Reds 6, Cardinals 2: Todd Frazier belted a pair of solo homers and Shin-Soo Choo went deep for the third time in five games to reach the 20-homer plateau as host Cincinnati claimed three of four from its National League Central rival.

Jay Bruce also homered and joined Brandon Phillips by recording an RBI single. Rookie Tony Cingrani tossed 5 1/3 solid innings for the Reds, who reside three games behind first-place Pittsburgh in the division and seven ahead of both Arizona and Washington in the race for the second NL wild card.

David Freese homered to lead off the fifth inning and Matt Carpenter scored on a wild pitch for the Cardinals, who have dropped six of eight to fall 1 1/2 games behind the Pirates in the NL Central. They'll open a nine-game homestand on Friday with a three-game set versus Pittsburgh.

After Frazier's initial homer with two outs in the third inning gave Cincinnati a 2-0 lead, Choo followed suit in the fourth by belting an 0-1 fastball from Lance Lynn (13-10) over the wall in center field. Bruce countered Freese's blast by leading off the bottom of the fifth with his team-high 27th before Frazier capped his third multi-homer performance in the sixth to extend the Reds' advantage to 6-2.

Cingrani (7-3) allowed two runs on four hits and struck out seven before three relievers combine to work 2 2/3 hitless innings. Aroldis Chapman retired the side in the ninth to preserve the victory.

GAME NOTEBOOK: St. Louis 1B Allen Craig was diagnosed with a sprain in his left foot after undergoing X-rays and an MRI exam. Craig, who will be re-evaluated next week, suffered the injury while rounding the bases in the fourth inning on Wednesday. ... Lynn fell to 0-5 in his last six trips to the mound after permitting four runs on seven hits in five innings. ... Reds SS Zack Cozart singled to extend his season-high hitting streak to 10 games.