Cardinals Beat Brewers; Snap Losing Skid

Ryan Ludwick hit a two-run single with two outs in the ninth inning, and St. Louis' shaky bullpen held today for a 5-3 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers that snapped the Cardinals' season-long three-game skid. Ben Sheets set a franchise record for strikeouts with 1,086. Still, the slumping Brewers lost for the seventh time in eight games.

Eric Gagne (1-2) got the loss for the Brewers – giving up consecutive singles to start the ninth. Sheets struck out six in seven innings, while Ryan Franklin, who took over the closer's role Saturday from struggling Jason Isringhausen, got three outs for his third career save and second this year. Chris Duncan hit a two-run homer for St. Louis. (More St. Louis Cardinals stories.)