Coverage of today's Cards and Blue Jays game can be heard on Newstalk 97.3 WTIM beginning at 5:30pm.

Kansas  City, MO (SportsNetwork.com) - Salvador Perez drove in the winning run in  the sixth inning  to help the Kansas City Royals to a 3-2 victory over the St.  Louis Cardinals  in the finale of a four-game, home-and-home set Thursday at Kauffman Stadium.

Eric  Hosmer  and Norichika  Aoki each  drove in a  run, while Yordano Ventura (3-5)  snapped  a four-start losing  streak after giving  up two runs on seven hits over six innings for the Royals, who took three of four in the set.

"You'll  take  a split in a  series, but you  don't pick up ground when you're taking splits," said Royals manager Ned Yost. "Today was a really big game for us, to take three out of four against a team like St. Louis is big for us."

Matt  Carpenter and Peter  Bourjos each had an RBI for the Cardinals, who have dropped seven of their last nine games. Michael Wacha (4-4) allowed three runs on seven hits over six innings.

"I  think that  we all know that  we're not playing up to our potential," said Wacha.  "I think that  we just keep on grinding, coming to the ball park every day and work on getting better, the results will change for sure."

The  Cardinals got  on the board in  the second inning as Jon Jay singled with two outs and Bourjos followed with a triple to center for a 1-0 lead.

In  the fourth,  Jay singled  and Bourjos  walked before  Carpenter punched  a two-out single to center for a 2-0 game.

The  Royals left men  on second and third in the fifth, but went on top in the sixth.  Back-to-back doubles  from Alcides Escobar and Aoki to start the frame scored  one run.  Two batters later, Hosmer  punched a single to tie the game. After Alex Gordon singled, Perez singled for a 3-2 lead.

Francisley Bueno pitched a 1-2-3 seventh, while Wade Davis did the same in the eighth.

Greg Holland gave up a leadoff single to Oscar Taveras and pinch-runner Randal Grichuk  moved into  scoring position on a wild pitch. Holland, though, struck out the next three batters for his 17th save of the season.

                                   Game Notes

St.  Louis starts  a  three-game set  in  Toronto on  Friday  ... Kansas  City welcomes  the New York Yankees for a three-game series beginning on Friday ... St.  Louis had won  six of seven against Kansas City coming into the four-game set  ...  The Cardinals left  seven men  on base as  the team was 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position.