Cards' Wainwright does it all in win over Crew

MILWAUKEE -- Here's one way for the Cardinals' Adam Wainwright to get back on track: start mashing.
Struggling on the mound to start this season, Wainwright took matters into his own hands at the plate on Friday by driving in four runs including a go-ahead, two-run homer in the Cardinals' 6-3 win over the Brewers at Miller Park.

Wainwright still has not thrown a pitch in the sixth inning, but Friday's result was much more palatable. In five innings, he limited the Brewers to two runs on six hits, with no walks and a season-high nine strikeouts for career victory No. 135. That pushed Wainwright past Hall of Famer Dizzy Dean for sixth place on St. Louis' all-time leaderboard.
"I never had stuff like that one game last year," Wainwright said. "Even if I'd throw a complete-game shutout, I was just making stuff up out there last year. This year, I have great stuff. I have to be more efficient. If you have nine strikeouts in five innings, you should be able to parlay that stuff into seven or eight innings."
Eric Thames went 0-for-5 with three strikeouts in his first start this season without a hit or a walk, but Ryan Braun homered for the Brewers and starter Wily Peralta drove in a run of his own with a two-out single in the second that gave Milwaukee a 1-0 lead.

That advantage evaporated in the next half-inning, when Wainwright hit a 96 mph sinker from Peralta to the left-field bleachers for a 2-1 lead. The Cardinals tacked on four more runs in a fourth inning highlighted by Wainwright's two-run single.
"I think that [ticked] him off," Peralta said of his run-scoring hit. "That's an RBI I got, and he got four after that."

Said Brewers manager Craig Counsell of Wainwright: "He's certainly, for a pitcher, capable of swinging the bat. But he's also a pitcher. So we have to be able to make pitches on those guys. He had a big night. His two at-bats were the difference in the game."
Peralta, who entered the night 3-0 with a 2.65 ERA, was charged with six earned runs on nine hits in four innings, with a walk and no strikeouts. It was only the third time in 116 career starts that Peralta did not log a strikeout.
"He's been pitching really good, working ahead and working hitters very tough," Wainwright said. "From a lineup standpoint, if a pitcher can do anything positive to influence the game it is great. I was proud of it."
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Safe at home: The Cardinals' four-run fourth inning appeared to be over with only three runs across after Braun caught Dexter Fowler's flyout and threw home to double-up Kolten Wong, who tumbled over Brewers catcher Manny Piña while trying to score. The Brewers were trotting off the field when Cardinals manager Mike Matheny challenged plate umpire Angel Hernandez's call, leading officials to examine two questions: Did Pina block the plate? And was Wong really out? Pina was deemed innocent, but a closer look at slow motion replays showed he never applied a tag to Wong, who stuck his landing and got his fingertips on home plate to give the Cards a 6-1 lead.

"The rule states in order for it to be blocking the plate, you have to attempt a slide. But if he would have attempted a slide where the catcher was, he would have never even got to the plate," Matheny said. "The guys' minds have changed from running the catcher over because the game has changed. That's a situation right there where they give you no choice and you have the freedom to hit him. That's kind of what you have to do."
Right through the heart: In his previous two starts, losses to the Nationals and Yankees, Wainwright surrendered nine earned runs on 21 hits over 8 2/3 innings, with seven total strikeouts. On Friday, with some calls on the corners from Hernandez, Wainwright struck out nine, a career high for an outing of five or fewer innings. His best stretch came in the second and third, when Wainwright notched five strikeouts in a six-batter span, including three in a row against the Brewers' Nos. 2, 3 and 4 hitters -- Eric Thames, Braun and Travis Shaw all struck out swinging -- in the third. The Brewers struck out 17 times in the game, a season-high.
"His curveball was definitely the pitch tonight that got him going," Counsell said. "He still has one of the best curveballs. It's a tough pitch."

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"It's definitely a boost of confidence. It makes me feel a bit more comfortable that they have faith in me throughout the struggles. It puts a fire under me to get going, too. If this is my job, I don't want to be out here struggling the entire season."
-- Brewers center fielder Keon Broxton, who took baby steps as he snapped an 0-for-18 drought with a triple on the same day the Brewers cut ties with their other center fielder, Kirk Nieuwenhuis.

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Braun is the Brewers' all-time leader with 291 home runs, but before Friday, he had not hit one at Miller Park against the Cardinals since April 8, 2012, off Jason Motte -- 128 home runs ago.
FOWLER EXITS EARLY
Fowler left the game prior to the bottom of the fifth inning with right heel bursitis, an injury he has been bothered by in the past. He was involved in a tag play at third base in the third inning and was attended to by the Cardinals' training staff, but that had nothing to da with the heel. Fowler had his wrist stepped on by Brewers third baseman Shaw on the play.
"My heel has been sore," Fowler said. "It has been sore for a long time. It usually loosens up, but it didn't loosen up and it was getting worse."
The Cardinals' outfield shifted completely with Fowler out, as Stephen Piscotty entered in right field, José Martínez moved from right to left field and Randal Grichuk shifted from left to center field.
WHAT'S NEXT
Cardinals: Coming off seven scoreless innings against Pittsburgh his last time out, Lance Lynn will take the mound against the Brewers for Saturday's 6:10 p.m. CT first pitch. Lynn has thrown 13 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings against Milwaukee, the longest current streak by an active pitcher.
Brewers:Chase Anderson will be on the mound for the Brewers when the series continues Saturday night, looking to continue a stretch of 15 starts dating to last season in which he is 7-1 with a 2.32 ERA. Anderson has a 2.42 ERA in five career starts against the Cardinals.
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