The St. Louis Cardinals scored five runs in the first two innings to avoid getting swept by the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday, August 23.

Richie Palacios had three hits and had two RBI. Nolan Arenado drove in two and Paul Goldschmidt had two hits and an RBI as the Cardinals jumped ahead 5-0 after the second inning.

Zack Thompson went five innings, for the win. He gave up two runs on six hits, while striking out five.

Ke’Bryan Hayes hit his ninth homer of the year. The Pirates pulled within two runs after the sixth inning, but St. Louis added a run in the ninth to give Jojo Romero all the cushion he needed. Romero picked up the save after pitching the final two innings.

The Cardinals are 55-72 and remain in last place in the NL Central.

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The Cardinals open a series with the Philadelphia Phillies on Thursday. Miles Mikolas gets the start against Cristopher Sánchez.