NLCS: Cards Even Series

ST. LOUIS (AP) —

 Kolten Wong hit a leadoff home run in the ninth inning and the resilient St. Louis Cardinals beat the San Francisco Giants 5-4 to square the NL Championship Series at one game apiece.

It was the third home run in the final three innings for the Cardinals. Pinch-hitter Oscar Tavaras delivered a tying home run in the seventh. Then Matt Adams briefly put St. Louis ahead 4-3 with a blast in the eighth.

Closer Trevor Rosenthal blew a save in the ninth as the Giants scored the tying run on a wild pitch before being bailed out by Wong in the ninth.

St. Louis was last in the NL with 105 home runs during the regular season. But the Cards have hit 11 homers in six playoff games — seven in the seventh inning or later.

The only downer for the Cards was the loss of their All-Star catcher Yadier Molina (YAH'-dee-eer moh-LEE'-nah). He left in the sixth inning with a strained oblique muscle on his left side.

Game 3 is Tuesday in San Francisco.

The scene for the ALCS shifts to Kansas City where the upstart Royals can go 3-up on Baltimore when that series resumes Monday night at Kauffman Stadium. Wei-Yin Chen, who was 16-10 in the regular season for the Orioles, tries to get Baltimore in the win column against Jeremy Guthrie, who was 13-11 in the 2014 campaign.