| |
RECAP
|
BOX SCORE
|
GAME LOG
ST. LOUIS (AP) -- Scott Elarton stopped another losing streak for
the Houston Astros.
|  | | Houston's Richard Hidalgo celebrated his 25th birthday by hitting two homers against St. Louis on Sunday. |
He threw six solid innings in a 6-3 victory over the St. Louis
Cardinals on Sunday to end a four-game skid. Elarton also stopped a
four-game losing streak on June 27, and helped the team avoid a
sweep by the Dodgers on June 22.
The Astros have won only three of their last 13 games, and
Elarton has been on the mound each for each victory.
"It would be really easy to get down right now and just go out
there and not play hard," Elarton said. "But we come out and play
hard every day."
Elarton (7-3) gave up two runs on six hits with seven strikeouts
to become the Astros' first seven-game winner. He spent most of the
first month on the disabled list, but in his last three starts,
he's allowed four earned runs in 22 innings.
Mark McGwire's five-game homer streak at Busch Stadium ended. He
went 1-for-4, with an RBI single in the sixth inning, and struck
out twice. J.D. Drew homered, tripled and scored twice for the
Cardinals, who came from behind to win the first two games but
stranded five runners in the fifth and sixth innings Sunday.
"I feel like I'm getting in good shape," Elarton said. "The
arm is strong and I'm really getting pretty good command of my
pitches."
Richard Hidalgo had solo shots in the second and fourth innings,
and Jeff Bagwell connected for a three-run homer in the fifth -- all
off Darryl Kile (11-5).
"I've struggled in the first half to get a big hit for our
club," Bagwell said. "The only time it makes you feel good is
when you win."
Kile has given up a staff-high 21 homers, one more than Andy
Benes. He had 10 strikeouts in seven innings, allowing five runs on
seven hits with one walk.
"It's just another lineup," Kile said of his former team.
"What's the lineup trying to do against you? I made some mistakes,
and their hitters didn't miss them."
Bagwell and Hidalgo, who led off the fourth with a 456-foot
upper-deck shot, each has three homers the last two games. Lance
Berkman homered in the eighth off Heathcliff Slocumb.
The last time the Astros had eight home runs in two games was
Sept. 30 and Oct. 1, 1995, against the Cubs at Wrigley Field, when
they also homered four times in each game.
"The only thing that's a bit discouraging about it is it's the
same feast-or-famine offense that we've had all year," manager
Larry Dierker said.
The Astros, the three-time defending NL Central champions, hit
the season's halfway point with a 28-53 record. They were 47-34 at
this point last year.
At 48-33, the NL Central-leading Cardinals are nine victories
ahead of last year's pace. They have won 15 of their last 20 games.
"I expected to be this good," manager Tony La Russa said.
"You don't pay attention to the lead. This club is all about what
happens next."
Drew hit his 13th home run in the first, and tripled and scored
on McGwire's hit in the sixth. He's 15-for-37 during a career-best
10-game hitting streak.
Ray Lankford added an RBI double in the eighth off Jose Cabrera.
After an 18-minute rain delay, Marc Valdes worked the ninth for
his second save.
Game
notes
Thirty-two of the 56 earned runs Kile has given up have come
in his five losses. His ERA in the other 13 games is 2.58. ...
Second baseman Craig Paquette booted a grounder in the sixth for
the Cardinals' seventh error in three games. They entered the
weekend with the fewest errors in the NL. ... Hidalgo is 9-for-23
against St. Louis this season, with four homers and nine RBIs.
Bagwell is hitting .400, with four homers and 11 RBI against the
Cardinals. ... Hidalgo's other multihomer game in the majors came
Aug. 30, 1998, against Pittsburgh in the Astrodome. ... The loss
was only the second in 11 games for the Cardinals at Busch.
| |
ALSO SEE
Baseball Scoreboard
Houston Clubhouse
St. Louis Clubhouse
RECAPS
Cleveland 7
Minnesota 1
NY Yankees 5
Tampa Bay 2
Baltimore 3
Toronto 2
Chi. White Sox 8
Boston 2
Detroit 2
Kansas City 0
Oakland 10
Anaheim 3
Seattle 11
Texas 4
Atlanta 10
NY Mets 2
Florida 2
Montreal 1
Philadelphia 9
Pittsburgh 1
Milwaukee 4
Chicago Cubs 2
Houston 6
St. Louis 3
Cincinnati 14
Arizona 2
Colorado 3
San Diego 2
San Francisco 6
Los Angeles 5
|
