Ian Happ and Yan Gomes hit two-run homers as the visiting Chicago Cubs defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 5-1 on Saturday for their eighth straight victory.
The Cubs have won 10 of their last 12 games to surge into the playoff race. The Cardinals have lost seven of their last nine games with trade speculation swirling around them.
Chicago starter Jameson Taillon (5-6) allowed one run on two hits and four walks in six innings. Relievers Michael Fulmer, Mark Leiter Jr., Javier Assad and Daniel Palencia closed out the last three innings for the Cubs.
Cardinals starting pitcher Adam Wainwright (3-5) remained stuck on 198 career victories. He induced three double-play grounders, but he allowed four runs on seven hits and three walks in six innings.
After rain delayed the game for 1 hour, 47 minutes, the Cardinals struck first. Singles by Brendan Donovan and Paul Goldschmidt and Lars Nootbaar's sacrifice fly gave St. Louis a 1-0 first-inning lead.
The Cubs moved ahead 2-1 in the third inning when Mike Tauchman reached on an infield single and Happ his hit seventh career homer against Wainwright.
Taillon walked Goldschmidt, Nootbaar and Nolan Arenado with two outs in the bottom of the inning, but Nolan Gorman flied out to end the threat.
Gomes made it 4-1 in the fourth inning by following Christopher Morel's two-out walk with his ninth homer of the season.
The Cubs pushed their lead to 5-1 in the seventh. Nick Madrigal, just back from the 10-day injured list, hit a single and scored on Tauchman's double.
Willson Contreras and Jordan Walker hit singles to start the bottom of the inning, but Fulmer retired the next three hitters.
The Cardinals loaded the bases in the eighth inning as Nootbaar hit a one-out single and Leiter walked Gorman, then hit Contreras.
Assad relieved Leiter and got Walker to tap a grounder back to the mound to strand the runners.
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