ST. LOUIS, Mo. (Interstat) — Jake Bauers hit a three-run homer in the third inning to key a six-run burst as the Milwaukee Brewers beat the St. Louis Cardinals 8-4 on Thursday at Busch Stadium.

Milwaukee scored twice in the second on RBI singles by Sal Frelick and Cooper Pratt. Bauers’ home run, his 17th, followed a run-scoring single by Brice Turang and made it 6-0. The Cardinals answered with a run in the fourth on Lars Nootbaar’s single, then pulled within two in the sixth on Jordan Walker’s three-run homer, his 22nd. The Brewers added a run in the seventh and another in the ninth on William Contreras’ sacrifice fly.

Logan Henderson (3-1) earned the win, allowing four runs on five hits over six innings. Andre Pallante (10-6) took the loss, giving up six runs in 2 2/3 innings. Milwaukee outhit St. Louis 11-5. The Brewers improved to 59-34, the Cardinals to 48-44. Attendance was 27,028. Time of game was 2:52.