The St Louis Cardinals allowed five runs in the first inning, but claimed them back in the third, and then continued to pile on the offense in their 14-7 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies on Wednesday, May 14 at Citizens Bank Park.

Despite the Cardinals getting the first run of the game with two outs in the first, the Phillies quickly got to Sonny Gray, with Nick Castellanos and Max Kepler claiming RBIs, followed by a two-run blast from JT Realmuto. The Cardinals responded in the third with home runs from Lars Nootbaar and Alec Burleson that bookended RBIs from Brendan Donovan and Willson Contreras. Philly tied the game in the bottom half of the third with a home run from Kyle Schwarber, only for Masyn Winn to reclaim the lead for the Cardinals in the fourth. Alec Burleson had the game-winning hit, bringing home Noran Arenado and Contreras, but the inning ended when Iván Herrera was tagged out at third trying to beat the throw from Brandon Marsh.

An Alec Bohm home run in the bottom of the fourth ended Gray’s night on the mound, as he went just 3.2 innings and allowed all seven runs on eight hits with one walk and four strikeouts. The bullpen clamped down on Philadelphia’s offense, limiting them to two hits and two walks while striking out seven. Chris Roycroft would get the win for completing the fifth inning and also pitching a scoreless sixth. The Phillies’ Aaron Nola also lasted just 3.2 innings, taking the loss as he allowed nine runs on 12 hits, along with one walk and two strikeouts. The Phillies bullpen was also taxed, as Winn added RBI singles in the eighth and ninth. The Cardinals also claimed runs off two sacrifice flies and a wild pitch.

St Louis is back to a game behind the Chicago Cubs for the NL Central lead, with a record of 24-20. The Cardinals have the day off before starting the I-70 series Friday night at Kauffman Stadium.