ST. LOUIS (Interstat) — Hunter Dobbins pitched five innings of four-hit, shutout ball and the St. Louis Cardinals erupted for six runs in the sixth inning to defeat the Cincinnati Reds 10-3 on Friday night at Busch Stadium III.

The Cardinals improved to 33-28, while the Reds fell to 31-31 before a crowd of 30,058 in a game that lasted 3 hours, 8 minutes.

Cincinnati grabbed an early lead with a three-run first inning against St. Louis starter Kyle Leahy. Blake Dunn led off with a single to center, and after JJ Bleday lined out, Spencer Steer walked. Sal Stewart doubled to center, scoring Dunn and Steer. Nathaniel Lowe flied out, but Eugenio Suárez singled to left, driving in Stewart for a 3-0 advantage.

The Cardinals answered in the bottom of the first against Reds starter Brady Singer. Lars Nootbaar singled and advanced to second on a throwing error by shortstop Edwin Arroyo. Iván Herrera reached on a fielder’s choice that erased Nootbaar at third. Alec Burleson singled to right, putting Herrera at third. After Jordan Walker struck out, Bryan Torres reached on a missed catch error by first baseman Sal Stewart, scoring Herrera. Masyn Winn walked to load the bases, and Nolan Gorman struck out swinging, but the Cardinals had cut the deficit to 3-2.

Singer settled in, retiring the side in order in the second, but the Cardinals tied the game in the third. Burleson led off with a home run to right-center, his eighth of the season, making it 3-3. Jordan Walker followed with a single, but Singer struck out Bryan Torres, Masyn Winn and Nolan Gorman to escape further damage.

The game remained tied until the bottom of the fifth. With one out, Herrera walked and was forced out at second on Burleson’s grounder. Walker then doubled to center, scoring Burleson and giving the Cardinals a 4-3 lead. Bryan Torres struck out, and after Winn walked, José Fermín flied out to end the inning.

The decisive moment came in the sixth. After Jimmy Crooks struck out, Victor Scott II singled to shortstop. Nootbaar doubled to center, scoring Scott II. Herrera singled to right, plating Nootbaar and making it 6-3. Burleson walked, and after Walker flied out, Torres walked to load the bases. Winn was hit by a pitch, forcing in Herrera, and Fermín singled to shortstop, scoring Burleson. Crooks walked to force in Torres, and Scott II walked to force in Winn, stretching the lead to 10-3. Nootbaar struck out to end the inning, but the damage was done.

Dobbins earned his first win of the season, allowing four hits and no earned runs while striking out six over five innings. He walked one batter. Leahy took the loss, surrendering three earned runs on five hits and three walks over four innings, striking out one.

Singer was charged with the loss, falling to 2-6. He allowed four runs, one earned, on four hits and two walks over four innings, striking out six. Zach McCambley pitched 2 1/3 innings of relief for Cincinnati, giving up one hit and no earned runs with two strikeouts. Brock Burke worked a scoreless eighth inning for the Reds, allowing one hit and striking out one.

Jordan Walker went 3-for-5 for St. Louis with a double and one RBI. Alec Burleson was 2-for-4 with a home run, a walk and one RBI. Lars Nootbaar collected two hits in six at-bats, drove in a run and scored twice. José Fermín contributed a pinch-hit single and an RBI. Victor Scott II scored twice and walked twice.

For Cincinnati, Sal Stewart went 2-for-3 with a double and two RBIs. Blake Dunn singled twice in five at-bats. Noelvi Marte singled in the ninth inning. The Reds managed only nine hits and left seven runners on base.

The Cardinals, who had lost four of their previous five games, snapped a two-game skid that included a 7-6 loss at Cincinnati on May 23 and an 8-1 win at Cincinnati on May 22. The Reds had won three of their previous four before Friday’s defeat.

Dobbins had last pitched on May 31 against the Chicago Cubs, earning a win with 3 2/3 innings of one-run ball, allowing four hits and striking out four.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Cincinnati 5, St. Louis 3. Interstat’s ELO system gave St. Louis a 54.70 percent probability to win. The Cardinals were installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus-1.5, and the total combined score of 13 went under the over-under line of 9.