St Louis : Albert Pujols scored three runs to lead the St Louis Cardinals to a 6-3 victory over division rivals the Chicago Cubs on Friday.
The win allowed the National League Central-leading Cardinals to maintain a one-game advantage over the Cincinnati Reds, who snapped a three-game losing streak with a 7-2 victory over the Florida Marlins.
Pujols hit a solo home run in the bottom of the first, his 29th of the season, and scored again in the third and seventh innings.
Cardinals starter Jake Westbrook earned his first win for St Louis since being acquired from the Cleveland Indians at the trade deadline.
He pitched six innings and allowed two runs on six hits and a walk, striking out three.
"Any time you can get a ‘W,' that's why you pitch, to win ballgames," Westbrook told reporters.
"But more important, the team won the ballgame. This is my third game, and it's the first team win we've had. That's what I want to be — I want to be a part of team wins, whether they're mine or somebody else's."
Westbrook also produced some offence, leading off the fourth inning with a double and later scoring the eventual game-winning run.
