Fowler delivers again as Cardinals sweep Reds

CINCINNATI — The St. Louis Cardinals rinsed the bad taste of being swept by the Chicago Cubs the best way they could — sweeping the Cincinnati Reds.

Dexter Fowler delivered again, hitting two doubles and a single as St. Louis overcame Scott Schebler’s two home runs to beat the Reds 8-5 Thursday night.

The Cardinals began the day 2½ games behind Colorado for the second National League wild-card spot and five games behind the Central-leading Cubs.

Fowler drove in two runs. He went 7 for 13 with 2 home runs and 6 RBI in the 3-game series.

Yadier Molina drove in two runs as the Cardinals completed their first sweep in Cincinnati since 2010.

“We didn’t play good games in Chicago,” said Molina, who reached a new career high with a team-leading 82 RBI. “We got good hitting, good pitching and good defense here. Everybody took good at-bats. That’s what we need to do.”

Five different Cardinals finished with two or more hits as St. Louis scored at least eight runs for the third consecutive game.

“There were a lot of good things,” Manager Mike Matheny said. “We had a big day. Yadi coming up with big hits. I saw some good things all day long across the board.

“It’s a huge game every night. It doesn’t matter who you’re playing,” Matheny added. “We were coming off a tough weekend, and the guys did a real nice job clearing their minds and getting back to doing

what they need to do to be successful.”

Carlos Martinez (12-11), celebrating his 26th birthday, lasted 61/3 innings on a muggy night with a gametime temperature of 85 degrees, allowing 4 runs and 9 hits.

“Carlos was OK,” Molina said. “His location was up sometimes, and they took advantage, but all in all, he was OK.”

Martinez improved to 3-1 in his last four starts. He gave up Phillip Ervin’s two-run home run in the fourth and a drive by Schebler in the seventh.

Schebler led off the ninth with a home run, his 29th of the season.

“I got that first one pretty good,” Schebler said. “Martinez got a couple pitches in on me. The last atbat, he just threw me a pitch where I was expecting it.”

Homer Bailey (5-9) became the third consecutive Reds starter to be lifted without getting through five innings. He gave up 4 runs on 7 hits and 2 walks in 4 innings. Manager Bryan Price pinch-hit for him with two runners on and two outs in the fourth.