St. Louis, MO (Sports Network) - Rick Ankiel added another chapter to his improbable comeback story, belting a grand slam to lift the St. Louis Cardinals over the Cincinnati Reds, 8-5, in the opener of a three-game series at Busch Stadium.
The pitcher-turned-slugger now has five homers and 14 RBI in just 17 games for the Cardinals, who moved to within two games of the Chicago Cubs for the NL Central lead. Yadier Molina hit a two-run homer.
With the win, Tony LaRussa became the winningest manager in club history, passing Red Schoendienst with his 1,042nd victory.
The game featured a scary moment, as St. Louis outfielder Juan Encarnacion suffered a left eye injury after being hit by a foul ball in the on-deck circle. He was taken to a local hospital for further evaluation.
Starter Anthony Reyes lasted just one-plus innings, allowing four runs on four hits. The bullpen was able to all but shut down the Reds attack from there, though, with Randy Flores (2-0) picking up the win after throwing two scoreless innings.
Josh Hamilton homered and drove in a pair for Cincinnati, which had won eight of 10 coming in. Tom Shearn started and allowed three runs over 4 1/3 innings, and Gary Majewski (0-2) took the loss.
With his club trailing 4-3 in the sixth, Ankiel stepped in with the bases loaded and one out and lifted a shot to right that just made it over the wall for his first career grand slam.
Pitcher Ryan Franklin added an RBI single in the eighth to push the lead to 8-4, then tossed a scoreless eighth to keep the Reds at bay.
Jason Isringhausen yielded an RBI groundout to Hamilton in the ninth for the game's final margin.
The Reds put up three runs in the first to gain the early edge. Hamilton led off with his 18th homer of the season. Alex Gonzalez was then hit by a pitch, and Brandon Phillips knocked him in a batter later with a triple to right. Adam Dunn followed with a double to make it 3-0.
Jim Edmonds countered with an RBI double in the bottom of the frame, but Edwin Encarnacion started the second with an inside-the-park home run to reclaim a three-run edge for the Reds.
Molina's two-out homer in the home-half of the second moved the Cards within 4-3.
Game Notes
Cardinals third baseman Scott Rolen was placed on the 15-day disabled list on Friday with an ailing left shoulder. Infielder/outfielder Russell Branyan, acquired earlier in the day from the Phillies, replaced Rolen on the active roster..This was the opener of a seven-game homestand for St. Louis.