ST. LOUIS — There’s no place like Busch Stadium for Michael Wacha.
The St. Louis Cardinals starter worked six effective innings to improve to 5-0 at home this year as the Cardinals bounced the New York Mets 5-2 Tuesday night for their first five-game winning streak of the year.
Wacha (5-5) allowed five hits and a run, walking two and fanning seven. It was the 14th time in 15 starts this year that he had allowed three runs or fewer.
In posting its eighth win in nine games, St. Louis upped its record to a season-high seven games over .500 at 39-32 and drew within three games of first-place Milwaukee in the National League Central.
New York (31-40) lost for the 10th time in 14 games and has dropped eight consecutive road games. The Mets managed only seven hits and committed a pair of errors, including second baseman Daniel Murphy’s two-out miscue in the sixth that led to two unearned runs.
New York starter Jon Niese (3-4) pitched six innings, allowing eight hits and five runs, three earned. He walked one and fanned three.
Mets first baseman Lucas Duda homered off Jason Motte to lead off the ninth and catcher Anthony Recker doubled, but Pat Neshek retired the next three hitters on four pitches for his second save.
St. Louis catcher Yadier Molina opened the scoring in the bottom of the second with a leadoff homer to left, his sixth of the year and his first since May 24 in Cincinnati.
New York evened the score in the fourth when third baseman David Wright led off with his fifth homer, ripping a 2-2 offering into the seats in left. It was his first homer in 71 at-bats, dating back to May 28 against Pittsburgh.
After the Mets left men at second and third in the fifth, right fielder Jon Jay gave the Cardinals a 2-1 lead with a two-out RBI triple down the right field line, scoring third baseman Daniel Descalso.
Left fielder Matt Holliday grounded a double down the right field line to plate Jay.
NOTES: St. Louis RHP Adam Wainwright (elbow) is scheduled to throw off flat ground Wednesday to test his injury. The club still expects Wainwright, who skipped his start Monday night for rest, to make his next start Saturday against Philadelphia. … New York entered Tuesday night’s game with 47 first-inning runs, third behind only San Francisco and Toronto (48) for most in the majors. … The Cardinals signed RHP Jack Flaherty, the No. 34 overall pick in this month’s draft, to a deal including a $2 million signing bonus, above the slot-recommended total of $1.650 million. Flaherty will join RHP Luke Weaver, the team’s first round pick, at short-season Class A Jupiter.