ST. LOUIS — Jaime Garcia pitched seven effective innings and hit a two-run triple, Carlos Beltran homered again and the St. Louis Cardinals extended their winning streak to a season-high four games Wednesday night with an 11-1 rout of the slumping Cincinnati Reds.
Beltran hit a two-run shot, his fifth homer overall and second of the series. Tyler Greene also had a two-run homer while Rafael Furcal had four hits and drove in two runs.
Garcia (2-0) allowed one run on seven hits and three walks. He was aided by four double plays and helped his cause with a triple off the wall in center field in the sixth that made it 7-1 and chased Mat Latos (0-2).
The Reds have dropped five of the first six games on their 10-game road trip and are already five games in back of the Cardinals in the NL Central. Devin Mesoraco drove in Cincinnati's only run with an infield single in the fifth.
Latos lasted 5 2-3 innings for his longest stint of the year, but was touched for eight runs on nine hits while walking three and striking out six.
The Cardinals greeted Latos rudely as Furcal doubled down the line in right leading off the first and Beltran followed with a walk.
Furcal later scored on Lance Berkman's infield single and David Freese delivered a two-run double.
Beltran made it 5-0 when he homered with two out in the second. That was not an uncommon occurrence — Beltran had also homered off Latos in his two other official at-bats coming into Wednesday, though Latos did later retire Beltran for the first time in the fourth on a groundout.
NOTES: Adam Wainright, who has never started a season 0-2, will try to avoid a third consecutive defeat when he takes the ball for St. Louis on Thursday. ... Of the eight position players that started for the Reds, only three were hitting better than .200 at the beginning of the night. ... Berkman left the game in the fifth inning after aggravating a left calf injury. He was to be re-evaluated and is considered day-to-day. ... Reds starters have not earned a victory since Johnny Cueto beat Miami 4-0 on opening day.
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