Cardinals Vs. Giants Final Score: St. Louis Falls To San Francisco, 7-5

St. Louis held a 4-3 lead as late as the sixth inning on Thursday, but the Giants picked up two runs in the bottom of the sixth and two more in the seventh, which was enough to earn San Francisco a 7-5 victory.

Related: The St. Louis Cardinals Need All That Depth We Were Bragging About

Adam Wainwright gave up five runs (though only two were earned) on six hits in 5-2/3 innings pitched. Giants starter Matt Cain allowed four runs on eight hits over six innings.

Matt Carpenter and Lance Berkman had multi-hit games for St. Louis; Matt Holliday and Yadier Molina each hit a home run.

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis. Visit Viva El Birdos for more in-depth coverage of the St. Louis Cardinals. For more news and updates from around the MLB, drop by Baseball Nation with Rob Neyer, or dig deeper into the stats at Beyond the Box Score.

Cardinals Vs. Giants Score Update: St. Louis Leads 4-3 In The 5th

Adam Wainwright struggled on the mound early on Thursday afternoon, but the St. Louis Cardinals nonetheless hold a 4-3 lead over the San Francisco Giants in the fifth inning. St. Louis is looking for its third win in a row.

Related: The St. Louis Cardinals Need All That Depth We Were Bragging About

Through 4-2/3 innings of work, Wainwright has allowed three runs on four hits and he has walked four batters. Giants starter Matt Cain has already giving up eight hits on the day.

At the plate for St. Louis, Matt Carpenter is 3-3, while Matt Holliday has hit a two-run home run.

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis. Visit Viva El Birdos for more in-depth coverage of the St. Louis Cardinals. For more news and updates from around the MLB, drop by Baseball Nation with Rob Neyer, or dig deeper into the stats at Beyond the Box Score.

Cardinals Vs. Giants Lineups: Carlos Beltran Sits, Matt Carpenter Starts In Right

RF Carlos Beltran will miss his fourth straight game on Thursday afternoon. The St. Louis Cardinals (22-15) will send 1B Matt Carpenter to right field against the San Francisco Giants (18-19), looking to regain some of the lost production from Beltran's absence.

Carpenter has hit an impressive .273/.340/.523 with 3 home runs so far in the 2012 season, while filling in for 1B Lance Berkman and now Beltran.

Lineups courtesy of SB Nation San Francisco and FOX Sports Midwest:

Cardinals

1. 2B Skip Shumaker
2. RF Matt Carpenter
3. LF Matt Holliday
4. 1B Lance Berkman
5. 3B David Freese
6. C Yadier Molina
7. SS Daniel Descalso
8. CF Shane Robinson
9. SP Adam Wainwright

Giants

1. Gregor Blanco RF
2. Brandon Crawford SS
3. Melky Cabrera LF
4. Buster Posey C
5. Angel Pagan CF
6. Brandon Belt 1B
7. Emmanuel Burriss 3B
8. Charlie Culberson 2B
9. Matt Cain P

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis. Visit Viva El Birdos for more in-depth coverage of the St. Louis Cardinals. For more news and updates from around the MLB, drop by Baseball Nation with Rob Neyer, or dig deeper into the stats at Beyond the Box Score.

Cardinals Transactions: St. Louis Acquires Minor League Infielder Jamie Romak From Royals

The St. Louis Cardinals will looks to sweep the San Francisco Giants on Thursday afternoon to close out a quick two-game series at AT&T Park. But before Adam Wainwright takes the mound for the Cards, St. Louis made a minor transaction to acquiring Kansas City Royals infielder Jamie Romak.

The #Royals traded minor-league infielder Jamie Romak, who had been at Class AAA Omaha, to the Cardinals for cash considerations.

— Bob Dutton (@Royals_Report) May 17, 2012

Related: Cardinals Vs. Giants Preview: Adam Wainwright Ties To Give St. Louis 3rd Straight Win

Romak is 26 years old and Canadian born. He was selected by the Atlanta Braves in the fourth round of the 2003 MLB Draft.

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis. Visit Viva El Birdos for more in-depth coverage of the St. Louis Cardinals. For more news and updates from around the MLB, drop by Baseball Nation with Rob Neyer, or dig deeper into the stats at Beyond the Box Score.

Allen Craig Injury: St. Louis Cardinals' Slugging Reserve Leaves Game With Leg Issue Wednesday

Allen Craig, the St. Louis Cardinals' reserve slugger and high-value insurance for perennially gimpy Carlos Beltran and Lance Berkman, left their Wednesday night win over the San Francisco Giants with an injury the Post-Dispatch is reporting to be hamstring trouble. With Beltran out of Wednesday's game and Jon Jay on the 15-day disabled list the Cardinals are suddenly very thin in the outfield, and could be for the remainder of their weekend jaunt against the Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers.

Matt Carpenter, a third baseman by trade and a first baseman as the result of Lance Berkman's injury-shortened April, could see additional time in right field if Craig and Beltran both miss time, with Skip Schumaker's continued absence from the infield benefiting second basemen Tyler Greene and Daniel Descalso.

We should know more about the status of Craig and Beltran in time for Friday afternoon's series finale against the Giants, but if one of them needs to go on the disabled list to make room for a Mark Hamilton or Adron Chambers the Cardinals could regret pinch-hitting Carlos Beltran on each of his first two go-arounds with this current knee issue.

Cardinals Vs. Giants Preview: Adam Wainwright Ties To Give St. Louis 3rd Straight Win

Right-hander Adam Wainwright takes the mound for the St. Louis Cardinals today as the team concludes a two-game series with the San Francisco Giants at AT&T Park. Wainwright will try to turn around his struggling season while leading the Cards to their third straight win. The Giants are set to send out Matt Cain.

Wainwright enters at 2-4 with a 6.16 ERA and 1.50 WHIP. He was tagged for five runs and nine hits over 4.1 innings in his last start against the Atlanta Braves on May 12. Cain's numbers are a bit better. San Francisco's overpowering right-hander enters at 2-2 with 2.28 ERA and 0.74 WHIP.

Game Date & Time: Thursday, May 17, 2012; 2:45 p.m.

Location: AT&T Park; San Francisco, CA

TV: FS-M

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis. Visit Viva El Birdos for more in-depth coverage of the St. Louis Cardinals. For more news and updates from around the MLB, drop by Baseball Nation with Rob Neyer, or dig deeper into the stats at Beyond the Box Score.

Cardinals Vs. Giants Final Score: St. Louis Earns 4-1 Victory

The St. Louis Cardinals and San Francisco Giants were tied 1-1 heading into the seventh inning on Wednesday night, but the Cards scored one in the seventh and two in the eighth to earn a 4-1 victory. The win moves St. Louis to 22-15, while the Giants fall to 18-19.

Third baseman David Freese hit a solo home run in the seventh inning to break the 1-1 tie. In the eighth, Skip Schumaker doubled to left to score starting pitcher Jamie Garcia and shortstop Rafael Furcal

Garcia was brilliant for the Cards, striking out nine with no walks and allowing just the one run in 7.1 innings.

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis. Visit Viva El Birdos for more in-depth coverage of the St. Louis Cardinals. For more news and updates from around the MLB, drop by Baseball Nation with Rob Neyer, or dig deeper into the stats at Beyond the Box Score.

Cardinals Vs. Giants Lineups: Carlos Beltran Out Again For St. Louis Again

Carlos Beltran is off to a terrific start for the St. Louis Cardinals this season, but the right fielder will miss his second consecutive game on Wednesday night when the Cards take on the San Francisco Giants at AT&T Park. Beltran's surgically-repaired knee has been giving him pain lately, so St. Louis is being understandably cautious with their 35-year old slugger.

Related: Cardinals Vs. Giants Preview: Jaime Garcia Takes The Mound For St. Louis

Here's a look at the full St. Louis Cardinals' lineup tonight:

1. Rafael Furcal SS
2. Tyler Greene 2B
3. Matt Holliday LF
4. Allen Craig RF
5. Lance Berkman 1B
6. Davis Freese 3B
7. Shane Robinson CF
8. Tony Cruz C
9. Jaime Garcia P

Here's the Giants' lineup:

Tonight's #SFGiants lineup: Blanco RF, Culberson 2B, Cabrera LF, Posey C, Pagan CF, Pill 1B, Crawford SS, Bumgarner LHP, Burriss 3B

— San Francisco Giants (@SFGiants) May 16, 2012

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis. Visit Viva El Birdos for more in-depth coverage of the St. Louis Cardinals. For more news and updates from around the MLB, drop by Baseball Nation with Rob Neyer, or dig deeper into the stats at Beyond the Box Score.

Cardinals Vs. Giants Preview: Jaime Garcia Takes The Mound For St. Louis

The St. Louis Cardinals begin a two-game set with the San Francisco Giants on Wednesday night.