 to push the lead to 3-1. Morales, who went 3 for 4, has 16 hits in 24 at-bats over the six-game run. He went 12 for 16 in the series and started in the outfield for the first time since 2008. His six-game multi-hit streak ties him for the longest this season along with J. D. Martinez (Detroit), Jackie Bradley Jr. (Boston) and Xander Bogaerts (Boston). Kansas City reliever Dillon Gee (3-2) picked up the win allowing one run in two innings. Moss ripped his 17th homer of the season off Royals starter Chris Young, who gave up one run and one hit over four innings, but walked six. The drive, which went 477 feet according to the Cardinals, is the longest in the history of Busch Stadium. It is the second-longest this season behind Giancarlo Stanton's 490-foot blast for Miami on May 6, in a 6-4 win over Philadelphia. Leake gave up three runs, two earned, in seven innings. He struck out four and walked one. Kansas City pushed across an unearned run in the first before Jarrod Dyson doubled in Alcides Escobar in the second. St. Louis manager Mike Matheny was ejected in the sixth inning by home plate umpire Mike Everitt. It was Matheny's first ejection of the season. GOLD GLOVE MORALESMorales' last appearance in the field before Wednesday came on Sept. 27, 2008, while with the Angels. He handled all four chances on Wednesday and one on Thursday. TRAINER'S ROOMRoyals: RHP Kris Medlen made a rehab start for Triple-A Omaha on Thursday night against Memphis. Medlen was placed on the DL with right rotator cuff inflammation on May 11. Cardinals: OF Stephen Piscotty was given the night off after he tweaked his left ankle in the 12th inning of Wednesday's 3-2 loss. He is listed as day-to-day. INF Aledmys Diaz was held out of the lineup for the third straight game. He fouled a pitch off the area around his right eye on Monday. UP NEXTRoyals: RHP Ian Kennedy (6-6, 3.96) will face RHP Jeremy Hellickson (5-6, 4.23) in the first of a three-game series in Philadelphia on Friday. Kennedy stuck out 11 in seven innings in a 6-1 win over Houston on Sunday. Cardinals: LHP Jaime Garcia (5-6, 4.09) takes on Milwaukee RHP Matt Garza (1-0, 2.81) in the opener a three-game series in St. Louis on Friday. Garcia is 10-5 with 2.71 ERA in 19 appearances against the Brewers.
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Time: 07:15 P.M. EST Venue: Busch Stadium
ST. LOUIS -- Kansas City Royals manager Ned Yost is willing to do whatever it takes to keep the scalding-hot bat of Kendrys Morales in the starting lineup. Proof of that came Wednesday night in St. Louis, when Morales started in right field, the first time in eight years he opened a game as an outfielder. Usually a designated hitter, Morales handled four chances flawlessly, including a catch of Matt Carpenter's fourth-inning drive on which he banged into the wall. That, coupled with three more hits that upped Morales' average to .650 (13-for-20) in the past five games, leaves little doubt that Morales will roam right field again Thursday night when Kansas City ends its four-game interleague series with the Cardinals." I felt like he would be able to handle it, and his play tonight verifies it," Royals manager Ned Yost said. "He did a nice job. His play going back to the wall was fantastic." With third baseman Mike Moustakas gone for the year and center fielder Lorenzo Cain out for at least a couple of weeks, Kansas City (41-36) needs every bat it can get in the lineup as it tries to stay within sight of streaking the Cleveland Indians in the American League Central. The presence of Morales, who can tie a major league high this year if he collects multiple hits in a sixth straight game Thursday, should help the Royals as they try to capture three of four from their enigmatic in-state rivals. Owners of one of baseball's best road records at 25-15, St. Louis has been mop water at home. A 3-2, 12-inning defeat to Kansas City on Wednesday night was the Cardinals' sixth consecutive setback at Busch Stadium, dropping them to 15-22 at home for the year. By contrast, the Cardinals were a major-league-best 55-26 last year, when they were baseball's first 100-win team since 2011." I didn't know until just now what the record was," Cardinals right fielder Stephen Piscotty said after the Wednesday game of the team's home struggles. "It's game-to-game for myself and a lot of guys on the team." To break the home losing streak, St. Louis (40-37) turns to right-hander Mike Leake, who is making his first career start against Kansas City. Leake (5-5, 4.25 ERA) is coming off a 5-4 loss Saturday night at Seattle, where he lasted only 3 1/3 innings and gave up all five runs. The Cardinals will need a long start from Leake after using eight pitchers Wednesday night. New closer Seung Hwan Oh, Kevin Siegrist and Jonathan Broxton could be unavailable after working the past two games. The Royals trot out veteran right-hander Chris Young, who has been pummeled most of the year. A 13-5 loss to the Houston Astros on Saturday night saw Young last only 2 1/3 innings. He allowed seven hits and seven runs with four walks and two strikeouts in his shortest start since Sept. 1, 2014. Young (2-7, 6.54) is just 1-4 with a 3.74 ERA in seven career starts against St. Louis, and he has permitted a homer in his first 11 starts this year. Young might not have to worry about Piscotty, who injured his ankle in the 12th inning diving for Alcides Escobar's game-winning double and had to ice the joint after the game. Piscotty, who cracked a game-tying homer in the 10th, has played in all but four games this year.
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