Jon Lieber allowed two runs in seven innings of work to improve to 8-4 as the Chicago Cubs beat the St. Louis Cardinals 5-2 on Thursday to earn a split of their four-game series. Andy Benes (6-5) allowed three runs in five innings of work to take the loss for the Cardinals. Fernando Vina started things off on the right foot for St. Louis with a leadoff home run in the bottom of the first. But the Cards did very little with Lieber from that point on. With the loss, the Redbirds fall six games behind the first-place Cubs in the National League Central. St. Louis begins a three-game series against Barry Bonds and the San Francisco Giants at Busch Stadium tonight.
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