Brewers end losing skid

MILWAUKEE — Milwaukee manager Ron Roenicke realizes one victory doesn’t necessarily end the St. Louis Cardinals’ recent dominance over the Brewers.

But it’s a start.

Wily Peralta allowed one run in 6 1-3 innings, and the Brewers beat the Cardinals 5-1 Wednesday to avoid a series sweep.

Milwaukee, which entered the series with a nine-game winning streak, had one run and six hits in losing the first two games to St. Louis. The Cardinals won last year’s season series 14-5.

“What’s really important — most important — is we lost two games to begin the series and we got that game back,” Roenicke said. “It’s important against our division, but we have to win more games than they do. It’s not head to head. We have to win more games this season then they do. That’s what we’re playing for.”

Peralta (2-0) allowed six hits and struck out three, and three pitchers combined for scoreless relief.

“He was a show-stopper today,” Brewers catcher Jonathan Lucroy said. “He stopped their momentum and shut them down. He was a lot of fun to catch.”

Cardinals starter Joe Kelly (1-1) gave up an unearned run and three hits in four innings. Kelly left in the middle of the fourth inning with left hamstring tightness after trying to beat out a bunt attempt in the top half.

“I felt like I tried to step a little quicker, maybe a little overextend and hit the bag a little bit before it and ended up tweaking it,” said Kelly, who said he was scheduled to return to St. Louis for additional examination and treatment. “I was feeling pretty good. I had three pitches working for me first time the whole year. I had a slider, and a pretty good curve ball breaking down and had some velocity on my fastball and was locating it.”

Milwaukee went ahead in the third inning when first baseman Matt Adams misplayed Logan Schafer’s leadoff bouncer for an error, Peralta sacrificed and Carlos Gomez hit an RBI double to the wall in right-center, one pitch after bunting foul.

The Brewers boosted the lead to 4-0 in the fifth against Seth Maness. Wily Peralta reached when his two-out liner went off the glove of shortstop Jhonny Peralta. Gomez walked, Jean Segura reached on an infield single, Lucroy followed with a two-run single and Aramis Ramirez had an RBI single.

“I saw the replay,” Roenicke said on Wily Peralta’s hit. “I thought the ball did something funny on him. When they showed the replay from the center-field camera, you can see the ball slowly turn over, which gives you the idea it’s going to knuckle a little bit. It kind of jumped behind him.”

Allen Craig hit his first home run of the season, a sixth-inning drive off Peralta. Pat Neshek walked pinch-hitter Lyle Overbay with the bases loaded in the eighth.

REDS 4, PIRATES 0

CINCINNATI — Johnny Cueto pitched his third career shutout against the team that beat him in the playoffs, and Joey Votto hit a two-run homer that led the Cincinnati Reds over the Pittsburgh Pirates for their first winning series this season.

Cueto (1-2) limited the Pirates to three hits and struck out a career-high 12 during his first shutout since 2011.

Francisco Liriano (0-3) threw balls on 10 of his first 13 pitches and allowed three runs, six hits and three walks in seven innings along with two wild pitches.

NATIONALS 6

MARLINS 3

MIAMI — Jayson Werth’s homer scored three unearned runs against Jose Fernandez, and the Washington Nationals rallied to beat the Miami Marlins.

Two errors in the sixth inning by Marlins catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia helped the Nationals overcome a 3-0 deficit. Pinch-hitter Zach Walters broke a tie in the eighth inning against Mike Dunn (0-2) with his second career homer — and his second in as many nights.

The Nationals took the rubber game of the three-game series despite being without four starters, including Bryce Harper, a late scratch because of a tight left quadriceps.

Fernandez, betrayed by his defense, departed for a pinch-hitter after seven innings. He allowed four hits and three runs, all unearned, with 10 strikeouts and no walks.

METS 5

DIAMONDBACKS 2

PHOENIX — Dillon Gee (1-0) retired his first 14 batters and allowed three hits in seven scoreless innings as the Mets completed a three-game sweep.

Arizona finished an 0-6 homestand in which it led at the end of just one inning and dropped to 1-11 in home games, including a pair of losses in Australia that started the season. At 4-14, the Diamondbacks are off to their worst 18-game start.

Anthony Recker hit a solo homer off Brandon McCarthy (0-3), who gave up three runs, nine hits and three walks — two intentional — in 5 2-3 innings. Aaron Hill and Paul Goldschmidt homered off Jose Valverde in the ninth.

BRAVES 1

PHILLIES 0

PHILADELPHIA — Julio Teheran pitched a three-hitter, Evan Gattis homered among a career-best four hits, and the Atlanta Braves beat the Philadelphia Phillies 1-0 Wednesday night.

Teheran (3-1) retired his first 12 batters before Ryan Howard led off the bottom of the fifth with an infield single. The 23-year-old righty struck out four and got 14 outs on flyballs in his first complete game in 38 career starts. He became the ninth Braves starter in the first 14 games this year to allow one run or none.

Philadelphia wasted an excellent outing by Cliff Lee (2-2). The ace left-hander struck out 13 and pitched around 11 hits, throwing a career-high 128 pitches.

Gattis drove an 0-2 pitch into the left-field seats in the fourth. It was his fifth homer in his last three games at Citizens Bank Park.

Lee, a prolific strike-thrower, often gets hurt on 0-2 pitches. He entered the game with five hits allowed, including two doubles, among a dozen 0-2 pitches.

After the slow-footed Howard reached on a slow roller toward second base that was fielded by shifted third baseman Chris Johnson, Teheran retired the next 11 batters before Carlos Ruiz lined a single to left with two outs in the eighth. Jimmy Rollins hit a single with two outs in the ninth.

Rollins stole second on a 3-0 pitch to Chase Utley. But Utley following with a game-ending groundout.

Pitchers had the advantage against bundled-up hitters on a chilly night. The temperature was only 47 degrees at first pitch.

YANKEES 3, CUBS 0

NEW YORK — Masahiro Tanaka allowed two bunt hits in eight dominant innings, Carlos Beltran homered for the third straight game and New York welcomed the Chicago Cubs to the current Yankee Stadium with a 3-0 victory in the opener of Wednesday’s day-night doubleheader.

Tanaka (2-0) struck out 10 for his second straight start, giving up a replay-aided hit to Junior Lake in the second inning and another bunt single to Anthony Rizzo leading off the seventh. Shawn Kelley allowed a single to Rizzo as he finished the three-hitter for his fourth save.

Dean Anna had a sacrifice fly and Jacoby Ellsbury added an RBI tap-out against Jason Hammel (2-1).

ORIOLES 2, RAYS 0

BALTIMORE — Miguel Gonzalez (1-1) and two relievers combined on a six-hitter, and Baltimore capitalized on two infield singles by Adam Jones.

Nick Markakis also had two hits for the Orioles, who outscored the Rays 10-1 in the rain-abbreviated, two-game series. Baltimore has won five of seven to reach .500 at 7-7.

RANGERS 3

MARINERS 2

ARLINGTON, Texas — Leonys Martin had a game-winning RBI single in the ninth inning as the Texas Rangers scored two unearned runs in a two-out rally against Fernando Rodney, beating the Seattle Mariners 3-2 on Wednesday night in a game that started as a battle of aces.

Rodney (0-1) retired the first two in the ninth before Kevin Kouzmanoff’s single that ricocheted off the glove of sliding shortstop Brad Miller and dribbled into the outfield. Mitch Moreland drew a walk before pinch-hitter Donnie Murphy’s grounder was fielded by Miller, whose toss to second base was high. The error allowed Moreland to slide in safely and extended the game.

The tying run came home on a wild pitch by Rodney, who had converted his first three save chances this season. Martin’s sharp single to left gave Texas its fourth victory in the final at-bat at home already this season.

Mariners ace Felix Hernandez struck out nine and had retired 10 in a row before Martin’s leadoff triple in the eighth ended the big right-hander’s night. Hernandez allowed four hits and one run, when Martin scored on a sacrifice fly against pinch-hitter Michael Choice, the first batter for reliever Charlie Furbush.

Yu Darvish struck eight and walked two in seven innings.

Rodney got off to a good start in the ninth, when he got Alex Rios on a flyout and struck out cleanup hitter Prince Fielder.

Martin also had nifty running catch, reaching and lunging with his arm fully extended steps from the center field wall to rob Dustin Ackley of a hit in the sixth.

But there was also a play in the fourth when Mike Zunino reached on what was ruled a single after a ball dropped between Martin and left fielder Shin-Soo Choo, who were both calling for the ball but backed off to avoid a collision. That was the last of Seattle’s seven hits in the game.

Darvish didn’t allow a run in his first two starts, but was down 2-0 in the second after No. 9 hitter Mike Zunino and Abraham Almonte had consecutive two-out RBI singles in the second.