MLB: Los Angeles Dodgers 5, St. Louis 3

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 8 (UPI) -- Matt Kemp put Los Angeles ahead with a home run three pitches into the first inning Wednesday and the Dodgers beat St. Louis 5-3 in their playoff series opener.

In a game filled with wasted opportunities, the teams combined to leave 30 runners on base. The Cardinals had 12 men on through the first four innings and could score only two of them.

After the Cardinals scored a run in the top of the first, the Dodgers quickly took the lead for good against Chris Carpenter. Rafael Furcal led off the bottom of the inning with a single to left on an 0-1 pitch and Kemp then hit Carpenter's next offering over the wall in center for a 2-1 lead.

A bases-loaded infield single by Casey Blake gave the Dodgers another run in the third, Furcal delivered a sacrifice fly in the fifth and Russell Martin was hit by a pitch with the bases filled in the sixth to force in the fifth Los Angeles run.

A dozen pitchers saw action and gave up 23 hits and 13 walks. Four batters were hit by a pitch.

The win went to Jeff Weaver, who worked 1 1/3 innings in relief of starter Randy Wolf. Jonathan Broxton picked up a four-out save.

Broxton, however, made things interesting in the ninth. He gave up the third St. Louis run on a double by Mark DeRosa, which brought up pinch-hitter Rick Ankiel as the potential tying run. Broxton struck out Ankiel to end the game.

Carpenter gave up four runs on nine hits with four walks in five innings to take the loss.

Game 2 of the best-of-five series will be played in Los Angeles Thursday.