St. Louis, MO (Sports Network) - It took Adam Wainwright's arm and bat to help St. Louis beat Clayton Kershaw and a team that had its number.

Wainwright drove in two runs, scored twice and pitched seven-plus solid frames, as the Cardinals downed the red-hot Los Angeles Dodgers, 8-2, in the middle contest of a three-game set.

The right-hander first drove in a run in the fourth and then was a big part of St. Louis' six-run sixth, knocking Kershaw (7-6) from the game in the process.

Kershaw also knocked someone out of the contest, as Cardinals outfielder Lance Berkman was removed from the game as a result of getting plunked in the right knee with a Kershaw offering in the third.

Wainwright (8-10) gave up two runs on seven hits with seven strikeouts and one walk over 7 1/3 frames. Rafael Furcal drove in three runs and Allen Craig hit a two-run double for the Cardinals, who have won four of five.

James Loney finished with two hits and a run scored for the Dodgers, who saw their five-game winning streak come to an end and lost to the Cardinals for the first time in the last nine meetings. Kershaw gave up eight runs on seven hits with four strikeouts and three walks over 5 2/3 frames.

Other than the win, the big news involved the health of Berkman, who immediately hit the deck after getting hit, slowly stood up and made his way to first. He stayed in the game, but was in obvious pain when advancing to second base on an ensuing single and was removed at that point.

Berkman took the pitch off his surgically-repaired right knee, and in a twist of fate, he tore the meniscus in his right knee while in the field against the Dodgers on May 19, a game Kershaw started. Tuesday was just Berkman's sixth start since returning from that injury.

The Sports Network