St. Louis Cardinals beat Atlanta Braves in 4-3 win

Peter Bourjos had a hot bat as the St. Louis Cardinals defeated the Atlanta Braves in a 4-3 win.

May 5, 2014; Atlanta, GA, USA; St. Louis Cardinals center fielder Peter Bourjos (8) hits an RBI single in the sixth inning against the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field. Image Credit: Daniel Shirey-USA TODAY Sports

Maybe all Bourjos needed was a start in the outfield and a few plate appearances. It certainly helped that he was 4-for-10 against Braves starter Aaron Harang entering Monday night’s contest. When all was said and done, Bourjos was 2-for-4 with a run and RBI. True, he’s still batting under .200 but it should be what he needed to get his confidence back at the plate.

Matt Carpenter got the Cards on the board in the fifth inning with a two-run double that scored Bourjos and Mark Ellis. Two batters later, Matt Holliday made it a 3-0 game when the ball was deflected off the glove of Braves third baseman Chris Johnson.

In the top of the sixth, the Cardinals got back to back singles from Allen Craig and Jhonny Peralta before Bourjos singled to right and drove in Craig for the game-winning RBI. With bases loaded, Yadier Molina grounded into a forceout when the ball deflected off of Harang. Following a challenge by the Braves, Bourjos was ruled out at third on a very, very close play.

The Cardinals were 3-for-9 with runners in scoring position on Monday night.

Shelby Miller got the win as he pitched just short of six innings on the night. He allowed two runs on six hits. The Texas native walked two and struck out five batters. With the 2 runs, his ERA now stands at 3.20 this year.

Pat Neshek, Carlos Martinez, and Kevin Siegrist pitched in relief before Trevor Rosenthal came in to pitch the ninth inning for his ninth save of the season.

Minor League Watch:
Kolten Wong: 3-for-6, 2B, 3 R, 3 RBI, .343 BA
Oscar Taveras: 3-for-6, 2 2B, 1 R, 3 RBI, .312 BA