Jason Marquis needed only 98 pitches to toss a complete-game, five-hitter over the Astros Sunday. His performance helped the Cardinals to grab a 4-1 win over Houston, to wrap up a 13-game road trip.
Marquis’ only blemish of the day came in the fourth, when Lance Berkman broke a scoreless tie with his 16th homer of the season. But the Astros’ 1-0 lead didn’t last for long. In the sixth, Jim Edmonds drove in two runs with a single to start a three-run rally. Yadier Molina finished off the scoring surge with a single to score Edmonds and the Cardinals led 3-1.
Molina struck again in the eighth with an RBI single.
Marquis (11-13) notched his second straight compete game—on August 27, the tossed a 6-0 shutout against the Nationals.
The Cardinals finished the 13-game road trip by going 9-4. Their magic number to clinch the National League Central is 12 games.