St. Louis manager Mike Matheny knows his lineup has the potential to score a lot of runs.
It didn’t live up to that potential against the last-place Houston Astros.
Bud Norris pitched into the eighth inning for his first win since May 21, and Jose Altuve homered and the Astros avoided a sweep with a 2-0 win over the St. Louis Cardinals, who are trying for the second NL wild card.
Norris (6-13) allowed two hits and struck out seven without a walk in 7 1-3 innings to snap a career-long 12-game losing streak which spanned 18 starts in the last National League game in Houston with the Astros moving to the American League West for 2013.
The victory broke a 10-game winning streak for the Cardinals over Houston and cut their lead over Los Angeles and Milwaukee to 3 1-2 games for the second NL wild card spot after both teams won Wednesday.
“When everybody’s on, it’s one of the best offenses in all of baseball and I don’t think anybody would deny it,” Matheny said. “But right now, we’ve got to figure out a way to make it happen.”