The Chicago Cubs rebounded from a shut-out loss in their series opener by defeating the St. Louis Cardinals 9–1 at Busch Stadium on Saturday night. Michael Busch opened the scoring with a first-inning double and later belted his 22nd home run of the season, a three-run shot that put Chicago up 5-0 in the second. Matt Shaw added a solo homer and an RBI triple, and the Cubs finished with 13 hits. Right-hander Colin Rea improved to 9-5, limiting St. Louis to one run over six innings. Cardinals starter Andre Pallante fell to 6-9 after surrendering six runs and lasting only 1⅔ innings, the shortest outing of his career. The victory moves the Cubs into position for a series win when they send left-hander Shota Imanaga to face Sonny Gray in Sunday’s finale.