22nd homer of the season.
In the Dodger third, Joc Pederson singled with one out but was caught stealing following a rundown after a Turner strikeout to complete an inning-ending double play.
The Cardinals added to their lead in the fourth. Yairo Munoz led off by reaching base on a third-strike wild pitch and Paul DeJong followed with a single to left. An out later, Jedd Gyorko delivered on a hit-and-run with a single through the second-base spot, driving in Munoz for a 2-0 lead.
Yadier Molina's run-scoring single to left made it 3-0 and ended the night for Dodger starter Ross Stripling.
Pinch-hitter Andrew Toles walked with two outs in the fifth, but Wainwright ended the inning with a strikeout of Pederson. Wainwright, who struck out to lead off the fifth, returned to the mound for the sixth and retired Turner, Machado and Muncy to complete his 101-pitch night.
Wainwright recorded at least one strikeout in each inning he pitched.
The Cardinals added to their lead in the sixth, picking up an unearned run. After one-out singles from Ozuna and Gyorko, the runners were in motion when Molina chopped a ball down the third-base line. With Ozuna bearing down on him, Turner was unable to make the play and the ball ended up in left field. Ozuna scored and Gyorko took third on the error as the Cards' lead went to 4-0.
Lefty reliever Caleb Ferguson got Kolten Wong to hit into an inning-ending 1-6-3 double play.
Bud Norris came on for Wainwright in the seventh and walked Yasmani Grandal to start the inning before leaving following a medical visit to the mound. It was later reported as a blister on his right middle finger.
Norris' replacement, Jordan Hicks, walked Cody Bellinger but followed up by striking out Yasiel Puig on three pitches and getting a flyout and a groundout to end the inning. Hicks had two more strikeouts in the eighth, pitching around Turner's one-out single.
Martinez came on to pitch the ninth.
The Cardinals outhit the Dodgers 8-4, getting three hits, including a solo homer, from Marcell Ozuna and two-hit games from Molina (two RBIs) and Gyorko (RBI). Another Redbird run scored on an error.
For the Dodgers, Turner had an opposite-field double to right in the first and a line-drive single over a leaping DeJong off Hicks in the eighth. Stripling's record slipped to 8-4.
