NEW YORK (AP) - Randal Grichuk had three extra base hits and drove in three runs a night after striking out five times, Mark Reynolds homered among his three hits and the St. Louis Cardinals teed off on Mets starter Jonathon Niese for a 10-2 victory over New York on Tuesday night.
Michael Wacha (6-0) gave up a two-run homer to Daniel Murphy in seven innings of four-hit ball to join the Mets' Bartolo Colon and Seattle's Felix Hernandez for most wins in the majors. The six wins are a career-high for the 23-year-old right-hander.
After his team went 0 for 11 with runners in scoring position in a 2-1, 14-inning loss Monday night, Cardinals manager Matheny loaded his lineup with right-handers to face the lefty Niese, leaving Jason Heyward, Matt Carpenter and Matt Adams on the bench.
The new look order broke out to match the Cardinals' season high for hits, set on April 28 against Philadelphia - Wacha was the recipient of that largess, too. The NL Central leaders upped the majors best record to 26-13 with their fourth win in 10 games.
Every starter had a hit except for Matt Holliday, who added a sacrifice fly, and the Cardinals went 6 for 14 with runners in scoring position. Wacha contributed a safety squeeze in the second to give St. Loius a 2-0 lead, and he bunted for a single in the six-run sixth, when second baseman Murphy failed to cover first leaving reliever Eric Goeddel with no one to throw to.
In a matchup between two of the NL's top 10 ERA leaders only Wacha lived up to the billing.
Niese (3-4) had his second straight rough outing. After giving up six runs - four earned - to the Cubs on Thursday, he was off from the first pitch, a single by Peter Bourjos.
Grichuk followed with an RBI double off the wall in left. Grichuk tripled off the glove of center fielder Juan Lagares leading off the third and added a two-run double in the sixth.
The first four batters in the sixth reached on hits, with Kolton Wong's two-run double chasing Niese.
Mets pinch-hitter Darrell Ceciliani reached on a high chopper that never left the infield for his first major league hit in his first at-bat.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Cardinals: OF Jon Jay (left wrist tendinitis), out since May 10, swung a bat indoors and made some throws on the field.
Mets: Closer Bobby Parnell (Tommy John surgery) pitched 1 1-3 innings in an extended spring game at Port St. Lucie, Florida. He allowed four hits, three runs - two earned - and struck out two. He did not walk a batter. "Certainly the velocity is not where we would like it to be," Collins said. "I think the biggest issue is his command is not where we would want it to be."
UP NEXT
Cardinals: Carlos Martinez has not been able to finish the sixth in any of his three starts in May. He's allowed 16 runs in those starts and is 0-2 this month.
Mets: Bartolo Colon has gone 45 1-3 innings without walking a batter, 2 1-3 innings off Brett Saberhagen's club record. The right-hander, who turns 42 on Sunday, is 4-0 in six starts against the Cardinals.
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