Brewers take one back

~ Looper surrendered a run in the eighth, and Flores took the loss.

MILWAUKEE -- Cardinals reliever Braden Looper threw the pitch he wanted -- a sinker tailing low and inside. It was just what Corey Hart had been told to look for.

Hart's RBI single in the eighth inning lifted the Milwaukee Brewers to a 4-3 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday night.

Hart said hitting coach Butch Wynegar had told him what Looper's approach would be just before he went to the plate.

"I was just trying to get anything to put the bat on the ball," Hart said. "I talked to Butch and he kind of let me know what the guy had. I tried to stay focused and hit the ball where they weren't."

Corey Koskie walked to lead off the eighth and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by Gabe Gross. The Cardinals pulled reliever Randy Flores (0-1) for Looper.

"It's my job to get that guy out," Looper said. "I didn't get the job done."

Hart, who was pinch-hitting for reliever Matt Wise (4-3), singled up the middle on a slow roller to give Milwaukee its first lead of the game.

"I just tried to give him a quick preview of how he would throw," Wynegar said. "Braden's probably over there saying 'How in the hell did he hit that pitch?'"

Derrick Turnbow pitched a perfect ninth for his 17th save in 21 chances.

The Cardinals held a 3-2 lead in the seventh before reliever Adam Wainwright hit Rickie Weeks with a pitch. It was a major league-leading 13th time that Weeks has been hit this season. Weeks came around to score from first on Bill Hall's double to left field to tie the game 3-3.

"He pulled his hands in and made a good swing," Wainwright said. "Tip your hat to him, but I could've been a little smarter."

Starter Jason Marquis pitched in and out of trouble for the Cardinals, allowing two runs and five hits in six innings. He also walked five and struck out two.

"He looked out of whack," Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said. "Then he gets back in there and makes pitches."

Milwaukee starter Chris Capuano gave up three runs and nine hits in seven innings. He struck out five and walked one.

"It just seemed like every hit was finding a hole," Capuano said. "It was frustrating early."

That's when the Cardinals took a 3-0 lead, scoring two in the second on an RBI single by Gary Bennett and a run-scoring ground out by Marquis. Scott Rolen added a solo home run in the third inning that extended his hitting streak to 14 games.

Milwaukee answered with a run in the third on Geoff Jenkins' RBI single, and the Brewers closed within 3-2 in the fifth on Carlos Lee's RBI single before rallying for their 20th come-from-behind victory this season.

The night before, the Brewers had an early 6-0 lead evaporate after 10 unanswered runs by the Cardinals. The series finale is Sunday.

"It's easy to shut it down after a game like that. That's tough when you're that far ahead and lose," Hart said. "But we battled today, we came back from behind and it's a big step for us going into tomorrow with all the confidence in the world we can get another victory."

Noteworthy

* Cardinals infiedler Hector Luna snapped an 0-for-15 skid with a single in the second inning. He went 3-for-4 in the game.

Brewers manager Ned Yost said he hasn't decided about Wednesday's starter in Cincinnati. With four starting pitchers on the DL, Yost said he may start Capuano on four days rest rather than go with another new starter or Jeremi Gonzalez, who is suffering from shoulder tendinitis but is still active.

Marquis recorded his first no-decision of the season. He had been the only National League pitcher with 10 or more starts to have a decision in each game.

Brewers center fielder Brady Clark left the game after the second inning with a right shoulder injury after grounding into a double play. He will be re-evaluated on Sunday.