ST. LOUIS (AP) — Chase Utley was searching for his batting stroke in April. He’s found it in May
Utley, Logan Forsythe and Chris Taylor combined to reach base 12 times and totaled six runs, helping the streaking Los Angeles Dodgers rally past the St. Louis Cardinals 9-4 on Tuesday night to move atop the NL West.
The Dodgers went ahead of the Colorado Rockies, who lost 10-4 to the Seattle Mariners.
Utley finished a homer shy of the cycle and was hit by a pitch as the Dodgers won their season-high sixth straight game. Forsythe reached five times, including three walks, and Taylor reached three times.
Utley has hit .333 (22 for 66) in May and he has three homers in his last six games after hitting just .122 in April.
The Cardinals, who’ve lost 10 out of their last 13 games, capitalized on a fortunate call and a couple of Dodgers errors to take a 3-0 lead in the first.
Michael Wacha (2-3) needed 77 pitches to get through three innings, the shortest outing for a Cardinals starter this season. Three of the four runs he allowed were earned.