Cards fall 7-1 to Phils in pairing of newly acquired pitchers

~ Williams improved to 2-0 with Philadelphia while Masterson fell to 2-2 with St. Louis

PHILADELPHIA -- A change of scenery has done Jerome Williams well.

Jimmy Rollins homered and Williams tossed eight strong innings to lead the Philadelphia Phillies to a 7-1 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Sunday.

"I'm just happy that I'm actually doing the job that I've been doing," Williams said. "My stuff was there. It's just I wasn't using it right. I think I'm using it right now."

Williams (2-0) continued his fine form with Philadelphia, his third team this season. The right-hander allowed one run on five hits while setting a season high for innings. He was claimed off waivers Aug. 10 from Texas and has a 1.77 ERA since coming to the Phillies after pitching to a 6.71 ERA before his arrival in Philadelphia.

St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Justin Masterson throws against the Philadelphia Phillies in the first inning of a baseball game Sunday, Aug. 24, 2014, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/H. Rumph Jr)

Ben Revere had a pair of hits and an RBI for Philadelphia, which took two of three from the Cardinals for consecutive series wins for the first time since April.

Jhonny Peralta and Oscar Taveras had a pair of hits for St. Louis, which lost for just the third time in 11 games.

Justin Masterson (2-2) was lifted after giving up five runs and six hits over three innings. His ERA ballooned to 7.43 in five starts since the Cardinals acquired him from Cleveland on July 30.

"It's frustrating, but I'm trying to stay positive," Masterson said. "It's my responsibility to pitch better. It's a hard thing when you're not doing it."

Cardinals manager Mike Matheny stood behind Masterson.

"It was just one of those days," he said. "We'll continue to work with him. He's a worker. He wants to help us do better."

Chase Utley's RBI single put Philadelphia ahead in the first. The Phillies scored two more in the second on Williams' bunt and Revere's single, and Wil Nieves' RBI single in the third made it 3-0.

Nick Greenwood relieved Masterson and retired 10 straight batters before Revere's one-out single in the seventh. Rollins followed with a drive over the wall in left. It was the 16th homer for Rollins, who hit just six last season.

St. Louis got its lone run in the fourth on Taveras' single. But the Cardinals couldn't get anything else off Williams.

Matheny said the loss wasn't the result of the quick turnaround after Saturday's 12-inning marathon that took 4 hours, 53 minutes.

"We're a team that doesn't give excuses," Matheny said. "There was life. I didn't think we were dragging."

Revere, who began Sunday two points behind Justin Morneau for the NL batting lead, raised his average to .314.

Noteworthy

* The Cardinals' Matt Adams was back in the lineup at first base a day after Matheny said he tweaked his back fielding a throw in the 12th inning Saturday. Adams went 0 for 3 with a strikeout and showed no ill effects in the field.

* St. Louis travels to Pittsburgh for the first of three with the Pirates tonight. Right-hander John Lackey makes his fifth start for the Cards since his July 31 trade from Boston.