Staked to a 4-0 lead in the top of the first inning, Washington Nationals starter Joe Ross was making the most of it.
The righthander, who had a 0.54 earned-run average coming into the game, allowed a leadoff single to Cardinals outfielder Jeremy Hazelbaker in the bottom of the first. But he set down the next 10 in order.
The Cardinals finally made some noise with two outs in the fourth, as Matt Adams singled and Yadier Molina followed with a single. The safety for Molina extended his hitting streak to 11 games and his on-base streak to 18 games.