The Cardinals seized control with late scoring to defeat the Padres 2-1 at Petco Park, as Matthew Liberatore outdueled Michael King in a pitcher's battle that remained tight until the seventh inning.
Liberatore earned the win with six innings of three-hit ball, allowing one run while striking out six and walking three. The left-hander carried a 4.07 ERA into the contest and improved to 2-1 on the season. Riley O'Brien secured his 11th save with a scoreless ninth inning.
Alec Burleson tied the game in the fourth inning with a solo homer to right field that traveled 378 feet, his sixth of the season. The decisive blow came in the seventh when Masyn Winn tripled to right, bringing Walker home for what proved to be the winning run.
King matched Liberatore through six innings, allowing just one run on three hits with six strikeouts and two walks. The Padres took an early lead in the first when Xander Bogaerts singled to right, scoring Machado. Bradgley Rodriguez took the loss after allowing the go-ahead run in the seventh, falling to 0-2.
St. Louis snapped a one-game losing streak to improve to 21-15. San Diego's winning streak ended at two games, dropping them to 22-14.