ST. LOUIS (Interstat) — Matthew Liberatore pitched six strong innings and Lars Nootbaar belted a three-run homer in the first inning as the St. Louis Cardinals defeated the Atlanta Braves 4-1 on Saturday night at Busch Stadium III.

The Cardinals snapped a four-game losing streak and improved to 50-44, while the Braves fell to 54-40. Attendance was 29,122, and the game lasted 2 hours, 19 minutes.

St. Louis seized control in the bottom of the first inning against Braves starter Reynaldo López. After Iván Herrera singled on a ground ball deflected by shortstop Jorge Mateo and Jordan Walker followed with a single to right field, Nootbaar crushed a 1-0 pitch to right-center field for his third home run of the season, scoring Herrera and Walker to give the Cardinals a 3-0 lead.

Nootbaar’s blast proved decisive as the Cardinals added a fourth run in the fourth inning. Nootbaar walked to lead off the frame, advanced on a strikeout and a strikeout, and then Blaze Jordan singled to center field, driving in Nootbaar for a 4-0 advantage.

Liberatore, who entered the game with a 4-6 record, allowed only four hits over six innings, did not yield an earned run and struck out six. He retired the first eight batters he faced before Drake Baldwin singled in the fourth inning. Liberatore worked around a leadoff single by Austin Riley in the fifth, forcing Eli White into a forceout and inducing two lineouts to strand the runner. In the sixth, he gave up a single to Michael Harris II and a single to Matt Olson, but Baldwin grounded into a double play to end the inning.

The left-hander threw 84 pitches, 60 for strikes, and lowered his ERA. He was coming off a loss July 5 against the Chicago Cubs in which he allowed three earned runs in five innings.

López took the loss for Atlanta, falling to 4-2. The right-hander pitched five innings, allowing five hits and four earned runs with three strikeouts and one walk. He surrendered the three-run homer to Nootbaar and the RBI single to Jordan.

Atlanta’s only run came in the seventh inning off Cardinals reliever Luis Gastelum. Mauricio Dubón led off with a home run to left-center field, his 10th of the season, cutting the deficit to 4-1. After Austin Riley struck out, Eli White doubled to left field, but the Braves could not bring him home. Joey Bart grounded out, and pinch-hitter Jim Jarvis struck out swinging to end the threat.

Cardinals reliever George Soriano pitched a scoreless eighth inning, striking out two and allowing no hits. Riley O’Brien worked a perfect ninth inning, striking out one, to earn his 24th save of the season.

The Braves had scoring opportunities but could not convert. In the fourth inning, Baldwin singled with two outs, but Dubón flied out to end the frame. In the fifth, Riley singled to lead off, but White grounded into a forceout, and the next two batters lined out. In the sixth, Harris II singled and Olson singled to put runners at the corners with one out, but Baldwin grounded into an inning-ending double play.

St. Louis’s Bryan Torres tripled in the second inning but was left stranded. The Cardinals managed only five hits total, but Nootbaar’s homer accounted for three of their four runs.

Atlanta used three relievers. Owen Murphy pitched three scoreless innings of relief, allowing no hits and striking out three, giving the Braves a chance to rally. But the offense could not deliver against the Cardinals bullpen.

The Braves had won the previous game of the series 2-1 on Friday, but the Cardinals evened the set. The two teams conclude their four-game series Sunday at Busch Stadium.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Atlanta Braves 5, St. Louis Cardinals 4. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Atlanta with a 52.40 percent probability to win. Atlanta had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus-1.5. The total score of 5 went over the over-under line of 9.